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I Will Sing

SHARON ROCKWELL | CONTRIBUTOR When I hit a recent milestone birthday, my children made sure that I was celebrating for a full week. There were new surprises each day. My favorite was a poster board they created with their special memories about me, one for each year. My daughter wrote this as one of hers, “I loved that you sang hymns to me while you were fixing my hair for Sunday School.” I had almost forgotten about that! And it is funny that she would remember those times since I cannot carry a tune. But the words of those hymns and their truths are embedded in her memory, and now she sings those same hymns to her children! Ministry Through Song In Exodus, Moses led the people in song, a hymn of praise, to celebrate God parting the Red Sea and protecting the Israelites from Pharaoh’s army. Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to the Lord, saying, I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously. the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God and I will exalt him. (Exodus 15:1-2)...

I Will Sing2025-05-05T18:49:30+00:00

Church for the Super Busy Family

KATIE POLSKI | CONTRIBUTOR I was a few minutes early to our weekly Bible study when a fellow mom came and sat next to me, letting out a defeated sigh. Noticing her exhaustion, I gently asked if everything was alright. “Yes,” she answered apathetically. “I just don’t think I can keep coming to this study, though. We are just so super busy right now.” I felt frustration surface, and not because she might not return, but because I was overwhelmed as well, and she beat me to the complaining. I showed up that morning feeling utterly depleted, running on fumes myself. But I also lamented that returning the sentiment would only turn into what has become a “typical” suburban exchange: “How are you?” “Great; just super busy.” But I told her anyway, admittedly with an edge to my voice: “Yeah, I’m super busy right now too.” The Hidden Barrier to Church Connection Busyness. Everyone experiences it, in some season or another, because it is inevitable. There is work to be done, deadlines to meet, people to connect with, children and grandchildren with activities and responsibilities, and then… there is our church. During busy seasons, it’s easy to let church and community take a backseat. But it’s in these very moments of overwhelm that we need the church the most. As I sat in that Bible study with my friend, I was reminded of the power of consistent involvement—not just for spiritual nourishment, but for the encouragement and strength we draw from one another. I needed to be there amid the busyness. The church is God’s provision for our spiritual growth and need for community. As Hebrews 10:24-25 reminds us, we are called to “stir up one another to love and good works” and not neglect meeting together, especially as the days grow darker. The strength we need for the day-to-day grind comes from the body of Christ. One of the primary reasons people leave a church is because they do not feel connected to the body of believers. During our 25 years in ministry, if a family has not relocated, feeling disconnected is the main reason families give for leaving the church or looking elsewhere. If this has been the case for you, it may certainly be due to an unwelcoming community or because of leaders who do not set the precedent for a hospitable environment. But often, disconnectedness comes from a lack of involvement, and lack of involvement is blamed on a full schedule....

Church for the Super Busy Family2025-05-05T18:45:24+00:00

A Song of Thanksgiving

SHARON ROCKWELL | CONTRIBUTOR Folk songs tell us stories in musical form. The Smithsonian offers a collection called “Classical Folk Songs for Kids.” The recordings are songs that I remember my parents singing, and now I sing them to my grandchildren (they are all too young to notice I cannot carry a tune!). Who does not remember the words to “Big Rock Candy Mountain” and “Puff the Magic Dragon?” Hymns tell us stories as well. “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” based on Psalm 46, relates the attributes of God and records His mighty deeds. “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” tells the story from 1 Samuel 7:12 where, after God gave the Philistines over to the Israelites, Samuel set up a stone called an Ebeneezer to commemorate the spot where “Till now the Lord has helped us.” The hymn hits the hearts of everyone who has ever felt God’s redeeming love. A Thanksgiving Song The first song recorded in the Bible is one of thanksgiving (Ex 15:1-21). Moses sang it when the Lord saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians and from Pharaoh, with his host of warriors. After the final plague God brought on Pharaoh, the killing of the firstborn of Egypt including even Pharaoh’s own, Pharaoh reacted by finally relenting and letting the Israelites go. The Israelites’ firstborn were protected by the blood of the lambs painted on their doorposts. In anger, Pharaoh changed his mind and pursued the Israelites, intending to slaughter them before reaching the Red Sea. But God made a path through the Red Sea for His people, and when Pharaoh followed, the water surged around him and his chariots, destroying every last one. The Israelites witnessed the great power of the Lord and saw the Egyptians dead on the shore. With that, the Israelites “feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses” (Ex. 14:31). Moses’ response was to give God the glory and lead the people of Israel in a victory song. The Lord had demonstrated His faithfulness in a grand and glorious manner, saving the people of Israel. Selected verses from Moses’ song can provide a template for our own songs this Thanksgiving...

