1 Corinthians 16:19-21 “The churches of Asia salute you. Aquila and Priscilla salute you much in the Lord, with the church that is in their house. All the brethren greet you. Greet ye one another with an holy kiss. The salutation of me Paul with mine own hand.” As Paul begins to close out his first letter to the church at Corinth, he makes it plain that the churches were aware of each other, even without the modern technology that allows us such ease of communication today. The apostle makes reference to the churches of Asia, and our minds turn immediately to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamon, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. However, the church is more, and goes deeper, than the place where people congregate to worship. After mentioning the churches of Asia, Paul then sends them a salutation from his friends and fellow-laborers, Aquila and Priscilla. This was not just a personal greeting however: it was from them and the church that was in their house. Paul’s state...
Psalm 147:1-5 "Praise ye the LORD: for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely. (2) The LORD doth build up Jerusalem: he gathereth together the outcasts of Israel. (3) He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds. (4) He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names. (5) Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite." The Book of the Psalms closes out with consecutive songs of praise. Each one lists various works of God in the universe and in our hearts that are worthy of our praise. I must admit that all too many times I am negligent of offering proper praise unto the Lord for things that may even be overlooked. It is too easy to take things for granted. I'm speaking of things that are of absolute importance to us, but go unnoticed - until they fail to work properly. Today's Psalm, when read in its entirety, speak of the ...