It’s a blessing to have more than one preacher “on staff” at a congregation. It is a great way for people to use talents and it also provides a built-in network of helpers. J.D., Harry and I split several responsibilities, and one of those is preaching. Our elders want all three of us to spend time in front of the congregation presenting lessons from the pulpit, although I preach the majority of the time. J.D. preached yesterday morning. His lesson was tremendous. Many, after services were over, were saying things to me like, “You’d better watch it,” or “It’s about time we heard some good preaching around here.” They were…

It’s sad that I’m celebrating the fact that my beloved Yankees have finally broken over the .500 mark. They really aren’t very good, but they are playing quite well right now. Maybe they can make a little run against the “Mess” (Mets) this weekend. Today is going to be great, as the teams play a day/night doubleheader with one game in each stadium! We finished our VBS at Lebanon Road and now we are on to more great things. I’ll be out of town next weekend for the 4th, so there may not be a links roundup. We’ll see. I’m looking forward to speaking at the Memorial Parkway church of…

We had a great VBS this year. Last night marked the end of VBS 2008. We celebrated those who brought the most visitors. We also took a moment to thank all those who helped teach, lead crafts, be in skits, and so many other areas. If our calculations are right, over 1/3 of our families were directly involved with leading VBS! That does not include others who brought refreshments, invited and/or brought visitors, and the many who prayed for the effort. Jeremiah Tatum delivered a great lesson last night as we studied Zacchaeus. All our adult classes were amazing, and those who listened were challenged by the lessons presented. We…

Here are some pictures of several of our VBS activities. 1. “The Good Samaritan” about to get attacked. (Sorry the quality of the skit pictures is not very good. The room was dark, so this is the best my phone will do.) 2. Our innkeeper, Earl Flynn. After that, the Levite passes right by. 3. Our Tuesday night speaker, brother David Shannon from Mount Juliet, Tennessee. 4. I had a picture of this classroom earlier, but it was not complete. I thought you might like to see the entire treehouse. 5. The nursery is not a baby-sitting service. These teachers do a fantastic job. When we got home last night,…

We figured there might be a little drop in attendance as we moved from Sunday into the “work week,” but we were pleasantly surprised at how little that drop was. My dad, Jim, taught the adult class, and his lesson was a masterpiece. As we thought about “The Man Borne of Four: Helping Friends,” dad helped us see that we should help our friends by bringing to Jesus, but he also helped us discover some common obstacles that block our efforts. I had so many people tell me that he did a great job (but I already knew it!). My only fear is that he did too well, and some…

Another great day at Lebanon Road. We had good attendance at our services yesterday morning, and our VBS got off to a grand start yesterday. For our morning service, I completed a series I’ve been preaching on church growth. It was well-received. We were pleased to welcome 3 new members to Lebanon Road yesterday morning. Gene, Margie, and Clyde Mullen moved their membership and were welcomed warmly by the congregation yesterday. At our VBS last night, brother Rickey McCreless did an outstanding job presenting a lesson on Miriam: Serving Family. His lesson was Bible-based and well-delivered. It was a joy to see he and Leisa again, and to get to…

First, the wrap up. The NBA season is over. The Celtics won their 17th title, which means they need 9 more to catch my Yankees! (26!!!) The best part of the season, though, didn’t take place on the court. It took place during a pregame show, when Frank Caliendo impersonated Charles Barkley to Charles Barkley. However, the best part was when he broke into Bill Walton. Now for the preview, it is far more important than the NBA, but it does contain three letters. It is V.B.S. We are looking forward to our annual Vacation Bible School, with the theme “God’s Big Back Yard.” I hope to show you several…

When you’ve got the two cutest kids in the world, you have to share pictures. Here are a couple of recent favorites. Here are both kids out in our backyard. Turner enjoys picking at the grass (okay, so sometimes he enjoys eating the grass, too), and Mary Carol decided to help him pick some grass. Mary Carol has a favorite set of glasses. The great thing is, she knows they are a toy and she knows they are funny. It’s almost like her first comedy prop. Turner is a boy after my own heart. He loves chocolate, to eat, or to wear!

We are truly looking forward to our Vacation Bible School next week. Our theme is “God’s Big Back Yard,” and we will be focusing on service to different people with whom we come in contact. Some congregations choose not to have an adult class for VBS, since many adults are helping teach and helping in other areas. We have decided not only to have an adult class, but our elders wanted me to get good speakers to come in and present lessons for our adults who are not working each evening. We feel we have selected a great group of men. Sunday, June 22, 6:00 PM Rickey McCreless Rickey McCreless…

Brother Steve Sanders has completed his first book, a class book dealing with the historical background of he New Testament. The book is short, but the lessons have enough “meat” to serve a class well in studying these matters. The book deals with certain issues that may confuse the Bible student who is told to follow the New Testament. For example, one chapter entitled “Who Are These People?” deals with the Sadducees, Pharisees, Scribes and Sanhedrin. Obviously, there is no way brother Sanders could go into deep detail on these four groups in one chapter. He does, however, provide the reader with the basic information needed to begin understanding the…