Sunday Report

Easter is perhaps the most joyful time of the year for Christians worldwide, and Easter at Tabernacle of Praise is no exception. We had a fantastic time yesterday celebrating the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ!

Our parking was jam packed with the cars yesterday morning. Cars that brought about 90 TOP members and their guests to our service! The energy in the sanctuary having that many people worshipping together was tangible and moving.

Praise and worship was filled with songs of praise and joy. The worship team showcased a brand, new song by Matt Maher Christ Is Risen. Our very own Elder Jackie Bryant led the song!

After my message, we shared Holy Communion together. Normally, we hand out the bread and the juice at the front, people go back to their seats and then we partake together. This time, we had two round communion tables where people came up in groups of 6-8 and they shared communion right there at the tables together. It was a touching, intimate experience. We felt closer to one another by seeing each other while remembering the great things our Lord did for us on the cross.

Then came the event everyone was waiting for–the Easter Thank Offering! For the last three weeks, the people of TOP and I have been planning to give to God something extra on Resurrection Sunday just to express our gratitude for all He has done for us. Everyone was incredibly generous in their giving. You can see the details in our bulletin this coming Sunday. THANK YOU all so much for your gift!

The worship team started singing Oh, Happy Day by Tim Hughes, and the place went wild! People were dancing, singing and praising God. People came forward and began to share their personal stories of how God transformed their lives which brought us to the close of the service.

I can’t tell you how proud I am of TOP, or how much joy it is to be a part of this local church. We are living a resurrection life of joy and victory–together!

Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus

Did you get that? Sound like Greek? Close. It’s Latin for “Outside the Church, there is no salvation.” The Roman Catholic Church has been saying this for centuries, and although I can’t speak for the Roman Catholic Church, I do think it’s appropriate and necessary for us to think through that statement.

We are in the middle of what’s called Holy Week. It’s the time when we as Christians remember with profound gratitude and sober reflection the sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ. It ends with the celebration of Resurrection Sunday–also known as Easter–when we joyfully relive the morning on which Mary found Jesus’ tomb empty. All the affliction Christ endured was not meant to end in a sealed tomb forever. It was designed to blow open the doors of all our tombs! Jesus said He came to “seek and save the lost.” He also said that He is the “way, truth and the life. No man comes to the Father, but by me.” Our Messiah’s agony, death and resurrection provide the path for us to follow into eternal life.

And so, how could it be that extra ecclesiam nulla salus could possibly be true? Did our Lord truly have in mind that after all He undertook in His mission to save lost souls there would be a stipulation to our salvation like going to church? Yes, if going to church actually made you a part of the Church. 

It is clear that Jesus’ intent was not only to save us from something, but to save us to something. What was the great effect of sin? Isolation. Eternal separation from God and therefore separation from any kind of loving relationship. The only way one can be saved from isolation is to be saved into community. If our Lord had removed from us the punishment of isolation and had not made us a community, we would be suffering the same fate as if still under the weight of our sins!

God didn’t send Jesus to die for us so that we would go to church. He died for us so that we would be the Church. Being the Church means active participation in community life. It’s true. This means that going to church is a part of being the Church. But let’s not make the mistake of associating going to church with being the Church. I like what Eastern Orthodox Bishop Kallistos Ware had to say.

Outside the Church there is no salvation, because salvation is the Church. Does it therefore follow that anyone who is not visibly within the Church is necessarily damned? Of course not; still less does it follow that everyone who is visibly within the Church is necessarily saved. As Augustine wisely remarked: “How many sheep there are without, how many wolves within!”

This Resurrection Sunday, I am not only celebrating that my Lord Jesus saved me from isolation, but that He saved me into this beautiful family called the Church. For my part, I believe that there is no salvation outside the Church. My question is, “Why would anyone want to be saved outside of her?”

How are you going to celebrate this Easter with your church family? How do you celebrate with your own family?

A Little Pat on the Back

Isn’t always bad.

And so, today I just want to share with you that my blog post was published in a  publication called CrawfordCountyNow.com. You can read my article here.

