Sound The Trumpet

"How has this week gone," you ask? I am so glad you asked.
Last Sunday was awesome. It was Easter Sunday. No, the Easter Bunny didn't make an appearance. We didn't have a fashion show either. Church should not be about a fashion show or about being seen. Church is about worshiping God and hearing the preaching. It was the Laodicean church, as I recall, which was focused on fashion. The Laodicean church was also the church which was lukewarm, which God said he would spew out. Anyway, the church was full, the Spirit of God was moving, hearts were troubled by the preaching and some families were helped. But, that was Sunday.

Monday night, we had a men's meeting and fish fry. I am not one who loves fresh fish. I like it processed to the point it tastes like chicken, but this was great. Aside from the fish, our souls were fed as Bro. Michael brought a devotion.

Tuesday, rest.

Wednesday, church. Usually, we are working with our 3rd - 6th graders in BASIC Training, but this week we were in the main service. It was one of those foggy services - and that was before the preaching. Really, Preacher's message paralleled the theme of this blog. He preached about why we, as preachers, must sound the trumpet of warning. I needed the encouragement. Wednesday night through early Thursday morning, we prayed the storms would pass us by. I am so thankful the Lord chose to spare us and our home from any damage!

Friday, our youth traveled to a church in South Carolina. The glory fell again. God was certainly moving in a magnificent way. The youth choir sang and testified. Several people testified from the floor. There was some more testimonies and then the preaching. Again, our preacher took us to the same passage, but he delivered a different slant on the passage. It was a different challenge to the preachers and again, I was blessed and encouraged beyond measure.

As Saturday draws to an end, I am tired. We took our BASIC Training kids on a little hike. Aren't they a great looking bunch? Isn't it great that all the young ladies look like young ladies while the young men look like young men? I am so thankful our preacher has entrusted their training to us. BASIC Training is a lot like SIGMA. We have been in SIGMA before. When it is done right, it is a great program, but SIGMA is not quite the right fit for this age group.

As I said, we took this group on a little hike in a local national park. We had a bus ride from the church to the park. Almost immediately, I was impressed (again). With other "church groups" I have been around, there was an endless barrage of crude remarks and worldly music (or ringtones). Not this group. We were no more than out of the church parking lot before the singing started. It was YOUTH CHOIR and it was incredible! No one was sharing their iPod with their worldly music (not even any of the supposed adults), they were singing praises to God.  Why are these 'tweens singing and praising God on the bus? They look up to a Godly group of teens who do the same thing. I love following the youth choir when they travel. You see, our youth group enjoys hearing preaching (of course, some of these young men are genuine preachers and do, occasionally, preach) and they enjoy singing praises unto God.  For our youth, a trip is a chance to have good clean, innocent fun. It isn't about being with their boyfriend or girlfriend. It isn't about sharing an iPod with the world's rotten music. When the youth choir get to wherever they're going, they've already been to church. They have already been worshiping God. They don't have to spend half the night at the alter confessing what they did on the bus ride to wherever they're going, they show up full of the Holy Spirit.  For them, it's about God. I was blessed, today, to enjoy a few minutes of that on the way to the park today.

After all of this, I get to go to bed looking forward to Sunday. I am so blessed.