Articles by Curtis Hartshorn

When we meet for morning worship, that encouraging handshake or warm hug is much appreciated after a week of dealing with worldly, selfish people. Our society seems to have less patience and courtesy than it used to. It is refreshing to come to worship services and be greeted by brothers and sisters in Christ. How should Christians greet one another? Does the Bible have anything to say about our g...

“In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to...

Welcome! It is so good to have you here for services at the Lake Road Church of Christ. We’re glad you joined us today. You’ll find us to be a warm, friendly bunch. We extend kindness and encouragement to one another. Someone is likely to give you a warm hug or handshake to make you feel welcome and glad you came. It is nice receiving attention from others but hopefully that is not the main reason...

The following was sent to me twelve years ago by a young sister whom I had the privilege of watching grow up faithful to God. “When I was a child, I remember walking across the parking lot to church every time we could. I don't remember discussing it, I just remember that we did. The people there were my friends, my local "grandparents", some of my home schoolteachers as well as my Bible class tea...

George was an ornery child. By the age of 10 he had devised a way to embezzle money from the government, money under his own father’s care. He was in prison by the age of 16. But at the age of 20 he was convicted of his lost condition and devoted his life to following Jesus. He preached the message of Christ, as he understood it, beginning with a small church in Teignmouth, England. When he found ...

Existentialism is the view that there really is no purpose in our existence. We’re here. We do exist, but there is no explanation or reason for us being here. This all just happened. Human life is random. There is no pattern or meaning to the things we do or the things that happen to us. If you are a Christian and have believed in the God of the Bible all your life, it is probably hard for you to ...

Life is good until we make it bad. You probably know a guy or gal from high school who was top of the class, destined for great things but ended up spiraling out of control. Our class salutatorian was voted Most Likely to Succeed. Both his parents were district judges. Wonderful home life. We played basketball together. He got accepted into some ivy league school and I lost touch with him. Five ye...

When German designer Karl Lagerfeld died in 2019, he left an inheritance of £1,500,000 ($2,021,340.00) to his cat. That’s right. His cat. (Seven years later, the cat has supposedly still not received any of the money.) What does the Bible have to say about pets inheriting money? Psalm 25:12-13 says, “Who is the man who fears the LORD? He will instruct him in the way he should choose. His soul will...

Hospitals are where you go when you are sick or injured. A doctor examines your condition and decides on the best treatment. A medication is administered, and the nurses monitor your vital signs to see if there is any change. This treatment has been recommended because it was successful in curing others, but what if you are unresponsive to the medication? That’s bad. If the doctor comes in and say...

“How lovely are Your dwelling places, O LORD of hosts!” (Psalm 84:1). The dwelling, or the house, of the Lord was considered by the psalmists to be lovely. What did he mean by it being lovely? During the time this psalm was written the temple had not been built. The Lord was worshipped in large tents which marked off the outer courts, the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. Were the sons of Korah ...

Winnie the Pooh and I have something in common; we both LOVE honey. It tastes so good. It’s good on toast, on biscuits, in hot tea, on ice cream or just scooping it out of the jar with your paw. It is nature’s perfect food. It does not need to be refrigerated and it never spoils. Archeological digs have uncovered honey from ancient Egyptian tombs thousands of years old. It’s still edible. Honey fi...

A very happy Mother’s Day, to the women who have raised a child. It is good to have a National day to honor mothers for the hard work they do and the valuable role they play in the home. Mom is the emotional hub of the family. She is the glue that holds things together and makes sure the family stays a family. Christians should hold in high esteem the ministry of motherhood. The stay-at-home Mom i...

When a person becomes a Christian, there are several different ways to describe what has happened. One might say, “I gave my life to Christ,” or “I was immersed into Christ.” We might say, “I made Jesus the Lord of my life,” or simply “I was saved.” A term we hear mainly among denominational groups is, “I accepted Jesus.” I don’t hear members of the church I attend using that phrase. Radio and TV ...

“To be, or not to be: that is the question:” This famous line was an over-dramatized consideration of suicide written over 400 years ago. (Hamlet: Act 3, Scene 1.) Still, it is a good question to ask; not from the view of whether you should take your life but to question how alive you really are. To be or not to be? Am I alive or not? Am I living to the fullest or just taking up space? There was a...

"Mr. Gorbachev, Tear Down This Wall!" In a bold speech on June 12, 1987, Roald Reagan entreated Mikhail Gorbachev, head of the Soviet Union, to break through the 96-mile-long barrier separating East and West Berlin. The Berlin Wall was constructed after 3,500,000 people defected from East Germany, about 20% of their population. Walls can protect but they can also separate people from their loved o...

God bless you for being here to worship God today. How wonderful to be assembled with Christians. It is my prayer that you have prepared your heart to receive God’s Word. Today God’s Word is going to be preached from the pulpit and taught in Bible class. Listen carefully and look up the scriptures. Let the message mature you. The more mature you are in your walk with God the less likely you are to...

“Don’t Look Back.” This was the title of a top ten hit by Boston in 1978. “It's a new horizon and I'm awakin' now. Oh I see myself in a brand new way. The sun is shinin'. The clouds are breakin'. Cause I can't lose now, there's no game to play.” Long before Don Scholz wrote those lyrics, Jesus said something about not looking back. He said, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking b...

Reading and learning the Bible is so much easier these days than it used to be. Fifty years ago, if you were reading your Bible and you came across something you didn’t understand you had to phone a friend or wait until you were around someone who might know the answer to your question. If you wanted to hear a sermon or watch a class you had to wait till the next Sunday or Wednesday, unless you we...

Would you say your life turned out exactly the way you thought it would? If so, you are the rare exception. When I was a teenager, I had no idea I would be doing what I am doing now, living where I am living now. Most of you would probably say the same. Those who have lived in this same place their whole lives may have always assumed this is where they would live, but most of us look back and say,...

“B who u is cuz if u is who u ain’t u ain’t who u is.” You may need to read that a couple of times to get it, but once you do, there’s a lot of truth in that backwoods statement. “B who u is.” In other words, don’t try to be someone you’re not. What is it about church that makes us think we need to put up a façade, erect some image and try to be somebody we’re not? Most of us are smart enough to r...