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I’m not sure how I feel about this and maybe it’s just because of my ignorance so please don’t be offended or take it the wrong way. The church I’m currently attending has couple of associate pastors and during service when they pray (opening prayer/during service/communion/etc), they read off prewritten prayers (in their own words). It’s okay that they prepare prayer for service ahead of time and have prayers prepared as well but reading straight off the paper? I don’t know.... For some reason it bothers me more than it really should. I feel like as leaders of the church it’s kind of strange for them to do that. From time to time, members from the congregation (those who hold somewhat a leadership role within the church) do the praying and they all take their written prayer and read them striaght off the paper. There’s somewhat of a leniency towards them, for pastors to do that? Its kind of their job or rather part of their job (it’s our job as well to pray but that’s a different topic). Personally I think it’s weird and strange for pastors to do this. I’ve never seen pastors (other members) do this at other churches (the church I’m currently attending is Presbyterian if that changes anything). To me it’s like a surgeon bringing in notes during surgery. It’s fine if they prepare, write down what ever they need to do before the actually surgery but to bring it in the operation room? It just feel half hearted or not prepared. To come up I’m front of the congregation during services with a piece of paper, especially pastors, it’s unsettling for me. I have a negative view of this and don’t really know how to or what to feel about this.

Hi, everyone and Happy Friday! ? I am looking for some good YouTube videos of sermons by preachers who don't yell. I already know about Joel Osteen, Joseph Prince and Joyce Meyer...and now I'm looking for more. Any suggestions on soothing, calming preachers who simply preach with passion and God's grace without feeling like they must yell in order to be heard would be greatly appreciated. Thank you and I wish you all a blessed day/night?

What does the bible says about women pastors?

I don't believe Pastors need a gun because the Lord's angels can suffice. What are your thoughts and why?

I have observed quite a number of developing trends in our churches that beg the frightening question of who we are worshiping. Common among those trends are the tendency of persons to spend more time on their cell phones than they do in worship and the tendency to 'make an entrance' when entering the sanctuary. I can't help but ask myself - What kind of message are we sending to the world as Christians? I'll begin this discussion with an understanding of the word 'worship'. Worship is derived from the Old English word 'Woerthship' which means to give worth to something. So when we worship God, we give worth to Him. Sadly, it appears that the saints are giving worth to other things in the house of the Lord. Here I will identify two obvious reasons that are rather disturbing to fathom but as it is a reality within the churches I will make mention of them today. The 'cellphone syndrome' We all need to communicate with others over the phone for different reasons. But I find it very disrespectful for the saints to perpetually excuse themselves from the sermon to be on the outside messaging and talking for an extensive period. Not that it is anybody's business to know the nature of these conversations, but when it happens more often than not I'm afraid that we are sending the wrong message to our unsaved visitors. Do we not show reverence to the Lord anymore? I especially observe this trend among our young people of which group I am a part. I fail to believe that our young people use their discretion for they excuse themselves in large numbers at once. It appears that the cellphones get the 'worth' that should have been given to God and therefore it automatically becomes the god that is worshiped. Our God has feelings too. I am more concerned about His feelings than I am with the reputation of the church. For many saints, the time spent in the house of the Lord is the longest and sometimes only time spent with God. If the latter is the case then all the more reason why He deserves our undivided attention. Let's face it, three hours of prayer and worship is the least we can give to God considering all that He does for us on a daily basis. The church needs to be careful not to provoke the Holy Spirit and not to send the wrong message to those who are lost and in need of our guidance. The problem with 'making an entrance' By now many of us would have realized that persons go to church for different reasons; to spectate, to see friends, to wear a nice suit and a few to seek God. There are many other reasons but these are the few I could think of today. Having said that, there are many within the church who perpetually make an entrance under the influence of a 'disruptive spirit' I suppose. This trend may not be very evident in the larger churches, but as my church is small the trend is becoming more noticeable. Saints are not only expected to be present for sermons but are expected to be there on time. It is very distasteful when visitors arrive in the sanctuary before the members do and to make matters worse, our visitors are distracted each time someone walks through the aisle to take a seat. What about respecting the time of the Holy Spirit? I understand that anyone can be late but when the same persons have heads spinning each week, their actions shift from just being late to 'making an entrance'. Leaders are often times included and I don't just mean Pastors, Bishops, Deacons etc. I mean any person within the church body who demonstrates his leadership abilities in even the smallest possible way. Why are persons making an entrance? It is certainly not because of a desire to be noticed by God but rather 'god', who is seated somewhere in the sanctuary. This is one of the reasons why it is increasingly harder to convince an unsaved or even a backslider to return to God. These groups of persons are understandably confused by the double standards that exist within the church. No wonder there is a growing number of non-denominational Christians in our societies today. The church has a voice and we want to be heard, but let us consider addressing some of the ongoing issues among ourselves before we advocate for modesty and decency anywhere else. These are two growing trends that I have observed in church. Have you observed any other?