A Song of Thanksgiving2024-11-11T20:02:13+00:00

Freedom From the Idol of Control

VAL PETERSON|GUEST I grew up going to a summer camp where the campers would repeat a chant at the start of every day. The Camp Director would call out, “If it’s to be…” and the entire camp would shout back, "It’s up to me!”  I confess that at the time, I didn’t think twice about what kind of mindset this was instilling in me. In the moment, it seemed like a great way to encourage kids to get along, try new things, and make the most of our days spent away from home. While it’s been decades since I attended that camp and shouted the chant, it continues to be my mode of operation. It seems that with the more kids I have, the life experiences I walk through, and the responsibilities I carry on my plate, the temptation to believe this lie only grows stronger.  When Desire for Control Shapes our Life What’s most frustrating to me is that I have experienced “that breaking point.” After walking through the near loss of my husband’s life to a brain tumor, you would think that I would know by now that all control lies in the Father’s hands. In the darkest moments of that season, there was nothing I could do but trust in the Lord. Yet here I am today, still believing and living by my childhood summer camp chant.  I relate to the apostle Paul in Romans 7 when he wrestles with himself saying, “For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate” (v.15). I hate believing that it is “up to me” to make things happen in and around my life. Yet I am discipled by a culture that says “YOLO” and to “live my best life.” Whether it’s in manipulating circumstances to work in my favor, taking on a role that is not mine to fill, or just reaching for my phone in a moment of uncertainty, the temptation to believe that God is holding out on me and the resulting grasp for control often rules the functional theology of my life. This desire for security, productivity, and knowledge comes from a deeper belief in the lie that it is up to me to sustain the joy and vitality of myself and my family, which only leads me to feel less secure, more anxious, and out of control... 

Freedom From the Idol of Control2023-08-15T13:14:48+00:00

How Theology Leads to Doxology

BARBARANNE KELLY|CONTRIBUTOR One of the singular marvels of Scripture is Job’s response when he learned that he had lost everything. After a series of messengers bring him a string of devastating messages, piling tragedy upon tragedy in mind-numbing and soul-rending repetition, “Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and. . .” what? What does he do? Rend the heavens with his wails of grief? Fall into a state of catatonic shock? Scream until he has neither breath nor voice? He worships. From Theology to Doxology And he said, “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21). Job may very well have wailed and screamed in shock. To grieve deeply is no sin, as the rest of his story  bears out. But how, in that moment of devastation, can he worship? Job can worship the LORD because he knows something about him, and what he knows at that horrible moment is enough. Job knew that everything he possessed was an undeserved gift from the hands of a gracious God. When God determined the time had come to take the gifts away, Job “fell on the ground and. . . blessed the name of the LORD” (1:20–21). Later, when his friends accused him of hidden sin, Job knew with the certainty of a conscience washed in faith that his sin had been forgiven. He may have been perplexed at the will of the LORD to permit these horrors in his life, and he may have staggered under his repeated questions of “Why?” but he held fast his confession of faith; he knew that his Redeemer lived, and at the last he will stand upon the earth (19:25). Job’s theology led to doxology; what he believed about God fueled his worship. As believers, like Job, we naturally want to know why our gracious heavenly Father sends trials our way. But even when lacking specific answers, we can still rest on what we know to be true. Hence, it is important to learn what we can about our God who has revealed himself in the words of Scripture and in the person of Christ. I don’t know how Job knew what he knew about God, since he lived before the writing of the Pentateuch, but from the time of Moses God has graciously given us his holy, inspired, and inerrant Word as a guide not only to life and holiness, but to knowing him...

