Good morning church family,

All during our growing up years, my father was very patient with us kids. Should we happen to break a window while playing baseball in the backyard, he’d just say, “Wow. A second-story one, huh? Nice hit.” If he caught us blowing all our money on penny candy from the dry cleaners, he’d smile and say, “I bet not ten seconds after you finished that Tootsie Roll, the taste was out of your mouth. Wouldn’t it be nice to use your money on something that lasts a little longer?” Or when our report cards sported a crescent moon or two, he’d slowly remove his glasses, lay the sad report down on the dining room table, and wrinkle up his mouth. “Well,” he’d say; solemn encouragement visible in the corners of his eyes, “I’m sure those marks can be improved upon. Can’t they, son?”

Yes, my dad was undyingly patient. Whether it was us kids bending mower blades on the roots of the backyard maple, dimpling the rear quarter panel of the family station wagon with errant Frisbie tosses, or bloodying his nose with a barrage of frozen snowballs as he trudged defenseless up the walk at the end of a long day; bags of groceries under each arm – my dad bore it all with grace. But there was one thing that would instantly exhaust our father’s vast reserve of patience. There was one bit of sloppy carelessness that he could never brook. There was one sin he simply wouldn’t suffer. Yes, my dad was a different man when any of us took the Lord’s name in vain. Should the irreverent utterance slip any of our lips, the fork and knife would instantly be laid down on the plate, the car pulled over, the TV turned off, the needle taken off the groove, or the board game put on pause. And this wasn’t just for the most egregious of offenses, such as uttering, “Good God!”, or “Oh my God,” or “Jesus Christ!”. No, this was also for any various and sundry offenses which my father called “minced oaths”. A minced oath might be anything from a “gosh” or a “golly” to a “gee-whiz”, “jeez”, or “jeezum crow”. Exclamations like these, which lived in phonetic proximity to the forbidden terms, had only been invented to skirt the prohibition and keep the commandment on a technicality. (My father had a similar dislike for words like “darn”, “heck”, and “shoot”) And my father was having none of it.

I remember feeling pretty small whenever my dad would confront me with violating the third commandment. He always made it so personal. “I’m disappointed in you, son,” he’d say; speaking with a graveness I was unaccustomed to hearing from him.

“I’m sorry,” I’d say; with my chin on my chest.

“Don’t apologize to me,” he’d quickly reply. “It’s God you’ve offended and from Him you’ll need to find forgiveness.”

Dad always made it so personal, you see. And today I’m awfully glad for that. I remember, long ago, escaping to the backyard after one such very public and embarrassing confrontation. I retreated back there to be alone and to lick my wounds. I remember picking up a tennis ball and playing catch with the brick wall at the rear of our house. As I stood there kicking the dirt and bouncing the ball against the house, my dad’s admonition to make an apology to God kept playing over and over again in my mind. Throw, bounce, bounce; catch. “I broke one of the ten commandments.” Throw, bounce, bounce; catch. “I’ve sinned against God.” Throw, bounce, bounce; catch. “My dad practically yelled at me; and in front of everybody.” Throw, bounce, bounce; catch. “I’m a terrible Christian.”

At that, I caught the ball but didn’t throw it back. Instead, I paused for a moment and exhaled a sigh of surrender. “I’m sorry, God,” I said in a whisper only Heaven could hear.

“I forgive you,” was the sum of the Lord’s blessed reply.

As my faith grew, so did the amount of time I spent praying. And the more I prayed, the more personal my faith became. And the more personal my walk with my Lord, vanities vanished off my lips.

So, if the third commandment is a problem for any of you today, take this Father’s Day to take up the practice of genuine prayer in your life. Start by placing a simple Father’s Day call to Heaven. “Good morning, God,” you might begin. “Happy Heavenly Father’s Day!”

It will be so good to gather together tomorrow for worship. With war in the Middle East once again organizing the ire and alliances of the entire world, what a profound blessing it will be to muster under the banner of Christ and His Kingdom. Maranatha! Let us pray for the peace of Jerusalem. May the Lord, mighty God, bless and continue to keep us.

  • Pastor Tate

May 18, 2025

Acts 3:1-10

Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate to ask alms of those entering the temple. Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms. And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.” And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. And leaping up, he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God, and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

March 9, 2025

2 Timothy 2:20-22

Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.

January 12, 2025

Genesis 3:15

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.

November 10, 2024

Jonah 3:10-4:11

When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it. But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.” And the Lord said, “Do you do well to be angry?” Jonah went out of the city and sat to the east of the city and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city. Now the Lord God appointed a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort. So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered. When the sun rose, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint. And he asked that he might die and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.” But God said to Jonah, “Do you do well to be angry for the plant?” And he said, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.” And the Lord said, “You pity the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow, which came into being in a night and perished in a night. And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle?”