Hoping for the rest of the country to follow suit. How rare is it these days to see a vote 161-0? Part of the article: ‘Pastor Protection Act’ Unanimously Passes Georgia House "ATLANTA, Ga. — The Georgia House of Representatives unanimously approved a bill this week that protects clergy from punishment if they decline to perform same-sex “weddings.” H.B. 757 was introduced last summer by Rep. Kevin Tanner, R-Dawsonville, and found support from Democrats and Republicans alike. “No minister of the gospel or cleric or religious practitioner ordained or authorized to solemnize marriages, perform rites, or administer sacraments according to the usages of the denomination, when acting in his or her official religious capacity, shall be required to solemnize any marriage, perform any rite or administer any sacrament in violation of his or her right to free exercise of religion under the Constitution of this state or the United States,” the bill reads in part. In addition to churches, the bill also applies to religious schools, missionary societies and denominational conventions. “The Pastor Protection Act is a simple reaffirmation of our bedrock principle of separation of church and state,” Tanner told reporters. “It makes clear that Georgia respects and honors the sacred oaths taken by our pastors, priests, rabbis and other clergy and that government has no intention of asking them to violate those oaths.” Homosexual advocacy groups decried the move, opining that it grants a “license to discriminate.” “It allows faith-based organizations to withhold services if they choose to do so,” Jeff Graham, the executive director of Georgia Equality, said in testimony before the Senate Rules Committee, which is considering a similar combined bill. “I am especially concerned that this bill will have a chilling effect on the state’s LGBT families.” As previously reported, a homosexual activist has been calling for clergy nationwide to stop calling homosexuality sinful. According to the New York Times, Mitchell Gold of Faith in America told the publication last May that “church leaders must be made ‘to take homosexuality off the sin list..." "...The Pastor Protection Act passed 161-0 on Thursday. “There’s a global threat to religious liberty occurring,” said Dr. Daniel Ausbun, pastor of First Baptist Church in Moreland in a column published in the Newnan Times-Herald on Saturday. “Religious liberty is the freedom to believe and practice your faith apart from government interference...”

I know these pastors, who have "testimonies" that go something like this: "Everything i have is by gifts and offering, there is no time when i needed something that God has not provided" "On my wedding day, i didn't spend a dime" "My car was a gift, my children's school fees is taken care of by the church ..." "My house was a gift from a church member" These are wonderful testimonies, i mean, yes God is our provision... no matter what we do for a living, i personally believe, all we have is given to us by Him (besides, the bible did say so), But each time i hear such things from Pastors, it sounds to me like a very irresponsible way for a man to live. I would think every man should be able to cater for his family... Now, i don't know of those who God gave instructions not to do any work for themselves (like full time missionaries), but for those who don't have instructions from God... It is so extreme that they go into fasting and praying for things like children school fees, car repairs etc and eventually someone from the church brings something, or meets that need... I think it is irresponsible to live that way. I will appreciate your opinion on this.