Lancelot Andrews

Lancelot Andrews was one of the godly pillars of the English Church during its Reformation. He was made dean of Westminster in 1601 just two years before Queen Elizabeth, the Protestant monarch died. He served as her private chaplain and later served under King James I in various capacities and as Bishop of Chischester. In terms of piety and literary gifts, he is likened to John Donne and Hooker. Due to his ability with the ancient languages, he was one of the translators of the Authorized Bible. While he was a Reformer, he nonetheless stood along the side of the authority of the English throne over ecclesiastical matters. That should not prevent those whose sympathies lie with the rebellious Presbyterians to ignore him (he was known for praying every night, “O Lord, keep me from making a god of the King”!). He was Presbyterian and Calvinist in doctrine and while he was criticized for hard to understand sermons, no man could pray like Andrews. The secret of his prayer life is found in his “Private Devotions” which he compiled for personal use and never intended for publication. Twenty-five years ago a dear friend gave me a copy and I am glad that a new edition is being published now from Christian Focus publications in Scotland. Here is an example of one of his meditations. Use it as a way to prime the pump in your own prayer life:

The Hedge of the Law

To bruise the serpent’s head.
To consider my latter end.
To cut off occasions of sin.
To be sober.
Not to sit idle.
To shun the wicked.
To cleave to the good.
To make a covenant with the eyes.
To bring the body into subjection.
To give myself unto prayer.
To come to repentance.
Hedge up my way with thorns,
That I find not the path for following vanity.
Hold Thou me in with bit and bridle,
Lest I come not near to Thee.
O Lord, compel me to come in to Thee.

Lancelot Andrews (1555-1626)

A Witness to Life

Luke 1:41-44 (ESV)
And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, [42] and she ex claimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! [43] And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? [44] For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.


I have often wondered why there is such division among Christians over the issue of the sanctity of life – the need to protect the unborn. The Bible is unmistakably clear on the matter. But, I also know that people get swayed by the language of those who have made this issue a political one that gets batted around. I have stood in the picket lines at abortion clinics and I have also scrubbed the floors of a home for unwed mothers. As a pastor, I know that many women and parents who have secretly gone for an abortion feel tremendous guilt and unresolved anger. Abortion is more than a political issue; it is a tragic failure of a society to affirm that life is a glorious gift from God, even in the most difficult of times.

One of the things I have learned that the Church can do to witness to life, is to “speak the truth in love” and show the value of life in our homes through the vows we make in baptism. Not only are children precious, but special promises are given to the children of believers by our God (Acts 2:39). We make promises to raise them in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Bringing our children to Christ, who said “let the children come unto me and forbid them not,” is perhaps the best pro life message we can send.

Here’s one reminder from a pro life message that gets to the core.


She can hear the music of Mozart and the voice of her mother.
She can feel, touch and even suck her thumb.
She can not speak.

Only you can speak for the unborn!

A Year in the Bible

We are already in the second week of the New Year, but it not too late to begin something that will possibly be life changing. If you have never read the Bible all the way through, why not try to do it this year? There is a great benefit of finding a disciplined way of going through the entire Bible. It offers a certain perspective of seeing how everything hangs together in a single story of redemption. Secondly, it keeps one aware of the balance of seeing the unity of the Gospel as one single truth. We can become unbalanced in our thinking if we just stay in the New Testament and never look in the Old Testament. It is true if we look at only Paul’s letters and not John or live in the Gospels and not the Epistles. I know people who follow Paul, but not John and I know Christians who love John, but can’t stomach Paul. Reading the Bible with equal weight, equal authority and with balanced hearing, will save us from being a lopsided believer. A car needs four good wheels to run properly. We need the wheels of a balanced diet of the whole Scriptures to get along in this life. If your life seems out of balance, let me suggest you spend time in the Bible this year, as a major goal.
Here is a helpful guide that I have found.
Faith Presbyterian Church of Tacoma, WA make it available:
http://media.faithtacoma.org/pdf/FPC-ReadingPlan-2010.pdf

Sancity of Life Prayer from the Eastern Orthodox Church

O Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son, Who are in the bosom of the Father, True God, source of life and immortality, Light of Light, Who came into the world to enlighten it: You were pleased to be conceived in the womb of the Virgin Mary for the salvation of our souls by the power of Your All-Holy Spirit. O Master, Who came that we might have life more abundantly, we ask You to enlighten the minds and hearts of those blinded to the truth that life begins at conception and that the unborn in the womb are already adorned with Your image and likeness; enable us to guard, cherish, and protect the lives of all those who are unable to care for themselves. For You are the Giver of Life, bringing each person from non-being into being, sealing each person with divine and infinite love. Be merciful, O Lord, to those who, through ignorance or willfulness, affront Your divine goodness and providence through the evil act of abortion. May they, and all of us, come to the life of Your Truth and glorify You, the Giver of Life, together with Your Father, and Your All-Holy and Life-giving Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Hate Speech

A poem by Todd Baucum

A great pestilence grew across the land taking life
bringing darkness wherever it came.
The dreaded threat that was perceived
was neither a cancer nor a disease.
Yet, it was feared and loathed by countless
Who knew the deadly course of this malady. The threat was Hate.
An emotion and inner working of the heart.
Love was the antidote to this ill, and it must be won out by ruthless force.
Hate must be stopped before all is lost.

But, who decides where and when?
How might we perceive when hate has encroached upon the heart?
Words they say, which incite and disprove my rights to do what I deem good and free. Yes, words are the expression of hate that must be stopped.
Pick and choose carefully, the new guardians of our creed,
we must be sure that all hate is erased.

And so it was finally ended.
All words of hate had been eliminated.
Yet, strangely the world looked far more evil and dark without hate.
There was no hatred of injustice,
no hatred of crime, no hatred of brutality,
no hatred of deceit and no hatred of impurity.
Love died in that land.
A victim of a zealous crusade.
Choose your words carefully.

A Year in Mexico

Our daughter, Suzanne is now in Monterrey for a year with Mission to the World. She will be helping the team there and also an orphanage. We are so thankful that God has given her a heart for missions and put in her a desire for Mexico 8 years ago. God is http://www.ayearinmexico.blogspot.com/faithful. See her blog and keep praying for fruitful ministry.

Melito of Sardis ( A.D. 169)

“For born as a son, and led forth as a lamb, sacrificed as a sheep, buried as a man, he rose from the dead as God, being by nature God and man. Who is all things: in that he judges, Law; in that he teaches, Word; in that he saves, Grace; in that he begets, Father; in that he is begotten, Son; in that he suffers, the sacrificial sheep; in that he is buried, Man; in that he arises, God. This is Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory to the ages of ages.” (from a sermon in 169 A.D., possibly the earliest preserved sermon we have outside the N.T. Melito was the pastor of the Church in Sardis, where we are reminded that John wrote that they had the appearance of being alive, but were really dead - so they needed to make alive the things that remained. I wonder if this is an example of new life being breathed into this church, at least for this generation).