During worship this past Sunday, we did an art project. You can see it in the picture above. We’re going to frame it and display it in our church lobby. Why? It has everything to do with the Sabbath Year. In Leviticus verses 1 through 7, we learn about the Sabbath Year. “The Lord saidContinue reading “A rainbow mosaic to help us trust in God – The Sabbath Year, Part 2”
Tag Archives: generosity
How a car for sale on Facebook led to a beautiful expression of Jubilee – Jubilee, Part 5
A person in our congregation has been seeking a reliable vehicle for months. Given their financial situation, our church Leadership Team approved using money from our Care & Share Fund to help them with the down-payment on the vehicle. During the past two months, they looked at numerous vehicles, and two really good possibilities fellContinue reading “How a car for sale on Facebook led to a beautiful expression of Jubilee – Jubilee, Part 5”
Jubilee failure and success in the ministry of Jesus – Jubilee, Part 4
Can we apply God’s Jubilee heart to our lives? To try to answer that question, we need to go to the New Testament, and there we learn that Jesus himself talked about the year of Jubilee. In Luke 4:18–19, we read that Jesus, very early in his ministry returned to his hometown of Nazareth, whereContinue reading “Jubilee failure and success in the ministry of Jesus – Jubilee, Part 4”
The anti-capitalist heart of God – Jubilee, Part 3
Is capitalism good or bad? If you search online, you’ll see that it’s a hot debate. It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the rest. Whether or not that statement is true (eg. democracy actually many excellent benefits), could we say something similar about capitalist economics. IsContinue reading “The anti-capitalist heart of God – Jubilee, Part 3”
How to be an encourager – 1 Thessalonians 4:9-10; 5:11, 14, 27, Part 3
Editor’s Note: I once again welcome Molly Stouffer as guest blogger. Molly is from Hagerstown, MD, studying Pastoral Ministries at Lancaster Bible College. It can be easy to encourage someone who’s got it all going well. But what do we do when someone comes to us after they lose a job? Their relationship ends? AContinue reading “How to be an encourager – 1 Thessalonians 4:9-10; 5:11, 14, 27, Part 3”
The intersection of generosity and gratitude – 2 Samuel 22, Preview
It’s Thanksgiving Week! As I write this, yesterday was Lancaster’s annual Extra Give, a one-day explosion of generosity for over 400 non-profit organizations in our county. I love that the Extra Give is always so close to Thanksgiving, because it seems to me that the two days go hand in hand. When we give, weContinue reading “The intersection of generosity and gratitude – 2 Samuel 22, Preview”
Two roadblocks preventing David from becoming king – 1st Samuel 25, Part 1
What is the largest number of people you ever had to feed? Maybe at a wedding or funeral you’ve had to feed a couple hundred people. As we continue the story of David in 1st Samuel 25, David’s army has 600 men, and they need to eat every day. This is why an efficient andContinue reading “Two roadblocks preventing David from becoming king – 1st Samuel 25, Part 1”
Is “He Gets Us” advertising worth the expense? – Q & A Week, Part 1
This week we take a break from our Relationships in the Church series. At Faith Church this past week I gave a Q & A sermon. I asked the congregation for questions ahead of time, and then I attempted to bring biblical theology to bear on their questions. Here goes… He Gets Us spent almost $15 millionContinue reading “Is “He Gets Us” advertising worth the expense? – Q & A Week, Part 1″
One man’s example of sacrificial generosity – Encourage one another, Part 2
One of the most famous encouragers in the Bible is Barnabas. But Barnabas is not his real name. Turn to Acts 4:36-37. In Acts 4:36, we learn that Barnabas’ actual name is Joseph, but he is called by the nickname “Barnabas” because he is known for being an encourager. “Barnabas” means “son of encouragement.” ThoughContinue reading “One man’s example of sacrificial generosity – Encourage one another, Part 2”
Some much needed perspective on how to worship the Lord – Psalm 96, Part 4
In Psalm 96, this psalm about perspective, the psalmist started with a repetitive phrase, “Sing to the Lord,” which we talked about here and here. And now later in his song, he returns to a repetition. Look at verses 7-8. “Ascribe…Ascribe…Ascribe to the Lord.” What does it mean to “ascribe”? “Ascribe is not a commonContinue reading “Some much needed perspective on how to worship the Lord – Psalm 96, Part 4”
Engaging Scripture 