heavenly lights
This is the month when electric bills around American go up. In my view … at the risk of sounding “Scroogist” … Christmas lights are getting somewhat out of control. On my street in Elburn, Illinois there are several households that are really over the edge. I mean come on … it’s like the aurora borealis outside our bedroom window. Yesterday my wife and I saw the movie “Nativity”. It was a soul searching reminder that there was a day when God became man and the only light that actually matters is the light of truth found in Jesus. So …
diamonds and a bb gun
In spite of what you hear on TV commercials … diamonds are not forever. Neither is a bb gun. When I was 8 years old all I could think of was a Daisy Air Rifle … my very own bb gun. I saw pictures of one in magazines and watched television ads promoting “my gun” between Saturday morning cartoons. I had to have one … “please God, let this happen this Christmas” was my prayer. And it did. A few months later I left this “can’t live without” Christmas gift outside in the rain. It had lost it’s value. Life …
trees and salvation
God seems to have this thing for trees. In Genesis and Revelation God informs us of the “tree of life“. In Luke we learn that baby Jesus was laid in a manger. In Matthew and Mark we learn that Jesus was a carpenter. In the 4 gospels we learned that Jesus ate his last meal at a table. In the 4 gospels we read where Jesus was nailed to a cross. Trees are every where … even on Michigan Ave. in Chicago. So each time you see a tree … whether it’s a Christmas tree in December … an apple …
beyond routine, beyond description
How monotonous life is when GOD is left out. Get up. Go to work. Eat. Do a few fun things. Do some things that are not so fun. Sleep. Then start it all over again. Day after day. Jesus came to this earth … … to save you and I from our sins. (John 1: 29) … to rescue us to a glorious place where He will be. (John 14: 3) But there is more … much more. You are missing a vital part of the Christian experience if you forget this life enriching reason why God sent His Son. …
where to go … what to do ?"
I have watched men and women of all ages … including teenagers … struggle with direction. They have doubts, questions, and even pre-conceived ideas about life issues. Every now and then someone asks me for advice. I soon discover that my thoughts and opinions are pretty much worthless. Oh sure God has allowed me to go through some rather ugly circumstances … and has brought me out a changed man. But actually the best counseling advice I have to offer can be summed up in two thoughts: “Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me.” …
a comfortable itch
I love comfortable flannel pants, shoes, boots, sweatshirts, underwear, recliners, beds, sheets, pillows … and a daily schedule that causes me NO discomfort. I love it when the phone doesn’t ring and traffic flows with NO interuptions. Many people also love it when church is comfortable. Great music, soft seats, perfect temperature, a brief and easy to listen to sermon … and a short exit line out of the parking lot. Address sin and self-centeredness … and suggest that GOD is not pleased with homosexual life-styles or abortion or a way of living that excludes HIM … and people get …
Pop Quiz
I have a question for every teacher that is reading this. Why do you insist on punishing students with the sadistic ritual otherwise known as pop quizzes? Do you actually enjoy seeing the panic on your student’s faces? Or is it that you love seeing the smug looks of your teacher’s pets who just can’t wait to display their readiness for your impromptu examinations? That scent you smell right now…. Yeah, it’s called bitterness. I hated pop quizzes. Why you ask? Because I had no time to come down with a sudden case of bubonic plague or any other ailment …
