Posts

A Good Christian Funeral

Image
  A Guide for Gospel-Centered Services Dr. Robert A. Myers The Need for Guidance Ever since the middle of the twentieth century, we have been enamored with youth.   It’s easy to see.   Our fixation on being young is manifested in our entertainment, our music, our advertisements, the prevalence of cosmetic surgery, and ageism in the workplace.   One author has even coined the term “juvenilization” to describe our cultural milieu.   It is no surprise, then, that most people are averse to talking about death and dying until the topic is forced upon them.   When the subject becomes unavoidable, many people are at a loss as to what to do at the time of death.   Increasingly, many people are opting to forego any sort of funeral service.   Others chose to do some sort of event at a neutral site to avoid the solemnity of a church or funeral home.   The difficult questions that death evokes are purposely avoided. People of faith don’t need to live their lives with that kind of denial.  
Post a Comment
Read more

Parting Words

Image
The following sermon was delivered on January 9, 2022 as my final message to the congregation of the First Baptist Church in Galesburg, Illinois.  Keep me safe, O God,     for I have come to you for refuge. I said to the Lord, “You are my Master!     Every good thing I have comes from you.” The godly people in the land     are my true heroes!     I take pleasure in them! Troubles multiply for those who chase after other gods.     I will not take part in their sacrifices of blood     or even speak the names of their gods. Lord, you alone are my inheritance, my cup of blessing.     You guard all that is mine. The land you have given me is a pleasant land.     What a wonderful inheritance! I will bless the Lord who guides me;     even at night my heart instructs me. I know the Lord is always with me.     I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me. No wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice.     My body rests in safety. For you will not leave m
Post a Comment
Read more

He Came Into Our Mess

Image
  Good evening, and Merry Christmas to everyone of you who have come to worship with us tonight and also to those who have joined us on line.   I have always loved attending, planning, and leading Christmas Eve services.   It is hard for me to embrace the idea that this will be my last Christmas Eve service that I will plan and lead as I am retiring from pastoral ministry and pivoting to become a hospice chaplain in less than a month.   It’s almost shocking to myself to say that.   Nevertheless, Christmas Eve services seem almost magical with all the beautiful lights and music.   As the Christmas Story unfolds through the service order, my emotions have never ceased to stir with wonder of how the omnipotent God who created the whole vast universe would condescend to become a helpless little baby.   But not only does the Christmas Story and the accompanying carols cause me to pause in wonder-filled worship, my heart is also warmed by being together with people that I love.   Even behi
Post a Comment
Read more

This Was a Surprise

Image
It has been said that God is a God of surprises.   The way my mom tells it, each of her five kids were little surprises from God.   We’ve had a little surprise come our way as well.   (No, Diane’s not pregnant!)   I don’t know if it is the pandemic or our advancing age on the backside of our sixties.   It’s been over sixteen years since we moved away from our family and we are saddened as we watch our grandchildren and one great-grandchild grow up without us being there.   Next month our great-grandson will be two years old and I’ve never held him or spoken directly to him.   We began to wonder if we could make it in this role for the next three years or if that would even be the best way to spend those years of our life.   A pastor needs to remember that his family is his first line of ministry and it sometimes seems like I’ve been negligent.   So, Diane and I began to wonder and pray if God wasn’t leading me to retire from local church ministry and seek some sort of work closer to ou
Post a Comment
Read more

Engage!

Image
  I wouldn’t call myself a “Trekkie.”   Never been to a convention.   I haven’t seen all the movies and I didn’t really care for any of the franchises beyond “Next Generation.”   I thought William Shatner in the first series was hilarious – always overacting – a virtual parody of himself.   The ensemble in “Next Generation” was quite good.   Casting Patrick Stewart with his commanding voice and presence as Captain Jean-Luc Picard was a stroke of genius.   I especially liked the way he gave orders.   After ensuring all the proper procedures were in place, he would firmly issue his command, “Engage!”   We’ve been dealing with this pandemic now for over a year and a half.   It seems there are more hills to climb in our journey together.   Nevertheless, there is a sense, it seems to me, among most people that it is time to get on with living.   This isn’t a political piece or a personal statement on masking.   Those issues are for each individual to choose.   For me, the words of the New
2 comments
Read more

Only the Gospel Can Heal

Image
It was just a month ago that I attended the Juneteenth Celebration hosted by Pastor James Hailey and Allen Chapel at Standish Park.  I hadn’t known much about the history of the day and I was grateful that the City of Galesburg was able to have such an informative and inspiring event.  Pastor Hailey was gracious enough to even invite me to deliver the Scripture reading from Psalm 126, part of which read, “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.”  And, indeed, the event was a joyful experience.  What struck me the most about Juneteenth in Standish Park was the proclamation of the gospel.  Over and over, whether in stories, testimonies, songs, or preaching, the power of the love and faithfulness of Jesus Christ was heard.  As a pastor, I have ears to hear it, of course.  But the message of the Good News could not be missed on that blessed afternoon.  A lot of water has passed under the bridge since the racial unrest of the 1960’s and 70’s.  Much progress has been made and yet, we s
Post a Comment
Read more

America, We Have a Problem!

Image
    Introduction – Apollo 13 and Our Current Malaise On April 11, 1970, the crew of Apollo 13, the third attempt to land men on the moon, blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center on the Florida coast. Three days into the mission and nearly a quarter of a million miles from earth, there was an explosion in one of the oxygen tanks.   The crew’s message to earth has been immortalized: “ Houston, we have a problem .”   The mission, which had been focused on exploration and discovery was radically changed in a moment.   All of the efforts of the crew and their support team on earth were now focused on the men’s survival and return home.   They abandoned their plan to land on the moon and, instead, circled around it in order to use its gravitational pull to “sling-shot” the craft back to earth.   The whole saga of improvisation and survival was effectively dramatized on film in 1995.   In a sense, I believe that we, in American culture, may be having our “Apollo 13 moment.”   Perhaps, u
1 comment
Read more