what's your title ?
I have met some men with impressive titles.
At the risk of being a “name dropper” … here are a few:
Dr. Joe Stowell … former President of Moody Bible Institute
John Elway – Super Bowl MVP
Dr. Bill Thrasher – Professor at Moody Bible Institute
Kurt Warner – Super Bowl MVP
Harry Swayne – Super Bowl player and the Bears Chaplain
Dr. Jim Nicodem – Pastor at Christ Community Church
Pat Williams – Co-founder of the Orlando Magic
Mike Hohensee – Coach of AFL champions Chicago RUSH
People are often identified by their titles. But I envy the title given by Paul to Titius Justus … a common …
Friend or vacuum salesman?
We’ve all heard the story before, or perhaps it even happened to you.
You receive a visit from a friend you haven’t seen in a long time. You are overjoyed at the reunion and honored that your friend would see the relationship worth cultivating and would actually seek you out. Or it might be a person you are just starting to get to know, and there are encouraging signs of a potential friendship.
In the course of a pleasant conversation, with the talk shifting randomly from one subject to another, you suddenly find you are discussing the virtues of various vacuum cleaners. …
Someone else’s problems
Evangelicals often put being saved and going to heaven in the same sentence, as if heaven were the only goal of our salvation. But the truth is, we are saved to serve. Heaven is important, but heaven can wait. God saves us because he has a job for us to do in his Kingdom here on earth. If heaven is the whole point of our salvation, then what do we do while we wait? Change the channel on our Christian entertainment?
It’s amazing how many of our own problems dissipate when we begin caring about other people’s problems instead of focusing …
Under new ownership
“You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)
What does it mean to not belong to myself? I can think of a few things.
It means that I should probably do a lot of consulting with my new owner. There is more to consider than just me and what I want to do; there is God and what he wants me to do.
If you’re anything like me, this makes sense until you begin to wonder over what he wants you to do in certain circumstances. It isn’t always clear.
For this we have Scripture …
Safe Kids or Strong Kids?
I recently finished reading Dr. and Pastor Tim Kimmel’s Book Grace Based Parenting. To me this is the Christian parenting book for those looking for the next step.
In the book, Pastor Kimmel explains that sometimes we raise children in a very rigid and strict environment and this often leads to resentment and children “acting” like Christians while in the home but in reality their faith and relationship with God is simply to appease their parents and once the kids leave the home and start making decisions on their own, the faith and relationship with God ends.
The book also highlights …
a life on F or E
On Valentine’s Day a friend of mine died. Her name was Carol, she was 75 years … and the mother of my wife Linda.
* Carol battled through the tragic death of her husband in 1971.
* She won a struggle with cancer and deep depression in the 90’s.
* 3 months ago Carol fell and broke her ankle, but healed quickly.
* On February 8 she suffered a serious brain injury … and after a 6 day fight … she died peacefully.
Even as a frail woman Carol was more courageous than most athletes I have ever coached. She met each physical …
Different parts and different hearts
Why do we all have different passions? So everything that’s supposed to get done will get done.
Sometimes we get overwhelmed because we are constantly exposed to people with various passions for service, and when they represent their cause, they are so committed to that which has captured them that we feel guilty for not sharing their zeal. We seem indifferent in comparison.
When I was in college, we had chapel every day and almost every day we heard a message from someone who had a passion for some particular ministry. They were usually in some ways recruiting us for service, whether …
The fine print
“We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.” (2 Corinthians 4:8-10 NLT)
These verses are what I call the fine print of the Christian life. When you sign up, you sign up for this, but unfortunately, not too many people read that far into the …
Communication breakdown
Lord Jesus, are we talking?
It seems like it’s been a while. My voice to you feels weak. There’s no doubt about my belief, but I guess believing doesn’t count as communication. (I think I’ve assumed that it does without really thinking about it.) I can believe in my wife and not talk to her for a week. How long has it been since you heard from me – really heard from me? If I have to ask that question, it must have been a while. Somehow I’ve got you doing nothing but waiting around to hear from me while I …
don't ask me to live like it
Question: Once you have come to the place in your life where you’ve confessed your sins and self-centeredness to Jesus, asked Him to change you through repentance, and then claim His name as a “Christian” … what’s next ?
Answer: A gratitude of love that seeks obedience, that’s what !
I wonder what God thinks when people say they love Him and claim the name “Christian” but are living in disobedience by …
* not reflecting the goodness and forgiveness of Jesus.
* rarely going to church.
* rarely praying.
* never telling someone else about the eternal security found in …
