The Periodically

Occasionally after a morning service, I will hear someone say, “Hey Mike, great worship this morning!” After thanking them and walking on it hits me: What did they mean? Did they like the music? Did the band sound good today? Were they impressed by the new Christmas clothes? All I know is something affected them. They had a good experience in the service. What is a good experience? Was it God-focused? 
 One of the statements in our church’s worship philosophy says this: "Our worship will be God-centered; a high priority of the vertical focus of our Sunday morning service; the ultimate aim is to so experience God that He is glorified in our affections.”   Some time ago I read through a Christian bookstore flier, I noticed an ad for a new worship album that mentioned the term “experience” six times. We all love “worship experiences” with God. Experiences aren’t evil. But the concept of worship as an “experience” is fairly foreign to Scripture. I say “fairly” because...

Just a quick note as Casey and I are at a church in Lafayette for a training conference on biblical counseling. We are enjoying the learning and the fellowship with other BCCers while we are here. Let me tell you...if you want to laugh a lot, sit with Mark Herrmann, Gary Baranowski, and Bill Winkler for a meal. These men love the Lord and know how to have a good time. Casey and I are in a track at the conference where you work on certification through the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC). We've appreciated being shepherded well through the process. The leadership at the conference has helped us to see that the process is doable by God's grace. We've accomplished a lot on the certification path while here and will have more to go after we leave.  Being here reminds us of our love for Bethany Community Church and the focus on the glory of God by proclaiming and preparing. We are so thankful for a church that desires to honor God through the caref...

My wife, Casey, has begun writing a bit more, and those that help with this blog have okayed for some of that writing to be published here. I think you'll be blessed.  -Pastor Ben We all know that suffering is designed by God to sanctify us and to teach us that all we have is Christ.  But what about enjoying God’s good gifts that He gives us? Are these meant to sanctify us and teach us that all we have is Christ? In Joe Rigney’s book Things of Earth , we learn that, yes, even God’s blessings are designed to cause us to become more like Jesus as we enjoy them the way God intended. Have you ever felt just a little guilty for enjoying a vacation by the beach, or maybe a big slice of your grandma’s homemade apple pie, or maybe you’re not sure how excited to be when your child takes first place in his/her activity? We know that it is all too easy to worship the created instead of the creator, so we don’t want to find our joy and ident...