Articles by Curtis Hartshorn

Birth and death. The beginning and the ending of life. Today 10,000 babies will be born in the United States and 8,500 of us will die. Birth is expected. We even say of a mother, “She is EXPECTING.” You get a nine-month warning with birth, but death is unexpected. We know it’s coming. We know we are going to die; we just don’t know when. We like to hear about babies being born. We tell everyone ab...

If you are like me, you are going to follow Jesus no matter what people say or do and no matter how hard it gets. Following Christ is always hard. Some times are harder than others. Jesus warned us it would not be easy. “You will be hated by all because of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved.” Matthew 10:22. The way our Lord says this it sounds like a promise. H...

It’s that time of year when the leaves are turning and the weather is starting to cool down. Although Jesus was raised in a different country and a different time, He experienced the change of seasons just as we do. “Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near; so, you too, when you see all these things,...

Faith, moral excellence, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness and love. Just words on a page to most people. But to a disciple of Christ these words are the secret to spiritual growth. They are a stairway, each step leading us closer to God. Believers want to make sure they don’t fall away from the faith. We want to ensure our love for God grows stronger so our wors...

Sunday is a day to assemble with other Christians. During our assembly God’s Word will be preached and it will have an effect on each of us. Every portion of the Bible has a message from God about how we are to think and to behave, but the impact today’s message will have depends mostly on you as the worshipper. You see, we all have an internal judgment of morals. We call it a conscience. When we ...

Purpose. Life needs purpose. There has to be a reason we are here. If God made us, what did He make us for? If it wasn’t God, what was it and why do we exist? Those questions are as old as time itself and the answers range from absolutely absurd to undeniably true. Are you looking for purpose? Do you think about why you are here? You are not here by accident. There is a loving God who created you ...

On the first day of every week we gather as a church family to express to God through song, sermon and prayer, how grateful we are for our salvation. We are blessed to live in the United States where we can worship according to the Bible without fear of judicial persecution. Our country has been through good times and hard times, but few as hard as what happened to us 25 years ago when terrorist h...

The Lord’s church, the church of Christ, the one we read about in the New Testament, is not a business. Many have tried to make it into a business, run it like a business, but it is not a business. At least the church as Jesus intended from the beginning was never designed to be operated like it is some corporation or organization. Jesus’ church is not an organization, it’s an organism, a living/b...

Do you hear well? Perhaps you do, or maybe you don’t. How difficult it is to deal with partial or complete hearing loss. I’m grateful to God that I have good hearing. So much is learned through the ears. And though there are things I wish I’d never heard, there are lessons I’ve learned and beautiful sounds which have come to me through listening. I love music, especially the blending of beautiful ...

It’s hard to overcome our feeling of unworthiness. What makes it hard is that it is true; we are so unworthy to be in God’s presence, to assemble with His family and worship Him. None of us deserves to be here. It is normal to feel this way. Look at the people in the Bible. Jeremiah was born in Anathoth, a small village 2½ miles northeast of Jerusalem. He was nothing special and yet at a young age...

There is a book in the Bible dedicated to the proclamation of victory for the people of God. It is the book of Revelation. In the midst of horrific persecution when disciples of Jesus were being tortured and killed because of their loyalty to Christ as Lord, Jesus Himself inspired the Apostle John to write a message of hope and deliver it to seven churches in Asia Minor. "Write in a book what you ...

Do you have to physically see Jesus to believe in Him? Can you believe Jesus’ feet walked the dusty roads of Nazareth even though you were not there to watch Him pass by? Can you believe with confidence that Jesus was lifted high on a cross while verbally asking God to forgive His tormentors? We sing in worship the song “We Saw Thee Not,” but do you believe what you are singing? “We gazed not in t...

Hugs and handshakes are passed out here liberally each Sunday, but should we be greeting each other with a kiss instead? 1 Peter 5:14 says, “Greet one another with a kiss of love.” And in four verses Paul instructs Christians to greet Christians “with a holy kiss.” Why do we shake hands when the Bible says to kiss? New Testament Christians greeted with a kiss. Are we not trying to restore New Test...

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...