I’m excited to remind you that our Vacation Bible School starts this coming Sunday! This year’s theme is “Big Apple Adventure.” I’m not real sure what that means, other than the fact that we’re busy transforming the church building into something that looks like New York City.
That would explain all of the large cardboard boxes decorated as skyscrapers and the yellow taxi cab parked out by the door. I understand that if you step onto our main platform area in the sanctuary you’ll feel like you’re in the middle of Times Square. And our missions offering will be received by feeding the parking meter. It should be a fun week.
If you have children from ages 4 through those who have just completed 6th grade, we invite you to come and join us for this Big Apple Adventure. Again, it starts this Sunday, July 17, and goes through Thursday, July 21. We’ll serve a light meal for the children and workers at 5:30 each evening, and VBS goes from 6:00-8:00. Friday, July 22, at 6:00 p.m. will be our Family Night. Hope to see you there!
As I pray about what to write this week, I feel compelled to urge you to pray for our nation. We are facing some challenging times, unprecedented times, and our leaders and our people need prayer more than ever. Our economic crisis could easily and suddenly become a nightmare. Our global peace-keeping mission keeps meaning the loss of more and more of our young men and women in uniform. Our moral descent is picking up speed.
We need to pray for America. And I’m not talking about a “God, bless America” kind of prayer. I’m talking about praying that His name will be honored by this nation. I’m talking about praying that His kingdom’s purposes will become our desire. I’m talking about praying that God will turn the hearts of this stubborn people back to following His ways.
Now, where have we seen this pattern of prayer before? Oh, yes! “Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Are we really praying like this? Or are we just mouthing words in vain repetition?
If we really pray that God’s name will be “hallowed,” that is, to be made holy or revered among men, then we need to honor Him as Almighty God and Lord. We’re not doing that as a nation. How can sing “God Bless America” on the Capitol steps or during the seventh inning stretch while not possessing the slightest desire to truly honor Him in the way we think and live?
If we really pray for His kingdom to come, then we need to submit to His reign. The band MercyMe had a song out recently with this line: “How can I further Your kingdom / When I’m so wrapped up in mine?” In order to allow our Father’s kingdom to come, we need to stop building our own. We must be willing to lay down our personal agendas, our self-centered ambitions and our inflated arrogance and seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.
And if we really pray for His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, then we need to make some radical changes in our lives. How is God’s will done in heaven? It’s obeyed perfectly, completely, gladly, joyfully, without hesitation, without question, without doubt. How is His will done on earth? Not so much. We must repent of insisting on doing our will, following the stubborn, sinful desires of our hearts and living like obeying our Father’s will is optional.
These are perilous times in our nation’s history. I believe we’re on the brink of receiving a swift measure of God’s judgment for our failure to honor Him and follow His ways such as we’ve never seen before. It’s high time to pray, and pray hard and pray in truth. I’m not asking you to pray to try to convince God to do things your way, but to humble yourself and allow Him to conform you to His ways.
Even wicked Ninevah was spared when they believed God, called upon Him for mercy and turned from their evil ways. Perhaps He will relent and turn from His anger against us if we get down on our knees and pray.
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