We post a lot of things on this blog, but absolutely nothing comes close to being as important (or exciting) as when we get to pass along a baptism or restoration. Today, we get to pass along the news of a new sister in Christ. Last night at our midweek services, Cassidy Schow responded to the Lord’s invitation. She had been thinking of doing so for some time, but knew she needed to wait no longer. Cassidy is a wonderful young lady, and we are thrilled that she has made Jesus the Lord of her life. She is going to do great things for His cause. Our youth minister, JD…

This book, written by W.T. Hamilton in 1969, was lent to me a couple of weeks ago. One of our members knew I was wrapping up a study on Job and thought I might enjoy this volume. Did I ever! In fact, I enjoyed it so much that, upon finishing it, I ordered a copy from Amazon. Yet Trouble Came is a collection of devotional thoughts from brother Hamilton. Each chapter contains a page with the Scripture reading from Job, then a 3-4 page devotional lesson. Each is packed with outlines, illustrations, poetry and other helpful materials. When I saw what this book was going to be like, I thought…

My friend, Shane Thomas, sent me a link that I couldn’t wait for the roundup to put on here. Instead of sharing the link, however, I want you to watch the video found in the story. You may, at first, think this is silly, but watch the whole thing… …and have a box of Kleenex handy.

This book served as my biography for February, as I have challenged myself to read a biography each month. I chose it for the very simple reason that I didn’t know much about Alec Guinness, but had often heard his name. I thought the book would be quite informative as I tried to learn more about the life of an actor whose name I knew, but not much more. I was wrong. The book is a meandering diary of (about) a year in Alec’s life. And I mean meandering. While some of the things Guinness does are interesting, he basically recorded his journal and published it. If you don’t know…

One thing that fascinates me as I listen to sermons presented by brothers in Christ is how many different styles there are. Most people have a favorite style of preacher. One danger we must avoid is thinking that a certain style is “better” than another. As long as the truth is being taught, it simply does not matter how many points the sermon has or how many illustrations are used. Personally, I present a majority of my sermons with about 4 or 5 points. I usually try to incorporate a brief word study or two and I try my best to relate the texts to “today’s living.” Every so often…

Another uplifting day on “the pike.” We were blessed to have 340 in our worship yesterday morning, including many visitors from all over the place. Our Bible school numbers were good, as well, with 284 present. Last night, we had 263 in attendance, including some folks from Haleyville, Alabama! Seeing Leisa McCreless and her son, Rick’s, family there was a wonderful treat. We enjoyed worshiping with them, then going out to eat and catching up after services. It was a joy to preach yesterday morning from Titus 1. We are walking through that brief but practical book on Sunday mornings. We looked at the qualifications for elders from that chapter,…

As always, once we get have these colder months, many get sick with various problems. It seems that nowhere has been able to avoid these flues and strong colds that have gone around. It has certainly touched our attendance a bit here, and I’ve heard from many others saying the same thing. I’m not a doctor (and I don’t play one in the blogosphere), but the weather over the past month or so has been unbelievable. Just in the last few days, we have gone from a high of 70 on Wednesday, to a high of 38 on Thursday. That’s been the pattern this winter. In one seven day period,…

NOTE: After yesterday’s post, I got a special email from my dear friend Todd Clippard. Todd preaches for the Burleson church of Christ near Hamilton, Alabama. He read the post and sent me an article he recently penned for the local newspaper. It will also appear in a newspaper in Mississippi. I asked for his permission to post it here, and he graciously agreed. Enjoy Todd’s article. ——————— I Witnessed the Greatness of Sports in Sulligent, Alabama I have witnessed many great individual and team feats in my short lifetime. I’ve been privileged to see the careers of greats like Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky, and Dale Earnhardt. I remember the…

In a time when all we seem to see are players being arrested, charged with things, going to jail, and admitting to cheating, we can fail to see the good stories that occur in the world of athletics. Milwaukee Madison High School basketball captain Johntell Franklin was late to the February 7 game for the Knights against the Barbs of Dekalb, Illinois. The reason is tragic: his mother, aged 39, had died after a five-year battle with cancer. Johntell felt, as a captain, that he needed to be there for his team, but he arrived late. He went to the locker room, suited up, and came out to the court.…

I’m trying a new site (to me) and I’m planning on putting some of my PowerPoint presentations on here after I have preached the sermons. I hope you find this feature to be helpful. Here is the PPT for yesterday morning’s sermon: When Moses Made Excuses Publish at Scribd or explore others: Presentations & Slid service moses And here is the PPT for last night’s sermon…which I got from my dad (thanks!!!) Why Pharaoh Publish at Scribd or explore others: Presentations & Slid moses Old Testament NOTE: I apologize if you cannot read some of the text on the slides. I use a lot of different fonts (and wordart) in…