February 27, 2010
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
"The LORD’S compassions never fail... great is His faithfulness" (Lam. 3.22-23).
Just a quick note. On deck for Sunday − we'll look into something we must be fully aware of in order to successfully negotiate life and to make sense of the harder aspects of it − namely, we hope to get clear on that part of the invisible universe with which even Jesus battled. Please join us for what may be an important word from God to you at this time.
Bless the Lord, enjoy him, and enjoy each other, and plan to really enjoy the Lord's Day!
Your brother in Jesus,
Toby+
Pastor, Celebration Church
"Show hospitality so that we may work together for the truth" (3 John 8).
"Above all, love each other deeply ... offer hospitality to one another" (1Pet. 4:8)
Dear Brothers and Sisters of Celebration!
Thank you, all, for helping to launch us into the first hours of Lent 2010 with a satisfying Ash Wednesday evening.
Now let's all plan to enjoy the first Sunday of Lent together, too. We have a special Lenten service planned and we will focus one of the most meaningful sentences in the Bible.
See you Sunday at 10!
Your brother in Jesus,
Toby+
February 13, 2010
Warmest Celebration Greetings,
Two pieces of really good news.
1. We have worship this Sunday together. Wow! The parking lot is plowed and the sanctuary is warm. See you at 10:00.
2. This Wednesday is Ash Wednesday, and we are planning a special service at 7PM, at the church. We will have impartation of ashes to begin the important season of Lent.
Child care will be provided. A time of cookies and refreshments following. See you at 7:00.
Here is a link to a meditation from Bishop Dave Bena. You may recall he was with us December 13 for a beautiful confirmation service, and a time, too, of earnest prayer for many saints on a day that stands now as one where they stood firm in their faith and witness. One of Bishop Dave's trademarks is the small red hat he wears as a symbol of the Holy Spirit falling at Pentecost. May the Holy Spirit continue to be poured out on God's people in these days (Acts 2:18).
Please join Celebration Church this special welcome back Sunday, and this special Wednesday.
See you all soon!
Your brother in Jesus,
Toby+
February 6, 2010
“The LORD sends his command to the earth;
his word runs swiftly.
He spreads the snow like wool”
(Psalm 147:15-16)
Celebration Church Family,
“Snow like wool,” indeed, a blizzard of fleece! Shoveling, down time, family time, serving neighbors, good smells from the kitchen that might not have otherwise happened, and a whole lot of looking out the window to see who is there and doing what. God delights in reminding us that our times are not in our own hands, they are in his. He can change anything in a moment's notice, or without any notice at all, even give us the sense of looking into the "storehouses of his snow" (Job 38:22).
We will not have corporate worship this Sunday, again. I encourage you to glorify God with your families, even neighbors at home, and eagerly prepare to worship together in spirit and in truth on Valentines Day Sunday!
May I suggest we read and talk about Psalm 19 in the light of Jesus Christ. God is wonderfully generous in his self-disclosure. He has not revealed himself in a chintzy way, but in the grandness of nature, in his Word, by his Spirit, in great events in redemptive history, in institutions he ordained to make known his purposes and his nature, and in our own makeup as we share his image (imago Dei). Psalm 19 shows three of these thoroughfares of divine self-disclosure.
The first is nature, at least one part of it enjoyed by each of us. “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour fourth speech; night after night they display knowledge” (19:1-2). We can hear God in the silence of a snow storm. Any shadow of deep-seated philosophical commitment to the notion of random, purposeless, mindless, accidental, “steady-state” origination of things disappears under the light of God’s gracious disclosure. The patent conclusion for us is of a supremely intelligent God capable of spectacularly wonderful design. The evidence is here; the clouds and skies and the celestial host “pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.” May we enjoy nature, as given by God, as part of his indescribably glorious revelation.
The second is “the law of the LORD.” Perfect, trustworthy, right, righteous, radiant, reviving the soul, pure, sure, making wise the simple, giving joy to the heart, enduring forever, more precious than gold, sweeter than honey, warning, promising great reward (19:7-11). From time to time God calls us to be quiet but may we never silence what he has revealed. Powerful minds tried to, and have wasted their lives working to undermine the credibility of what God has said. New epistemologies lesson God’s words to make them appear as no more revelatory than the root documents of any other religion. Still worse, Christians who bemoan a missed Super Bowl catch can themselves fail to watch carefully and take hold of the Word of God that he has graciously placed right into our hands. May we cling to God’s Word as his indescribably glorious revelation.
The third is conscience. "Who can discern his errors? Forgive my hidden faults. Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then will I be blameless, innocent of great transgression" (19:12-13). A well-functioning, Christ-informed conscience also bears pure witness to God's self-disclosure. And even as my family moved this week, 20 some pillows still a jumble, we remind ourselves of the mostly true saying that the "the softest pillow is a clean conscience."
The fourth is, and it goes without saying, but must be said, that in these last days, God has spoken to us, "by his Son, Jesus Christ, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe" (Heb. 1:2)!
My dear new friends of Celebration Church, and longtime friends of Celebration, God’s design in nature has changed our weekly rhythm yet again, but let us respond with the psalmist together (in unison though separate): “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer” (19:14).
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,
Toby+
P.S. While Celebration corporate worship is cancelled for this Sunday, worship and celebration in our homes is still on! Be safe, and have a marvelous Sunday!