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Preparing to Worship on Christmas
If I am correct, 2022 marks the third time since I began preaching that Christmas Day falls on a Sunday. (If you haven’t bought gifts yet, you’ve only got a week and a half!) It is interesting to watch on those days to see how families–especially those with young children–handle this situation. (By the way, this article is assuming your congregation will still have services on Christmas Day. To cancel or move services off of the Lord’s Day just for a holiday is wrong and sad, and you need to find a congregation that will be meeting on that Sunday with which to worship.) What are some things to keep…
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Interesting, But Sad
I was listening to a podcast recently that, in part, was explaining some of the differences between the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. During the relatively short podcast, I learned some things I did not know – starting with the fact that I had no idea that these two groups even existed. Among other things, I also learned that each group has its own “Patriarch” – one in Moscow, Russia and one in Kiev, Ukraine. At the same time, I was saddened to learn of their existence. These two groups are merely representative of something that directly contradicts the wishes of Jesus that He expressed in His prayer…
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Memories
The turkey was great, and so was the ham. The dressing was my mother’s recipe and turned out great. Green beans, corn casserole, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potato casserole, cranberry sauce, holiday salad and homemade rolls completed the menu. The desserts were plentiful — pecan pie, pumpkin pie with whipped topping, triple chocolate fudge brownie cake with chocolate ganache, and snickerdoodle cookies. We had a feast and we all enjoyed it! But there were some things we enjoyed more than this great meal. Let me just list a few of the things that were better: Working in the kitchen with my daughter, daughter-in-law, and granddaughters. We work well together and have…
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Saying “No” for a Reason
There is an old principle that I have heard, I suppose, for my entire life, but it has never really sunk in until recently. Or, maybe, to put it a better way, I knew the principle but did not live it out in practice. I’ll share what that principle is in a moment. But, first, a couple of personal anecdotes that provide the backdrop to this article. I was asked a short time ago to take part in something I had done before. Most wouldn’t consider it a big thing, and it would have probably only taken a couple of hours each week on average (something like that, anyway). It…
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One of Satan’s Most Effective and Insidious Weapons
Most of us have heard the old saying that informs us that “laughter is the best medicine.” A long time ago, a very wise man was inspired by the Holy Spirit to write these words: A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. (Prov. 17:22) Those who know me know that I love to laugh. I love to be around people who laugh. I love to make people laugh. Somebody like me needs to exercise caution. The reason is that, like everything else that Satan touches, he can turn what could be a good thing into something not so good. In fact, laughter can be a very…
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Too Much On Your Plate?
Thank goodness I asked this now and not last week, right? If you are like me, you may be working on burning off some of the things that overloaded your Thanksgiving Day plate! Obviously, for the purposes of this blog, I am not only talking about literal plate contents. I’m also asking if you have too much on your theoretical plate. Too many irons in the fire. And any other cliches you can think of that mean we are too busy! I know it is the busy time of year. While two of my three children are now in college, the one left in high school has plenty of rehearsals,…
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One Gift You Can’t Wrap
We are trying to do better this year about buying our Christmas gifts earlier. We hope to get most–if not all–of them bought and wrapped in just the next few days. (We’ll see if that actually happens!) The “hurry and hustle” of this season of the year is real, but we would rather “hurry” now than be totally scrambling later on. And that hints at where I want to go in this brief article. For many of us, there is so much to do this time of year (and always). On top of the usual work and school things and regular activities (haircuts, dental appointments, etc.) there is shopping to…
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Truth And Freedom
As I type these words, I am very aware of some of the risks in doing so. There is, for example, the risk of being misunderstood. There is also the risk of being perceived as being overly critical. I could be seen as being too “soft” or too “hard” in my assessment of preaching and/or preachers. The possibilities of negative consequences are almost endless. There is also a risk of people thinking that I am only concerned about preaching and/or preachers. It may be true that a lot of what follows has to do with that. However, I believe that if you will stay with this until the end, you will find that this is not…
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Where the Downhill Slide Started
Those who are familiar with the first chapter of the book of Romans will remember that it contains information about people characterized by their ungodliness and unrighteousness (v. 18). As one reads some of this material, he/she may think that they are reading descriptions of people, philosophies, and activities of our day. Maybe it would be appropriate at this point on our calendars to consider where the downhill slide into sin, degradation, and disobedience started. How did these people who, at one time “knew God” (v. 21) get to the point where they were objects of the “wrath of God?” (v.18) Where did the journey start that caused them to get to…
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Episode 165: Our 2022 Thankful List [Podcast]
https://media.blubrry.com/faughnfamily/content.blubrry.com/faughnfamily/Legacy_Podcast_165.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: RSS (Player not displaying or working? Click here to listen.) It’s time for our annual family list, where each of the four of us share some things we are thankful for from the past year. We hope this encourages your family to think about your lists, as well! Find our podcast on… Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Spotify Stitcher TuneIn Radio RSS
