Trump vs. Jesus?
November 4, 2016 § 5 Comments
Recently The Greenville (SC) News ran an opinion piece by Clemson University Ph.D. student William McCorkle that, as I see it, sums up rather well the assessment of many religious-minded “Never Trumpers.” McCorkle’s thesis is that Christians have either to twist or abandon what Jesus taught in order to defend their support of Donald Trump. « Read the rest of this entry »
A silly–but fun–indulgence
July 5, 2016 § Leave a comment
The title says it all–except for a few necessary caveats:
- I am no singer, no matter what part I’m singing!
- No studio was involved–only the back bedroom at my in-laws, a MacBook Pro, an electric guitar and a bass guitar. Not even an external microphone
- The drum track is pretty cheesy, but I found it online.
- I have no clue about mixing…I am totally lost.
- There a few stinker moments and inaccuracies…so let’s just call this an “interpretation”!
All that said, it really was a lot of fun! Who knows what I might accomplish with some real musicians, a little more practice time and some good equipment?
“Good Times Bad Times” Project
Happy Day.
Read the Bible!
January 2, 2015 § 2 Comments
Few things are as satisfying as a good story. From the time we incessantly begged, “Just one more before bedtime, pleeeze!” to “I think I can get this next chapter done before I have to get some sleep”—stories have captivated us. Although different people are drawn to different types of writing, the common attraction among all is, I believe, the development of the story itself. It’s what keeps us reading. Heroes in impossible predicaments, sleuths combing through the scenes of “perfect” crimes, thawing of frozen relationships, tripping through the twists and turns of international intrigue—whatever the situation, we both love the story and want to see how it ends.
Why, then, is it that we don’t approach the Bible this way? « Read the rest of this entry »
A TRUE STORY October 31 – November 1, 1986
November 1, 2014 § 2 Comments
Exactly 28 years ago, sometime between 11:00 pm, October 31 and 2:00 am, November 1, I was converted. Though I understand now that what happened then was the working out of God’s foreordination before creation through his wise and inscrutable hand of providence by multiple means; and though I understand I was likely regenerated some weeks or even months before (or else I would not have begun to seek as I did)–the bottom line is that during that late night and early morning I experienced the reality of conversion. It was nothing less than the conscious engagement of my mind with the reality that I was at one moment one thing and then, in the next moment, I was something else; at one moment I did not trust in the grace of God in Christ and then, in the next moment I did.
I was wrong!
July 1, 2013 § 1 Comment
Last Friday marked the last working day of our church secretary and my Administrative Assistant, Janie Myrick, who has retired.
She didn’t have church experience.
Everything else, though, was stellar. A group of smart, experienced and godly men had served as our screening committee and, after singling our three candidates out of 60 for me to interview, all of them felt she was the best.
But she didn’t have church experience. « Read the rest of this entry »
A crest on a stone
May 22, 2013 § 1 Comment
Yesterday, I had the privilege of presiding over a time of remembrance and prayer with family and friends at the dedication of a memorial marker for Michael Schroeder, who left this world for the face-to-face presence of God on March 12, 2012. Michael’s wife Lisa commissioned a beautiful marker (below) to provide their sons, Kyle, Blake and Derek, a means of teaching, as God wills, their children of their grandfather’s faith in the promise of God. Here is what I shared.
The practice of setting up memorials has strong biblical precedent. At several important junctures in Israel’s history God directed his people to commemorate an event by the setting up of stones—stones that call the people to remember God’s faithfulness.
One such occasion is recorded in Joshua 4, when the Israelites at last cross the Jordan River into the land promised to Abraham. The crossing was by God’s power, because the river, which was at flood stage, was halted in its course so that Israel could cross on dry land. After the crossing one man from each of the 12 tribes was to take a stone from the dry bed of the Jordan for setting up of memorial at Gilgal, east of the Jordan. « Read the rest of this entry »
Roblog 