To All Our Loyal Readers,

We wanted to take a moment to thank you for sticking with us through TWO THOUSAND questions in almost three years!  In that time, we’ve referred people to congregations all over the world, been able to see people restored to the church, and even heard of our readers being baptized into Christ.  We are so thankful to be a part of the Lord’s work in such a unique way.  We give thanks for you all and glory to God, Father of us all.

Sincerely,
A Very Blessed AYP Team

     Is it biblical to raise your hand(s) during praise and worship songs?  Why do people raise their hand(s) during song?  Is there a right and wrong way to lift your hand(s)?

Sincerely,
Palms Up

Dear Palms Up,

The practice of lifting up your hands during worship is traced to 1 Tim 2:8, but unfortunately, many people misunderstand this verse.  There is nothing wrong with literally lifting up your hands to God, but Paul is telling them to “lift up holy hands, without wrath and disputing”.  The context is about a certain lifestyle that people were to have.  It is similar to the saying, “Put your hand to the plow” in Lk 9:62.  ‘Lifting up holy hands’ refers to working, laboring, and serving in a godly way.  Christians are to serve God faithfully, without arguing and disputing with each other.  ‘Lifting up holy hands’ has nothing to do with how high your arms are raised when you pray; it has to do with the character of the life you live.  Are we living holy lives when our hands serve God (1 Cor 4:12)?  Raising your hands during worship has the impression of godliness, but living faithful lives actually fulfills God’s command to ‘lift up holy hands’ (2 Tim 3:5).

       Just a reminder regarding questions asked anonymously: we appreciate your questions so very much, and we love answering them.  Due to the volume of questions we receive, we cannot guarantee an answer to an anonymous question.  We always respond to questions that come with a contact e-mail, but we can only post so many answers a day on the site, and therefore, anonymous questions don’t receive the same guarantee.  If we haven’t answered your question, it’s not that there isn’t an answer; it wasn’t chosen for posting, and we had no way of contacting you directly.  If you’d still like an answer, please feel free to re-submit your question.

Sincerely,
The AYP Team

After much labor and intense technical efforts, the AYP app is now available through iTunes.  We couldn’t be happier with the final product.  Now you can read AskYourPreacher on the go using your iPhone, iPod, or iPad.  We found that many of you, our readers, had questions you wanted to ask while away from your computers… and now you can!  Download the app today – and as always with AYP, it’s free.

Just search for “Ask Your Preacher” in the iTunes app store.

Recently, we received an anonymous question from a woman in Holland (the post was entitled “Pushing Forward, Looking Back”).  This post is in hopes that we can reach her.  At the time, we said we didn’t have any contacts in that part of the world, and it wasn’t possible for us to find a congregation in the area.  Since then, a kind and faithful brother has reached out to us and provided a contact number for a godly preacher in the Netherlands.  Ma’am, if you are still reading, please e-mail us at askyourpreacher@mvchurchofchrist.org, so  we can get you in contact with him.  You are in our prayers.

How can I be a good christian?  I want to do the work of God; thank you.

Sincerely,
Ready Worker

Dear Ready Worker,

Christ says that if we love Him, we will keep His commandments (Jhn 14:6).  The Bible is the Word of God, and Jesus is also called the Word (Jhn 1:1-2).  The Bible contains everything that God wants us to know about life and godliness (2 Pet 1:3).  We can have insight into the mind of Christ through the Bible (1 Cor 2:16).  When we take the Bible seriously and allow it to mold our lives, we please God who formed us.  That means attending a congregation that faithfully follows the Bible (Heb 10:24-25), studying the Scriptures to grow (Acts 17:11), doing what the Bible says it takes to become a christian (read “What Must I Do To Be Saved?” for more information on that topic), and continually growing in our lives (2 Pet 3:18, 1 Pet 2:2).