A TikTok creator has gone viral with a social experiment she is conducting entitled Testing Your Church. Each video starts with her explaining, “I am about to test your church to see if they would help feed a starving baby.” She provides the name of the church she will be calling and various details about their ministries. She then calls the church in question and poses as a mother in need of...
Faith, Not Force
Every now and again, I discover something during sermon prep that doesn’t fit in the flow of the message. These delicious little nuggets of truth go no further than the pile of post-it notes that litter my desk throughout the study and composition process. A few such morsels have been simmering in my head for the better part of two weeks now. They are found in the story of The Feeding of the 5000...
Which Bible is Best?
It will come as little to no surprise to most that I have a robust collection of Bibles populating my bookshelves. The most beloved Bible in my collection is a navy blue, bonded leather, King James Version that was given to me by my Grandma Ruth when I was 11 years old. I wore that Bible out! The binding is held together by several layers of tape. The outer edges of the cover are cracked and...
Invitations and Insults
I had a nightmare unlike any I’ve ever experienced recently. There were no monsters. There was no threat of death or bodily harm. There was no clear and present danger of any kind. The source of my terror was a political dialogue between myself and a family member. In my nightmare, my family member made several comments about an issue of the day. It was clear that they assumed I shared their...
King of the Mountain (Blessed are the Peacemakers)
Towards the front of the neighborhood in which I lived for most of my childhood, there was an empty lot with a massive mound of fill dirt. The neighborhood kids all referred to it simply as The Hill. Our favorite pastime on The Hill was King of the Mountain. King of the Mountain was a simple game. At the beginning, all participants gathered at the bottom of the hill. When the signal was given...
Testify!
Don’t stop me if you’ve heard this before. I need to testify for a minute… My relationship with Jesus began with a bus ride when I was in the first grade. I was out running around the neighborhood that fine Sunday morning. My best friend at the time, Kyle, had just gotten two brand new “jogging suits,” one red and one blue. We thought it was only appropriate that we take them for a test run. As...
Made Not Found
A close friend recently told me that he felt “lost” and needed to find himself. I was a little surprised by this revelation. I thought, and still believe, I knew exactly who this person was. This man is relatively successful. He has a good paying job that he claims he enjoys. He has a loving and supportive wife, amazing children, and more than a few good friends. He is very active in his local...
Darkness, Light, and Better Days
I’m not sure why, but the good Lord opted to awaken me early this morning. I checked my watch and it was around 6am. Since I was already awake, I decided I would get a run in before the busyness of the day set in. But, I figured I would wait a little while to give the sun some time to rise. At approximately 6:30am, I finally got out of bed and got ready, believing the sun would be breaching the...
Don’t Quit
In my notes for last Sunday’s sermon, I simply had this phrase written for my intro: “We all feel like quitting every now and again…” No further explanation was provided in my notes, in large part because I didn’t need much elaboration to provide my explanation. While each of us may have experienced this feeling in different ways, we’ve all been there in one way or another. The old saying tells...
Violence Is NOT the Answer; Love IS
Rare is the moment when I struggle to find words. It’s not often that I actively avoid engaging in dialogue about just about anything. I’m not one to shy away from difficult discussions or unpopular truths. But, in this cultural moment, I am both struggling to find the words and have a deep desire to avoid addressing the issues. The continued stream of school shootings coupled with the...
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