This morning, as I stood in line to vote, my mind was fairly at ease over all the matters pertaining to the election itself. I had already made up my mind how I would vote, and I have fully accepted the fact that God is ultimately in control. Consequently, even though I was in line to vote, I wasn't really paying attention to anything that particularly regards the election.

Instead, what I noticed was the chorus of complaints that echoed as voter after voter joined the long waiting line. With each successive complaint, I wondered, "Do any of us believe that complaining will make it move more quickly? And really, do any of us even feel better once we've voiced our complaints?"

It makes one wonder: why is complaining such a natural response when it clearly accomplishes nothing? Small wonder that God—who always watches out for our best interests—says we "must not put Christ to the test... nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer" (1 Cor. 10:9-10). To complain about a perceived injustice in the very same arena where God has clearly blessed us—like complaining about voting lines while we exercise our ability to choose our supreme leaders while most other societies must simply accept the hand they are dealt—is simply bad behavior.

It's ungrateful. It's damaging. And while it might be natural, it's against God's will because he intends only that which is best for you in every way.

- Dan Lankford, minister

Everyone is surely aware of the national advertising campaign on television and radio that encourages the use of a “designated driver” and even advocates taking car keys away from a drunk person so that he won’t get behind the wheel. It features the catchy phrase – “Friends don’t let friends drive drunk.”

As a spin-off of that idea, you’ve probably also seen the bumper stickers that say, Friends don’t let friends drive Fords (or Chevys or Toyotas or whatever). Unless you work at one of those companies, it is likely that you smile when you see one of those bumper stickers.

One phrase is serious; one is intended to be humorous. Here’s an even more serious thought. A true friend would not even consider letting a close friend go to hell for eternity. Or would he?

Do you have friends, relatives, neighbors, co-workers, or fellow students that you have never talked to about their souls? These are people who will be lost if they don’t learn about Jesus and obey the gospel. You might be the only New Testament Christian with an opportunity to say something that could change their eternal destiny. Why haven’t you said something to them?

I realize that fear is a natural factor and that many of us are afraid of doing something that would make a friend mad at us. We like to avoid conflict and don’t want to hurt another person’s feelings.

But what is more important, staying comfortable and allowing your friend to go to hell forever or taking a chance and maybe seeing your friend eternally in heaven? Which option would be more important to a true friend? Which would God have you to do?

I know this isn’t easy for most of us. But isn’t it important enough to make it an urgent priority? Courage is not the absence of fear, but the determination to do what is right in spite of our fear.

Be a true friend to the lost people in your life. Friends don’t let friends go to hell.

--Roger Hillis

“Now therefore write this song and teach it to the people of Israel. Put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for me against the people of Israel... And when many evils and troubles have come upon them, this song shall confront them as a witness, for it will live unforgotten in the mouths of their offspring.’” (Deut. 31:19, 21)

Since he is the Creator of music, it should not surprise us that God would make use of song to draw people toward himself—both by moving us emotionally and instructing us doctrinally. This song, penned through Moses, was designed to do both. As it would witness against the children of Israel, it was to teach their later generations of the great evil they would inevitably do by departing from God’s ways. As our songs and hymns are meant to do, it would be used for “teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom” (Col. 3:16).

The assembled masses of God’s people must be thoroughly attentive to the quality of the hymns that we sing. If we are aware enough to appreciate them, they will often challenge us, convict us, and therefore sadden us into repentance. In many cases, they witness against us as they teach us and admonish us. And we must let them continue to do this.

In the event that our hymnody were to become unidimensional so that we we lost sight of the true exhortation and “witness” we are to receive from them, I fear we would incur a perspective from God similar to that which he described in the time of the prophet Amos. While the nation’s souls morally decayed into idolatry and injustice, they continued to sing songs of praise and self-confidence to God. And God said, “Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen” (Amos 5:23).

Hymns which only validate us—even while we are in our sins—do a disservice to the true power God would exhibit through song.

Let us then be judicious in choosing hymns for worship assemblies and in actively participating in our hymns. Because we need them to accurately praise the Lord of hosts. And we need them, on occasion, to witness against us and pull us back into his glorious presence.

- Dan Lankford, minister

That’s kind of an odd title, isn’t it? I hope it makes more sense as you read through the article.

By being intentional, I simply mean planning your own life and not letting others decide everything for you. I am talking about making your own decisions, based on what you know God wants you to do. Do you live your life that way?

Now, I understand that there are unexpected things that can occur, many of them undesirable and beyond our control. There are illnesses, deaths, problems and trials that no one would personally choose. But even how we react to those sorts of things can be under our control.