I will be writing articles for them from time to time about my thoughts on Crawford County. This is good, because I’ve got a few thoughts on that subject…

What would you like to read about Crawford County? What would you like me to write about?

Sunday Report

I was hoping to get this post out yesterday, but–Alas! It didn’t happen. So, here it is, the scoop on what happened at Tabernacle of Praise this past Sunday.

As you may know, this past Sunday was Palm Sunday. We celebrated by inviting child evangelist Shad Austin and his puppeteer crew to our stage. We canvased Leesville with over 80 Palm Sunday invitations (designed by the most beautiful Mexican woman God ever designed) and palm fronds in the two weeks prior to the event. Numerous TOP members invited their family and friends. We also did massive beautifying work to the parking lot and flower beds in front of the main doors just for our guest’s viewing pleasure and comfort.

For all our efforts, the sanctuary was packed with approximately 90 people this past Sunday! The worship team kicked off the service with an inspiring set of songs that lifted everyone off their feet. People were generous during our offertory (for details please see your bulletin this coming Sunday). Shad and his team of puppeteers took the stage and ministered to our children and adults with a fun set of songs and illusions. Afterwards, 80 of us stayed to eat an incredible meal together in the Connection Cafe. Just before we ate, Bishop VanBuren surprised us by presenting his wife a birthday gift and dedicating a moving song to her.

I know this didn’t happen at TOP, but I wanted to share with you all about the Palm Sunday service I conducted at Magnolia Terrace. The director and leadership staff at Magnolia Terrace have been very kind to let me come in and conduct services for their residents each second and third Sundays of the month. Each time I go there, more residents show up in the room we have for the services. This time we had approximately 40 residents. At the start, we had about 15 residents participating.

I passed out palm fronds to each of the residents in the service. You should have seen their faces light up when I handed them out! They were glowing with memories of Palm Sundays past and the promise that they were still involved in the life of the Church. Joshua, my brother, led us all in a set of hymns (We pass out hymnals, but I’m telling you, most of these residents don’t need a book. Best choir I’ve ever led.) and then shared a musical piece with us. I taught on the origin and significance of Palm Sunday. It was so cool seeing all the residents waving their palm branches with me during the teaching!

Sunday night we had our Bible Study. Worship was absolutely beautiful. No other way to describe it. I led a study on the charismatic gifts of tongues and interpretation. In our studies, we take an informal, no-questions-barred approach. The discussion on this controversially used gift was challenging, enlightening, and stimulating. I love Sunday night Bible studies!

Finally, I just want to say THANK YOU to everyone who made Sunday one fantastic day of miracles and love! Thank you to all the men and women who worked hard on the church grounds, the Focus Group for inviting Leesville, my wife Ana for the invitation designs, the people who cooked food for the dinner, the clean up crew, those who invited friends and family, those who gave so generously during our offertory, those who came with me to Magnolia Terrace, to Shad and his puppeteers, to the worship team and to the people who came Sunday night and made our study so fascinating and profitable.

God’s blessings be on you all this week!

Super Leaders

…are super readers.

My son loves this PBS show called SuperWhy (Actually, I like just as much as he does, but I normally have something to do at 9:30 in the morning.). It’s about a group of superheroes called the “Super Readers.” They solve their daily problems by jumping into the world of the books in their book club and helping the characters of those book solve their problems. Each problem they solve in a storybook shows them the answer to the problem they have in life. Their motto: “When we have a problem, we look in a book!”

I hope my son gets this. It’ll make him more influential than he could ever imagine.

As a leader, when I have a problem, I look in a book. For example, right now I am in the middle of reading a book about running non-profit boards. Exciting, right? I think so too! Imagine how much further Tabernacle of Praise will go if leaders are consistently going to fun, focused and productive meetings! We’ll make wiser decisions faster, ensure the work gets done every time, and measure the amazing results and pass them on to you.

I’ve learned that the atmosphere and outcome of a meeting is the responsibility of the leader. I realized that my meetings are only so-so. So, I looked in a book, and I can’t wait until my meetings are the most anticipated event on my leaders daily calendar.

Which kids show have you learned from lately? Read any books lately?