COVID-19 dealt a severe blow to our ministry routine and rhythms. What a relief to know that though the coronavirus took us by surprise, it did not take our great God by surprise. He sits enthroned above every storm and disease we face!

Last May, we reopened our church and began to regather as the people out here on the prairie. What a joy to once again fellowship, sing, and hear the Word together. And as we approach the fall, here is our plan to safely and smoothly relaunch our other church ministries…

Renovation Project = Sept. 1, 2020 (10 – 12 Weeks)

• Sunday Morning Worship Takes Place In Fellowship Hall And/Or Pavilion Area During This Time…

Outfitters’ Student Ministry = Sept. 9, 2020

• Will Meet Every Wednesday Evening At 6:30 PM…

Pavilion Project, Memorial Project, and Playground Project = Finished By Sept. 18, 2020

• This Is A Target Date, And Not A Hard-Line Guarantee…

Sunday School = Sept. 20, 2020 (Please See Our Sunday School Superintendent, Brian Wilson, For Further Details)

• Child Care Services Resume This Same Day, Sept. 20, 2020…Sidenote: On The First Sunday Of Every Month, In Place Of Sunday School, We Will Have A Time Of Corporate Prayer…

Kids4Truth = Oct. 7, 2020

• Prayer Meeting Will Also Resume At This Time…Kids4Truth (And Prayer Meeting) Will Run For 8 Weeks And Then Break For Christmas…Also, Kids4Truth (And Prayer Meeting) Will Take Every 4^th Wednesday Of The Month Off…

Growth Groups = Oct. 18, 2020

• Growth Groups Will Run For 5 Weeks And Then Break For Thanksgiving & Christmas…

Friendship Bible Study = Not Meeting During Fall 2020 (Please See Friendship Bible Study Coordinator, Duane Davis, For Further Details)

• Possibly Relaunching In Spring 2021…

I’ve been in pastoral ministry for nearly seven years. Over the years, I’ve encountered some very strong Christians, with a deep faith, rooted in a solid and vibrant theology. I’ve also met many Christians with little, fluffy faith rooted in an inaccurate and malnourished theology. These types of Christians, with poor theological footing, are ripe to fall to deliciously false narratives. Here are three of the most prominent false narratives that I’ve encountered among so called Christians in southeast Iowa…

1. God will never give to us more than we can handle. Really? Where does the Bible say that? It doesn’t. You can’t point me to one single passage that even remotely hints at this possibility. Perhaps the closest you could get is 1 Corinthians 10:13b, which states, “God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” So much could be said about this great promise of Scripture, but I will just have you note one thing…The issue at hand is temptation, not trials, tribulations, or turbulent times. Temptation is front and center in this passage. And this text is clear, God will never permit us to be tempted to the point that we have to give in. This is a wonderful promise on God’s grace despite the strong pull towards sin. This is not a magic Get Out Of Jail Free card on the great difficulties and storms of life. Indeed, sometimes our difficulties and storms are so overwhelming, and beyond our ability to handle, that if God doesn’t come through and help us, we’re goners…Yes, God sometimes gives to us far more than we can handle just so He can display His strength in and through us.
2. The safest place to be is in the center of God’s will. Ha! So certifiably inaccurate, it’s laughable. Try this theological falsity on John the Baptist, who was beheaded in prison for his stand on the truth…Or on the Apostle Peter, who was crucified upside down for his love for Jesus…Or James (the half-brother to Jesus), who was stoned and clubbed to death and all for following God’s will. This absurd notion that following God is safe is a lie. God is not safe. His will is not safe. But make no mistake about it, God is good, and His will is perfect, even if you lose everything for it. Yes, sometimes the most dangerous (and deadly) place to be is smack dab in the center of God’s will.
3. The best is yet to come. This popular cliche is really making its rounds in Christendom today. And, hear me, it’s partly true. The best is yet to come…but in the next life, not this life. Nowhere in Scripture are we promised that things will eventually get better for us in this life. Your cancer may spread. Your child might die. Your marriage might get worse. Simply put, the best is not guaranteed in this life. To cling to this idea that it might just get better now (instead of placing your hope in the next life with Jesus in Glory) is at best foolish and at worst will breed contempt for God as He fails to provide you with the life you think you need or deserve. Are you buying into this very popular lie that the best is yet to come in this life? My friend, here’s some straight-truth, the very worst might still be in front of you, and it may never get better after that. But here is some grace to chase that straight-truth: The best is yet to come in the next life with Jesus in Glory. Where is your hope today? What are you clinging to? Is your hope in this life only; or are you trusting, clinging, and hoping in the promise of a life to come where we will be in God’s presence forever? Because the best is yet to come in the next life, not this life.

“Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world, red and yellow, black and white,”—wait! “Red and yellow, black and white?” Is that accurate? Are people really different colors or different races? And doesn’t this cause kids to look on the outside differences as major when in reality they are only minor genetic differences?

That line in the well-known children’s chorus “Jesus Loves the Little Children” implies the existence of different races. And while the sentiment that Jesus loves children, and all are precious in his sight, is certainly biblically accurate, this idea of “red,” “yellow,” “black,” and “white” comes from the idea that people have different skin colors and belong to different races. But everyone has the same basic skin color from the brown pigment melanin, but they have varying shades.

Based on Darwin’s ideas, generations were taught that there were different races on the earth, with the supposed Caucasian race at the top. For example, in a textbook published in 1914 and used across America, high school biology students were taught:

At the present time there exist upon the earth five races…the highest type of all, the Caucasians, represented by the civilized white inhabitants of Europe and America.

While such ideas are consistent with evolutionary beliefs (although observational science has shown these ideas to be utterly wrong and most evolutionists have since abandoned them), Christians should immediately recognize that they run contrary to biblical truth.

