Notes from Sunday - 05/17/09

At the end of last year, I put on the church calendar for us to celebrate the 134th church anniversary of the Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church on May 17. With so many things going on recently, I was not able to properly plan for it. I even failed to mention it yesterday. May the Lord help me make up for that next year. No, I am not into traditional church anniversary celebrations. But I am really into celebrating the faithfulness of God. Each week, churches around America shut their doors for the last time. And the fact that the Lord has sustained the ministry and witness of this local church for more than one hundred years is truly something a good reason to pause and rejoice in the Lord. Praise God for his faithfulness to SMBC. May the Lord be pleased to continue to use this great church to advance the kingdom of heaven in the world until Jesus comes again!

Last week, I preached the citywide revival in Buffalo, New York - preaching five sermons and teaching three lessons on preaching in five days. It was a wonderful meeting. I truly didn't expect to be so enriched. The worship and fellowship was just what I needed. And I left town with new friends. I did not, however, get to see Niagara Falls, which was twenty minutes from my room. But I was so glad to get home Saturday evening. And I was even more glad to be behind my prayer desk at Shiloh to preach the word to my beloved congregation. God has smiled on me to assign me to shepherd a flock that so loves the word of God.

Last week, our New Members Class did not meet, because there was a mass session for the women during the Bible Study Fellowship hour. I resumed our New Members Class with a lesson today on "How To Pray Effectively." As always, I had a great time in fellowship around the word with the new members of SMBC.

The musical praise led by our music department and choir was wonderful.

By the way, Mike Rodgers starting singing "O Happy Day" with the choir before the 10 AM service! What would Edwin Hawkins think?

I continued my exposition of the book of Philippians with the message from the prayer of Paul in Philippians 1:9-11. I labeled the message, "Praying for God's Best."

I love preaching on prayer. And I have found the prayers of Paul in the New Testament are great examples of prayer and instruction on how to pray. My message only scratched the surface of all that I had learned from studying this prayer report. If you want to jump start your prayer life, read, meditate on, and study the prayers of Paul.

I was also moved by the fact that Philippians 1:9-11 is the record of a pastor praying for his people. The work of a pastor involves many things. But there is no way a pastor can study the New Testament without being confronted by the centrality of prayer to pastoral ministry. With all the responsibilities that I have as a pastor, may I not compromise the biblical priorities of prayer and the ministry of the word.

Praise God for those who were saved and added to the church in our worship services.

My son has started helping the media ministry after church. And he now discusses my sermon with me in terms of how many CD's it did or did not sell after church. I thought America did not torture!

Minutes after Crystal pulled away from the church, I was fast asleep in the car. Tired.

As I took my Sunday afternoon nap, the Los Angeles Lakers slipped into the NBA Western Conference Finals. We shall see if the Denver Nuggets will be able to do what the Houston Rockets could not do.

The Orlando Magic put down the Boston Celtics in the second game 7 of the day. I really didn't have a feeling one way or the other. I just feel sorry for the Magic. The Cleveland Cavaliers will make quick work of them.

I wonder if I am the only one who enjoyed the thunderstorm we had in Jacksonville last night?