groan...

Churches are like restaurants with the pastor being the chef...

What a way to start 2005 with communion size wafer/diet portions of leftovers.

Tithe???

I'll give to ADRA before I pay any more tithe

Guess what? We did have something more than a typical topical New Year's sermon.

My husband gave the sermon this morning. He spoke from three stories in the Bible about how people should refocus on God and that everything else will come to them.

If this is a typical topical sermon, and this is what you preach so often against, then, JimBob7, I have to no longer sympathize with your cause.

Guess what? I gave tithe this morning; I gave toward Pathfinders; I gave toward the local church budget AND my money went to ADRA.

I'm sorry to hear that you'll no longer be giving tithe dollars. When we give our faithful tithe in return, God blesses us greatly!!

We had a sermon based on 2 Samuel 9, on David's kindness to Mephibosheth - David wanted to show Jonathan's son /Saul's house "the kindness of God". The sermon developed along predictable lines but was refreshing and encouraging. God is kind to us beyond anything we deserve, now and in His promises in the hereafter.

Thanks for the replies..
Here we go again...

Quote:

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how people should refocus on God and that everything else will come to them.

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So this is a religious self service formula? Refocus on God and I will get my goodies?

Quote:

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When we give our faithful tithe in return, God blesses us greatly!!

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Another self-serving formula? We return the 10% and we get goodies?

Do you see the trend again..??

Do it the world's way and get messed up..do it God's way and get goodies?

Yeah the basic point is correct..it is the approach..

The "Purpose driven life" book...mentioned and studied on this site brings out this narcissistic, self serving, self help attitude and approach in churchianitiy..It does so in the very first section of the book.

The trend continues......what is in it for MEEEEEEE..

This approach is ok for down and out messed up, entry level, non churched, people who are searching for security m, structure and stability, answers.....yet is the clergy supposed to keep this gimmee, gimmee, gimmeee, I need, I need approach every sabbath???

They are so fortunate that I am not GC ministerial director....
I would have a pile of PINK SLIPS on my desk ready for the axe to fall.

This constant theme/approach promotes selfish meism.

Nan,

Does your pastor ever give clues at the beginning of the sermon as to what gives him the idea for the choice or topic of the sermon?

Hey..ya know what...God is kind, merciful, gracious, forgiving..gives us better than we deserve....and YET..

There is going to be a massive slaughter at the 2nd coming...

How does that fit into the equation??

What was your pastor trying to achieve?

Calm some guilt ridden, stressed out , insecure, paranoid members?

Friday evening, we had the Lord's Supper.

Sabbath, January 1, we had a sermon by a pastor from an Island in the Pacific. He beagan by tellling us of the sermon he had prepared, and its main point. Then he told us that he strongly felt that the the Lord had impressed him, Friday evening, to spak on Romans 3:23. So, he had put aside his prepared sermon, and immediately worked on a new sermon. His theme was that God had done it all, we had all sinned, but God had effected reconcillation, and he wished that all of us would be reconcilled to God, and to each other.

He was visiting in the U.S. for a few days. We leared of it, and immediately asked him and his wife to join us in worship, at our travel expense, which we accepted. As a church, we have provided funancial support to a SDA School on his Pacific island, and we have sent people over to help. We are sending two over in a few days to teach in that school.

He could have used his time to wind us up for continued giving. He did not. He simply spoke on Romans 3:23, the gifts of Christ, and reconcillation.

Jim, would his sermon have met your standards? I do not know. But, that is what we had.

We had communion, but the sermon was really neat as was the prayer. It was a 3 part prayer with a Bible reading before each prayer. We prayer to the one that lost their lives in Asia, we prayer for the grieving families and we prayer for those who are helping. At the end of the service a special offering was given. All the money from that offering will be going to ADRA. Also we honored 2 poster that have been at our church for 20 years.

We had communion also. Our pastor had a brief sermonette that led into the foot washing service then on into communion. It was wonderful.