• Church Life

    Am I Trying for Even One?

    It isn’t yet official, but it looks as if a fairly amazing Guinness World Record was broken last week. A professional fisherman broke his own record by catching an astonishing 2645 fish…in just twenty-four hours! (His old record was 2172 fish, so he didn’t just break the record, he shattered it.) [Source] I have to admit, I am not a fisherman. I have gone a handful of times, but I just do not enjoy it. And that is despite the fact that I have caught a few fish. Fishing is one of those activities that I can see why people enjoy it; it just does not appeal to me. But…

  • Church Life,  Family

    For Shame

    Many of us are familiar with the discussions we have from time to time about the little word “for.” Some people believe that “for” in Acts 2:38 means “because of” and that we are baptized because we are already saved. However, “for” can mean “in order to.” We need to understand that the same word (in Greek and English) is found in Matthew 26:28. It is very clear in that passage that Jesus’s blood was not shed because sins were already forgiven, but that His blood was shed in order that this might be the case. Lost in this discussion is the fact that “for” can have another meaning. When somebody says that he…

  • Family,  Legacy of Faith Podcast,  Marriage

    Episode 139: Give Your Spouse Your Best [Podcast]

    https://media.blubrry.com/faughnfamily/content.blubrry.com/faughnfamily/Legacy_Podcast_139.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: RSS (Player not displaying or working? Click here to listen.) Nearly every couple goes into marriage saying they are going to give their spouse their very best. Too often, though, “life” happens and the spouse gets left behind. On this week’s podcast, Adam and Leah talk about some ways this happens, and some general tips to help to fight against it. To Learn More about Adam & Leah’s Parenting Seminar, Click Here

  • Church Life

    Lessons from T-Shirts

    There is a great T-shirt shop here in Cookeville that has gained pretty wide recognition. They are known for super soft tops with fun, local, positive, moral, or scriptural sayings. They have a “shirt of the week” to get people in the door and advertise it on local billboards for a discounted price for that week only.  Recently, there was a shirt that I couldn’t totally read on the billboard but a coworker had it on not long after. It reads “You are Enough.” By the time I got myself there, it was no longer the shirt “of the week” and I wouldn’t pay the higher price … at least…

  • Family,  Parenting

    “For Fun?”

    [NOTE: This post is intended for adults to read first. Parents, you may want to use it later to teach your children.] Leah and I are well-established into raising teenagers now. Mary Carol will be 15 in a few weeks, and Turner turned 13 back in March. That said, for several reasons, they seem to have a little more of their child-like innocence than most other young people their same age (and we are very thankful for that!). That innocence came through loud and clear a few weeks ago. Our family was watching a TV show together and the couple (husband and wife…we don’t watch shows where it is not…

  • Church Life,  Family

    How Close Are You?

    How often have you heard a statement that “stopped you in your tracks” and really caused you to think? Please allow me to share with you one such statement that had that impact on me. The statement was only one sentence in a sermon delivered by a preacher, but the impact was so strong that I still remember it years after I heard it. It was also strong enough to make me forget everything else that was said during that sermon. Here, in its entirety is that statement:  “You, at this very moment, are as close to God as you have chosen to be.” Could that possibly be true? Is it not…

  • Church Life

    Have You Planted Any Seeds Lately?

    I love Spring! It is full of new life that begins to pop out everywhere. If you’re a gardener, you love Springtime because it’s time to till up that ground and plan where you will plant those seeds you bought so they can grow and produce a crop. But wait —  it’s not Spring. It’s almost Autumn. So why would I be asking you if you’ve planted any seeds lately? Because the kind of seeds I’m talking about are not the kind you plant in the ground. They are the kind you plant in hearts. It takes the same kind of conscious effort to plant seeds in a heart that it does to plant…

  • Church Life

    Are We Distracted?

    Covid-19. Social unrest. A Presidential election. And on and on and on it goes. Just thinking about all the “big” news stories of the last few weeks is amazing. We are living in times where many people are wondering if we can actually handle any more “big” news. (I hope we have seen enough to realize that “breaking news” needs to be more than just some celebrity marriage proposal!) Christians are in this world, and, as such, we have feelings and opinions on all these types of matters. We are thinking about how to handle an ongoing pandemic, and we are talking about it. We have thoughts on Black Lives…

  • Uncategorized

    How Much Are Your Loved Ones Worth To You?

    Have you ever read any information concerning those who lost loved ones during that attack that has come to be known as “9-11?” If not, you may find the following information interesting that I found somewhere. I apologize that I do not remember the source. I would also add that, as you read the information, a key word in all of the figures you will be reading is average.     Responders and their families received an average of $4.2 million from all sources, compared with $3.1 million for other victims. Nearly all the difference is attributable to charitable donations and to payments from New York’s Public Safety Officers’ Benefits program. It appears to be the…

  • Uncategorized

    Perspective and Circumstance

    To me, it was a soothing, summer evening thunderstorm. To her, it was destructive. To me, it was offered comfort and a chance to to be thankful for my blessings. To her, it destroyed her safety and home. Who was right? It all depends on your perspective and circumstance. It was a summer thunderstorm but I was hearing it through the brick walls of my home, while her home was swaying high in the trees outside. The next day, my son and I were mowing the grass when I learned of her plight. “She” was a mother squirrel whose nest had been blown out of a tall tree. Thankfully, I…