The prayers of a Sunday morning service offer a perfect context to encourage both gratitude for the Sabbath and renewed ambitions for the Lord’s day. If you are a pastor or elder seeking to encourage thoughtfulness about the fourth commandment,…
During the mid-90’s, millions of American households were infested by strange, small creatures called Beanie Babies. The Ty toy company discovered that occasionally “retiring” certain dolls would cause their demand and value to skyrocket. To protect their “investments,” serious collectors…
Over the past several months, I’ve been tracking the progress of what I call “Uncle Gerry’s Case.” Gerald Groff[1] is an Evangelical Christian of the conservative Mennonite variety hailing from beautiful Lancaster County, Pennsylvania who has become a champion of…
“Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy…Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God.” — Deut. 5:12-14 “If you’ve got time to lean, you’ve got…
“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” The service ended a couple of minutes ago. The momentary silence of the sanctuary was punctured by the children, whose failed attempts to whisper quickly rose to shouts as they joined friends.…
Over the years, many have approached me in order to ask what I believe the Bible teaches on some particular theological or ethical subject. In many cases, no sooner have I finished answering them that I’m met with the reply,…
A recent NPR article profiled what it called “the millennial obsession with self-care.”1 Apparently, the millennial generation is engaging in the practice of self-care with a surprising frequency and intensity that a multi-billion dollar industry has been built up around it. Yet…
At the church where I minister, we have a morning and an evening service, both of which are practically identical in their order and form. As far as I am aware, we are one of the few Presbyterian churches in…
viii. This Sabbath is to be kept holy unto the Lord when men, after a due preparing of their hearts, and ordering of their common affairs beforehand, do not only observe an holy rest all the day from their own…
vii. As it is the law of nature, that, in general, a due proportion of time be set apart for the worship of God; so, in His Word, by a positive, moral, and perpetual commandment binding all men in all…
