The less time you spend trying to be what you are not the better. God gives some gifts to all people. He does not give all gifts to all people. He has dealt you some cards but not every card. In life, your work, your family and in the congregation make sure you play the hand you are dealt and […]
I always thought we should change the words from: “Like a mighty army moves the Church of God” to “Like a might army meets the Church of God.” Why is it that church meetings seem to take forever and go nowhere? As a leader in your congregation a fair amount of your time will be spent in meetings, some official […]
As a leader in your congregation you may be asked from time to time to offer up a public prayer. (Remember, pastors are not the only ones who can pray.) It can be a nerve-racking experience. One of my anxieties as a beginning pastor was praying publicly. I remember as a freshly minted minister being asked to say the prayer […]
People love sports. People relish the thrill of victory. Winner! People love games. Board games continue to be popular. Card games haven’t gone away. Some people love video gaming to the point of addiction. Competition! I win; you lose. You win; I lose. While competition may have its place as a play thing, it is a dangerous toy. Competition compares […]
What does it mean to “love your neighbor as yourself?” What in our love for self should shape our love for others? At least one of the ways we love ourselves is that we give ourselves a lot of slack. We put the best construction on our own actions. We easily let ourselves off the hook. We self-assess our lives […]
I read two, but only needed to read one, books by Frank Peretti. One was plenty. I mean this is a good sense. In his book, This Present Darkness, he gave a great picture of demonic oppression. He personalized how certain demons plague the people of God. The idea was clear in the first book. I do not suppose that […]
Business and organization guru Jim Collins writes about the genius of the AND instead of the tyranny of the OR. His point is that we often make false dichotomies, we can do this OR that, instead of seeing that the better position, the genius, is to do this AND that. Any of you who know me even a little know […]
Make no mistake, you are at war. Make no mistake. Don’t let the mundane activities of the moment, the din of daily news, the tedious tasks of the week fool you. You are at war. Satan and his hounds of hell hate what you are doing and the One you serve. They exert their eternal energies to discourage, disrupt and […]
Many of my pastor buddies use the phrase “think theologically.” It is a good phrase, as far as it goes. By that they mean that when we think through different issues or actions in life, we should consider them from a theological point of view. We should bring to bear theological perspectives into the situation, what does God’s word say […]
“I tell you the truth,” is a happy translation for the word “amen.” “Truly, truly,” is pretty good too. Doesn’t it always sound nice to hear Jesus start a statement by, “I tell you the truth…?” He rightly identified himself as the way, the TRUTH and the life. As you know, truth has taken a beating. People are not even […]