The Devil Flees Your Humility Before God
So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (James 4:7 NLT) When Leo Tolstoy, the great Russian novelist, was a boy, he reportedly started the “White Polar Bear Club” with two of his friends. In order to become a member, you had to stand in the corner and for 30 consecutive minutes not think of a white polar bear. Have you ever tried to intentionally not think about something? It’s almost impossible to keep it out of your mind! We often handle temptation in a similar fashion, thinking we can stand near it, but …
a skunk … a lesson
5:15 AM Saturday morning, on my way to church to prepare for the Men’s Power Breakfast, many thoughts were racing through my head. Would the normal crowd of 300 men attend ? Would my set-up and technical crews be on time ? Would the 4 musicians be there for the sound check and and would the caterers have the food there according to schedule ? Suddenly on the road in front of me was an animal. A fat skunk wondering around back and forth across the center line. I slowed to a complete stop and gave him plenty of room. …
We Trust The Seasons, Why Not God?
Then the word of the Lord came to me, asking, “What do you see, Jeremiah?” I replied, “I see a branch of an almond tree.” The Lord said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I watch over My word to accomplish it.” (Jeremiah 1:11-12 HCSB) My favorite time of year is the fall. I’m energized by the cool weather, crisp air, colorful landscape, and the coming of SEC football. The season swells with holiday romance and the promise of peace on earth, good will toward man. Ironically, fall also is the worst time of year for me, and I …
suffering from Babelitis
Seems from long ago I had this desire to make a name for myself. Playing basketball and baseball in junior and senior high school and into college, I wanted to be known as a great shooter or hitter or pitcher. Later as a coach, I wanted everyone to know my name and fear my teams … all to make a name for myself. Sometimes today as a pastor … I still have this desire hidden deep inside. Well, finally I’ve discovered the name for this “disease”. Genesis describes a group of people just like me in chapter 11. These folks …
Folk-Rock's Prodigal Son: Chicago's Michael McDermott
What do you do if you’re only twenty when the gates to a glittering utopia of self-indulgence open up before you? Unless you’re a prince of restraint, you probably swagger in, all smiles, fearless and cocky as an undefeated boxer. That’s what singer/songwriter Michael McDermott did in 1991 when his future in the music world was looking like a shiny promise just on the horizon. His debut album, 620 W. Surf, was getting positive reviews and the single “A Wall I Must Climb” was spinning him a reputation as having the potential to be the next Springsteen or Dylan. On …
born identity:
No not the movie. Seems like people that attach themselves to certain churches or religions are “turned off” by the term “born again”. Bible and theological scholars may say this or that about the term born again … BUT I prefer to pay attention to what Jesus said on the topic. The most important topic in your life … by the way. “I tell you the truth, no one can see the Kingdom of GOD unless he is born again.” John 3:3 So there are really only two kinds of people in this world. Those who remain in sin with …
Do Your Best to Rest
“…There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest ….” (Hebrews 4:8b-11 NIV) Most of us think of the Sabbath as a day of rest, originating from the day of rest God took after he created the universe, as recorded in Genesis. And that view is correct; that is the basis for us taking a Sabbath, a day of rest, within our own week. Yet there is a larger sense of …
The Faith of Works
“Dear brothers and sisters, what’s the use of saying you have faith if you don’t prove it by your actions? That kind of faith can’t save anyone. … So you see, it isn’t enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all—it is dead and useless.” (James 2:14,17 NLT) Consider this paraphrase of James 2:14,17 (based on the NLT): Dear brothers and sisters, what’s the use of saying you love your spouse if you don’t prove it by the way you treat your spouse? That kind of impersonal love doesn’t make …
The Conflict of Peace
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. (Matthew 5:7-9 NIV) Peace is not the absence of conflict. In fact, true peace is only possible with conflict. God showed us this when, in order to open the path to peace with him, he sent the Divine Peacemaker, Jesus, to die on a brutal cross for our sins. He initiated this peace plan, even though we were the ones in rebellion; he paid the price for our peace with him, even though we fought against it. We, too, are to meant to be peacemakers, shod …
It Starts in the Heart
For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all other sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. (Matthew 15:19 NLT) We tend to think that if we clean up our behavior, then we’ve got a good handle on being like Jesus. But Jesus says behavior starts in the heart, so we need to be cleaned from the inside out. And once our hearts are right, godly behavior follows. The Apostle Paul says one way to monitor the condition of our hearts is to track what comes out of our mouths – anger or acceptance, criticism or encouragement, bitterness or forgiveness. …
