Archive for December, 2008
« Previous EntriesA Tale of Two Churches
Wednesday, December 31st, 20082 Thessalonians 1:4 “Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith”
On Christmas Eve I had the opportunity to serve Communion at Spanish Fort UMC assisted by one of my daughters, Christina. On December 28, Averette and I took Communion at the church where Christina is pastor, Long Cane United Methodist Church in […]
Not My Experience
Tuesday, December 30th, 20081 Thessalonians 5:18 “…give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
The other day I was running with Jiffy and Archie. I said to Archie, “I am glad it warmed up. The cold was miserable….Right, Jiffy?” Jiffy said, “Well, it was not my experience that the cold was miserable. […]
The Nightmare
Monday, December 29th, 2008Psalm 143:4 “So my spirit grows faint within me; my heart grows dismayed.”
I was twenty years old the summer before my senior year in college. My life had been regimented; I studied 30 hours every week, ran every day, and was heavily involved in campus activities. I was preparing for another kind of life […]
The Risk of Love
Saturday, December 27th, 20081 Thessalonians 3:12 “May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other.”
White Fang is a novel by Jack London. It is a story about a wolf dog that is first treated horribly by man and then beast. White Fang’s mother was a dog and father a wolf. He was the only one […]
What Does Christmas Mean?
Friday, December 26th, 2008Matthew 2:13 “When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”
It is the day after Christmas. […]
The Greatest Christmas Story Ever
Thursday, December 25th, 2008John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
There are so many wonderful stories of Christmas. One of these is The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. The Grinch is a bitter, cave-dwelling creature with a heart “two […]
Don’t Forget To Have Fun
Wednesday, December 24th, 2008Job 8:21 “He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy.” The staff of the church is a family too. Last week I told Debora, “We had been under a lot of pressure lately and I wanted to do something funny with the Program Staff” and she agreed to go […]
Never Turning Back
Tuesday, December 23rd, 2008Matthew 4:19 “Come, follow me.”
I had the opportunity last week to hold Paul and Carrie’s baby for a while. Paul and Carrie are having trouble getting little Nathan to sleep. I, on the other hand, brought him to my office, and began preaching one of my sermons. Immediately, like many in the […]
The Gifts of Advent
Monday, December 22nd, 2008Philippians 4:4 “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again, rejoice!” Yesterday was the shortest day of the year. It was the Winter Solstice - the point of the celestial sphere when the sun is the furthest south of the celestial equator. It is the shortest period of daylight in the Northern […]
Just Time to React
Saturday, December 20th, 2008Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
Perhaps you may not know that most of my relatives, friends, and acquaintances choose to drive my automobile rather than to ride with me. It is not really that I am a bad driver; my mind […]