How Close Are You To God?

 

Have you heard about the old couple, Jeb and Mabel, riding along in their car one day? Of course, Jeb’s driving. And Mabel’s on the passenger side.

Mabel begins to reminisce when they were younger and how much in love they were. “Remember, those Sunday afternoon drives we used to take together, Jeb?

“You know,” Mabel continued, “we used to sit real close together when we when out for a drive.” Continue reading →

1 Comment

Filed under God

Word of the Week: Resolute

Today in Washington D.C. there is no Columbus Day. The D.C. Council voted to replace it with Indigenous Peoples’ Day. It’s a temporary move they hope to make permanent.

This trend is gaining popularity in many states. Of course, Columbus Day is about as popular today in the media as the NFL Washington Redskins. Yet, tearing down and denying our history does not change history. Continue reading →

2 Comments

Filed under Word of the Week

Be Nice To Those With Whom You Disagree

 

Ellen DeGeneres, the comedian, and talk show host has been at the center of a raging controversy all week.

DeGeneres was photographed last Sunday at a Dallas Cowboys football game sitting in the owner’s box with former President George W. Bush. As a result, she has taken some serious criticism from many in Hollywood, the LGBT community specifically and the far left in general for being with someone who is her opposite politically and morally. Continue reading →

2 Comments

Filed under Relationships

The Power of a Good Example

“Matty Lovo is a Hero,” the headline read.

I googled it. And it’s a true story. It happened 12 years ago when Matty was just 9 years old and saved his father’s life.

Matty’s dad, Matty Lovo, Sr, a semi-tractor-trailer driver, was hauling lumber through St. Helens, Oregon, when he had a seizure and lost consciousness. The semi veered into oncoming traffic. Stuck a utility pole. And seemed destined for a tragic accident. Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Influence

A Passage To Ponder: 1 Peter 1

Annie Johnson Flint, born in 1866, is well-known in Christian circles as a poet and songwriter. She composed over 6,000 poems and hymns. However, her life was far from one of ease.

Annie was an orphan. Her foster parents both passed away early in her life. She cared for a sister who was very frail. As a result, she was compelled to be dependent on the assistance of others. She lived with crippling arthritis. She was stricken with cancer. Yet the faith of Annie Flint Johnson was strong, as many of her hymns testify. Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Finding Purpose Following Failure

Last week we wrote about the extraordinary demonstration of compassion and forgiveness by Brandt Jean to Amber Guyger, the woman who shot and killed his brother, Botham Jean.

Now we learn that the Judge presiding over the case, Tammy Kemp, has been accused of “an abuse of her power.”

What awful act did Judge Kemp commit? Continue reading →

2 Comments

Filed under Purpose

Word of the Week: Surrender

This week finds us in Denton, Texas, where I’m preaching in a meeting at the Eastside church. It’s wonderful to be back in an area where we lived and worked and to see so many of our friends again.

Last night, in connection with our theme, “Developing the Mind of Christ,” we discussed the concept of surrender. It’s a word that has a negative connotation. But it deserves our consideration. And a larger audience. Continue reading →

4 Comments

Filed under Word of the Week

Extreme Forgiveness

“I love you just like anyone else and I’m not going to hope you rot and die,” Brandt Jean told Amber Guyger when he took the witness stand.”

“I personally want the best for you. I wasn’t going to say this in front of my family, I don’t even want you to go to jail,” Jean continued. “I know if you go to God and ask him he will forgive you.”

Dallas District Attorney John Creuzot described Brandt Jean’s compassion toward Guyger as “an extraordinary act of healing and forgiveness.” Creuzot said that in his 37 years of practicing law , “I never saw anything like that.” Continue reading →

5 Comments

Filed under Forgiveness

Bring Your Bible

Today, October 3, is “Bring Your Bible to School Day” in the United States.

It is the sixth year for the event sponsored by Focus on the Family. According to their website, it is designed to “celebrate religious freedom and share God’s love with their friends”

Furthermore, “the event is designed to empower you as a student to express your belief in the truth of God’s Word–and to do so in a respectful way that demonstrates the love of Christ.”

Participation in BYBTSD is voluntary and student-directed Continue reading →

2 Comments

Filed under Bible

A Passage To Ponder: James 1:2-8

Warren Wiersbe relates a time when he and his wife visited a world-famous weaver and watched his men and women work on the looms.

Wiersbe noticed the undersides of the rugs were not very pretty. The patterns were obscure. And the loose ends of the threads dangled.

“Don’t judge the worker or the work by looking at the wrong side,” the guide told them. Continue reading →

Leave a comment

Filed under Passage To Ponder