Bible Reading Plan

Oh No! It’s September!

Last January many of us here at Westchester started one of two ‘read through the Bible’ plans; and since this is the internet I can’t ask for a show of hands for who has kept up.  So, what happens if you are way behind in your Bible reading plan? You could use all of your paid vacation days to catch up, and then work over Thanksgiving.  Instead of missing time with your family, pumpkin pie, and overdosing on tryptophan, let me offer up three simple suggestions.

First, and let this be an theme for all three, have grace on yourself.  Do not get so down on yourself that you stop all together. Instead of getting down on yourself for not reading, make a simple plan to start again, and keep working on it.

Second, do not feel the need to make it all up at once.  If you convince yourself that you need to catch up and finish on time, this reading can easily become so overwhelming that you are not able to process, be changed, or worship God through His word.  There are two ways to go about this.  You can simply pick up where you left off, and do your best to stay on track from here on out, or you can pick up where the reading plan is now.  Either way, start reading again, and enjoy the benefits of reading God’s word. September has just started, you can, starting today, read one third of the Bible between now and the end of the year!  Reading just a few minutes each day can add up over a relatively short amount of time.

Finally, reevaluate your original goal of reading the whole Bible in 2015.  The purpose behind your goal was hopefully to be in the Bible more than you were last year. Has that happened? Are you currently on pace to do that this year?  Remember the main goal for all of us is to walk closer with God, we as pastors hope that this emphasis on God’s word has helped you grow. 

I hope your reading in the Bible this year is deeper than it was a year ago, I hope you’re a year closer to God then you were last fall.  I praise God that he has grace with us, and hope we can also have grace with ourselves when we don’t do as well as we intend.  I especially hope that if you had given up on your reading plan, that this will encourage you to start again. 

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Chuck Mullikin

About the Author:
Chuck serves on staff at Westchester as Associate Pastor of Adult Discipleship

Worship Round-Up (August 30, 2015)

a weekly review of Sunday worship to provide resource and further reflection from our Sunday service.

Sermon

"Preach the Word"

2 Timothy 4:1-2

Pastor Dave MacKinnon

Listen to the sermon here

While studying this week over the passage that Pastor Dave would be preaching from, the line that kept sticking out was "Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead." It stands out that our reasoning to preach the word faithfully is because we are in submission to Christ who is our judge. It was apparent that we should sing of this great truth. In Before the Throne we sing of our confidence to stand before our judge who has all of our life written on His hands. It is not a place of worry of whether we will measure up because He is our "spotless righteousness". Along these same lines we sung the Lord's prayer together in "Father you are all we need" which speaks of our dependance upon our Father for everything in our life. We ended the service with "O Great God" which in our sending re-states our dependence, confidence, and also the responsibility laid upon us that because of the Gospel we should seek to glorify our Father in every aspect of our life.

Music

O For a Thousand Tongues
by Charles Wesley

No Other Name
by Austin Hilmer



Father You are All We Need
by Brian Eichelberger | Dustin Kensrue | Zach Bolen
Listen on YouTube



Before the Throne of God Above
by Charitie Lees Bancroft
Listen on YouTube



O Great God
Bob Kauflin
Listen on YouTube

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Austin Hilmer

About the Author:
Austin serves on staff at Westchester as Associate Pastor of Corporate Worship

3 Ways show Spiritual Maturity

         One of the weekly meetings that I have with the Sr. High students takes place on Sunday nights.  During this time we try address a topic that is pertinent to all of us, and usually something that is current.  This last week I wanted to take a look at what a spiritually mature person is like because our culture tells us something very different than the Bible. 

    

    1. The world shows a “mature person” as someone who has their life in order.  They wear nice clothes, have a nice job, behave in a professional manner, and make sure that they are perceived in that way.  But Biblical maturity sees more of the inside of a person than the outside.  We, with the help of the Holy Spirit, should see people as creations that are loved by God.  We can wear goofy clothes, work at a roller skating rink, and have fun in life and still be mature.  Of course we can also wear nice clothes, have a nice job, and behave professionally and be spiritually mature at the same time.  It is not external things that show our maturity.

    

   2. Another way that our culture defines maturity is having a lot of knowledge.  The more you know the more mature you are.  However a spiritually mature person will seek the truth, with grace and compassion.  2 Peter 3:18 calls us to grow in knowledge, but it also is sure to tell us to do that with grace.  So instead of knowing a lot, we need to recognize that there are things we don’t know, and strive after those to the glory of God.

