Author Archives: Max Brennan

Put Jesus First

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He said, because of immigrants, “we have some really bad genes in this country.”

God, help us!

He said, “Over 13 million immigrants have murdered people.”

God, help us!

Bad genes! Thirteen million murderers!

Eating cats and dogs!

God, help us!

Something is seriously wrong, isn’t it? And sadly, most people who believe the lies are Christians.

Or do they believe them?

Is it possible that a lot of Christians just do not care?

Lie, if it helps.

Lie, if you can get your way.

But make sure to display those Ten Commandments in classrooms, so the kids know the rules their parents are willing to break.

What does it mean that nearly half our population can’t tell right from wrong?

What does it mean that much of the conservative church seems to be a moral mess?

The source of the problem is simple: Too many Christians worship the Bible without paying attention to Jesus.

Christians are trained to accept moral chaos.

God is love, yes, but at the same time, God killed all the first-born sons of the Egyptians.

Love your neighbor, yes, but if your neighbors are the Amalekites, God says destroy all of them—men, women, children, and babes in arms.

For those who read the Bible as inerrant, God is only love sometimes.

Christians who worship the Bible deny Jesus of His authority over Scripture.

Put Jesus first in reading the Bible. His standards do not change with every dictator on the horizon.

Max’s Corner

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It went long, but nobody noticed. It was filled with more laughter than any memorial service I can remember. And it seemed a fitting remembrance. The music Bill chose for his own service was appropriate, and some of it was funny, as we would expect. We give thanks.

The Class: Discovering God

We are looking for God in all the right places. This Sunday, we will name those places. How do we know the truth about God?

This class is for those who want to “see God more clearly and follow Him more nearly.” We have some exciting discussions ahead. In this class, you’ll hear some of the most remarkable accounts ever shared.

Join any time.

Class at 9:45 AM—followed by breakfast.

Speaking of Breakfast:

This is a “We-Bring Sunday.” We need a good breakfast. Feel free to help out.

Food and fellowship at 10:30 AM.

This Sunday:

Mary preaches—it feels like it’s been a while. We’re ready for it.

The choir will get a little Pentecostal this week with a rousing, Every Time I Feel the Spirit.

How great our choir is sounding!

And Kristi has been stirring us up with that prelude each week.

Church.
What a joy!

See you Sunday.

God Bless,
MB

Remember the new class.
Check the board in the hall for times for the Saints and Sinners Tour. Jim Bailey says you’ll have a good—and a bit spooky—time.

NEW STUDY BEGINS SUNDAY

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Fewer people now take the printed paper, and that affects this long-running Friday’s Word. This is an expensive outreach, but over 90 percent of our members have come to us through this brief word.

Now—what of the future?

I need some kind of head count. If you are still with me, let me know.

Drop me an email to say you are “still reading.”

I need your response.

My new study starts Sunday—at 9:45.

(Breakfast after.)

It is more than a study of my to-be-published book, Discovering God. It will give us a chance to look at our own faith—see where we came from and where we are now. We will start with some discussion questions:

When did you first come to belief?

Were you ever taught things that were wrong?

How do we know what is true about God?

Can we know what is true about God?

Where do you get your information about God?

This discussion will lead us into the first ideas from the book:

We can know God.

We can get God right.

There are two sources of information that we can always depend on. You may guess them, but I will share them Sunday.

Expect this class to be an uplifting experience. Expect to grow in the assurance that God is real and working with us. Expect to be amazed from time to time at the ways God intervenes in our lives.

We will be studying the experience of God. The class runs through the end of the year.

Sunday, Oct. 6, 9:45 AM

Max’s Corner

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Service for Bill Parker

Bill’s memorial service will be this Saturday, October 5th, at 11:00 AM. This seems like a milestone event in the life of our church family. Bill was so loved, so faithful, and so much a part of our work as a church. He is greatly missed.

Lunch will be served after the service.

Knee Report

I may be headed for knee replacement surgery after all. My hematologist’s blood report will come in soon. If it shows my blood clots were a result of COVID and not a natural proclivity, I may be cleared for surgery. This will all take some time. I will be preaching from a stool for now. I’m already too late to try out for the Cowboys this year.

Gift

From Brian McCosky: “Woo Hoo!!!! Somebody gave $10,000 toward the new AC!!!! My faith in the generosity of my fellow man is about 90% restored. Without saying who it is, I think they should get special recognition in the newsletter.”

Thus noted. We do have people who love this church. Thanks be to God.

NDE Class Ends

My sister’s NDE class has been a source of grace, change, and comfort for those of us who participated. It has made a difference.

We hope the new study I start Sunday makes a difference. It will make a difference for me, as I prepare the classes, I will also be preparing the final version of my book, Discovering God.

Class at 9:45—followed by breakfast.

Speaking of Breakfast

This is “Winston Week.” Feel free to help.

Food and fellowship at 10:30.

This Sunday

Sermon: Revisiting Zacchaeus.

Anthem: How Beautiful.

God Bless,
MB

Remember the service Saturday—11:00 AM.

New Study of Book

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Have you ever had an encounter with God?

A “religious experience” of any kind?

And if you have, were you afraid to tell anyone for fear they would think you are crazy?

You are about to have a place to share your experiences, if you choose to do so.

And if you have never had such an experience, it will be a place for you to hear the accounts of others.

For everyone, it will be a place to discover that God is real and that God is at work in our lives (whether we are aware of that reality or not).

My last study of my book, Discovering God, before publication will begin on Sunday, Oct. 6, at 9:45.

It will meet weekly at that hour for the rest of this year. (And breakfast will follow the class each Sunday.)

Be prepared for a life-changing study.

We have found, with our recent class on NDEs, that faith is deepened when we talk about the most profound experiences of life.

And our reading of scripture is enriched.

If you have never had a “religious experience,” you may come to see more clearly through this study that God has always been at work in your life.

Your participation in the class will be a big help to me. I will use this class to develop the study guide which will be published along with the book.

It may even add material. Members of the NDE class have shared accounts that will end up in Discovering God.

I’d like to have a skeptic or two show up—even an atheist.

I think no one can resist the evidence. God loves us and works in our lives.

Sunday, Oct. 6, 9:45.