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Thursday, May 18th, 2023
After a one-Sunday hiatus due to Mother’s Day, I will be back this week continuing the series I’ve entitled Faith Over Fear. This will be sermon #2 in the series and as you can see by the title of this post it is called “Who Me? Worry?” My Scripture is Matthew 6:25-34.
In Googling the “Top 10 Anxieties for 2023” the most recent statistic came from December of 2022. According to Ipsos, the top vote getter was inflation. It was followed by poverty and social inequality, crime and violence, unemployment, and financial and political corruption. Climate change tied with worry about taxes. Coronavirus is still at one of the lowest levels since it was added in April 2020. That is quite a change from the list I found from 1990: AIDS, drug abuse, nuclear waste, the ozone layer, famine, homelessness, the federal deficit, air pollution, water pollution, and garbage. Added to all lists is since 9/11 global terrorism has been one of the leading causes of anxiety.
I realize a list is just that…a list. All lives are different and our stressors and stress levels are different. But we are all human and one commonality is stress and anxiety. Different levels to be sure, but it is there nonetheless. This passage in Matthew is quite a treatise on Jesus’ ideas on worry. My hope Sunday is to enlighten us all to the truth and hope Jesus gives us when it comes to worry.
I hope to see you this Sunday at 9:00 or 10:45. If not in person then via live stream.
Posted in Anxiety, Christian living, Faith, Fear, Health, hope, Preaching, Sermon Series/Topic, Story | Comments Off on #WhoMe?Worry?
Thursday, May 4th, 2023
This Sunday I start a new sermon series-one I have never done before. As you can see by the title to this post, the theme for the series is “Faith Over Fear.”
A little back story might help. I began a series in January on Revelation. After preaching for the first two months and covering Revelation 1-5, I decided to concentrate on the message of Easter so I diverted to a series I called “To and From the Cross.” While preparing for that series, I began to sense God was leading me to do something else besides continue Revelation when that series was over. After praying about what I was sensing, there was little doubt in my mind that I was to do a series on Fear and Anxiety. After I announced that, I cannot even begin to tell you how many folks have said, “I can’t wait for that series!” Many of those were people whom I had no clue suffered from it.
To say I’m looking forward to preaching it would be an understatement. But I am also aware of the expectations people have and part of me says I hope I don’t disappoint. Then I realize: it is not me anyway. And it is not about me. I have to trust God will give me the words to say because, to be honest, I have never had an issue with this. I HAVE TO TRUST HIM TO GIVE ME THE WORDS TO SAY.
My sermon this Sunday is entitled “What We ALL Want.” Stay tuned this week for more information about what it is we all want. Meanwhile, I invite you to join us at 9 and 10:45, either in person or via live stream. Go here to find out how to do that. I welcome your feedback as well.
Posted in Christian living, Compassion, Faith, Fear, Freedom, Grace, hope, Opinion, Sermon Series/Topic | Comments Off on FaithOverFear#1
Thursday, March 30th, 2023
I suspect all of us from time to time have heard or even used the expression, “Famous last words.” We use them to sorta say, “Yeah. So you say.” “I’ll clean my room” or “I’ll take out the garbage” or “I’ll clean the garage.” And we say? “Yeah, yeah, yeah, famous last words. As I prepared for this message and was thinking about Jesus’ last words, I decided to do a little research, aka Google it, on famous last words. 🙂 I found some irreverent ones. I found some thoughtful ones. I found some ironic ones. And I found some sad ones. (I would encourage you to look them up yourself). I’m actually going to give some examples during the introduction part of my sermon.
Jesus’ words “It is Finished” are loaded with meaning, often misconstrued. Each of Jesus’ last words tell a story, a truth, to know and remember. My desire this Sunday is to explain what that phrase means and why it is so important for us to get it right.
I just want to say this: In His dying moments, the mind of Jesus was filled, not with hopeless despair, but with a sense of accomplishment. His imminent death was not something inflicted upon Him by others, but something He Himself had achieved! That is why He could say, “It is Finished.”
