“No pain, no gain” Endurance and perseverance…go hand in hand, in every day of our earthly journey. Endurance is experiencing or surviving pain or hardship. Perseverance refers to continuing in spite of difficulty and lack of success. Neither word provides a tone of comfort or encouragement. The U. of Tennessee track coach years ago coined […]
Is that really what I saw? So many times we see things others don’t or vice versa. Some may look at the same object or scene and see entirely different images or circumstances. Art, especially abstract, can create all forms of visual thoughts to many different observers. What I see may make no sense to […]
Preparing for survival Amazing how God works! I was asked to write a message about a comment I made to Bill Dotson, founder of Abiding Fathers. A comment to his devotional writing on Joel 1.3. “Tell your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children to another generation.” This reminded […]
Role of a Father Pop… is the name that some children call their father while others use the term, Pops. I don’t hear it as much today as I did when growing up. It is an affectionate title, like dad or daddy. Even grandfathers are referred to as Pop. Some might find it disrespectful, but I think […]
A reflection of God Have you heard the expression—spitting image? My dad’s friends would tell me that I was the spitting image of him. We see here in this verse, Jesus was answering Philip’s question, emphatically. He was telling him that if he wanted to know what the heavenly Father is like, then he simply […]
Authority given to man What Jesus is saying is a reminder and reiteration of the first words spoken to Adam. “Procreate, fill the earth, subdue it and rule over it.” The triune God had transferred his authority to Adam and his descendants. Scripture goes on to be specific in Genesis that Adam would have the authority […]
Freedom and justice for all One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. If you were starting a new nation, would this be a good mission statement and purpose? How does it get any better for living here on earth with other people and accomplishing God’s will for yours and their lives? […]
Do not be afraid These words, or in modern translation, do not be afraid, are found in over 300 verses in the Bible. From the very moment that our first parents disobeyed, they experienced fear. It was evidenced by hiding from God. Up to that moment they had actually walked with the living God. They spoke […]
The church is more than a building Define the Church…in five words or less. Good job! In the West, we think of the various denominations and all of the different building architectures. You can somehow pick them out by their design. For many, it is hard to move past the building defining the church. We […]
Second chances Grandfathering…is commonly referred to as a ‘do over’. If you’ve ever played golf you probably understand this term. You and your buddies are on a par three and all hit bad shots, and nobody is close to the green. You sorta look at each other and somebody says, do you want a ‘do over’? […]