Sometimes, as I get ready in the morning, I like to watch Mike and Mike on ESPN2. They often kid about how they are grossly over-exposed. They are on radio, tv (twice a day), ESPN the Magazine and now call Arena League football games. Also, they will be the hosts for the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee. We’re not quite that far, but we do want to take a moment to remind you of some things. First, I have written two books. The first was begun as we waited for Mary Carol’s adoption. It is called Building a Hero and it discusses the book of Nehemiah. It was written with…

Yesterday marked the 54th anniversary of Sir Edmund Hillary reaching the “top of the world.” On May 29th, 1953, he became the first man to reach the summit of Mount Everest. Today many people have completed the amazing climb, but, at the time this was a feat that many thought impossible. It is still looked at as a very important moment in the history of human achievements. However, we often forget that he was not alone. He wasn’t the only man to reach the zenith of that highest mountain on that day. Why have we forgotten that Tenzing Norgay also reached the summit that day? He served as Hillary’s guide,…

We encourage congregations of Christians to worship with vocal music only, just like the early church did. The New Testament church, when under the guidance of the inspired apostles, sang psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, making melody in their hearts, but they did not use instruments. Those are the opening words from the title page of For A Cappella, a new website dedicated solely to teaching folks about the New Testament’s command to sing without the instrument. The site is still very new and does not contain a large amount of material yet, but this could be a good thing. Sometimes, when visiting a site, the amount of available material…

The following news stories will show you some of what is inside the Creation Museum in Kentucky, and you can see the founder and co-founder.

MAYWOOD CHRISTIAN CAMP is the result of prayers, dreams and numberless hours of works of love. In 1963, Howard Mays, at that time a Deacon but later an Elder of the Hamilton, AL congregation until his departure to a “better Campground” in May, 1979, offered to Jerry Jenkins, the preacher, 40 acres to develop as a youth camp. A general invitational meeting was called, with a large group coming from many places. A Board of Trustees was tentatively selected, work plans drawn up, and a large donation of cash and materials made. The first “work day” saw nearly 100 people in the woods. under the leadership and inspiration of Jerry…

Recently, we ran a short article about the opening of the Creation Museum in Kentucky. Yesterday was the big day, and the museum opened with great reviews and great protests. As you can imagine, the protests continue today as media outlets tell their version of the grand opening. In all, over 4000 people attended the opening yesterday. Some were amazed and happy by what they saw, while others thought the displays were an outrage. Many others gathered across the street to protest the museum. As you can guess, I think this museum is a great thing. It is needed and will help teach many people. It will also be a…

Tomorrow, our nation will remember. Memorial Day is a time of reflection and remembrance. For those who have lost loved ones in battle, it is a very important day. For those, like me, who have had family members fight for our freedoms, it is still a day of reflection, even if our family members were lucky enough to survive death in battle. As with so many other things, though, there are dozens of distractions on Memorial Day. Major League Baseball plays many games throughout the day and makes sure many are on TV. The NCAA always hosts the men’s lacrosse national championship on Memorial Day. Others take time to shop,…

Next Friday, June 1, will be the launch date for the new financial blog for Christians, “Where Your Treasure Is.” The four writers: Wes Hazel, James Dalton, Joey Sparks and I are all looking forward to a successful launch. We hope this blog will be of some help to you. We all struggle with money in one way or another, and we sincerely pray that this effort will help us all come closer to the Biblical way of using our monies and possessions. If you have not done so yet, please bookmark the site, Where Your Treasure Is. Also, If you are a member of Technorati, there is a link…

One of the major issues facing Christian teenagers is dancing. School dances, quite simply, are not a Christian place. So many adults cave in and say that young people should be allowed to go because, “I got to when I was young;” “Everyone gets to but our kids;” or “There are adults present.” But what are those adults allowing? Recently, Seattle’s Ballard High School announced that it was outlawing “freak dancing” at school dances, including their upcoming PROM. What is “freak dancing?” Most of us would recognize it as the type of dancing done in rap and R&B videos. The school, though, decided to actually try to define what was…

Many congregations, especially in the area where I live, have had one or both of the Williams brothers to come and conduct a “grief seminar.” Ron and Don Williams do an excellent job at these conferences helping both those who are grieving as well as those are care-givers, friends and acquaintances. Their book on the subject, Walking with Those Who Weep: A Guide to Grief Support, is an excellent summary of the information they give in the weekend seminars. Helping those who grieve is, in many ways, an art-form. Just saying “something” isn’t what is needed; saying the right thing (or nothing) is needed. This book helps the grieving, but…