Please tune in if possible. In person or via live stream. Our services are at 9:00 and 10:45. They are live streamed on the church’s FB page and also YouTube. You can find those links at the church’s website. I’m looking forward to preaching on these last words of Jesus.
Posted in Death, Doctrine, Easter, hope, Jesus, Sermon Series/Topic, Story, The Cross | Comments Off on #ItIsFinished!
Thursday, February 9th, 2023
The book of Revelation has a great deal to say about tribulation, conflicts, persecution and well, just about things we face every day. Thankfully, before we get to the really gnarly “stuff” of Revelation, we are given a glimpse into something we are yet to see, but will get to see and eventually be a part of.
ETERNITY.
God’s throne.
So far Revelation has been a call to be willing to suffer for Jesus, to face loss and hardship, to push aside a casual commitment and embrace a more radical faith. Here is an honest question: if I follow Jesus and it requires a radical faith and commitment to Him, am I willing to give that? Am I willing to sacrifice and give the pain and effort it will take to overcome the forces of evil and live a life that counts for Jesus?
I think we could all handle things a bit better if we knew what was ahead. In chapters 4 & 5 we are taken behind the scenes of all that exists and happens. We get to peer into eternity.
Heaven is real and I don’t need some so-called visit to heaven to tell me. This fourth chapter alone is enough to convince me that God is on His throne. WHAT A SCENE WE HAVE BEFORE US! Call me “jealous.”
Join me this week as take a behind-the-scenes glimpse into heaven. We meet in person and online at 9:00 and 10:45. I would love to have you join me/us as we continue through Revelation.
Did you know I also do a daily devotional blog? Go here for it.
Posted in Doctrine, Heaven/Hell, hope, Opinion, Preaching, Sermon Series/Topic | Comments Off on #GodontheThrone
Thursday, December 29th, 2022
Every seven years it happens. Christmas and New Year’s Day fall on Sunday. So…let me be the first to wish you a Happy 2023.
I started a week later than planned on my Christmas series because I was doing a series on the Feasts of the OT and had to wait a week due to having a guest speaker. So that put me behind for the 4-week series I had planned. Rather than cut it short, I decided to run it into the new year and simply take up the first Sunday with the final one. I’ve called it The Unexpected Dawn as part of my Expect the Unexpected series.
What will 2023 bring? Of course, no one really knows. Only God does and He isn’t telling!! 🙂 There are certain things I am sure of though.
God is Present.
God is Sovereign.
God is Omniscient.
God is the One who is ultimately in control.
We often hear people going into a new year making all sorts of resolutions. I stopped doing that years ago. I know me. I know I will break them quickly and then feel shame. So I stopped making resolutions and started asking God what He wants me to do for Him this coming year. One way that has helped me is it has given me an “eye” for is seeing God work in ways I never dreamed of. It has also helped me to realize that “tomorrow will be a better day.”
The dawn of the coming of Messiah was something prophets predicted and people waited for. That day finally came and sadly, many were not looking, ready for it, or denying it was here. There was a group of people who didn’t have that feeling. They saw a star and chose to follow it. We know them as the magi or wise men. The gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh were a glimpse ahead of who and what this child would become.
He would usher in a new period, a new age, a new identity, a new message of good news for all people. 2023 lies ahead of us. What message will we carry? Please join us at 9 and 10:45, either in person or via live stream, to hear the final sermon for 2022 as we consider the Unexpected Dawn which the Savior will usher in.
Happy New Year 2023!!!
Posted in God, hope, Jesus, Sermon Series/Topic | Comments Off on #UnexpectedDawn
Friday, April 22nd, 2022
As you can tell there is a bad side to eternity and a good side. Let’s talk about it.
Bertrand Russell lived from 1872-1970 and was well versed in math, philosophy, logic, and other studies. By all accounts that I could find he was a brilliant man. He was, depending on who he was debating or talking to, either an agnostic (because he said one cannot disprove there is a God) or an atheist. Yeah…he waffled. But one thing was consistent: he believed religion was superstition. To complicate matters here is a quote he made:
“There is one very serious defect to my mind in Christ’s moral character, and that is that He believed in hell.”
