This week, Beijing horrified millions of Hong Kongers with the enforcement of a new national security law that ushers in sweeping regulations criminalising secession, subversion, “terrorism” and collusion with foreign forces. Anyone accused of breaking this law faces extradition to China for trial and life in prison. The wording is so vague that no oneContinue reading “Pray for Hong Kong Christians”
Category Archives: Church
We Are Not Alone
The Christian Institute is backing calls from an MSP for places of worship in Scotland to open for collective worship sooner than 23 July. Churches in Scotland are only permitted at present to open for private prayer and funerals. Murdo Fraser, Tory MSP for Mid-Scotland & Fife, said it was “extraordinary” that pubs were allowedContinue reading “We Are Not Alone”
We Are Not Alone
The Christian Institute is backing calls from an MSP for places of worship in Scotland to open for collective worship sooner than 23 July. Churches in Scotland are only permitted at present to open for private prayer and funerals. Murdo Fraser, Tory MSP for Mid-Scotland & Fife, said it was “extraordinary” that pubs were allowedContinue reading “We Are Not Alone”
The Face of the Church Today
The regathering of churches for in-person services is garnering a lot of attention in both the religious and secular media. I totally get that. There are very few organizations other than churches that meet as a large group every week. The implications are significant. We are following closely as more churches open for in-person gatherings.Continue reading “The Face of the Church Today”
Back to the Garden
There is more. There is also mortality, because the wages of sin, finally, is death (Rom. 6:23). Death was the penalty that God first threatened for disobedience in the garden of Eden: “When you eat from it you will certainly die” (Gen. 2:17 NIV). Now we are mortal; having sinned in Adam, we also dieContinue reading “Back to the Garden”
A Gasp of Pain and Sigh of Relief
The lockdowns are slowly ending and churches are tentatively re-opening. Of course most are opening during vacation season so have begun with a much-reduced schedule of programming—typically Sunday morning services and not a whole lot else. But summer will soon be past and the busy fall season will be upon us. It’s safe to assumeContinue reading “A Gasp of Pain and Sigh of Relief”
The Power of His Goodness
Simeon the aged, when he held the child Jesus in his arms in the temple, prophesied that by contact with Him the thoughts of many hearts would be revealed; and this was one of the most outstanding features of Christ’s subsequent life. None who came near Him could remain indifferent. They might hate or theyContinue reading “The Power of His Goodness”
We Can Open Up the Highway
There are sharp-corner turnings in human history on this planet. More often than not, those changes are announced by strange and apparently unimportant and isolated events. Not caused by those events, but declared by those events. For instance, on the twenty-eighth of June 1914, in the obscure town of Sarajevo in eastern Europe, an archdukeContinue reading “We Can Open Up the Highway”
What You Should Know About My Empty Seat in Church
Navigating the reopening of church buildings is difficult for many people. This is especially true for me. I’m a pastor’s wife and the mom of three children who have a serious health condition and are at risk for complications from coronavirus. Before the pandemic forced us to shelter in place, I enjoyed arriving to churchContinue reading “What You Should Know About My Empty Seat in Church”
Helping Others Deal with Their Shortcomings Pt. 2
After listening and observing, you will eventually come to the point where a step of action is needed. As you pray over the written observations you have made about someone, you may want to discard some of your conclusions as being invalid. You might have been angry tired, or rushed when you wrote them, orContinue reading “Helping Others Deal with Their Shortcomings Pt. 2”
