BBD 04.05.06 Live Longer

#1 · April 5, 2006, 12:06 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on April 5, 2006, 12:06 pm
Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>

Try out the new website at www.theburningbush.net

The old website is at www.theburningbush.org

Several devotional booklets are now available for free download in PDF
format at the new site. Just click on the "Free Book Downloads" link.

Join the Burning Bush Prayer Group! Send and receive prayer requests and be
a part of a great ministry. More than 400 wonderful people make up this
group. To join send an email to: BBPG-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

The Burning Bush Devotional

Welcome to the 1,194 new subscribers since November 1, 2005!!

04.05.06

Live Longer

For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the
midst of them. - Matthew 18:20.

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who
promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up
love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as
is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as
you see the Day approaching. - Hebrews 10:23-25.

There is a new study that has appeared today that is religious in nature.
The study claims that attending church can extend a person's life by two or
three years. There was a down play in the possibility of the spiritual side
of church causing the extended life span. The study leader, Daniel Hall, a
surgeon at Pittsburgh Medical Center, thinks the extended life benefit is
from the social relationships of those attending church. Hall says, "There
is something about being knit into the type of community that religious
communities embody that has a way of mediating a positive health effect."

There has been and continues to be an attack on the church. Some claim that
the church era is over and there is no need to attend church any longer. I
strongly disagree because the "body" of Christ, all who have the Holy Spirit
dwelling within them, is still present upon this earth. Christ died for the
church and during the Easter season, we should surely remember this fact.
Now we have a study during this Holy season of the year slamming the
benefits of church except as there might be some social benefit as in other
words there would be in any other organization a person were to participate
in. It is an outrage! Of course, we have grown used to outrages because
almost every week a new one comes our way.

Now that you have heard my rant about the blasphemers, here are some reasons
that you should attend church:

1. We have a command to do so, "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves
together." Hebrews 10 is still part of the canon of Scripture.

2. It is an act of worship and faith every time you assemble with other
believers. When you exercise your faith in that way, our Lord says that He
is going to be there with you.

3. Being in the presence of other Spirit filled believers makes the Spirit
within you leap for joy. You cannot receive; experience that except in the
presence of other believers.

4. Through the church, you can multiply the strength of your personal
ministry many times by working with other like-minded believers.

5. Church has a preserving effect upon your marriage.

6. Church has a powerful effect upon children, and teens that is greatly
beneficial to them and their parents.

7. Through the church, you will find support during difficult times.

8. Every time you attend church, you will be blessed, and every time you
miss church, you miss a blessing.

I will agree that sometimes it has been difficult to attend church. It has
at times been difficult to get everyone ready to be in church. It would also
have been much easier to have just stayed at home many times. However, I
still attend church. I also do not regret a single time that I made the
effort to attend church. My only regret about church is that I did not
attend more frequently and faithfully at an earlier age. Why? Because
faithful church attendance, earlier in my life, and earlier in my marriage
would have changed everything for the better in my life and that of my
family.

If you want to change your life for the better, attend Church! Make a
commitment to be in a Bible believing church every time there is a service
and you are not working or providentially hindered. You will never ever
regret it!! Also, you might even live longer!

Copyright © 2006. Ed Wrather. Permission is given for use of the devotionals
on a non-profit basis with source credited. The Burning Bush website has
been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998 the email version of the
Burning Bush Devotional was first sent.

The Crossmap Christian Search and Portal is a wonderful resource. I would
like to encourage you to visit this great site at www.crossmap.com. Crossmap
has added the Burning Bush Devotionals to their site. You may visit
Crossmap's sister website, the online version of the Christian Post at
www.christianpost.com.

If you have a Christian website you are invited to add the link to my free
links at the Burning Bush website. The Bravenet free links is near the
bottom of the front page www.theburningbush.org.

If you enjoy the devotional please recommend it to your friends. They may
subscribe by sending a blank email to
burningbushdevo-subscribe@welovegod.org

Streaming Videos of our services including my sermons are posted at:
www.theburningbush.org/fbcswvideo.html

There is now a webpage available at associate.com where the devotionals are
archived associate.com/groups/burningbushdevo. There is a complete
archive at the Burning Bush website and the address for the archive is
www.theburningbush.org/33.html.

You may subscribe to the pure text group by sending a blank email to
burningbushdevo-subscribe@welovegod.org and you can unsubscribe by sending a
blank email to burningbushdevo-unsubscribe@welovegod.org

You may subscribe to the html text group by sending a blank email to
burningbushhtml-subscribe@welovegod.org and you may unsubscribe by sending a
blank email to burningbushhtml-unsubscribe@welovegod.org

Subscribe to the Burning Bush Prayer Group. Send and receive prayer requests
to over 400 members. Send a blank email to: BBPG-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Subscribe to the Burning Bush Inspirational Group. Send and receive
inspirational material to over 100 members. Send a blank email to:
bbinspire-subscribe@welovegod.org

Subscribe to the Burning Bush Restoration and Recovery Group for those with
addictions or recovering from addictions. Receive devotionals and
inspirational material directed toward those with addictions. Send and
receive prayer requests. Over 200 members. Send a blank email to:
tbbrr-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Subscribe to the Intercede Life Group and pray for and help in practical
ways those who need help. To subscribe send a blank email to
interclife-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.

Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>

Try out the new website at http://www.theburningbush.net

The old website is at http://www.theburningbush.org

Several devotional booklets are now available for free download in PDF
format at the new site. Just click on the "Free Book Downloads" link.

Join the Burning Bush Prayer Group! Send and receive prayer requests and be
a part of a great ministry. More than 400 wonderful people make up this
group. To join send an email to: BBPG-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

The Burning Bush Devotional

Welcome to the 1,194 new subscribers since November 1, 2005!!

04.05.06

Live Longer

For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the
midst of them. - Matthew 18:20.

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who
promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up
love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as
is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as
you see the Day approaching. - Hebrews 10:23-25.

There is a new study that has appeared today that is religious in nature.
The study claims that attending church can extend a person's life by two or
three years. There was a down play in the possibility of the spiritual side
of church causing the extended life span. The study leader, Daniel Hall, a
surgeon at Pittsburgh Medical Center, thinks the extended life benefit is
from the social relationships of those attending church. Hall says, "There
is something about being knit into the type of community that religious
communities embody that has a way of mediating a positive health effect."

There has been and continues to be an attack on the church. Some claim that
the church era is over and there is no need to attend church any longer. I
strongly disagree because the "body" of Christ, all who have the Holy Spirit
dwelling within them, is still present upon this earth. Christ died for the
church and during the Easter season, we should surely remember this fact.
Now we have a study during this Holy season of the year slamming the
benefits of church except as there might be some social benefit as in other
words there would be in any other organization a person were to participate
in. It is an outrage! Of course, we have grown used to outrages because
almost every week a new one comes our way.

Now that you have heard my rant about the blasphemers, here are some reasons
that you should attend church:

1. We have a command to do so, "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves
together." Hebrews 10 is still part of the canon of Scripture.

2. It is an act of worship and faith every time you assemble with other
believers. When you exercise your faith in that way, our Lord says that He
is going to be there with you.

3. Being in the presence of other Spirit filled believers makes the Spirit
within you leap for joy. You cannot receive; experience that except in the
presence of other believers.

4. Through the church, you can multiply the strength of your personal
ministry many times by working with other like-minded believers.

5. Church has a preserving effect upon your marriage.

6. Church has a powerful effect upon children, and teens that is greatly
beneficial to them and their parents.

7. Through the church, you will find support during difficult times.

8. Every time you attend church, you will be blessed, and every time you
miss church, you miss a blessing.

I will agree that sometimes it has been difficult to attend church. It has
at times been difficult to get everyone ready to be in church. It would also
have been much easier to have just stayed at home many times. However, I
still attend church. I also do not regret a single time that I made the
effort to attend church. My only regret about church is that I did not
attend more frequently and faithfully at an earlier age. Why? Because
faithful church attendance, earlier in my life, and earlier in my marriage
would have changed everything for the better in my life and that of my
family.

If you want to change your life for the better, attend Church! Make a
commitment to be in a Bible believing church every time there is a service
and you are not working or providentially hindered. You will never ever
regret it!! Also, you might even live longer!

Copyright © 2006. Ed Wrather. Permission is given for use of the devotionals
on a non-profit basis with source credited. The Burning Bush website has
been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998 the email version of the
Burning Bush Devotional was first sent.

The Crossmap Christian Search and Portal is a wonderful resource. I would
like to encourage you to visit this great site at http://www.crossmap.com. Crossmap
has added the Burning Bush Devotionals to their site. You may visit
Crossmap's sister website, the online version of the Christian Post at
http://www.christianpost.com.

If you have a Christian website you are invited to add the link to my free
links at the Burning Bush website. The Bravenet free links is near the
bottom of the front page http://www.theburningbush.org.

If you enjoy the devotional please recommend it to your friends. They may
subscribe by sending a blank email to
burningbushdevo-subscribe@welovegod.org

Streaming Videos of our services including my sermons are posted at:
http://www.theburningbush.org/fbcswvideo.html

There is now a webpage available at associate.com where the devotionals are
archived associate.com/groups/burningbushdevo. There is a complete
archive at the Burning Bush website and the address for the archive is
http://www.theburningbush.org/33.html.

You may subscribe to the pure text group by sending a blank email to
burningbushdevo-subscribe@welovegod.org and you can unsubscribe by sending a
blank email to burningbushdevo-unsubscribe@welovegod.org

You may subscribe to the html text group by sending a blank email to
burningbushhtml-subscribe@welovegod.org and you may unsubscribe by sending a
blank email to burningbushhtml-unsubscribe@welovegod.org

Subscribe to the Burning Bush Prayer Group. Send and receive prayer requests
to over 400 members. Send a blank email to: BBPG-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Subscribe to the Burning Bush Inspirational Group. Send and receive
inspirational material to over 100 members. Send a blank email to:
bbinspire-subscribe@welovegod.org

Subscribe to the Burning Bush Restoration and Recovery Group for those with
addictions or recovering from addictions. Receive devotionals and
inspirational material directed toward those with addictions. Send and
receive prayer requests. Over 200 members. Send a blank email to:
tbbrr-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Subscribe to the Intercede Life Group and pray for and help in practical
ways those who need help. To subscribe send a blank email to
interclife-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.