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Am I In Trouble?
It happened again recently. A young man asked me that question: “Am I in trouble?” There are variations of that question. I’ve heard many of them. One of the more common variations is: “Have I done something wrong?” What would prompt a question like that? Why would the first thought of an individual be that he/she is “under investigation” and/or about to be punished? So, what happened this time? What happened was that I asked the young man if he could meet with all of us who serve as elders where he worships. The idea of him being in trouble could not have been further from our minds. Instead, we admire his abilities and are interested…
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Episode 100: A Trip Down Memory Lane and How to Teach Adults How to Study the Bible [Podcast]
https://media.blubrry.com/faughnfamily/content.blubrry.com/faughnfamily/Legacy_Podcast_100.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: RSS(Player not displaying or working? Click here.) It’s time to celebrate, as A Legacy of Faith hits episode #100. Adam and Leah take a few minutes to walk down memory lane, but then spend most of the podcast to talk about the importance of teaching others how to study the Bible. Below, you will find a large number of resources from this podcast. The Handouts Throughout the study on “How to Study the Bible,” handouts were provided with basic notes. To read or download a pdf all five lessons, click here or click on the picture below. Other Links (Links to Amazon unless…
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Living a Double Life
It happened again. I’m so disappointed, and my heart is hurting. This is not going to be a happy, light, uplifting post. I cannot just ignore this because it keeps happening. I know I will probably make some people mad, but that really doesn’t matter to me anymore, because this could be a matter of spiritual life or death. I opened up my Facebook account again the other day, and there it was. Another person (a sister in Christ) had posted about going to see the movie, “Fifty Shades Freed.” I know very little about that movie, but I saw an advertisement on television that caused me to blush (OK, go ahead, think what you…
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Kids Devo Idea: Controlling Your Anger
Last Sunday night, we were excited to host the K-6 devotional for 9th Avenue. We always enjoy having these young people and their families in our home. I found an idea for a devotional on anger, adapted it quite a lot, and taught it to the precious children. I thought you might find it a helpful idea to have for a family devotional or a children’s devo. It combines a pretty standard science project with (hopefully) a much-needed Biblical thought. Items Needed In the picture above, you see what you need. But in case you can’t see the picture clearly, here’s a list. Vinegar Baking soda Food coloring (not required,…
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3 Reasons Why You Need to Go to Prison
You need to go to prison. But don’t do anything rash. I mean don’t do anything wrong or illegal. Unless of course preaching the gospel is illegal. That’s what the apostles did and they often got thrown in jail for it. As I was studying Acts 16 where one reads about the imprisonment of Paul and Silas it occurred to me that it is sometimes beneficial to go to prison. Here’s why: 1. Going to prison will test the authenticity of your faith. Most of the earth shakers and leaders of the past went to prison for something they believed in. Paul and Silas remind me that we are not…
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When OK is Not OK
Two letters–OK–may be doing a lot more damage than many of us realize. It is my opinion that the damage begins in many homes and that it begins when children are very young. How many times have you heard a parent say something like one of the following to a child (sometimes a very small child)? “You need to eat your vegetables. OK?” “It’s time to go to bed. OK?” “Please be quiet. OK?” “You need to clean your room. OK?” “Speak when somebody speaks to you. OK?” “You need to thank people when they do something for you. OK?” The list could go on and on, but I think you get the idea. Many children are being…
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Press On!
I confess. I searched Pinterest for an idea for this article. But as soon as I saw it, I knew. The following quote is one that should be second-nature to me as a Special Education teacher. I often beg parents to celebrate gains instead of fixating on goals that seem unreachable. That said, sometimes we all need to be reminded. So, without further ado, here is the brilliant yet simple quote that gave me inspiration: “Applaud progress, not perfection.” Isn’t this what the Apostle Paul was trying to encourage in his readers when he said: Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make…
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Leaders Must Come Down from the Mountain
Leadership is a difficult thing. Whether it is a parent in the home, elders in the Lord’s church, or one who runs a business, there is a responsibility inherent in leadership that can cause all sorts of issues. One of those issues is the “mountaintop leader.” This is the leader (or group of leaders) who sees their role as giving dictates from on high, never to be questioned by the people down at the bottom of the mountain. Their authority is never to be questioned, and they have no desire to get down in the middle of the regular folks and be a real person around them. After all, doing…
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Dealing with Disappointment
Warning! What I am about to write here may depress you. From a counseling perspective, it is probably the worst approach and advice anyone could ever give. But guess what? This world is full of disappointment and some of it you will likely never get over. This is just truth. This is why this world is not our home. Sometimes life is just disappointing and difficult. People deal with disappointment every day. There is what people wish for and then there is their real life. Maybe they wish they had more physical blessings. Maybe they wish they had a certain portion of ability or talent in some area in which…
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What is the Greatest Challenge for a Preacher?
Many who will be reading these words may be aware that I “retired” from full-time preaching at the end of 2016. I used the quotation marks because I have not stopped preaching altogether. It is just that I am no longer the full-time located preacher for one particular congregation. As I think back on my (almost) forty years of full-time located work and as I consider the role in which I am presently trying to serve, I am aware of any number of challenges faced by preachers of the gospel. It seems to me that many of those challenges would fall under two broad headings: Time management – How does a preacher find…
