Biblical Worship

I came across this great quote on true worship by Warren Wiersbe.

True biblical worship so satisfies our total personality that we don’t have to shop around for man-made substitutes. William Temple made this clear in his masterful definition of worship: “For worship is the submission of all our nature to God. It is the quickening of conscience by His holiness; the nourishment of mind with His truth; the purifying of imagination by His beauty; the opening of the heart to His love; the surrender of will to His purpose—and all of this gathered up in adoration, the most selfless emotion of which our nature is capable and therefore the chief remedy for that self-centeredness which is our original sin and the source of all actual sin.”


Warren W. Wiersbe, The Integrity Crisis, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1991, p. 119.

Flooding in Galati, Romania

This is where we will be next week.

Romanian authorities said severe flooding was wreaking havoc across much of the country after rain-swollen rivers burst their banks and killed 22 people this week, destroying crops, bridges and hundreds of homes.

Despite protection dams, more than 2,000 people were evacuated from the eastern village of Saucesti on Friday after the River Siret broke through and inundated a hundred local homes.

In the eastern province of Galati, the Danube River passed record water levels previously attained in 2006.

Visiting one affected region on Friday, Romanian president Traian Basescu assured flood victims that they would be provided with building materials for new homes.

But northern and central parts or Romania will remain on code yellow alert for rain until Monday morning, as the possibility of further flooding continues.

Twenty-two people have died as a result of flooding in the past week.

See more and video here.

Christians Persecuted in Morrocco

Following the expulsion of more than 40 foreign Christians in March, officials of the majority-Muslim country expelled another 26 foreign Christians in May without due process. The latest incident brings the total number of deportations to 105 since early March 2010. Sources say the deportations are the result of Muslim hardliners pressuring the nation's royalty to show Islamic solidarity.

Christians and expert observers are calling this a calculated effort to purge the historically moderate country of all Christian elements - both foreign and national. Legal sources said that according to Moroccan law, foreigners who have lived in the country for more than 10 years cannot be deported unless they are accused of a crime. They have the right to appeal the deportation order within 48 hours. Still almost none of the recent deportees were able to appeal their deportation as most were forcefully escorted out of the country. (Source: Compass Direct News)

Please Pray!
Please pray for the Christians who have been unjustly deported from Morocco and their families. Many were forced to leave behind their wives, children, communities and businesses without even saying goodbye. Pray also for local Christians who have been experiencing increased persecution in recent days. Ask God to soften the hearts of the Moroccan officials toward Christians and bring them into a saving relationship with Him.

From Voice of the Martyrs.

The Splendor of the Savior

I came across this old hymn by Josiah Conder that really moved me while I was reading and studying on the Diety of Christ.

THOU art the everlasting Word,
The Father's only Son;
God manifest, God seen and heard,
The heaven's beloved One;
Worthy, O Lamb of God, art Thou,
That every knee to Thee should bow!

In Thee, most perfectly expressed,
The Father's self doth shine;
Fulness of Godhead, too: the Blest,
Eternally Divine;
Worthy, O Lamb of God, art Thou,
That every knee to Thee should bow!

Image of the Infinite Unseen,
Whose being none can know;
Brightness of light no eye hath seen,
God's love revealed below;
Worthy, O Lamb of God, art Thou,
That every knee to Thee should bow!

The higher mysteries of Thy fame
The creature's grasp transcend;
The Father only Thy blest name
Of Son can comprehend.
Worthy, O Lamb of God, art Thou,
That every knee to Thee should bow!

Yet loving Thee, on whom His love
Ineffable doth rest,
The worshippers, O Lord, above,
As one with Thee, are blest;
Worthy, O Lamb of God, art Thou,
That every knee to Thee should bow!

Of the vast universe of bliss,
The centre Thou, and Sun;
The eternal theme of praise is this,
To Heaven's beloved One,
Worthy, O Lamb of God, art Thou,
That every knee to Thee should bow!

Josiah Conder, 1789-1855

Do You Have Problems Staying Awake in Church?