God’s Word teaches that we’re all descended from the first two people, Adam & Eve (Genesis 1:27, 3:20, 1 Corinthians 15:45), and therefore there is only one race of humans (Acts 17:26) — Adam’s race. Sadly, at the time of Darwin, many Christians had already compromised God’s Word with the belief in millions of years and therefore didn’t stand on the authority of God’s Word and the true history of the world to refute Darwin, and others’, dangerous and racist teachings.

We aren’t “red and yellow, black and white”—we’re all brown. Everyone is brown. Some people are very light brown; others are very dark brown, and others are in-between. But everyone is a variation of the same basic color – brown. Now there are other factors such as fat in the skin, closeness of blood vessels to the surface, and so on that can give some differences. But that doesn’t negate the fact everyone is the same basic skin color.

You see, each person has a brownish pigment in their skin called melanin. While other pigments and factors are involved, melanin is the main pigment that gives each person their individual skin shade. And the amount of melanin a person produces is determined by their genetic makeup, inherited from their parents. To put it simplistically, if a person has a small amount of melanin, they will have a light brown shade of skin. If a person has a lot of melanin, they will have a dark brown shade of skin. It’s not a matter of black and white — everyone is brown!

That biological fact is the basis of an ad campaign we recently launched. You may see our eye-grabbing “Everyone Is Brown” ads while you are scrolling social media.

These ads direct people to Answers.tv and a brand-new series featuring my friend and the co-author of One Race, One Blood Dr. Charles Ware. Dr. Ware is the executive director of Grace Relations at the College of Biblical Studies, and he is passionate about the message of grace — not race — relations. In his new series Grace Relations, you’ll discover how biblical truth and the gospel apply to the tensions and prejudices in our nation. Get answers that will change hearts and create lasting change in this powerful series, with new episodes streaming throughout the month of August on Answers TV.

Find the answer to racism at Answers.tv/grace-relations. (Answers TV is available on your web browser on any device or through a variety of apps).

That’s why I prefer these lyrics to “Jesus Loves the Little Children” to reflect the biblical truth that we’re all one race and differences in our skin shade are minor:

It could go without saying that COVID-19 has caused countless discussions, meetings, and planning sessions regarding how we do life in these times. Nowhere has this been truer than in the realm of pastors and other church leaders. Now before you tune me out, this post will not largely be about COVID-19. I merely bring it up because it has caused almost every Christian to ask, “When it is OK to skip church?” Now there is a great deal of wisdom each Christian must use in deciding whether it would be best to avoid gathering in the short term, but I suspect that there are many, many people who did not really value the gathering as they should and this global pandemic is only too convenient for them to do what they were already inclined to do. I would like to explore the question here, “When is it OK to skip the assembling of ourselves together?”

For the vast majority of the history of Protestant churches, church attendance was completely expected of all church members and even many citizens in the broader culture. In the last several decades church attendance has declined precipitately even among individuals who hold membership in a church. There are multiple reasons for this, largely revolving around our busy schedules, the increase of work hours, and sporting events on Sundays. Ultimately though, it really reveals our skewed priorities and a deficiency in our understanding of what takes place (or should take place) during our regular Sunday morning gatherings.

The writer of Hebrews makes it very clear that this is not just a problem
for our day and time, but also during the setting at the time of his writing.
Hebrews 10:24-25, “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing
near.” It is not hard to see that this was a problem even in the first
century church. Now, do we view it as a sin to skip church for any reason?
Certainly not! There are very legitimate reasons for doing so, but I firmly believe that the American church has strayed far onto the side of regular church attendance being optional for the believer. Again, I believe this shows a deficiency in our priorities and view of church.

Some might say, “I do church online.” Now I think everyone can be
thankful for the wealth of good teaching content online as well as more and more churches being able to livestream their services. That said, I think you are missing at least half of the importance if you think that services are only about being fed the Word of God. That is a very important and primary ministry of our regular services, but is not sufficient in and of itself. You see, church is not really about you. I know, news flash, right? Look again at verse 24, we are called to encourage one another and build one another up. How can you do that if you are neglecting to see one another.

Another huge role of church is to be accountable to the pastors and other
church members. How can you do that if you are regularly skipping regular church services? Maybe you are an independent person by nature and an introvert. You want to deal with your own problems and let others do the same. I’m sorry, Christian, but you are not afforded that choice. You see, God gave us all a role to play in the mutual building up of the body of Christ. This is clear in many places including the command to “rejoice with those who rejoice” and “weep with those who weep” or “bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ.” I’ll ask again, how can you do that if you neglect the local body of Christ? Do you know that there are many, many brothers and sisters around the world who are literally willing to die to fulfill God’s command to meet together? And yet, we can find countless excuses to just stay home.

But what about you who say, “Pastor, I’d love to be at church, but my
work schedule just won’t allow it” or “I just don’t have good health” or “This is just a season…” These may all be reasonable and acceptable objections as reasons to miss church, but I believe most of the time we skip church is due to the fact that we just don’t view it with the priority we should. Also, many of you out there would respond, “My relationship is between me and Jesus,.and I have peace with this decision.” You are right and wrong. Remember that God has also commanded us to be accountable to one another. God will not command you to do something contrary to His Word.

Now, maybe you are offended at this point, but if you have read all the way to here than let me encourage you to truly evaluate whether you too are guilty of neglecting the body of Christ. Maybe you are in doubt about whether your situation demands you to not attend your church. Well, let me encourage you with this, invite your pastor to weigh in on your decision-making process. We pastors care for you and your situations. We are, after all, called to, “Care for your souls as ones who must give an account to God…”