How Theology Leads to Doxology2023-03-24T17:22:45+00:00

What’s Your Red Stew?

SUE HARRIS|CONTRIBUTOR There are days when I head home from work and make a quick stop at the grocery store. On many of those days, I don’t have a plan for dinner, so whatever I purchase becomes that plan. But a problem arises when I enter the grocery store hungry. I lose all sensibility. What makes this moment more torturous is when I smell fresh fried chicken. I walk, mesmerized, into that area of the Publix. Any semblance of potential plans I had for dinner are mysteriously removed from my mind. I must get that chicken. I can think of nothing else. My grocery list is trimmed, and I hustle out of the grocery store on a mission. My mission? Eat that chicken. Some days I can barely make it the five-minute drive home before tearing into that box of fried chicken. You’ve heard the wisdom here: Never make a major decision when you are Hungry, Angry, Tired, or Lonely (H.A.L.T.). When our faculties are exhausted, it’s hard to think straight and it’s difficult to do almost anything correctly. There are some rare moments when I can walk past that fried chicken counter, but it’s typically when I’m not starving. A Hunger and a Demand My story of hunger reminds me of Esau...

What’s Your Red Stew?2023-03-24T17:47:44+00:00

Cultivating a Love for Worship in Our Children

KATIE POLSKI|CONTRIBUTOR When my youngest was about seven, I decided it was time to help her engage more in the worship service. Because she liked to doodle, I bought her a journal and pens and told her it might be easier to listen to the sermon if she wrote down some of what the pastor talked about. I suggested that she draw a picture of what he read from the Bible or write down a question she might have. The next Sunday, she opened her new journal with enthusiasm when the sermon began. The pens moved voraciously, and my heart swelled with pride. She was listening and learning! I couldn’t wait to see how her young heart responded to God’s Word. When the service ended and she hurried off to ensure she was the first in line at the snack table, I opened the journal and read this story...

Cultivating a Love for Worship in Our Children2023-03-24T17:48:59+00:00

Church is Hard, So Keep Showing Up

Anybody who knows me would call me a social butterfly. They might even joke that I go to church mainly for the coffee and fellowship. Well, they wouldn’t be far off. I so enjoy studying God’s word, singing rich worship songs, and hearing a gospel-centered sermon on Sunday morning. But I also enjoy gathering and talking with other believers, encouraging one another in the Lord. Isn’t that what draws most of us to a church—the people who welcome us and walk alongside us on the journey of faith? Anything but Normal Then came a pandemic, and as you know, things have changed drastically for churches and congregations across the country. COVID-19 hit, and we were left trying to figure out how to make Sundays normal when they are anything but normal. When the pandemic first arrived, my church met virtually. It was novel and cool for the first couple of weeks, but before long the newness of the experience wore off. For the last few months, we have been worshipping together through a limited outdoor and indoor service. Most people wear masks and leave quickly. Between the wind, the heat, and tired kids, it is hard to stay present during the service. My mind wants to wander to my to-do list or to the problems in my life that I think I can solve (instead of listening to the sermon and hearing from the God who holds all things together). I struggled with these things before COVID, but they feel especially prevalent now. Fellowship is the most difficult, because in order to hold services we must remain physically distant. Most people go home right away after the service. Conversation is hard. It is hard to know what to talk about except the “thing” that made fellowshipping hard in the first place. And no one actually wants to talk about the “thing” that is on our minds all the time. I am weary, and some Sundays I really don’t want to go. I would rather push against the hard than embrace it. Encouragement When Church Feels Hard The early church definitely knew something about hard. Between family divisions (Mark 10:29), disputes among church members (1 Cor. 6:5-6), and various forms of persecution and suffering(Acts 8:3, Heb.13:3), the believers of the early church definitely had reason to stop going. But this is exactly why Paul felt called and inspired by the Spirit to write and encourage the early churches in his letters....

Church is Hard, So Keep Showing Up2022-05-04T23:56:18+00:00
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