The Hillsboro Christian

The Hillsboro Christian

IN THIS ISSUE OF THE HILLSBORO CHRISTIAN

By Brad Clouse

And I'll praise You in this storm And I will lift my hands

For You are who You are No matter where I am And every tear I've cried You hold in Your hand You never left my side And though my heart is torn I will praise You in this storm

Casting Crowns released the song Praise You In This Storm in 2006. It was inspired by the band's experience with a girl, Erin Browning, who died of cancer. The lyrical theme of this song is maintaining faith through difficult circumstances. These lyrics are powerful because we all have faced storms in this life – i.e., difficult, trying circumstances. Someone put it this way: “We are either entering into a storm, or we are in the midst of a storm, or we are coming out of a storm.” It is important to remember that no matter the size or length of our storm, God is always God! Because God is always God, He is always worthy of our praise. Listen to the words of the prophet Habakkuk:

Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights. For the director of music. On my stringed instruments. (Habakkuk 3:17-19, NIV)

Habakkuk has been called “the optimist.” His name means “embraced.” In the book that bears his name, he foretells the destruction of Judah at the hands of the Babylonians while also foretelling the destruction of the Babylonians. This book is only three chapters long, and most of it is a dialogue between God and the prophet. Habakkuk wrestled with God’s decision to use a people like the Babylonians to punish His chosen people.

A book that begins with the prophet asking questions to God concludes with him affirming his trust in God: “Yet I will rejoice in the LORD.” This is a great declaration of faith in God. Habakkuk is stating that even if every resource has been exhausted and there is nothing left, he will still praise God. It is

important for us as Christians to understand that our faith in God is connected to our praise of God. When we develop the habit of praising God for who He is and what He has done for us, our faith will be strengthened. We must always rejoice in the Lord because “we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28, NIV). God is always God, so let us continually offer up our praises to Him: “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (I Thessalonians 5:16-18, NIV).

The theme of this month’s newsletter is the very declaration of Habakkuk: YET I WILL REJOICE IN THE LORD. In this edition, Micah shares with us some encouraging words regarding worship. We are also blessed to have Dr. Gary Gregory, former Worship Theology Professor at Cincinnati Christian University, as our guest contributor. May we all be inspired to lift our voices and rejoice in the Lord!

In Christian love, Brad

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Brad Clouse, a Louisville, Kentucky native, graduated from Louisville Bible College in 2010 with a Master's Degree in Sacred Literature after earning his former degrees at the same university. Brad served at smaller churches in Adair County Kentucky while in college before being called to Ohio in 2009. Brad ministered to the New Vienna Church of Christ congregation for 12 years before being called to the Hillsboro Church of Christ as the Senior Minister.

1Praise You In This Storm, Casting Crowns, 2006.

P r a y e r

10/01/2023

Health and Other:

Chuck Chaney

Bill Clouse

Wava Labig

Ohio Mission Bible Training Center

Janet Pence

Shalom Orphanage

Dom Smart

Linda Smith

Don Watson

Sharon Webb

Wayne Wiedenbein

REQUESTS

Family Loss:

Wigginton Family

Marilyn Hoaglin family

Chuck Aurigema family

Missions: The Brittons, The Millers, The Newmans

Shut Ins:

Jewel Calmes

John Porter

Carol Setty

Sharon Webb

Cancer:

Jeffery Aurigema

Jeff Beam

Rob Butler

Vicki Butler

Kari Crafton

Judy Roush

Mark Sears

HCC Leadership:

Steve Allen

Brad Clouse

Roger Epley

Dan Fauber

Jeff Griffith

Micah Herrick

Mike Labig

Richard VanZant

Military:

Tyler Amos

Ryan Burns

Mark Conover

Thadeus Conover

Corey Hughes

Alex Klein

Phillip Mycroft

Average attendance for the month of September was 329

Average weekly giving for the month of September $10,815.00

Our weekly need is: $11,229.13

Nobody Does not Worship

(Worship Through the Lens of Habakkuk)

By Dr. Gary Gregory

“Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails, and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior” (Habakkuk 3:17-18 NIV).

Here, at the end of the book of Habakkuk, the prophet says, I will praise the Lord anyhow! His incredible statement and powerful determination to worship God in all circumstances reveals a lot about Habakkuk as a worshiper. Worship is about what we are, how we choose to live, and, at the same time, about who or what we choose to worship. The prophet Habakkuk had made his choice of who he would serve and worship.

Everyone worships. The author, Harold Best, made the statement, “Nobody does not worship.” Everyone in this world worships. It is our nature. Everybody is bowing down to and serving something or someone, whether it is an object, a person, an institution, an idea, a spirit, or God through Jesus Christ. All of us are being shaped by this process, and all of us are growing toward something. At stake in this process is whether we are growing in righteousness or in evil.

Worship demands a choice. This has been an issue from the beginning of time. Who or what will you worship?

