The Illumination of Hope

Well, Advent begins next Sunday, and I will tell you that I am very ready for the journey that Advent takes us on. Within the last month I have attended two funerals of young people, and it has been a year in which I found myself officiating the funerals of beloved brothers and sisters in Christ. It's cold and rainy outside, its depressing, yet hope is on the way, the light will shine, and hope will be illuminated to the world.

We have witnessed events of devastation on this earth as well as violence locally and around the world, but yet we find ourselves more then ready for the season of Advent. Last week our church talked about Christ's second coming and God's promise to his people in which Christ paid the price for us on the cross. While we wait with joy for "That Great Getting Up Morning", we place our faithfulness and trust in the fact that Christ will return when God is ready. 

While we wait for the sound of glorious trumpets and Christ descending from the clouds, we also gather in expectation of the coming of the Christ Child that Christmas brings. "Yes" I'm more then ready for Advent  and as we gather the first week of Advent (Hope Sunday), I'm needing the true illumination of Christ's shining light to fall on me, to envelop me with it's radiance of love and promise.

And again, Isaiah says, "The Root of Jesse will spring up, one who will arise to rule over the nations; the Gentiles will hope in him." May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit (Rom. 15:12-13).

My prayer is that those of you that have experienced loss, distress, and hopelessness, allow yourselves also to be illumined by the light of hope that the Christ child brings. Bask in God's promises revealed and kept, and let it restore you with the hope that only Jesus Christ can bring.

Let The Son Shine This Christmas
Pastor Tim

The Stray Cat In The Church Parking Lot

The last two days, we have had a cat wondering around the outside of our church and whenever I walk outside it follows me everywhere I go. As Rachel and I sit in our offices the cat sits in the parking lot meowing for attention. Until we got our cat a few years ago, I was never a cat lover and felt that I would be the last person in the world to be called a cat owner.

As this stray cat meows for our attention, I'm led to wonder where it came from and if it is missing from owners that nurtured it, cared for and loved it? Part of me wants to go outside and nurture this cat, if only to stop its meowing, but the other part of me knows that this cat will never leave if given attention.

As we will soon be entering the season of Advent and as we prepare to welcome the Christ child, we are also busy working with many different charities to help provide for the needy. But the question I pose to us this week is: As much as we provide for the wants of the needy, do we listen to their spiritual cries for attention or do we ignore them in the hopes that like the cat, they will simply go away?

2 Corinthians 6:18 states: "I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty."  Brothers and Sisters we are all like the cat meowing for attention, and the Lord has chosen to nurture us, love us, in the knowledge and thanksgiving that we will never leave him.

My prayer for us all this week is that as we provide for the physical need of the needy, we also work on providing for the emotional and spiritual needs of those that are crying in the wilderness, cities, towns, and even parking lots.

As I write this the cat has left the area, and I contemplate the actions of my intention.


Have a Blessed Thanksgiving Everyone
Pastor Tim.

40 Days In The Word Celebration and Mission Project.

Thanking God For His Abundant Blessings.

First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Benton KY

From our family to yours, we wish you the abundance of God's blessings this Thanksgiving and always.

Chronicles 16:8 - Oh give thanks to the LORD, call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the 

peoples.

Good Morning America

Good Morning America!

Before coming to church, my morning ritual involves coffee, and watching the news on Good Morning America. I usually watch this while reading the news of the world on my laptop. I am a firm believer that knowledge is power, and a well informed person can truly be prepared for most conversations. 

This morning between learning about George Clooney's breakup with his girlfriend, and all the spicy gossip of Britain's royal family, I left the house feeling ill prepared to broach any serious conversations.

The only positive news that I had to begin my day with was that our church was busy doing active ministry, whether in the form of mission trips, gospel concerts, stuffing teddy bears to give to children, our planning a new fall bible study .
As I contemplated these very two very different organizations (world media and church), I began to delve on why the world news was non-fulfilling while church news was fully fulfilling. 

The difference at least for Christians is in the fact that we as God's people know that when we bless God, when we turn our faces on him, God blesses us by turning his wonderful face on us. As I went to God's Word this morning, I read the following in the Book of Psalms chapter 67, verse 1.

Psalm 67:1 May God be gracious to us and bless us

    and make his face to shine upon us, Selah

Brothers and Sisters, God is gracious to his people and his church's when they are a blessing to him and others, "In His Name!"  I leave the word 'Selah" with you today, to pause on and to think about. We are told that "Selah"  Occurs frequently at the end of a verse in Psalms and Habakkuk, probably as a musical direction.

My prayer for all of us this week is that we constantly are a blessing to God and others, in the knowledge and fact that people that bless God are blessed by God. So when we encounter things of the world that leave us cold, take a breath and say "Selah!" In this way, each of us will take a pause and seek direction from God the Great Director of the music of creation.

Good Morning America, bless God and others, this day and every day.

Selah!

Pastor Tim

Fighting The Good Fight of Faith!

The last couple of weeks I have been able feed my hobby of studying the War Between the States, yes the Civil War. As I walked the hallowed grounds of battle, and as I have tried to discern what occurred at these places, it becomes difficult to imagine how the soldiers on either side felt. One thing that came to my mind while walking these fields of battle, was realizing that they all have one thing in common. What they have in common is that at a certain time in the battle one or both sides had to make the decision to stay and fight our to retreat for safety.

As we enter times in which we agree or disagree with our government and even our churches, some of us may have thought about staying to fight, or retreating to safety. As I study Civil War history, I'm often led to stories of generals that were able to get their troops to stay and fight onto victory. This leads me to write about the Apostle Paul in his first letter to Timothy in which Paul strengthens Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:12


Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses (ESV).

We see Paul writing this to give Timothy strength in his ministry, and to keep on professing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Timothy did not flee but took the words of Paul and kept on working, knowing who he was and who he belonged to. Paul told Timothy that as long as he followed God's Words, he would be without blemish or blame. 

Brothers and Sisters, the same goes for us today, whether it is elections, church politics, or work decisions that do not go your way. Stay in there and fight the good fight, do not flee, do not run, but be assured that as long as we follow God's commands, we will be without blemish or blame. 

Fight the good fight, never give up,never surrender!
Pastor Tim.

Pastor Tim's Benton Blog: Keeping An Eye On The Storm!

Pastor Tim's Benton Blog: Keeping An Eye On The Storm!: As i sit in my office this morning, like many of those around the world I am keeping an eye on Hurricane Sandy. Yes our eyes are glued ...