Monthly Archives: March 2013

March 19, 2013 · 8:52 am

Can You See God?

 FishingJohnny approached his older sister, Suzie, with a serious question.  “Suzie, can anybody ever really see God?” Occupied with other things, Suzie tersely responded: “Of course not, silly. God is so far up in heaven that nobody can see him.”

Time passed, but Johnny’s question still puzzled him.   One day he approached his mother: “Mom, can anybody ever really see God?” Gently she replied, “No, not really. God is a spirit.  He dwells in our hearts.  But….we can never really see him.”  The answer satisfied Johnny somewhat,  but he still wondered. Continue reading →

12 Comments

Filed under God

Tagged as ,

March 18, 2013 · 8:53 am

Word of the Week: Attitude

Jesus.Attitude Sir Christopher Wren, the renowned English architect,  supervised the construction of the magnificent St Paul’s cathedral in London.   A journalist thought it would be interesting to interview some of the construction workers, so he chose three and asked them this question, “What are you doing?” Continue reading →

7 Comments

Filed under Attitude, Word of the Week

Tagged as ,

March 15, 2013 · 9:04 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Faces Around the Cross: The Pathetic Pilate

PilateMax Lucado calls it “the most famous trial in history.”

And the Judge?  A man unqualified for the job.  His position was the result of the right connections.  And a fortuitous marriage to Claudia Proclua, whose father was Tiberius, the Roman Emperor.

So in A.D. 26 Pontus Pilate was appointed governor of Judea.  He was responsible for maintaining law and order in the raucous land filled with Jews that hated Rome.  He handed out justice. And collected taxes.

Historians describe him as tactless. Stubborn. Cruel.  Censorious. Demanding. Self-justifying.  Tyrannical.  And disrespectful of religion. Pilate was everything that Jesus wasn’t. Continue reading →

5 Comments

Filed under Cross, It's Friday. But Sunday's Coming!

Tagged as , , , , ,

March 14, 2013 · 7:48 am

Some Reflections on Getting Older

Older Couple Sitting Together at BeachYesterday was my birthday.   And this annual event has occupied my thinking a little more than in past years.

I have fluctuated between competing emotions.  For instance I have felt a little like the baseball great Ty Cobb, who played in a different era.  He retired in 1928 at the age of 41 with a lifetime .367 batting average.  When he was 70 a reporter asked, “What do you think you’d hit if you were playing today?”  Continue reading →

7 Comments

Filed under Age

Tagged as , , ,

March 13, 2013 · 9:54 am

7 Lessons Learned From Saul’s Flaws

The BibleWe’ve been watching the History Channel’s presentation of The Bible from Executive Producers Roma Downey and Mark Burnett.  The reaction has been interesting.

Movie critics called it “fractious and overwrought,” “a further piece of evidence that drama and reverence don’t mix well,” and “a mini-series full of emoting that does not register emotionally.”

Predictability the Christian Post and similar news outlets have hailed The Bible as “awesome,” inspiring, and “spot on.” Continue reading →

30 Comments

Filed under Bible, Discipleship

Tagged as , , , ,

March 12, 2013 · 9:27 am

When Our Faith is on Trial

Trial“These are the times that try men’s souls,” wrote Founding Father Thomas Paine in The American Crisis, as he described the beginning of the American Revolution.

Today in America we face a different kind of trial.  A culture crisis.  A clash of thought.  Of Philosophy. Of basic beliefs. It is a culture war between the Judeo-Christian ethic on which our country was founded, and post-modernism, which rejects Christian values and seeks to eliminate religious thought from the public life. Continue reading →

7 Comments

Filed under America, Culture, Faith

Tagged as , , ,

March 11, 2013 · 10:05 am

Word of the Week: Word

Bible.Words.Collage“A picture is worth a thousand words.”  Really?  Says who?

Give me 1,000 words and I will give you:  Continue reading →

7 Comments

Filed under Communication, Word of the Week, Words

Tagged as , , ,

March 8, 2013 · 7:07 am

IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Faces Around the Cross: The Repentant Robber

cross.Thief,2He was a transgressor. A thief. A loser.  He deserved to die.  And so on that fateful Friday he and his comrade in crime would be executed. They would die alone and unknown.  Except for an unexpected intervention in providence.

Between the two thieves would be an innocent man.  A good man. A blameless man.   Actually, a sinless man.  It was the man called Jesus. It was the day Christ was crucified between two outlaws. Continue reading →

7 Comments

Filed under Cross, It's Friday. But Sunday's Coming!

Tagged as , , ,

March 7, 2013 · 10:13 am

Should Christians Stop Saying “Jesus is the Only Way to Heaven”?

Jesus.FOllowing “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”  –Jesus, John 14:6

Jesus’ statement seems simple. Straightforward.  Clear-cut. Right?

Apparently Dr. Steve McSwain doesn’t think so.  In a Huffington Post blog entitled, “Six Things Christians Should Just Stop Saying,” he says that we need to quit saying “Jesus is the only way to heaven.” Continue reading →

8 Comments

Filed under Christ

March 6, 2013 · 9:46 am

Should Christians Quit Saying “The Bible is the Word of God”?

Bibe.MS“It isn’t inerrant and not likely even in the “original manuscripts.” But then, I cannot say that with absolute certainty, anymore than anyone else can either, writes Steve McSwain in the Huffington Post regarding the Bible.

McSwain, who is billed as a “Thought Leader, author, speaker and spiritual teacher,” posted this under the title “Six Things Christians should just stop Saying.”   Why does McSwain make this charge?  His answer? Continue reading →

12 Comments

Filed under Bible, Uncategorized

Tagged as , ,