The Greatest Tree in History
The other day I randomly pulled a book off the shelf in my study at home. It wasn’t a spiritual book. It was Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader: History’s Lists by the Bathroom Reader’s Institute. Believe it or not, the books in this series can make great illustration material. The chapter I read was “Trees of
Can You Be Content?
I’ve been in ministry spanning five decades. I’ve served as a staff member and as a pastor. One thing I’ve never done when talking to a church is talked about money. I have a firm conviction that if God is calling you to a church, you should go—end of discussion. While I am in total
You Deserve a Break Today
Okay, I know your deacons will never go for it. I know the little old lady with the ingrown toenail expects you to be at her outpatient surgery. I know all the excuses about “the devil never takes a day off.” Forget all that and hang with me for a moment. First of all, Jesus
We Can’t Be Caught Asleep at the Wheel
I’m reading a fascinating book right now, The First Heroes by Craig Nelson. It’s the story of the famous Doolittle Raid on Tokyo, America’s response to the attack on Pearl Harbor. As I’ve read this book and studied a little about the beginning of World War II, I’ve discovered that America, for the most part,
P. T. Barnum Was Right
I believe it was P. T. Barnum who said, “There’s a sucker born every minute.” In my lifetime, I’ve seen people rise from the dead…not literally, but ministerially. I have a file in my office filled with resumes of good and godly men who have been dismissed from their churches for trying to do the
A Friend, a Cemetery, and the Gospel
Today I stood on a grassy knoll in a cemetery in Newport, Tennessee. It was a warm June day, but there was a refreshing wind blowing as the graveside service began. Terri and I had come over to be with a friend whose dad had died. When it was time for the funeral to start,
Errant Theology and Lack of Discernment
I am amazed by the lack of discernment in the body of Christ today. We hear half-truths and embrace them as if they are God incarnate. We listen without discernment. We lack the ability to hear what is being said and what is not being said. False teachers are masters at disguising their message and
The Waning Influence of Religion
We are living in a day our forefathers of the faith could not have imagined. In a nation founded largely by men who believed in God, it’s hard to explain the secularism of our society. Most historians of our day ignore the influence of the Puritans. They also refuse to even register the fact that
Twits in Church
Whatever you want to call them, twits or tweets (“I thought I saw a puddy tat…I did, I did see a puddy tat!” Ops, wrong tweet.), I find them distracting. On the other hand, I may end up doing it just to keep up with the six billion people on the planet. I need to
Must-See Summer Movies and TV Shows
It’s been a while since I did my movie and TV recommendations, so I thought it was time for us to catch up on movies we must see and TV shows we need to DVR. Of course, my thoughts on the movies may differ from that of the actual scripts… Star Trek – People gazing
The Days Are Desperate, The Saints Are Not
It’s business as usual in the church today. As society races toward hell and judgment, the church can’t get a crowd to think, pray, study the Scriptures, or care for the lost. Think of the things that bother us enough to yell and talk back to the television, but don’t bother us enough to get
Where Will You Be This Summer?
The days in which we live could cause one to be anxious. We find ourselves unsure about domestic policies, foreign policies and the economy. We don’t know if the bailouts are going to work. We don’t know how all the changes in the auto industry will shake out. We are uncertain about what might happen