Sunday Sermons

"And now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord you God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord's commands and decrees" Deut 10:12-13a

My Father’s Father, my Grandfather, is an Ordained Minister among other things. He served as a mechanic in the Army Air Corps during WWII, played bass fiddle in a swing band at one point in his life, and served as a police officer while starting his church (He used to joke that he was the only officer on the force that could read a criminal his Miranda Rights AND his Last Rights).

Growing up I attended his church somewhat regularly (My sister and I sang in a choir in another church, so we would go there on Sundays we were scheduled to sing). I loved going to my grandfather’s church and sitting in the same pew with my uncle, cousins and my grandma and watching grandpa work. From my vantage point in that crowded pew, he seemed so wise and venerable, yet affable and kind as well. I loved that he would let us grandkids take turns ringing the church bell before service started (It was an old bell mounted in the steeple, complete with a pull cord which descended from a hole in the ceiling).

I must have listened to hundreds of sermons given from that pulpit and, while I cannot remember them all, they are at the core of my spiritual foundation and were formational in my relationship with God. I took great pride in the fact that that was my grandpa behind the pulpit, leading worship, chatting afterwards with the congregation about their daily lives. He [my grandfather], took great pride in delivering God’s message, doing God’s work, and living his whole life for God- and I think that is one of the greatest lessons he taught me. I was proud of his title “Grandpa”, he was too; he was more proud of his title “Servant of God”.

I have lots of titles now: Captain, Father, Husband, Brother, Son. Putting the title Servant of God first doesn’t diminish the importance of the others, it enhances my ability to live up to them by keeping me focused on the Godly principles which must necessarily be at work in them.

"Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ." Gal 1:10