We seldom think of the prophets of Israel in the context of being worshipers, but each prophet had to deal with this tension of who he would serve and worship. The Israelites had to choose who they would worship and serve. Every Christian must deal with the same issue. On the one side are social pressures, alluring promises of a sinful world, worldly philosophies, and on the other side are the eternal promises of a Holy God. We must choose where we fit in. Do we simply pretend to worship God while we run after worldly success, or do we genuinely claim the promises of God in Christ?

Worship is countercultural. Every Christian worshiper can identify with the struggle that the prophet Habakkuk is going through. You don’t have to read very far to see that God’s people were worshiping the wrong things. There didn’t seem to be justice anywhere. The law was ignored and even perverted. Everywhere he looked, Habakkuk saw pretty much what we might see around us in 21st-century America. “Destruction and violence are before me,” he says in verse 3. Everywhere he looked, he saw people taking advantage of each other, lying and stealing for personal gain, resorting to the destructive use of swords, words, money, or whatever they had, building altars, and worshiping idols. The wicked seemed to be prospering while the righteous were suffering. Habakkuk cries out to God, how long will you let this go on? Where is the God of justice?

Worship is about God’s narrative, not the worshipers. God calls us to join His story, and it includes all the nations and peoples of the earth. In this unique encounter between Habakkuk and God, God reveals that a time of reckoning is coming, and this would come about through the Babylonians. Hold on! Habakkuk says. How can you use even more unrighteous people than us to punish Judah? In his mind, everything is reversed from what it should be, but God assures him that at the appointed time, His plan will bring about the result that … “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord” (2:14). We know now that God’s plan was ultimately to redeem the world through the coming of Christ. That is God’s narrative. The author Robert Webber describes it this way: there is no story, no philosophy, no ideology in all of heaven and earth that is a more profound narrative of the world than this. When we come to Christ, we now share in this great story of God’s plan to bless the nations, and we choose to worship Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God, in our lives.

Worship places God in the driver’s seat. Perhaps this is

what is implied by God’s pronouncement in 2:20, “But the Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before Him.” We might say God is in control! In chapter 3, Habakkuk raises a prayer in the form of a psalm. This is where we see that the prophet Habakkuk has made his choice about who he will serve and worship, even in the midst of the unjust culture in which he lives, and even as he questions why God would use the wicked Babylonians to accomplish his justice. Even if all around him should fail, he says, “I will praise the Lord.” Worship places God in the driver’s seat.

Worship praises God in good times and bad. Notice that a great part of his prayer in chapter 3 is praise, and praise is based on acknowledging the great redemptive acts of God recalling what God has done. That’s exactly what Habakkuk does. The concept of praise conveys the idea of telling about someone’s accomplishments and talking about someone’s worth. In his Psalm, Habakkuk rehearses the great story of God and talks about what he has done. He obviously knew the kind of God he worshiped, and he knew the things that God had done. He was committed to being part of that story. He told of God’s mighty acts to deliver His people, “You went forth for the salvation of Your people, for the salvation of Your anointed” (3:13). Praise is a key for us as well in worshiping God and rejoicing in the God of salvation, even when times are rough. In the first three verses of Psalm 103, David declares, “Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases.” Where

do we go when life is falling apart? Both David and Habakkuk lead us down the path of praise. We remember God’s faithfulness, His benefits, as David states it. We praise God’s goodness and His everlasting Love. We remember his provision for us in the past and realize once again that there is always much for which to praise our wonderful God. We see how He has delivered us in the past and realize that He will see us through the present.

Finally, worship is an expression of faith. Habakkuk’s conclusion was that because of the faithfulness of God through the ages and all He had done in the past, he could confidently place his trust in God for the future. God’s “M-O” is and always has been that He saves His faithful followers. The worshiper proclaims that God can be trusted to do the same now. Today, we are in the same kind of situation. We experience times when we may question God or even cry out to him as we face the circumstances of our lives and of the world in which we live. We can not see what lies ahead. We may not know the way out, but we do know of the faithfulness of the God we serve. But we do not turn our backs on God, because He is greater by far than anything we may be facing. Especially in such times as these, we must join with Habakkuk in realizing “the righteous one will live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4).

Our worship then joins with all those who would declare the faith expressed in Habakkuk’s concluding words: “ Yet I will triumph in the Lord, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation. The Sovereign Lord is my strength” (Habakkuk 3:18-19).

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Gary Gregory was the Professor of Music and Worship Theology at Cincinnati Christian University. For several decades he helped to shape the minds of many future worship ministers and pastors who studied at the school. His work in the theology of worship at the Lord’s Table has continued to impact those who study at the Institute for Worship Studies. Dr G (as he was affectionately known by many former students) now continues his ministry as the teaching/preaching elder and worship leader at the Elsmere Church of Christ in Erlanger, KY. One of his great joys now is sharing life with his grand children.

On September 17, 2023, Brayden Lane was baptized into Christ by Jaime Burton. We are so excited for Brayden’s decision and can’t wait to see what God has in store for this young man.

Thank you for the beautiful blanket and all of your love and support.

Todd, Kristine, Tobyn, and Jovie

“Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for as such is the kingdom of God” Mark 10:14

9:00 to 3:00

Collection of donations will begin Monday, October 30th.