There is so much about heaven and hell we don’t know since none of us have been there. I do, however, believe they are both real places and the choice we make about Jesus will determine where we will spend eternity.
My sermon this Sunday is the final one in the series I called Truth Decay. I certainly have not covered all there was to cover, but for the past two months we have been looking at some serious “hot buttons” in today’s culture about what I call non-negotiables when it comes to what we need to believe. None of them had anything to do with cultural issues of morality, social justice, lifestyles, etc. That, as they say, is for another time and another place. This week I will be talking about where we will spend eternity.
I would love to have you join us in person or via livestream. We will be back to two services this week, with one at 9:00 and the other at 10:45. Join us won’t you?
Posted in Christian living, Doctrine, Faith, Heaven/Hell, hope, Preaching, Sermon Series/Topic, Truth | 4 Responses »
Wednesday, April 13th, 2022
After preaching on The Cross is Still the Cross this past Sunday, and knowing this is “Holy Week” i.e. the last week of Jesus on earth before His crucifixion, I was struck by the words to an old hymn. Honestly, I am not into many hymns because much of what I sang as a youngster fit more in the Spiritual songs genre. But there are some hymns which are real diamonds…diamonds we ought to mine and never forget. Here is one of them:
“What can wash away by sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus/What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus/
Chorus:
O precious is the flow that makes me white as snow/No other fount I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
For my pardon this I see, Nothing but the blood of Jesus/ For my cleansing, this my plea, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
Nothing can for sin atone, Nothing but the blood of Jesus/Naught of good that I have done, Nothing but the blood of Jesus/
This is all my hope and peace, Nothing but the blood of Jesus/This is all my righteousness, Nothing but the blood of Jesus/
O precious is the flow that makes me white as snow/No other found I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”
Words and music Robert Lowry
A blast from the past. But what a punch! Remember this truth as you celebrate the death of Jesus this week.
Posted in Blast from the Past, Church, Death, Doctrine, Easter, God, Grace, hope, Jesus, Pick me Up, The Cross, Truth | 4 Responses »
Sunday, April 10th, 2022
Ever heard of PPA? You should have by now if you listen to any news feed. One of the most iconic actors of the past couple of decades was recently diagnosed with it. PPA stands for Primary Progressive Aphasia.
Bruce Willis has been diagnosed with it.
How ironic it was, then, that just a few weeks ago I listened to an Alisa Childers podcast where she interviewed a Christian philosopher and writer named Doug Groothius (pronounce grew-ties with the “s” sounding like a soft “s”). When I listened to the podcast I never caught the illness Doug’s wife suffered from and which was the inspiration for his book, Walking Through Twilight. I was so intrigued by the interview I ordered his book and began reading it this past weekend. Doug’s wife, a member of MENSA and a brilliant editor and writer of all his books, was diagnosed with PPA.
Here is a short “walk through” of PPA:
- Often misdiagnosed as Alzheimer’s or “strict” dementia, it is different. Alzheimer’s starts at the back of the brain and moves forward; PPA is a frontal lobe disease. It is a rare form of dementia.
- They all act alike in many ways. Forgetfulness. Lostness. Blank stares. Inability to recognize people or remember things. PPA also carries with it the inability to put words or thoughts together. My non-clinical way of saying it would be it is like having dyslexia of the mind.
- There is no cure. It gets progressively worse. At the time of the writing of his book (2017), Becky had suffered from it for 15 years. (She went to be with Jesus in 2018). It is an emotional wrangle for all involved-spouse, family, caregivers, even pets.
His book? You have to buy it. That is all I can say. I am about 1/2 way through it and have found myself drawn into his story and his struggle-with life, with God, with the way things are. Even though Doug is a philosopher, he doesn’t write like one who is “over my head.” Trust me, though, when I say you will enter into his story. You will ride the waves with him as he struggles emotionally and spiritually.
