Most of the time, I succeed at what I plan. However, my preparation occasionally exceeds my performance. Has that ever happened to you? It happened to Jehoshaphat, when he was king of Judah. On one occasion, he tried to live up to the reputation of Solomon, who, as king of Israel, built ships and sent…
Have you noticed that in death, nearly everyone is spoken of in positive terms? Seems we are hesitant to say anything negative about one who is deceased. It reminds me of the rugged cowboy who attended the funeral of a scoundrel friend, one who had broken at least three-fourths of the laws in the Old…
Everyone grieves – some of us at the loss of a loved one to death, some at the loss of a job, some at a medical report, some at the betrayal or even attitude of a friend, some at the circumstances around them, and a multitude of other reasons. Grief is rather normal. It goes…
“Sending prayers your way.” I’m noticing this comment more and more, especially on Facebook and other social media. I know what the sender intends to say. At least, I sincerely hope they are not actually sending the prayers toward the person in need. If so, they should not expect an answer to their prayer. Only…
When someone shares too much information, they are often met with the initials, TMI. What happens when one shares too much vision? It’s an old, but still good, story. Might even be a true story. In the midst of his sermon, a preacher exclaimed, “If this church wants to be great, it needs to walk…
Beginning in pre-school (Kindergarten), and for many years following, my mother said the same thing to me very morning as I left the house. “Do the best you can, with what you have, where you are, for Jesus sake today.” Only recently, did I discover that she was paraphrasing a quote from Theodore Roosevelt. I’m…
I’ve always been suspicious of the “Prosperity Gospel,”- the belief that God wants every believer to prosper and all a believer has to do to prosper is trust God properly. There are two initial problems with that thinking: (1) It’s extremely difficult to consistently trust God properly and (2) if God’s blessings are delivered solely…
Be careful what you teach others. They may remember it. Sitting in a College Sunday School Department at Coggin Avenue Baptist Church in Brownwood, Texas, I heard the Department Director, Wanda Cain, tell a warm, fuzzy story about a little Indian boy named TIGAPA. His parents named him that because the letters in his name…
Most of the time, I enjoy reading what people proclaim on their t-shirts/sweat-shirts. This one announced that the person wearing the shirt was, “Self Made.” From a strictly human perspective, and being a third generation Texan, I understand the meaning. In fact, I’d like to think that at least a part of who I am…
How many times have we heard that Jesus prayed early in the morning and thus we ought to do the same? Granted, early morning prayer is both needed and valuable. But what if I am not a morning person? What if I wake up slow and don’t think very well until a few cups of…