Tag: reflect

Ready Wreck Collection

Neal Pollard

Shortly after I moved to Colorado to preach for the Bear Valley congregation, some unknown prankster gave me one of the coolest gifts I have ever owned. In a large blister card, sealed in plastic with a cardboard backing, there were eight Matchbox cars that had been smashed and semi-crushed. At the top of the cardboard backing was an inscription: “Everybody always prays for the preacher to have a ‘ready wreck collection,’ so here it is. Your very own wreck collection.” That was nearly 17 years ago and it still sits in my office today. What a genius prank!

Preachers greatly appreciate those prayers. Much study and preparation goes into each lesson and we want to remember what and how to say what we plan to present. “Ready” implies we don’t have to struggle. “Recollection” is the ability to recall what is in the mind (or on the page).

Have you ever thought about how vital a ready recollection is for all of us as Christians, as we live our daily lives?

  • When the world tries to give you a rival, recall that the Lord is God, and there is no other (Isa. 46:8-9).
  • When you are afflicted, recall the Lord’s lovingkindness (Lam. 3:19-22).
  • When you are so troubled you cannot speak, remember your song in the night (Psa. 77:4-6).
  • When you feel forgotten, remember the deeds and wonders of God (Psa. 77:11).
  • Whether life is going great or poorly, remember His wonderful deeds which He has done, His marvels and the judgments from His mouth (1 Chron. 16:8-12).
  • When you are afraid, remember the Lord who is great and awesome (Neh. 4:14).
  • Before the difficult days come, remember your Creator in your youth (Ecc. 12:1).
  • When you hit a spiritual low point, remember your sin and hate it (Ezek. 20:43-44).
  • When faced with the needs of the weak, remember how Jesus said it is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35).
  • When looking at your past, remember what you were but thank God for what you are now in Christ (Eph. 2:12-13).
  • Whatever your circumstance, remember Jesus Christ (2 Tim. 2:8).

Walk through Scripture and see how often it says to “recall” and “remember.” The Lord’s Supper is instituted as a weekly reminder for us to recall the price paid for us. God knows that we can become lax and forgetful. All of us are served well by having ready recollections. Let’s build our collection of the things we need to remember to spiritually survive this world and prepare ourselves for an eternity in the presence of the great God who has done so much for us!

The Christian And Communion

Thursday’s Column: Carlnormous Comments

carl-pic

Carl Pollard

Did you know that eating processed meats like bologna and pepperoni have been linked to memory loss? That’s a real bummer because most of the meat that I like is processed. I love Vienna sausages, hotdogs, pepperoni, and many other types of processed meat. Which might explain why I can’t remember names to save my life. It’s not just names, I forget about birthdays, Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, and a bunch of other important dates. But I’m not alone in this. Mankind as a whole tends to forget important events with the passing of time.
 
Which is exactly why God in His infinite wisdom commands us to remember a certain event every first day of the week. “The Lord’s Supper,” “the Lord’s Table,” “the Cup of Blessing,” “Communion,” and “the Breaking of Bread” each are descriptions used in scripture that refer to the act of remembering the body and blood of Jesus on the first day of the week. In the early church it was also called “the Eucharist” or “the giving of thanks” (Matt. 26:27).
 
What is the Lord’s Supper? Every week Christians observe it, and most of us know what it is. It’s a time to pause and think about the sacrifice of Christ. We do it every week and for good reason since we tend to forget important events. God commands us to participate in this act every week as a church so that we can always be thankful and remember what Christ did for us.
 
What can sometimes be an issue is that if we aren’t careful, it can be easy to let it turn into a mindless habit. What should we be doing during the communion?
 
Scripture gives us many different aspects of the Lord’s Supper that should be taken into consideration when we stop to remember the sacrifice of Jesus.
 
Matthew 26:26-29 Jesus commands us to “eat” the bread, and “drink” the cup. We are commanded to eat the bread which represents His body, and drink the cup which represents His blood.
 
As we fulfill the command to “eat” and “drink,” our minds must be completely engaged in a thorough remembrance of Christ’s sacrifice (1 Cor. 11:24-25). What do we think about during this time? The sinless and perfect life Jesus lived that made Him an acceptable solution for our sin problem. His willingness to go to the cross. The crucifixion. Specifically His body that was pierced and beaten, and His blood that poured from His wounds. Blood that has the power to forgive our sins. The burial AND resurrection because none of this would’ve meant anything if Jesus stayed in the tomb.
We should remember Christ’s right hand position in heaven that now gives us access to the Father. And we are to remember the common bond we now have as a church.
 
1 Corinthians 10:16 describes the Lord’s Supper as a “participation.” Paul uses the Greek word koinonia which means “a sharing or fellowship.” As a church we have fellowship in the blood and body of Christ. Verse 17 tells us that the “many are one” because there is only one body (Christ) that brought us together. We are united by the body of Christ.
 
The next time we observe the Lord’s Supper let’s be sure to dwell on these things; Remember every aspect of Christ’s sacrifice, remember where He is now, and remember the unity we now share with each other.