My father had dementia (he died at 90). My mother-in-law had it. My sister-in-law has it (mild form so far). I can guarantee this book has given me a new perspective on the “world” of the one walking through this twilight with someone they love.
BUY IT!! READ IT!! WEEP WITH IT!! REJOICE WITH IT (she knew Jesus)!!
And say a prayer for Bruce Willis and his family. I’m guessing they don’t know Jesus. They will need Him and the strength and comfort He offers.
Posted in Book Review, Compassion, Faith, Health, hope, Opinion | 6 Responses »
Saturday, April 3rd, 2021
Oddly enough there is one thing atheists and Christ-followers can agree on. I believe you can say we have a common ground. That common ground has been summed up very well by Billy Graham: “If I were an enemy of Christianity, I would aim right at the Resurrection, because that is the heart of Christianity.”
I found an interesting quote recently by a man named Jaroslav Pelikan:
If Christ is risen, nothing else matter. And if Christ is not risen-nothing else matters.
All that to say this: the validity of Christianity rises and falls on the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. By an outward look, the cross is the final blow to Jesus and the life He offered. But ONLY IF the resurrection is not true. However, if the resurrection is true, the finality of the cross is done. It is defeated.
Of course, I believe very strongly that the resurrection of Jesus Christ physically from the tomb is true. If I didn’t I would quit my job, find another job, and live in despair for the rest of my life. In a book called Moorings in a World Adrift, the late Clayton Bell wrote the following words:
The fact of Jesus’ resurrection is the benchmark from which we measure everything about Jesus Christ: his birth, his life, his teachings, his miracles, and even his death.”
Sunday if, of course, Resurrection Sunday. The day we celebrate the greatest event in history. My purpose is to show why I believe the resurrection is true. I invite you to join us in person or online. And I’ll close this post with a quote from N.T. Wright:
It is impossible to account for the early Christian belief in Jesus as Messiah without the resurrection.
Posted in Church, Doctrine, Easter, hope, Jesus, Preaching, Resurrection, Sermon Series/Topic, Truth | 4 Responses »
Friday, January 15th, 2021
Every once in a while a pastor has to-by design or by expository preaching through a book-come across a subject which is uncomfortable or controversial. I think people are much more forgiving if you are preaching through a book and come across an uncomfortable subject, like say…tithing. But when a pastor gets on his soapbox or high horse and screams and challenges any opposite view that is when listeners get “antsy.”
This Sunday has the potential to be one of the latter. Way back in September when I doing a series called “Q&A” one of the questions was going to be “What About Abortion?” I scrapped it because the time was not right (for several reasons). I then chose to not preach about it before the election lest someone think I was hyping a particular political position and was against a certain candidate.
Here is why I held off: I do not believe abortion is a political issue, nor should it be. I believe it is a Biblical issue, a moral issue. I heard a podcast this past week where Alisa Childers was interviewing John Cooper, the lead singer of the Christian rock band, Skillet. John said the same thing-that it was a Biblical issue. Anyway, when I started working on the Ecclesiastes series Life Matters, it seemed to fall in line that now was the time. Couple that with this Sunday being “Sanctity of Life” Sunday and it was like the perfect storm.
I have no intention of being judgmental or to froth at the mouth out of contempt for those who perform or have had, campaign for or even encouraged an abortion. There is enough guilt thrown at them without me adding to it. My approach is going to be simple and straightforward: How pro-life is the Bible? and How does God see the unborn? A massive amount of Scripture will be used with the final emphasis on Psalm 139: 13-18.
Each week I invite you to join me/us in our worship. We will be live this week with both services being offered in person and live stream. So I do invite you to join us at 9 & 10:45. However, the best and greatest thing you can do is P.R.A.Y. I want the message of the Bible to come through loud and clear, that the cacophony of voices will be silenced, and God will be heard. Thanks ahead of time.
Posted in Christian living, Church, Family, Forgiveness, God, Grace, hope, Just Wondering, Opinion, Preaching, Sermon Series/Topic, Story | 4 Responses »
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