Church Life
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10 Reasons I’m Proud to be a Member of the Church of Christ
There seems to be a great deal of fear and even pessimism concerning the church of Christ. Certainly, there are areas of the country and in the world where the church is not growing, and others where it is declining in number and influence. More than that, though, there are some who are ashamed of the church—or, at least, they act and write like it. On social media, there are constant “pot shots” taken at the church for backward, out-of-touch, or even just silly beliefs. In some pulpits, preachers castigate the way we “used to do things” as if they are nothing more than tradition. I am here today, though,…
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Through His Poverty We Were Made Rich
On one occasion during his ministry, when the multitudes pressed him, Jesus departed to the other side of Galilee. But one certain scribe didn’t give up the chase. He said to Jesus, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever You go. And Jesus said to Him, ‘Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head’” (Matt. 8:19-20). Truthfully, Jesus had given up heaven for a human life of poverty and unrest. He was more than the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14). His life was one of humility and his ministry of long dusty roads…
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Where Is Utopia?
I’m sure that we are all familiar with the word “utopia.” Many of us may think that, if certain things were true, we might even be able to experience it. For those who may not be familiar with either the word or the concept, dictionary.com defines “utopia” as: 1. an imaginary island described in Sir Thomas More’s Utopia (1516) as enjoying perfection in law, politics, etc. 2. (usually lowercase) an ideal place or state. 3. (usually lowercase) any visionary system of political or social perfection. There are at least two words in that definition that are intriguing. Those words are “imaginary” and “visionary.” They indicate that one cannot point to a spot on the globe…
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My Memory Bank is Wiped Clean
As I write this, Jim and I are staying in a motel while he is preaching at a Gospel Meeting. It has been a very pleasant stay so far with a spacious room and a great breakfast provided every morning (I could get used to this!). All of the staff members here have been very nice to deal with, but one lady who helps with breakfast has been very pleasant to talk to. She has told us about her children and grandchildren, about the job she has, and why she has it. She’s a very hard worker and gets extremely tired every day. The other morning, while discussing how tired she is at the…
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Cost vs. Value
It was one of those statements that was written in a derogatory way, but it jumped off the page at me. I was reading an autobiography, and the writer was talking about a nemesis who made what he considered to be terrible decisions. His reasoning was that the man knew all the spreadsheets and financial calculations, but he was never with the people to hear their stories and to understand how all these figures and facts worked themselves out. But the way he worded it is what made it stand out to me. The statement was this: “He knew the cost of everything, but the value of nothing.” I just…
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Serving God but Not Obeying Him
Several years ago I drove my good friend William Woodson to a luncheon at Freed-Hardeman University. Brother Woodson had been called to speak on the topic of the Restoration Movement. He spoke without notes and I remember being fascinated by his knowledge of the subject. On the drive over we talked about many spiritual and Biblical ideas. But there is one part of that conversation in particular that I will never forget. He referred to an article written by David Lipscomb in the Gospel Advocate entitled, “Serving God, not Obeying Him.” This article was published on November 11, 1897. Originally the question in the article Lipscomb was addressing had…
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The Silent “E” In Delegate
I’ve heard a number of synonyms for the word and the concept of delegation. I’ve heard some people in leadership positions talk about empowering others. The idea behind this seems to be that, if some of the workload is delegated to others, it will facilitate the growth of the individual being given those responsibilities. I’ve also heard the word equipping used in this way. Somebody in a leadership position will believe (rightly so) that delegation is one good way of giving others some necessary tools and freedom to accomplish a task. Maybe another good word that can be used in this context is encouraging. If a leader delegates some responsibilities to others, there is,…
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Why We Like Year-Round Lads to Leaders Events
The national Lads to Leaders convention has just been completed. Countless hours were spent preparing for this big weekend, and our kids had a blast! We came home excited…but also exhausted. So why am I already writing about preparing for the 2018 convention? Because we love the year-round events, and today I want to encourage you to be involved in them (even if you are not involved with Lads to Leaders!). What are Year-Round Events? When most people think of Lads to Leaders, all they consider is the convention that is held annually on Easter weekend. At that convention, young people are involved in speech, debate, song leading, oral Bible…
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A Plaque and a Mirror
As may who read this probably already know, at the end of 2016 I retired from “full-time located preaching.” I am still serving as an elder. One of the reasons that I chose to retire from my other duties was that it would give me more time to do what I consider to be a vitally important role for an elder; being with and helping to shepherd people. Along with that, I am hoping to do some “fill-in” preaching, hold gospel meetings, etc. if and when I am asked to do so. The decision to retire from what I had been doing for over thirty-eight years was not done without a great deal…
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[Quote] The Rich Young Ruler and You
SOURCE: The Journey of DesireJohn Eldredge, , page 84.
