Church Life
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Just Because You’re Passionate…
Today’s post comes right from my heart, but it is also written with me in mind. This is a reminder that I need on a regular basis. It also is not meant to cause people to become namby-pamby. There are times when Christians must be bold. (I seem to recall my Lord driving people out of the temple.) That said, I am sickened by what I see, virtually constantly, by Christians who are passionate about issues. Yes, I am concerned about the state of America. Yes, I care about issues. Yes, I have views and opinions on these things. Too often, though, we let our passion drive us to do…
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What Are Your Spiritual Goals?
If I were to ask you what you planned to do with the rest of your life, what would you say? I understand that the answer to this question would depend on some level as to how old you are and where you are in your life. But I am pretty sure that the specifics of the answer would be related to your activity in the physical world. For example, you would say something about your occupation, your dwelling, your retirement – something along those lines. After all, the world is where we are living, right? And making your way in the world is what life is all about, right? Wrong.…
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Conventional Wisdom
We hear a lot today about something called “conventional wisdom.” In some circles, it is viewed as very authoritative. Is it? Can we always depend on conventional wisdom? According to www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary, “conventional wisdom” is defined as: “the generally accepted belief, opinion, judgment, or prediction about a particular matter.” That definition suggests strongly that conventional wisdom should not be seen as any sort of final authority on anything. Our own experiences should reinforce this. After all, can you not think of times when conventional wisdom was proven to be wrong in political elections – even sometimes for the highest office in our nation? There was a time when, according to conventional wisdom, no human would…
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Do You Know Florence?
If you live in the United States of America, or at least on the eastern half of the United States, you are probably familiar with who Florence is. We heard her name for days before she ever made her entrance into our country. We knew a great deal about her – her strength, her potential for damage, and the assurance of her arrival. We were warned over and over about what she might do when she arrived. Florence came to our country and she lived up to her reputation. She was strong and she was damaging. Many on our eastern coast are still suffering from the wind and rain damage that she brought when she…
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Where is Our Mind During Worship?
There is no other way to say it: what we do during the week affects us during times of worship. We can talk all we want about how we should push the things of this world aside while we worship, but it is impossible to not let those things affect us at least a little bit. Yes, we should keep our minds focused, but I want us to see that what we are feeding ourselves throughout the week really does affect us more deeply during worship than we might want to admit. Take one example, and it is one that I have to fight quite often. I am a fan…
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“Hello In There”
I happen to live where there are a good number of medical providers, services, etc. Our town is not a huge metropolitan area, but there are two hospitals and more than a few clinics, labs, doctors’ offices, etc. There are also other health providers in nearby communities. As one might expect in a situation like this, the multiplicity of choices means, among other things, some competition among these various services. That, in turn, leads some of these places and people to advertise in order to make people aware of what is offered. Currently, one of the imaging centers in our area is advertising a service and some equipment that will provide an extremely…
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Know Your Purpose
“It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World” is an American comedy film that came out in 1963. I have never seen the film, but its title seems appropriate for today’s world. In fact, in my opinion, it’s only gotten “madder.” I believe there is a reason why the old Polish proverb, “Not my circus, not my monkeys,” has regained popularity. Too many of us are struggling to keep up with our daily lives and are at least trying to find the humor involved. I credit Bryan McAlister with the idea for this post from a lesson he preached this week at our Gospel Meeting. He was speaking about not being…
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The One Communication Skill that Would Transform Social Media
By its very nature, social media is a quick-response forum. We see something and we react to it. From plays in a sporting event to natural disasters to political decisions, everything is burning for a response, and those responses are immediate. That is a good thing in many ways, but it also cries out for one change that I pray we will all consider making, and it is something that we were taught as children. In fact, if we would all implement this one thing online, social media would be immediately transformed into a kinder and more well-informed place. What is it? Don’t speak until you have all the facts.…
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Why God Shut the Door
It is probable that anyone who has read the historical account of the flood in the book of Genesis is probably familiar with what Moses wrote by inspiration concerning the closing of the ark. Genesis 7:16 – “So those that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded him; and the Lord shut him in.” I’ve often wondered, as you most likely have, why God chose to close the door rather than have Noah and his family do it. He told Noah to do everything else, and every command Noah was given he obeyed (Gen. 6:22). So why not just tell Noah to close the…
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What Would You Do?
What would you do if a brand-new babe in the Lord used the wrong vocabulary? I am not talking about somebody who wears the name “Christian,” but who uses profanity. I am not talking about smutty stories and/or inappropriate remarks. In fact, “vocabulary” may not be the correct word to use. Maybe it would be more appropriate to speak of “terminology.” You see, I am talking about somebody who has yet to learn all of the scriptural and appropriate designations for various roles in the church. Maybe he/she has yet to learn exactly and precisely how God wishes to be worshiped. Maybe this person has a lot of maturing to do in these and other…
