I’ve borrowed the title of today’s post from Marina Keegan’s blog. Yesterday I wrote about her final column in the Yale Daily News. (If you missed it, please read it before you read another word here. https://thepreachersword.com/2012/06/26/the-best-years-of-our-lives ) Continue reading
The Opposite of Loneliness
Filed under Fellowship
The Best Days of Our Lives
“We’re so young. We’re so young. We’re 22 years old. We have so much time,” wrote Marina Keegan.
I had never heard of Marina, the talented and aspiring writer who landed a job with the New Yorker. Until today. Her final column for the Yale Daily Continue reading
Filed under Life, Uncategorized
Which Road Will You Take?
We are in the heat of baseball season. Literally! This year the All-Star game is coming to Kansas City. Norma Jean and I were down on the Plaza Friday night and noticed it is filled with All-Star information. Signs. Promotions. Pictures. You name it. One of my favorite Baseball All-Stars was Yogi Berra. Continue reading
Filed under Christian Living
IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! From Ordinary to Extraordinary
To the casual observer there was nothing unusual about these six hours.
To the casual observer this Friday was a normal Friday. Six hours of routine. Six hours of the expected.
Six hours. One Friday. Continue reading
Filed under Cross, It's Friday. But Sunday's Coming!, Jesus
No Excuses
Excuses. Some folks are pretty good at making excuses for their behavior. Or for failing to do something that should have been done. However, if you’re not very good at coming up with excuses, there is now a website dedicated to helping you!
You can thank a fellow by the name of Ted Terrebone who has listed over 900 excuses people make for missing work, speeding, skipping school, breaking appointments, cheating on a diet, failing to pay taxes, and of course for not attending church.
Here’s a sample of some of the excuses: Continue reading
Filed under Excuses
Who Do You Work For?
During the past three weeks in Kansas City, we’ve met a lot of new people. Especially those in our church family at Hickman Mills. As you to get to know people, and build relationships, one of the first questions often asked is “Where do you work?” Sometimes we simply ask, “What do you do?” And it is understood that you asking about their job, profession or business. Continue reading
Filed under Christian Living, Discipleship, Profession
Hidden in Plain View
Fae Nolte gave me this puzzle Sunday. In the paragraph below there are 30 books of the Bible. Can you find them? Print this out and try it! Continue reading
Filed under Bible, Uncategorized
When Death is a Gain: A Tribute to Jerri Flores
Death. It’s such a foreboding word. A cold word. A frightening word. When someone says, She died.” We almost always react with surprise. Even when the person has been sick a long time. Or even when they are aged.
I received such a call last week regarding my friend Jerri Flores. Her daughter, Joy McKay, called to say, “Mom died today.” It was not unexpected. She was one month short of 93. I was honored by the family to officiate her memorial service. The theme of my sermon was “To Die is Gain.” My text Philippians 1:21. “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Continue reading
Filed under Eulogy
IT’S FRIDAY. BUT SUNDAY’S COMING! Turning Resistance into Commitment
Alan Smith tells the story that during a confrontation between Malaysia and Indonesia in 1964, a group of Gurkhas from Nepal were asked if they would be willing to jump from transport planes into combat if the need arose. The Gurkhas had the right to turn down the request because they had never been trained as paratroopers. Continue reading
Filed under Discipleship, It's Friday. But Sunday's Coming!
Thinking About My Dad
Sunday is Father’s Day and I’m preaching a lesson about “How to Be A Great Dad.” But let’s be honest. Father’s day is just not as big a deal as Mother’s Day! Restaurants are not as crowded. Phone circuits are not jammed. Hallmark’s business is not as great as on Mother’s Day. And even church attendance doesn’t compare to Mother’s Day!
But that’s understandable, because typically fathers are not as sentimental as mothers. However, let me share a bit of sentiment as I think about my Dad who passed away 18 years ago and pay tribute to dads.” Continue reading
Filed under Family
ThePreachersWord 