Festival of Champions

This Sunday our church, along with a number of other churchs from central and south Baldwin County, will be hosting the "Festival of Champions." This will be a fun filled event for the whole family. There are activities for all ages. The most important part of this event will be the sharing of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I want to encourage all of our Foley First Baptist members to attend the event, but most importantly bring someone with you. For more information check it out here.

The Gulf of Mexico and the Care of Creation

I came across the following article concerning the current oil slick crisis in the Gulf. A must read for all Believers but especially those living along the Gulf Coast.


The Gulf of Mexico and the Care of Creation
Russell Moore: Dean of Theology, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary


As I type this, I am looking out at the Gulf of Mexico. You could have seen a similar sight out the window of the hospital where I was born, just a few miles down the road here on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi. Now, though, those waters I grew up with, gently lapping against the sand, are threatening to bring with them millions of gallons of oil, spewing up from an exploded rig out in the Gulf. Five years after Hurricane Katrina leveled this hometown of mine, it is bracing for the worst environmental disaster in the history of the United States.

Some conservatives, and some conservative evangelicals, act as though "environmentalism" is by definition "liberal" or even just downright silly. Witness a lot of the evangelical rhetoric across social media on Earth Day a while back: mostly Al Gore jokes and wisecracks about cutting down trees or eating endangered species as a means of celebration.

Do some environmentalists reject the dignity of humanity? Yes. Do some replace the reverence for creation with that due the Creator? Of course. This happens in the same way some do the same thing with reverence for economic profit or any other finite thing.

There's nothing conservative though, and nothing "evangelical," about dismissing the conservation of the natural environment. And the accelerating Gulf crisis reminds us something of what's at stake.

The incoming tsunami of oil isn't just about the beaches, although that will be environmentally and economically catastrophic. Just as problematic is the creeping of the oil into the inland estuaries and marshes and waterways. The crisis could potentially destroy the eco-systems of birds, shrimp, oysters, and other lifeforms.

Does God care about baby shrimp? I would argue, yes; God cares for the sparrow that falls to the ground (Matt. 10:29). But, even if you disagree with me on that, consider how God loves those who are "of more value than many sparrows" (Matt. 10:30).

Shrimpers here in Biloxi are mourning the potential loss of more than just an industry but a way of life handed down, at least to some of them, from multiple generations before them. If shrimping collapses, so does tourism, apart from the in and out predation of the casinos dotting the shoreline.

Just as significant, though, are the ways the balance of ecology affects people in ways we never consider or notice, until it's threatened. God gave his image-bearing humanity dominion over the natural creation (Gen. 1:28). But this isn't a pharaoh-like dominion; it's a Christ-like dominion. Humans aren't made of ether; we're made of Spirit-enlivened mud. We come from the earth, and we must receive from the earth what we need to survive, in the form of light from the sun, oxygen from plants, and food from the ground.

God knows that we need the natural creation (what we so reductionistically call an "environment"). He exults in it throughout the Psalms and in his speech to Job about his mysterious ways. Jesus continually retreats into the silent places of the mountains and the hills and the deserts, sometimes in the fellowship of only the wild beasts (Mark 1:13). We are built to recognize God in the creation (Rom. 1:18-21), and we need more than just what we can pave over and build in order to flourish.

This is why the Scriptures speak of eternal life in the metaphor of a river that causes the waters to teem with life, with many kind of fish, and vegetation thriving on the banks (Ezek. 47:9-12). This is why one aspect of Jesus' kingship is to make the waters teem with fish, right in the presence of his commercial fishermen disciples (John 21:3-8), And this is why the Scriptures consider it an apocalypse when the waters are poisoned, and the sea-life is gone (Rev. 8:8-9).

We need the creation around us, including the waters and all they contain, because we are not gods. We are creatures who thrive when we live as we were made to live. We exercise dominion over the creation not only when we use it, but also when we conserve it for the generations who will come after.

So pray for the Gulf Coast, that the oil wouldn't devastate a people and a land already devastated by so much. As you do, remember: real conservatives protect what God loves.