"Look! Here I stand at the door and knock. If you hear me calling and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal as friends.

Rev. 3:20 NLT

Who's Knocking ?

After the recent death of my mother I was helping my father sort through some old books. We spent quite some time that day just reminiscing about the past, mostly of his youth and his time in the war and the CCC Camps. We were looking through old books and piles of old photos when we came across a bible. This was the bible that I remember my father using as we went to church in my youth. The pages are now brittle and brown and the binding is gone but I still quickly leafed through the first pages to make sure that the picture was still there. It is about the only thing that I can still remember about those days in church when I was young. I remember sitting, half asleep, next to my father with my head resting on his arm and staring at that picture of Jesus knocking on the door. I felt so safe and secure there with my father next to me while sitting in the Lord's house. I would wonder "Who's door is this?", "Why did He pick this door?" and "How long will He continue knocking if they don't open the door?".

Isn't it a wonderful thing that Jesus is persistent and He will keep on knocking at our door even though we pretend not to hear Him? Shortly into my teen years I left the church because it wasn't the "cool" thing to do and besides it just wasn't very macho. In the years that followed as I was maturing and raising a family I pretended not to hear those knocks. I ignored those knocks for at least 20 years and then one day I decided to open that door and there he was - Jesus was waiting for me. He wasn't angry that I waited so long to answer His knock, in fact He was delighted that I answered it and that is when He asked me to join Him as friends. Now that I have grown to be close to my friend, Jesus, I can tell you that I am sad about all those years that I made Him wait for me to answer those knocks. It really would have been "cool" to walk with Jesus for all those years.

If you have not answered Jesus' knock - What are you waiting for? You are missing out on meeting the dearest friend that you have ever known. And don't worry if He has been knocking for many years - He still wants to walk with you.

When you hear the knock - Answer the door !!

JAF

      Song and singing is a way to bring our praises to God.  Sunday worship is filled with any song and hymns, new and old.  Songs at the Coffee House at Hillview is used as a way to bring people in the community together and collect food for the Baldwinsville food pantry.  Song is taken by the Fehrman's from the congregation to nursing homes in the area in the form of hymn sings.  At a recent concert at the church of "Songs of Broadway", Bill Sullivan was singing "Razzle Dazzle".  His son, Larry, who is a 21 year old young man who is developmentally disabled, unable to speak in many words, in time with song spoke very clearly with the word "WOW".  Song is a way which all of God's children can praise God.

By John Place