“Ad” means “to.” “Ora” means “mouth.” Thus the literal meaning of adoration is “to one’s mouth.” Romans performed the act of adoration by raising the hand to the mouth, kissing it and then waving it in the direction of the adored object. The word adoration came to mean, homage paid to one held in high…
What is released by your faith? Do you remember the story of the woman who had been ill for twelve years and in faith reached out to touch the hem of Jesus’ robe (Mark 5:25-34)? In the midst of the crowd, Jesus asked, “Who touched My clothes?” The disciples chided Him. “You see the multitude…
The subject of labor brings some interesting news: • From New York – “Worker Dead at Desk for 5 Days” • From Japan – “Japan to Pay Widow of Man Worked to Death. • Sign in the store window: NO HELP WANTED. The celebration of Labor Day is another matter – Originally set aside to…
Breakfast is widely acknowledged as the most important meal of the day. I like it so much I sometimes eat breakfast food for lunch and even dinner. One morning, Jesus invited His disciples to join Him for a breakfast of fish and bread, cooked over open coals on the shore of the Sea of Tiberias…
I’ve preached to people who wanted to be a cool cat, but I’ve never preached to a cool cat that wanted to hear me preach. Some of you may have seen my post of this story on Facebook. Once posted, I received over 50 comments in the first twenty-four hours. I post it again here…
The bumper sticker read, “Life is fragile – handle with prayer.” There is no argument related to the fragileness of life. Read any church prayer list and see the results of fragile lives. We are fragile physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. So Christians pray – for Divine intervention, for strength, for wisdom, for discernment, for…
Every so often I run across a Christian leader who has lost the concept of servanthood. I try to picture this person taking a bowl of water and a towel and washing someone’s feet. That’s what Jesus did to demonstrate His servanthood (John 13:4-5). Most of the time, my mental image does not work. Some…
Various sources tell us that a normal heart beat is between 60 to 100 beats per minute. When the heart beats faster it tells us we are excited; slower and we are relaxed. What does the heart-beat of God tell us? One day, a disciple of Jesus was, “leaning on Jesus’ bosom” (John 13:23). This…
After last week I am more convinced than ever that people are desperate to communicate with deity. I visited a Hindu Center and watched as people bowed to statues of animals and flowers, worshipping the created, but not the Creator. I visited a Buddhist Temple and watched people light incense to burn in tribute to…
My Aunt, Lucille Gilliam, was ninety-three years old. I conducted her graveside service last Saturday. One of her favorite passages of Scripture was Hebrews 12:1-2, “Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus . . . who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross…