Where Sunday's Message Meets Everyday Life

  • The Two Exchanges

    In re-reading Romans 1 today, I could not help but reflect on two major exchanges recorded in Scripture. The first one is found in Paul’s letter to the church at Rome: The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, Continue reading

    , , , , ,

  • 23 Lessons I’ve Learned in 23 Years of Ministry

    I graduated from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in December, 1989. I was degreed and believed I was ready to take on my first pastorate. What I discovered was that despite the best efforts of my professors, much of what it takes to be a pastor can only be learned “on the job.”  I have now Continue reading

  • Does God Care How We Spend Our Money?

    Does God care how we spend our money? The very short answer to that is “yes, He does care.” Let’s consider it a little more. The Bible mentions money and possessions a lot. Sometimes it is a passing reference; other times we find principles that we can apply to life. We’ll start our pondering on Continue reading

  • Redefining Church for the Culture

    Is Church That Important? Surveys by Gallup and others have shown that on an average Sunday 40% of Americans say they attend services. When compared to actual attendance records, that number may be half was pollsters reported. That’s right – as few as 20% of Americans may be in a church service on a typical Continue reading

  • Why Can’t I Stay Home and Watch Joel Osteen?

    I just spent a few moments today channel surfing. I wasn’t looking for any particular program; I was merely seeing what was on (in case you’re wondering, there wasn’t much on). As I hit a certain region of the station numbers I entered what is referred to as the “religious programming.” I slowly click from Continue reading

    , ,

  • The Church of the Least Common Denominator

      When Jesus called people to follow Him, He pulled no punches.  “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.” (Luke 9:23) That’s a pretty intense calling and way out of synch with the way many people view church and following Jesus in our day. Continue reading

    , , , , ,

  • Do You Cause People to Stumble over the Gospel?

    Do our lives attract people to the Gospel or repel people from the Gospel? Peter wrote: “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, Continue reading

  • The End of the World

    I just read an article stating that some scientists believe there are rogue black holes in our galaxy. Really! Now we’ve got world-eating black holes drifting through space, and they just might slip up on us when we least expect it. It seems that every other day there is some new news story detailing how Continue reading

  • Cheapening Grace

    God’s Word is clear. You and I do not earn our salvation. We cannot obey enough laws or do enough deeds to cleanse us from sin and restore a right relationship with a holy God. There is nothing that you and I can do to reconcile ourselves to God. That is the bad news; the Continue reading

  • Grow Up!

    The Apostle Paul confronted the believers in Corinth with these words: “Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly—mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready.” (1 Corinthians 3:1-2) Evidently in Corinth there were a good number of believers who Continue reading

    , , ,