When you are younger, you have little control over your own life. Your parents or others who are caring for you make all of your decisions for you. As you grow up, part of the maturing process is learning how to make appropriate decisions for yourself. Part of being a godly parent is training our children to make right decisions.

As an adult, we have much more control over things we do and where we go and who our friends are and what kinds of activities we participate in. We decide what to study in school, where we are going to live, who we will marry and many other important decisions of life. What kind of car will we drive, what kind of job or career will we pursue? There are many examples.

The question is, where does God fit into all of those decisions? What part does our relationship with Him play in the big things we decide about our lives? Do we make intentional decisions about what He would have us to do and then act on those things?

Or are we just existing, taking whatever comes our way and having little or nothing to say about our own future?

As a Christian, a disciple of Christ, do you think about the morality of things you do? Do you “Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:21-22)? Do you resist the Devil so he will flee from you (James 4:7)? Do you deny yourself, take up your cross daily and follow Him (Luke 9:23)?

It doesn’t matter if you call this idea – plans, hopes, dreams, vision, goals. It all amounts to the same thing, controlling your life under the influence of God’s will to really make your life matter. I am talking about being proactive to live your life God’s way, not merely reactive to forces around you that are out of your control.

It is said there are three types of people in the world, those who make things happen, those who watch things happen and those who say, “What happened?” You need to make things happen with your life. Don’t waste your days on the earth. Be a surrendered, faithful, godly servant of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:58).

--Roger Hillis

“Accountability” is talked about frequently in churches of all types. We recognize the need for it when we think about overcoming sin in our lives in view of passages like Hebrews 10:24 (“let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works”), Galatians 6:1 (“Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness”), or Eccl. 4:9-10 (“Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow”).

But we have a bit of trouble understanding what accountability truly should be.

Our brother Edwin Crozier points out that it’s not supposed to be just over-the-shoulder monitoring, which is how we most often think of it. He says:

“We most commonly say, ‘I’ve got to find someone to hold me accountable. They’re gonna look over my shoulder.’ And so we go to that person and we say, ‘Look, here’s my problem. I would like for you to just call me every once in awhile and ask me how I’m doing with that.’

This is a plan for failure. Not only is it a plan for failure; it’s a plan for failure that plans to allow you blame someone else. Because who have you given ownership of your spiritual growth to? That person who’s supposed to be looking over my shoulder. And so, when they get busy and they don’t call you and you stumble and fall, then we think, ‘That’s not my fault; that’s your fault, y’know? You were supposed to call me. What can I do? We all know I can’t do this on my own, but you didn’t call me.’”

There’s a major difference between thinking, “I need someone to keep me accountable” and thinking, “I’m going to find someone to whom I will be accountable.” I do encourage you to seek some accountability if you’re looking for help overcoming sin. You can’t do it alone, and you need to admit that and find some help, especially when you are willing to admit that your sin is controlling you. But make sure you find someone to offer you the right kind of accountability. Not that you turn your pursuit of God solely into their responsibility, but that you have determined to seek God, and you want someone that can help you win the battle which you are already ardently fighting.

- Dan Lankford, minister

Over the past week, our church has been considering appointing our brother Phil Morris as an elder. As of yesterday, Oct. 30, Phil is our newest elder here!

Phil and his family joined our church just over one year ago, and they immediatley went to work! They have been variously involved in our Bible class program, in our Meetups, in showing hospitality toward everyone in the church, in visiting the sick, in preaching, and in leading our worship assemblies. Our church family has come to know and love Phil, his wife Shannie, and their children: Hunter, Dailin, and Ashlin. God has blessed us with their fellowship, and we are thankful he now blesses us with Phil's leadership.

At our service yesterday morning, our current shepherds expressed their joy that Phil is joining them in their great work for God's glory. And the whole congregation was very obviously thankful that Phil is willing to devote himself to watching over all our souls.

The apostle Paul said to the elders from Ephesus: "Now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace" (Acts 20:32). We are thankful to have four men who are committed to God and to the word of his grace.

If you're reading this, even if you're not a member of our church family, we ask that you'll pray for our shepherds. Pray for them to increase in wisdom and in the grace of God to shepherd the flock.

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places..." (Eph. 1:3)

- Dan Lankford, evangelist

A bit of advice for Christian parents (self included): let's read the Bible to our kids and with our kids.

Somewhere along the line, many Christian parents got the idea that the best way to share the word of God with our children was to change it. So we eliminated details, we added artist renderings of the stories which are very often historically inaccurate, we inserted punchlines and jokes all along the way, and we only told them the Bible stories that have happy endings.

