I Can Begin Again!
October 31, 2009
We had a theme this week – and that theme was redemption! We are in a fallen world, we have feet of clay, we live and move as human beings doing the best we can – and sometimes even with the best of intentions – we blow it! Our God and Father knew from the beginning of creation that this would happen and made provision, even before we were born – for our every day – the good ones and the not so good ones. This is perhaps the greatest part of the redemption story and the most difficult for most of us to grasp – that there is forgiveness in God even though we don’t deserve it. And more than forgiveness, with God there is forgetfulness! read more...
A Clean Slate, A Fresh Start, A Life Without Pain!
October 30, 2009
When I was first introduced to the plan of salvation as a very young child, the teacher in my Sunday School used a blackboard to illustrate it. She said that our life was like that blackboard , free of marks when we were born, and as we lived, we got marks on our life, which she drew marks with chalk to depict. She told us that what Christ did on Calvary wiped all those marks away and give us a clean board (life) once again. A simple illustration, and one that I never forgot. read more...
Ready, Aim, Grow!
October 29, 2009
One of the things that I vividly remember in my Christian experience was a repeated pattern that seemed to occur in my life. Because I was Director of Christian Education, it was my job to teach the teachers so to speak. By using the International Sunday School Lesson – you were not selective in the scriptures that came up – they were already pre-determined each year – so what the lesson on that particular week was, you would have to deal with, ready or not! read more...
You’re the God of this City! – You Are!
October 28, 2009
I don’t think there is a person who has heard the news in the last couple of months that has not been stirred by the reporting of the frequent deaths in Chicago among young people. As believers I know we are troubled in our spirits when we hear these reports and I know the Holy Spirit has pricked you by asking, “what are you going to do about it?” I know this because Jesus didn’t walk among the affluent, suburban – while he walked this earth – He was the God of the city! read more...
It’s All in the View!
October 27, 2009
I was looking at some family pictures on yesterday – it’s amazing how we change as we grow older. There was one thing that I noticed however, when i looked at pictures of my children and pictures of my grandchildren when they were babies, it was harder and harder to determine who was who. They looked so much alike when they were babies! This was something that I also noticed as I watched my Father show signs of age over the last couple of years – although he seemed to bear little resemblance to my grandmother in his prime – as he aged – he began to look remarkably like her! This is to me one of the mysteries of life! read more...
Monday Morning Laundry and Other Mighty Acts!
October 26, 2009
For many years because I was a part of the pastor’s family, Sunday was a work day for me. So like many pastors, after I got the children off to school, Monday became my off day – a time when I would unwind, many days I would just put on praise music and just reflect on the glory of the day before. read more...
Fried Chicken and Apple Pie!
October 25, 2009
My sister came in this week from California for the funeral of my Dad. It has been a wonderful week of family. I took a few days off to just enjoy the moment. It is becoming increasingly apparent to me that these times are opportunities that must be savored and enjoyed. We went to various restaurants, we sat at home and just talked with other family members, and because job commitments don’t understand that vacation days off means no work – we worked! When I asked her what she wanted to do on her last night here, there was only one thing – I had to cook – and not just cook – cook fried chicken and make apple pie! read more...
Finally Home!
October 21, 2009
Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone):Chris Tomlin
My chains are gone
I’ve been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love, Amazing grace read more...
It’s a Whole New World!
October 16, 2009
This week we have been talking about relationships and as I prepare to go and assist with the 2009 HeartLife Marriage Retreat, my heart is stirred and I am thinking of a love song that would probably not be sung at a wedding, but the lyrics convey the optimism and hopeful expectation nonetheless: read more...
The Power of One!
October 15, 2009
There are laws that transcend even the perfect laws found in mathematics. That two could become one is a mystery – and even more so when we find that the “one” has more power than the “two.” And yet this is what we find in God’s word when He describes the tangible power that comes when two separate bodies become one: read more...
