Why We Worship Together

Well, school is out and summer is here! As I write this article, I’m reflecting on a presentation I heard at the men’s Crosswalk retreat. The words I heard that weekend are still ringing in my ears: “Don’t try to do this on your own.” The presenter was highlighting a crucial element in the life of the believer who is striving to follow Jesus – community.

When I heard these words, I immediately thought about why it’s important for us to worship together and make the commitment to attend worship regularly. According to scripture, we have been created to thrive in community. God recognized that it was not good for Adam to be alone and created a help-mate, Eve (Gen. 2:18).

The words of scripture also encourage us to “keep meeting together” (Hebrews 10:25) and to encourage one another through “psalms, hymns and spiritual songs” (Ephesians 5:19) as we are led by the Spirit. In the second chapter of Acts, we read about the early church and how “they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer” (Acts 2:42). This is a good model for us in an age where we are so easily enticed to stay disconnected and distracted from the needs and encouragement of our community. When we meet on Sunday mornings the very act of participating together in worship fosters “glad and sincere hearts” (Acts 2:46). This in turn encourages unity and growth in the Body of Christ(Acts 2:47).

I have heard people say that they will “worship on their own” in the car with a worship music CD or participate in a worship service online at home. There is a time and place for worshiping and praying in solitude and it was modeled for us by Jesus (Luke 6:12). Our busy lives can certainly prevent us from making it to church every Sunday morning, and it is good to have alternatives for when we’re out of town or on vacation. But committing to being at church regularly to worship with the community whenever you are in town has a significant spiritual and unifying impact on the Body of Christ!

May you be blessed as you enjoy this summer!
Peace,
Jason

The Edge - Gibson Explorer

Here's a video from the BBC featuring the Edge from U2. Nice series of videos.

Let Our Hearts Be Gladdened

I like to cook. It's really quite fun and fulfilling (in the accomplishment and the eating). I often find myself wandering over to the laptop computer that is an ever present companion on our kitchen island to find new and interesting recipes. My wife, Sara, is a huge fan of Simply Recipes and we're more often than not trying out some of the great things we find on this site.

If you happen to be coming over to dinner at our place, chances are we're gonna use you as "new-recipe guinea pigs" for some random meal we've found on this site. Don't worry though--as far as we can tell, we've never found (or made) a bad meal yet. When we share in the goodness of food together (and thanking God for His provision in our lives), I believe we tap into something holy and beautiful. Dig in!

Where Do You Spend Most of Your Time?

Where do you spend most of your time during the week? If you're like most people, I imagine you'd say "at work" or "working" in some capacity. Have you ever thought that God may be calling you to consider your place of employment as a mission field? Come to the Workplace Ministry Conference at Saint Matthew Lutheran Church on January 30 & 31 to explore what it means to have a God-fueled relationship between your "faith" life and your "work" life. Register online today for $29.95. More info is available at http://www.saintmatthew.org/godatwork

Christmas For Everyone feat. Justin McRoberts

This is Justin's annual hometown hullabaloo. As always, proceeds go to benefit Christmas For Everyone (CFE), a Christmas Day program serving the homeless and working poor.

A great evening of music, inspiration, generosity and community.

Tickets: $8 adv / $10 at Door. Raffle is $1 each
Advance Group Tickets available at www.itickets.com

6:45pm Doors, 7:30pm Concert







More JUSTIN MCROBERTS links:
OFFICIAL MCCHRISTMAS POSTER: http://www.justinmcroberts.com/posters/McChristmasPoster08_FINAL_11x17.jpg
WEBSITE: http://www.justinmcroberts.com
BLOG: http://justinmcroberts.com/blog
YOUTUBE: http://www.youtube.com/justinmcroberts

Thanksgiving Eve - PIE FEST

WEDNESDAY, NOV 26 - 7:30pm
Saint Matthew Lutheran Church
Walnut Creek, CA 94598 (map)

We gather together on Thanksgiving Eve for worship and a pie fest each year. This year we will be joined by the Hills Vineyard and Shelter Covenant Churches from Concord.

Shelter’s worship leader, Justin McRoberts, will be presenting an evening of worship and inspiration. He is an internationally known Christian musician, a highly respected singer, songwriter and speaker who, over the past nine years, has carved out a niche for himself in the independent music scene. Central to Justin’s work is advocacy on behalf of the poor and oppressed through Compassion International, the International Justice Mission and the Blood Water Mission. Compassion International is an international Christian “adoption” group, that connects Christians who want to help poor children and their families throughout the world. One hundred percent of the monthly support given goes to that child and their family! There is no other Christian group who has that type of efficiency. This evening, we will have the opportunity to adopt a child, if we so choose.

Our Pie Fest, which follows worship, is a great time of fellowship as well as a means by which we collect dozens of pies that are passed along to groups that are serving those who cannot afford a Thanksgiving Dinner. We ask you to bring two pies—one to share
that evening and one to give away.

Invite your friends to join us for this unique evening. And don’t forget the pies!

www.justinmcroberts.com

The Guest List

What would Thanksgiving look like if we focused less on the meal (the food and all the trimmings) and more on the guest list? This video can be found Work of the People.com