January 2016, Vol. 35, No. 1

All church bulletin resources from the January 2016 edition of Bulletin Digest.

Still Standing!

Despised and torn to pieces, By infidels decried, The thunderbolts of hatred, The haughty cynic’s pride All these have railed against it, In this and other lands; Yet dynasties have fallen, And still the Bible stands! Author Unknown via Broadway church of Christ Campbellsville, KY… We are sorry, but this content is for Annual and…

You Can’t Have a Rainbow Without the Rain…or Can You?

You can’t have a rainbow without the rain is the old saying. But is it true? I guess it depends on where you’re at. If you’re talking about life on Earth, the saying definitely holds water. Cloudy days and storms are the norm in mankind’s life (Job 14:1). Rich, poor, man, woman, young, old, red,…

Do Not Wait For The Kingdom

A few weeks ago a couple of nice gentlemen associated with a religious denomination knocked at my door. After introducing themselves, they got to the point they wanted to discuss: the kingdom of Christ. They insisted that the kingdom would soon be established. It was a beautiful, sunny Saturday morning, and I had plans for…

The Amazing ‘Chesed’ of God

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him” (Lamentations 3:22-24, RSV). Those who say that the God of the Old Testament was a God of…

Thoughts Not to Entertain

If Paul had thought like some today, he would have written to the Ephesians like this: “Paul the apostle to the saints at Ephesus. Brethren, I rejoiced when I went into the theater in your city to behold the shows. The play of Aristophanes was a magnificent story of a man who overcame poverty and…

The ‘Corinth Syndrome’

The fact that the man speaking was supposedly a gospel preacher made his words that much more incredible. His solution to dwindling attendance and a seemingly unpopular preacher in a small-town congregation near his home was to build a really nice (expensive) new church building there and hire him to be the new preacher. All…

Frantic? Or Faithful?

When Elijah fled from the threats of Jezebel, he was asking God to take his life (1 Kings 19:4). The Lord then led Elijah to Mount Horeb (Sinai), where Elijah confessed to the Lord that he was the only prophet left. All the others had been killed (1 Kings 19:10). Even though Elijah had just…

Who Are You Living For?

Who is it that we should live life for? Is it to please others, self, or God? Remember what Jesus prayed for in the Garden of Gethsemane: “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39b). It was not about…

Finding My Worth in God

“Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in Iowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself” (Phil 2:3 NKJV). One of the greatest struggles for humanity is the discovery of our own value and self-worth. People often feel so very empty and insignificant. The cares of life tend to batter…

‘A Time to Embrace’

I had not heard of the “hug lady” until this past Saturday, January 2, 2016. Because of the political nature of most stories, I usually avoid the national news shows as much as possible. However, that day I happened to be watching the last segment. The news was that the hug lady had died (http://www.nbcnews.com/nlghtly-news/video/fort-hood-s–hug-Iady–…

Chosen by God

In school many kids dread the scenario in gym class, where two captains pick teams. Every kid is lined up and one-by-one the teams are picked. No one in that line wanted to be the last kid to be picked. Being picked last means the two captains valued you the least out of everyone else.…

Industrious

An industrious person is attentive and active. An industrious person is committed and conscientious. An industrious person is dedicated and diligent. An industrious person is focused and faithful. An industrious person is hardworking and helpful. An industrious person is studious and steady. A Christian is an industrious person. Paul exhorted, “not lagging in diligence, fervent…

Who Will Guide You?

Think about a boat on the river with no one in it just going with the waves; side to side, bank to bank, and not knowing where it will end up. It could end up stuck next to the bank with branches all around it and not able to move. It could end up at…

The Search for Spirituality

Spirituality is a highly sought after quality, and has been throughout the ages. In the ancient city of Ephesus, sacred prostitutes served daily in the temple of Diana because it was thought that sexual union brought closer union with the gods. Mothers have thrown their babies into the crocodile-infested Ganges River in the search for…

Grounded in Truth

Truth is constant. Truth does not vary from one person to the next and it does not change with the circumstance. Truth is like a tree with deep roots. The winds of change may blow strong against it but that tree does not move an inch and when the storm passes by the tree is…

Dare to be Different

[114 words] I remember a book we used in 4-H some years ago titled, “Dare to be Different.” What a challenge this is to Christians today. Dare to speak out for the Lord; dare to do what is right when society says sin is okay; dare to grow in knowledge of God’s Word – and…

Who Will The Lord Find Watching?

“Blessed are those servants, whom the Lord when he comes shall find watching…” (Luke 12:37). Fanny J. Crosby’s grand hymn is based on the above passage. Watching is an important spiritual exercise denoting a perpetual state of vigilance and readiness (Matthew 26:41; 1 Corinthians 16:13; Colossians 4:2). It also denotes a constant condition of soberness…

Blind Men of Hindustan

Most are conversant with the famous poem concerning the blind men of Hindustan who went to “see” an elephant. Since each was sightless and stationed at a different vantage point surrounding the huge creature, the six men came away with vastly different concepts regarding the elephant. The first said, “An elephant is like a rope,”…

The True Word of God

The Bible is the book. It is the only book for a dying man. It is the only book for a living man. As the very word of God, the Bible is the book that speaks to any and all situations for a person’s life. It is the only book that informs us about how…

The Will of the Father

Matthew 12:50 Jesus says to his disciples, “For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” Often in this world we are focused on doing our own will. Doing the things we think is best for our lives. We are focused on success, fame, money, friends, pleasure,…

The Wind

When I drove into the office this morning, the wind was not blowing very much. We can’t see the wind, but we can see the results of it. The reason I knew the wind was not blowing much, was the flag was moving only a little. The wind is spoken of in the Bible some…

Worship God

Twice in the revelation given to him, John is reminded to “worship God” (Rev. 19:10; 22:9). Too many Christians focus more on self than on God in worship. We should never depart from the true purpose of our worship: honoring God. Take a look at the prescribed elements of worship and note how they all…

I’ll Keep On Till They Quit

There once was an older man who went out jogging. He was running around a track that circled the high school football field while the team was conducting their practice. When the football players began running their sprints up and down the field, the man said to himself, “I’ll just keep running until they quit.”…

The Beginning and End of Prayer

Prayer, in the end, is simply an intimate conversation between a child and their heavenly Father. There are always only two people represented in true prayer, you and God. Thus, while there are many kinds of prayer we could talk about, fundamental to them all is simply a conversation, a dialogue between an individual and…

‘Go Ye’ Means ‘Go Me’

I read recently that when asked how often Christians had shared their faith in the past year, 95% of the respondents replied they had not shared their faith! Not even once. Really? Can that possibly be true? I have asked audiences around the country that same question, and received with few exceptions, the same approximate…

Repent and Believe the Good News!

“After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galillee, proclaiming the good news of God.  ‘The time has come,’ he said.  ‘The kingdom of God is near.  Repent and believe the good news’” (Mark 1:14-15). Mark’s gospel, written to a Roman audience that valued efficiency, is the shortest and most stripped down to the…