FALL FEST @ Epley’s Farm

October 22nd

Starts at 4:30, we will eat at 5:30

Hot dogs and buns will be provided, everyone bring a dish to share and bring a lawn chair.

We will have a bonfire, hayride, and horses will be available to ride.

Everyone is welcome, come join us!

By Micah Herrick

The psalms are beautiful because they reach into the depths of the human soul and teach us to trust in God and worship no matter the circumstances. There are Psalms of celebration for when our hearts are full of joy and Psalms of lament for when our sorrow overflows. But did you know some psalms are meant for times of fury and anger? We call them imprecatory psalms. They are psalms that call down a curse.

These are a complex form to contend with. This form was among the most difficult for C.S. Lewis to contend with in his Reflections on the Psalms.

One way of dealing with these terrible or (dare we say?) contemptible Psalms is to leave them alone. But unfortunately the bad parts will not “come away clean”; they may, as we have noticed, be intertwined with the most exquisite things. And if we still believe that all holy scripture is “written for our learning” or that the age old use of the Psalms in Christian worship was not entirely contrary to the will of God, and if we remember that Our Lord’s mind and language were clearly steeped in the Psalter, we shall prefer, if possible, to make some use of them.

Here is an example.

By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion. On the willows there we hung up our lyres. For there our captors required of us songs, and our tormentors, mirth, saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!” How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land? If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill! Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember you, if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy! Remember, O Lord, against the Edomites the day of Jerusalem, how they said, “Lay it bare, lay it bare, down to its foundations!” O daughter of Babylon, doomed to be destroyed, blessed shall he be who repays you with what you have done to us! Blessed shall he be who takes your little ones and dashes them against the rock!

Psalm 137:1-9 (ESV)

This was composed by a people in torment for the atrocities inflicted upon them in their exile. It is difficult to read and even more shocking still when we consider that it is placed in the “hymnal” of the Old Testament.

Well…“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17 ESV). So what training in righteousness can we learn from this? If the psalms teach us to worship, what can we learn here?

God has a heart for justice.

“Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him” (Isaiah 30:18 ESV). So consistently throughout scripture we hear that God hears the cry of the oppressed and was waiting for just the right time to deal out his justice for them. While that justice may not roll out in the timetable we immediately desire, we know that his heart breaks for the plight of the afflicted. Know that when you are struggling, he hears your struggle.

Vengeance is better handled by an all-knowing God.

“Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord’” (Romans 12:19 ESV). Our natural reaction (perhaps I am just talking for my fiery, redheaded self…) is to lash out when we have been wronged. But the reality is that our vision and scope are so severely limited that our reaction is likely not one that is truly just. We must, as followers of Jesus, realize that no matter our struggle, it is never in our hands to pour out our own wrath. We must trust that God, in his justice, will avenge our cause in the most righteous way possible. We must also realize that we deserve as much wrath as we want to pour out on those who frustrate and enrage us, so we can only have a truly clear conscience when we trust his action alone.

Worship cannot be dictated by emotional circumstances.

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship” (Romans 12:1 ESV). If our spiritual worship is to be a living sacrifice, that is an ongoing commitment. It is not something that can only happen when circumstances and emotions align to make us happy. Jesus is the High King of Heaven and always worthy of worship, honor, and praise. But this does not mean we must be dishonest in our worship. When life is at its worst, we can cry out to God and share with him our frustrations and difficulties. Scripture tells us, “Be angry and do not sin…” (Ephesians 4:26 ESV), not that it is a sin to be angry. We need to take opportunities, even in our worship, to present all things to God and to let them go to Him.

As you read the Psalms, let them guide you mind, soul, body, spirit, emotions to a closer connection with and worship of our King and Creator!

Micah is currently serving HCC as Worship Minister, as well as leading our Evangelism team and coordinating our online presence.

He is pictured here with his wife, Rebecca, kids; Rowan, Luci, Kennedy, and Finn, his mother and father; Steve and Valeri Herrick.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

10-01-23

LOVE OFFERING FOR OPERATION CHRISTMAS CHILD

Ministry Team leader meeting right after 2nd service (meal provided)

10-05-23

10-08-23

10-19-23

10-20-23

Faith in Action will be meeting at 5:30 pm in the Connection Café.

Clergy appreciation day

Mission Team meeting in the Café @ 6:30 pm

Middle School Retreat (see Megan Apgar for more information) thru

10-22-23

10-26-23

Trunk –N-Treat here at the church, 6:00 - 8:00 pm, we are collecting wrapped candy to hand out during the evening, if you are able to donate a bag of candy you can drop it off at the church office. Remember, it must be wrapped candy.

10-22-23

10-29-23

11-2-23

All Church Fall Fest at the Epley’s

T.H.E.O. will meet right after 2nd service

MomConnect will meet in the Café from 5:30 - 7:00

(Note the date change - this is the October meeting)

11-04-23

Little Lamb Rummage Sale

Outdoorsmen for Christ are having an outing at Rick Hughs’ home (see Rick Hughes for details)

AREA 937 is collecting canned tuna for the month of October