Church Life
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Step One in Evangelism
I have not played golf in over 20 years, but when I played a little in high school, I was awful. Still, I remember the high levels of concentration needed to think about, address, and hit the shot. A golfer in Florida recently took that concentration to fairly extreme levels, though. As he was preparing to hit a shot from the fairway, a seven-foot-long alligator walked right by him, less than ten feet away, and the golfer never really noticed. The alligator literally walked in front of the golfer, who just walked up to the ball and took his shot while ignoring the huge creature. May I take that story…
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Why Can’t We All Just Get Along
I don’t like conflict. In fact, I really do everything I can to avoid it at all times. So when it comes to matters of faith you can imagine that it becomes even more important to me to get along with people as much as possible. How do you feel about getting along with people with regard to matters of faith? The longer I live the more I realize how difficult it is to get along with everyone in the religious community. This is not a God problem, it’s a man problem. There is perfect harmony and unity with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But the creation is subject…
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Reconnect: A Retreat for Preachers and Preachers’ Wives
Every couple needs time to step away from the normal run, run, run of life and think about their relationship. Preachers and their wives are no different. That’s why we are excited to let you know about a special 2-day retreat being held in October that is exclusively for preachers and their wives. The retreat is called “Reconnect,” and we are thrilled to be part of the planning of it. Several months ago, our friends Josh and Amanda Ketchum met with us about this idea, and we have been working on it ever since. Today, we are proud to unveil this retreat and hope that you will encourage your preacher…
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In My Father’s House
Sundays are important. For my entire life, I have been able to count on Sundays. I knew every Sunday morning and evening my parents would be taking me to worship. Over the years this meant different worship locations and sometimes a different drive to get there. Once I got married, my wife also being a Christian, the only thing about Sundays that was primarily different was that by this time I was also given the duties of preaching. But we still drove to worship. And as the kids came along a new tradition was born… I decided that on the way to worship we would sing a few songs of…
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Polishing the Pulpit and Prayer
It’s that time of year again – time for Polishing the Pulpit, or PTP as most of us refer to it. It is a busy time as many prepare to attend this week-long seminar in the Smoky Mountains. Some are preparing meals to bring and use in their cabins, while others are preparing lessons to present to those who will attend. There may even be some who are doing both! I hope that whether you are attending this year or not, you will take the time to pray for this great endeavor. In the midst of all that is going on in our country, this gathering is a bright and…
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How Will You be Remembered?
Last week, three people died who all impacted my life in a positive way. I am thankful to say that none of these three people ever did or said anything that impacted my life in a negative way. I can’t say that about everyone I know, even concerning brothers and sisters in Christ. So I feel very blessed by these three friends that I have lost. I believe all three of them will always be considered by me to be caring, serving, compassionate, and genuinely good. They will be remembered this way because their lives were mostly about other people. How will you be remembered? I have often heard it…
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Are You Living a Coinstar Life?
Not long ago, I heard and read about an interesting trip a man made to a Coinstar kiosk. As many who read this already know, you can take your loose change to one of these kiosks and dump it all in there. You can then receive a voucher for the total amount (minus the 11.9% that the company keeps). If you don’t choose to receive the voucher, you have the choice of getting an eGift card or making a donation to charity. I’m guessing that most people opt for the cash (or the voucher for cash). Apparently, that is what this particular man I heard/read about had in mind when…
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Row, Row, Row Your Boat
Most of us are familiar with the overall story of Jonah. However, in a recent sermon, Jeremiah mentioned a small fact that I have often overlooked in the story with a potent application to our lives. In chapter 1, as Jonah has tried to run away from God, the sailors cast lots to “ … know on whose account this evil has come upon us” (1:7). After God allows the lots to identify Jonah, he ‘fesses up that he is running from God, Whom he identifies as “…the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land” (1:9). Jonah tells the sailors the way to stop the storm…
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Is It Possible that We Know Too Much?
I am so grateful to be living in the information age. While I can try, it is so difficult for me to imagine living in the Dark Ages, or some other olden time when information was scarce. To have books and the Internet and other sources of information readily available is such a blessing. However, is it possible that we simply know too much? I was thinking about this just a few days ago. I don’t watch the news on TV, and I really just read headlines and a handful of articles from time-to-time. But I noticed that I was checking a couple of different news sites over and over…
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Spiritual Earplugs
Do you like it when somebody else tells you what to do? How do you respond when others tell you that you are wrong? I don’t think any of us like a steady diet of directions and objections. But in reality, that’s exactly what we need. I remember years ago working with a church that had a group of elders who would do a yearly evaluation of the ministers. One of the things those elders told us prior to the meetings was that some of the things they were going to say to us were not going to be very easy for us to hear. I also recall from time…
