STORY

During one visit to Grandma and Grandpa’s, our two young daughters watched from the breakfast table as a man came to the back door. When the visitor left, Grandpa explained he was an appraiser.

“What’s an appraiser?” the younger child asked.

Before Grandpa had a chance to explain, older sister quickly cleared up the matter: “He’s a praiser. He goes to church every Sunday.”

Breeding, Jennifer. Christian Reader “Lite Fare.”

Comment: When we scratch worship from our weekly schedule, we are failing to be praisers. Oh, sure, we praise God in many other ways than in church, but God expects both - praising him with our lives, and coming together to praise him as a Christian community. When we justify skipping church by pointing to the other good that we do, we are rejecting one of the ways in which God demands our praise. Doesn't that make our other efforts at praise rather hollow? "I'll give to you, Lord, what I want, when I want." What kind of praise is that?

And worship is more than praising God, it is humbling ourselves before him and seeking what we need most: his strength offered through Word and Sacrament.

QUOTE

Are you a member of the “Hereafter Club”? That’s reserved for people who at a certain age walk into a room to get something and then stand there wondering, “What am I here after?” As the years increase, it happens that memory decreases. Hopefully, though, we’ll never forget Jesus Christ.

But we do forget. Some wonder why we have to go to church so often. Every time we sin or doubt, we prove there is a need, because we’ve forgotten the importance of Jesus once again.

Lauersdorf, Richard. Remember Jesus Christ
Together with Jesus

Comment: Because of sin, we have built in memory loss - spiritual memory loss. It leads to doubt, fear, self-righteousness, thanklessness, and focusing on everything that is NOT important in life.

STORY

A farmer stayed home on Sunday to haul hay because rain was predicted. Just after noon, as he came down the road with a load of hay, he met the preacher, who looked at him reproachfully. “Reverend,” said the farmer, “it’s better to be sitting on this hay thinking about God than sitting in church thinking about hay.”

Farm Show

If absence makes the heart grow fonder, than a lot of folks sure do love the church.

QUOTE

God is everywhere. Why do you have to go to church? Because God is not everywhere in the same way that He is in His Word and Sacraments. He is in fire, but you won’t find your soul cleansed by putting your hand into it, nor will it feel very good.

…We trust what God has said… He is and will be where He said He will be. So we’ll be there too.

Petersen, Rev. David. (Redeemer Lutheran Church-LCMS, Fort Wayne, Indiana.) "Where God Is"
cited by: November 22, 2004. Christian News – Editorials,
Vol. 42, No. 45, p. 4

Comment: Is that our commitment in life? We'll be where God has promised to reveal himself - Word and sacraments? Where two or three are gathered together in the name of Jesus?