    

    3. One trait of maturity that our culture lifts up is being sure of ourselves.  If we have self-confidence and assurance we must be mature.  But true maturity follows God in all ways.  Sacrificing our own desires and allowing God to lead is a much better way to exhibit maturity.

Our goal should be for spiritual maturity as opposed to the maturity that the world has to offer.  Our life should be dedicated to the Lord, with the understanding that we are living for him instead of our own selfish desires. 

Maturity does not always come with age.  Instead a mature person is humble and kind, sacrificial and loving, and aware of God in their lives.

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Josh Earhart

About the Author:
Josh serves on staff at Westchester as Associate Pastor of Student Ministries

Worship Round-Up (August 23, 2015)

a weekly review of Sunday worship to provide resource and further reflection from our Sunday service.

Sermon

"Continue in the Word"

2 Timothy 3:16-17

by Pastor Dave MacKinnon

Listen to this sermon here

This week's service emphasized centering our life around the word. Timothy serves as our example of how we should train up our own children and those in the church to hear their whole lives the truth that comes from scripture. Listen to the sermon to hear testimony from those leading our children on how this happens at Westchester. We drew connections between the sermon and the music by singing about our love for the word and the need for the scripture in our lives with songs like "How Firm a Foundation" and "We Are Listening".  We also chose as a special music to sing the old hymn "I Love to Tell the Story" to reinforce the joy we have in retelling the Gospel Story from generation to generation. The devotion to the word is meant to make us "wise for salvation in Christ". It is because of this that we sing "He is Jesus" and "Behold Our God".

Music

How Firm a Foundation
Published by John Rippon-- author "Unknown"
Listen on YouTube


He is Jesus
Stephen Altrogge
Listen on YouTube



I Love to Tell the Story
by Arabella Catherine Henkey | William Gustavus Fischer



 
Behold Our God

by Jonathan Baird | Meghan Baird | Ryan Baird | Stephen Altrogge
Listen on YouTube



We Are Listening
Jeremy Quillo
Listen on Bandcamp

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Austin Hilmer

About the Author:
Austin serves on staff at Westchester as Associate Pastor of Corporate Worship

Spiritual Junk Food

I’d like to steal an analogy from a blogger named Zac Hicks. He talks on his blog about a worship leader being a spiritual dietician. Worship leaders are directing the health of a church by giving them a diet on Sunday mornings—and I would argue that this affects how we “eat” throughout the week. In order for us to grow spiritually we need to think about it like physical fitness (as Paul does frequently- 1 Cor. 9:24-26; Phil 2:16; Hebrews 12:1; 2 Tim 4:7). In order to be a good athlete who can undergo long workouts to endure a marathon, one must have a diet that will sustain and build muscle rather than something that will be empty calories and sit heavy in the stomach.—trust me, I feel like I know more about being in a food coma than eating food that encourages me to be light on my feet.

My conviction as the worship leader at Westchester is that I know many people come in Sunday morning desiring a feast of the most delicious foods. It really seems that bread, butter, heavy cream, and cheese are the components to make a good meal—but that kind of diet will not sustain you. It will only weigh you down and as though there is some sort of spiritual MSG you’ll be hungry again in an hour.

What this looks like in worship is when we become so consumed with our actions. The songs that repeat all of the things we are going to do for God (songs heavy on “I Will” statements) or all the things we are giving up for God (songs heavy on “Surrender” type statements). These things are not bad in themselves; however, if this is 90% of what we sing on a Sunday we will walk away with our stomachs full but then we will be paralyzed and unable to do ministry. If we try to sustain living for God throughout the week with promises of all the things we are going to do or reminding ourselves to “do better!”, “be better!”, and “do more!”—we will burn out faster than me trying to run for the first time in a year.

Let us instead rest on the things Christ has already done! This naturally brings us back to the cross. Let us feast on remembering his blood shed as our sacrifice, for reconciliation, for redemption, to absorb God’s wrath, and how he was resurrected and is reigning as our King! The only issue with this is we have to get used to this diet. As a worship leader I feel like that mom who won’t let you have dessert until you finish your broccoli. But as a leader I’m most concerned with what is going to sustain you and help you grow through your week.

So that this doesn’t become monotonous or begrudging worship let us always remember that we get to sing of God’s love and the good works he has prepared for us to do in his name (Ephesians 2:10). Let us keep those things in context to the overall meal and not be the children who want to fill their whole plate with dessert and fried cheese. That means we still get to enjoy those things…but make sure you keep a balance, and always eat your vegetables!

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Austin Hilmer

About the Author:
Austin serves on staff at Westchester as Associate Pastor of Corporate Worship