Let me be clear: I'm not necessarily opposed to all the things in that list individually. And I'm not necessarily opposed to the use of all children's Bibles.

But as Christian parents who value the words of God himself, let's be sure we are sharing the words of God himself with our children. When God commanded the Israelites to teach their children, he said, "these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." (Deut. 6:6-7)  He intended them to share his very words with their children.

Islamic parents understand this as a crucial part of sharing their faith. Their children are taught the Quran from the time they can talk. Most devout parents read passages to them multiple times daily. And as a result, they have one of the highest retention rates of all faiths. In other words, children from devout Muslim households very often grow up to be devout Muslims. And when asked why, they frequently cite a strong attachment to their holy book and the god (Allah) it describes.

We must do the same. If our holy book truly is the words of God (and I believe it is), and if the God in it truly is the author and perfecter of our faith (and I believe he is), then we must share THAT with our children—even when it challenges them, when it seems to bore them, and when they don't seem to appreciate it. Certainly, a simplified version of God's word will be easier and more entertaining for a child. But it won't have the same life-shaping power as the Gospel itself. Let's not neglect to share the God-breated word with them. "For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart." (Heb. 4:12)

- Dan Lankford, minister

Christians often talk about the 'storms of life' when we read Jesus' admonition that:

"Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock." (Matt. 7:24-25)

As Hurricane Matthew is making landfall in Haiti this morning, weather experts and social aid volunteers are already calling the storm a worst-case scenario for the people of that country. A large number of homes there are built on loose mud surfaces. Many of them—simply because many families are too impoverished to afford anything more—are built of mud and sticks or just stacked cinderblocks. With that being the case, their houses are in great danger from the category 4 storm.

The destruction in Haiti ought to give us a clear picture of how bad the loss of a soul really is—how bad the situation is which Jesus describes in Matthew 7. We'll be seeing people lose the little bit that this life has to offer. Many will be homeless. Many will flounder not knowing their next steps or plans for moving forward. Many will weep for themselves and their families.

Is it not the same when we think of souls lost without God? Let's continually be sure that our own lives are founded on the rock—living the Gospel. And let's continually be reaching out to others in effort to save them—sharing the Gospel.

- Dan Lankford, minister

I love African American spirituals from the pre-Civil-War era of this country. They are an important American cultural artifact. They demonstrate a very Biblical mindset of a people who had been displaced from their homes and who were longing to be freed. And yet, they clung tenaciously to their hope in God and their desire to serve him even in the hardest stations of life. One song, written in the old style of those spirituals, holds my attention for its sentiment:

“Lord, I keep so busy praising my Jesus... Lord, I keep so busy serving my Master... Lord, I keep so busy working for the Kingdom... I ain’t got time to die! Because it takes all of my time! If I don’t praise him, the rocks gon’ cry out, ‘Glory and honor!’ I ain’t got time to die!”

That was the same attitude as the apostle Paul when he wrote, “My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:23-26).

The reality was that there was a GREAT work to do for the Lord! And Paul knew it so deeply—and he was committed to it so fully—that even while he knew death would bring him to the presence of the God he loved more than anything, he also knew that there was much he could do for the Lord still in this life!
How many of us have ever come close to exhibiting this level of devotion? How many of us would be willing to say that even Heaven itself could wait because we are so committed to our service to God—to our work in his kingdom?

May God give us the strength to work so diligently for him in this life. May our love for him be so strong that we just “ain’t got time to die” because we are just so busy working for our Master!

- Dan Lankford, minister

Three times in the book of Genesis, Abraham rose early in the morning. In each case, he was seeking the will of God.

In Gen. 19:27, he rose early in the morning to see God's will accomplished against Sodom & Gomorrah.

In Gen. 21:14, he rose early in the morning to send Hagar & Ishmael on their way to make room for Isaac—the child of promise—to flourish.

And then in Gen. 22:3, Abraham rose early in the morning for what surely could have been the hardest thing he ever did in his life—the journey to where he would kill his own son.

From Abraham's example, I learn an important lesson about the vitality of a life that truly seeks God. When Abraham sought God, he sought him from dawn to dusk. On these days, even though it might be difficult, he began his day with a determination to see God's will done around him.

I want to encourage you to do two things. First, whenever you wake up, set your mind on the will of God first. Start with a focus on him before you give assent to anything else in the day. And second, try getting up an hour earlier than you have to [or staying up an hour later than you typically do (Psa. 119:62)] and giving the extra time to God. Pray, read your Bible, take a walk, or just meditate on who he is and who he calls you to be.

Let's all make a deliberate effort—to go out of our way—to seek the will of God.

- Dan Lankford, minister