Articles
Faith On a Shelf
I have this hat that my dad brought back to me from a business trip to Atlanta when I was 9 or 10 years old. You can see that I’ve worn it a lot. In fact, I wore it to just about everywhere I went during the summer...
“Jesus Loves Me”
After being led in this song by two of our young men Sunday night, I was reminded of a quotation from Karl Barth. On April 23, 1962, Karl Barth (the renown 20th Century Swiss-German, neo-orthodox theologian) spoke at...
That’s Not a Candle
Several years ago, there was story shared about a woman from Connecticut whose power had gone out during a storm. She left her house to go to a local hardware store to purchase some flashlights, but the store was...
The Post-Christian Problem
I attended the New Day Conference in Murfreesboro, Tennessee at the end of last week with a small group from Riverchase. It was a good conference and I left encouraged about the opportunities we have to fulfill the...
Josiah’s Reform
In the thirty-one years of his rule, King Josiah proved to be a faithful man of God and a great king of Judah. He served God from the beginning as a young king and grew into a greater understanding of God’s will and a...
You Are What You Eat
You Are What You Eat You’ve heard the phrase, “You are what you eat.” Simply defined, it means that you should eat healthy if you want to be healthy. This phrase can trace its roots back to the early 1800’s. It came...
It Is Well
Above the piano in our house is a large wood sign with the phrase, “it is well with my soul” on it. Kimberly and I purchased it during a season of our life together where we were not completely sure what the future had...
Do Over
I messed up on recording my recent radio programs. The sound quality was so bad Mark could not run them on the air. So, I deleted them and recorded them again. I sure wish I could do that in real life...
Don’t Believe Your Preacher
Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. (2 John 1:9 ESV) Here is the test. The “teaching of Christ”...
Balloons Belong in Church
I would like to share with you an excerpt from a poem written by Ann Weems. The beginning of it describes a four-year-old child that brought with her a balloon to church one Sunday. When her Sunday school teacher saw...
Faith
Two important verses: So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. (Romans 10:17 ESV) 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For...
Abide in the Teachings
105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. 106 I have sworn an oath and confirmed it, to keep your righteous rules. (Psalms 119:105-106 ESV) Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching...
Love
When my grandmother, who we called Granny, passed away several years ago, my mom and her siblings asked me to speak at her funeral. My mom had shared Granny’s Bible with me, so I began looking through it for any...
Choose Hope, Not Optimism
I’m not much of an optimist. I’m not really a pessimist either. I consider myself more of a realist. Rather than seeing my cup as half empty or half full, I just see an 8 ounce cup that has about 4 ounces left in it. I...
Chocolate Cows
A study commissioned in 2017 by the Innovation Center of U.S. Dairy a few years back suggested that seven percent of American adults believe that chocolate milk comes from chocolate/brown cows. If you do the math, that...
Knowledge Beyond Comprehension
Joy and suffering are very personal things. Rejoicing with those that rejoice and weeping with those that weep is generally done with those with whom we are close. It is most definitely limited to those situations we...
Between Your Eyes
We were discussing King Uzziah last week in the Homebuilders’ class. 2 Chronicles 26 tells us King Uzziah was appointed king when he was only 16 years old and that he “sought the Lord” (vs. 5) for a period following...
Guided By God
Guided - Led; conducted; directed in the way; instructed and directed. (American Dictionary of The English Language - Noah Webster 1828) To be guided by God is to follow His instruction. It is to keep His commands and...
I Need Your Help
One of my goals in the first few months of being here is to connect with those who are involved with organizing or leading our various projects, events, and ministries. I have been able to visit with several of you...
What Is An Involvement Minister?
This is a question I have been asked more than once since we’ve arrived here. I am going to have an opportunity to present to the congregation the vision I have for this work later, but for now, I do want to share a...
Rules
Rules, rules, rules! Every where you turn there are rules. That’s not a bad thing. Rules help us to know how things should be done. They also help us to stay safe and help others to be safe. Some rules change as we...
Jerusalem, Jerusalem
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not...
These Qualities
5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and...
Welcome To Spring
I know, you’re ready for the pollen to go away. But isn’t it a beautiful time of year. Did you catch the equinox? It occurred on Monday, March 20. You can even check out the exact time. Four times every year we know...