What would happen if you stopped thinking of Church as something you attend? What if you thought about it as something you are a part of?

What would happen if you replaced the word “going” with something else? Something like I am “serving” the Church, or I am “engaged in” the Church, or I am “leading” the Church.

Words matter. Every time we refer to the Church as something you merely sit and consume, we miss the bigger picture of it being something you participate in.

The Church isn’t a building or an event – it’s a community. You don’t just go to Church; you are the Church. When we shift our language, we shift our perspective and, ultimately, our actions.

I’ve spent my life urging people to read the Bible in context. Instead of isolating single verses, I encourage reading complete paragraphs, chapters, and books. When taken out of context, a verse can easily be misinterpreted to convey something entirely different from the author’s intention.

However, developing a comprehensive theology requires more than understanding individual sections. We must also connect related passages throughout Scripture. As some scholars note, we need both a verse-by-verse and a verse-with-verse approach to biblical interpretation. Building a comprehensive theological framework requires drawing from multiple passages throughout the entire Bible.

When interpreting any Scripture passage, we should remember that there is always another verse calling out, “Consider me too before reaching your conclusions.”

There are phrases that echo in conversations, float through memes, and sit comfortably in the comments of emotional social media reels. But few pack as much punch as: “I felt that in my soul.”

It’s not just a throwaway line. It’s a confession. A vulnerability. A truth that, somehow, someone else has voiced something on a profoundly spiritual level.

It’s more than empathy. It’s more than understanding. It’s an emotional response to words or experiences that reach past the mind and the heart all the way to the deepest part of us. That space where our pain hides and our memories linger.

When we hear a song lyric, a line in a movie, a confession from a stranger, a short video, or even a simple tweet, it feels like someone just unlocked a door inside us. This is also true when we read the Bible.

In the book of Hebrews, it says, “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12) I think if that were being written today, he might write, “The word of God will speak to you in ways that you will be able to feel in your soul.” There are lines, chapters, stories, and books that will grab ahold of you at a deep level, and you will feel something spiritual that you never thought possible.

I am often inspired and touched by the writings and videos of others, but nothing hits so profoundly as the scripture.

Last week, the worship program was packed, guests were plentiful, and excitement was in the air.

The Sunday that follows Easter is typically a significant letdown for pastors. Attendance will return to normal, and often below average. The offering will be substantially less. Many guests will not return. The excitement is gone, and the shift toward summer takes over.

Let me be brutally honest: it is emotionally challenging for a pastor. The first four months of the year are exciting, and the last four are exciting as well, but the middle four can be a grind. Over the next six weeks, numerous pastors will slip into despair, with many moving and others quitting the ministry entirely.

You can criticize my assessment, saying that pastors need to grow spiritually, and rebuke me for stating something that all pastors feel but are afraid to speak out loud (due to criticism, judgment, and rebuke). That’s fine; I can take it.

What your Church and pastor need from you over the next few months is YOU. We need you to stay engaged. We want you to keep growing spiritually. We desire for you to continue in worship and not spend every weekend at the lake or chasing travel sports. We need you to give so that ministry can continue. We want you to stay a part of the fellowship. Most of all, we need your love and support.

This Sunday will begin a time of transition for most Churches. Whether the outcome is good or bad, the choice is yours.

In an age of internet access, Google searches, and AI research tools, asking for sources is both fair and necessary. As a preacher, I’m committed to teaching truth, so I spend hours studying Scripture word by word for sermons. But this commitment extends to everything I say, often requiring extensive research.

We tend to repeat trusted teachers without verifying their sources. Recently, while researching the origins of the name “Easter,” I found numerous explanations with few citations. As I dug deeper, I discovered people were simply repeating something they had heard from someone else, resulting in widespread misinformation.

Here’s a simple guideline: treat all information as opinion until you can verify it with a reliable source. Until it is verified, that’s precisely what it is.

Prayer is fundamentally a personal conversation with God. In it, we share our thanksgiving, adoration, and praise, along with requests for ourselves and others.

True prayer isn’t meant to be a public performance designed to impress onlookers. It shouldn’t be filled with empty phrases or meaningless repetition, as Jesus himself cautioned against in Matthew 6:5-8.

I recently attended a worship service where I observed a man praying in a manner that seemed more focused on impressing the congregation with his spirituality than on communicating with God. He adopted an unnatural vocabulary and even incorporated archaic King James English expressions into his prayer.

The essence of prayer isn’t about crafting eloquent, impressive words but about expressing genuine thoughts to God. When you begin to worry about how others perceive your prayer, you’ve already lost sight of its purpose. The opinions of others should not matter in the context of prayer; our sole focus in prayer should be God.

Immediately following every significant event in the Church, such as Easter, there will be a cooling-off period. It takes about 24-48 hours for me to work through the emotions of the event, follow up, pray for people, debrief on what went right or wrong, and then breathe deeply in the satisfaction that the big day is over.

Then, well, I shift my focus to the next event on the horizon. There will be a “Graduation Sunday” baccalaureate program, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, a youth conference, and Vacation Bible School in the next twelve weeks. As soon as one program is done, my focus must shift to the next big thing.

The future for me is one of more prayer, planning, preparation, and preaching. There is no downtime to coast after a big experience; the next thing is coming, and I know God will use these next twelve weeks just like he has used the last twelve weeks.

As I ponder the future, I am always excited to see what God will do next. Just because Easter is over, the work of the Lord is not done until he returns.

Yesterday, the Church celebrated the Resurrection of Jesus. The Church was packed with people who rarely attended or had never attended a worship program before. If you were there, you saw them, even if you didn’t get a chance to talk to them. You saw them and were filled with delight that they were in Church for that day.

Now, I would like you to do two things as a post-Easter exercise.

First, drop those people that you saw a message and thank them for coming. Express your delight at seeing them and your eagerness to have them join you again.

Second, take five minutes every day this week and pray for that person or those people. Ask God to touch their heart and use Easter as a catalyst toward growth and change.

Getting people to attend a worship program on a special day is a great start, but God has so much more for them. Perhaps your contact and prayers will help them move forward on their spiritual journey. Don’t let the opportunities from this big day go to waste.

It’s Friday but Sunday’s Coming by SM Lockridge.

As we head into Easter weekend, I have seen numerous posts, blogs, and comments from people saying things like, “We don’t call it Easter.” Others have said, “It is based on a pagan goddess, so I do not celebrate this day.” Still, some boast, “Our Church avoids these traditions because they are not in the Bible.”

I get it. And in part, I agree with some of the things they are saying.

My problem is the attitude in which it is often said. There is this attitude that appears to imply, “I don’t do these things, so I am a better Christian than you.” Others will give the feeling of “Our Church is more Godly than other Churches.” Some think they are more mature believers with better Churches because of the days they choose to observe or not observe.

The Apostle Paul, in Romans chapter 14, walks the Christians in the city of Rome through a discussion of this type of issue. In verse 5, he writes, “One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind.” Then, in the next verse, he adds, “Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.”

Whenever someone celebrates a day as special, as long as he is doing it to the Lord, there is no issue. And whoever does not celebrate that day, as long as they are doing it to the Lord, there is no issue. Whether you set aside a day as special does not matter as long as Jesus is praised.

To anyone who has an attitude over this Sunday, know that your observation of it or lack of it is not an indication of your spiritual maturity or your Church’s godliness. Paul says in verse 13, “Let us stop passing judgment on one another.”

His point is simple: A spiritually mature Christian lives for the glory of Jesus in everything they do, no matter what days they celebrate.