Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Celebration”
Our Bible verse for today: “Then he said to them, ‘Go and eat what is rich, drink what is sweet, and send portions to those who have nothing prepared, since today is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, because the joy of the Lord is your stronghold.” Nehemiah 8:10 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “It is good for God’s people to celebrate.”
One of the things I love about being a Southern Baptist is that we seldom go hungry. Food is a big part of our gatherings. We’re sometimes referred to as “The Church of the Covered Dish” because potlucks and casseroles are such an important part of our church life. Not to mention ice cream socials. And banana pudding.
While it’s true that every worship service should be a time of celebration, it’s also true that it’s good for God’s people to have regularly scheduled times of fellowship and partying together. That’s what Nehemiah was writing about in Nehemiah 8:10. He was encouraging the people to have a banquet and to enjoy themselves – as part of church life.
This is something we’re pretty good at, at Oak Hill Baptist Church. We have breakfast together in the fellowship hall every Sunday morning. In recent months we’ve had a Homecoming Day banquet, a Matthew Party in celebration of Billy Graham’s 95th birthday, an evening meal together at our local Rescue Mission in town, as well as an assortment of birthday parties and other events that involved eating. In two weeks we’ll host our annual Christmas party for the girls of the Tennessee Baptist Children’s Home and again, we’ll eat together.
The point is that it’s good for God’s people to celebrate. Worship is a form of celebrating before the Lord, but so is eating. Someday as the people of God we’ll all enjoy the wedding feast of the Lamb. Until then we can and should enjoy our smaller feasts of fried chicken, blueberry pie, Linda’s lasagna and Tom Herring’s chocolate cake. Eating together is Biblical. Aren’t you glad it is?
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 