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…
I was reminded this past week of an old but interesting quote. The great 19th English actor William Charles Macready was addressed by an eminent preacher: “I wish you would explain to me something.” “Well, what is it? I don’t know that I can explain anything to a preacher.” “What is the reason for the…
I need weeks like this. Sometimes I get tunnel vision and revert to thinking it’s all about me and mine. Then comes times like this week when I worship, learn, and fellowship with global friends. As you read this week’s Memo, I will be teaching two hours each morning at the Summer Assembly of the…
This will not be the first time I’ve been out of the country on the 4th of July. In fact, I’ve been away several times. It never gets easier. It’s like missing the birthday of a loved-one. In fact it is missing the birthday of a loved-one – my beloved home-country. Home. Now there’s an…
I love the line from a country song – “The road goes on forever and the party never ends.” In spite of the not-so-spiritual story included in the song’s lyrics, I’ve long wanted to make that line biblical. It finally happened this week. Early in the public ministry of Jesus, he attended a wedding feast…
We know that Jesus wept – over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41) and over Lazarus (John 11:35) – but did he ever laugh, smile, display a sense of humor? The Scriptures never say so directly, but it is often implied. How could he have wept in times of sorrow and not laughed in times of joy? Can…
I dislike labels more than most people. I know labels are sometimes necessary. It’s just when we use them to slander another that bothers me. Someone asked me recently what I was and I replied, “I’m a male Christian Southern Baptist and depending on who you ask, I am a conservative, moderate, fundamentalist, or liberal,…
Someone said, “There’s no free lunch.” While that may be true, there is free love, at least in a manner of speaking. God’s love for us is free, meaning it cost us nothing to receive it and nothing to keep it. God said, “I have loved you with an everlasting love” (Jeremiah 31:3). “Everlasting” means…