Only and Always Because of Christ

Where are we heading or are we there now?

2009-02-20T10:15:00.008-05:00

(Picture is a 7 month old aborted baby)A newspaper article about a murder. A murder that will most likely not make the news headlines, not raise so much as an eyebrow on the national news. It won't, but it should.Why should this murder be more important than hundreds of others that go unnoticed every day?Because the case of Shanice Williams is a barometer of where this nation IS ... not where it

Why Don't We Stand Up?

2008-10-20T08:46:00.001-05:00

I just seen this article (off Yahoo’s games site) this morning. Isn’t it so sad that when Christians cry “foul” or “we’re offended” we are ridiculed and chastised as being intolerant or forcing our beliefs down the throats of people. Or maybe we just do not support our beliefs by our compromising so much and not focusing on becoming “holy as he is holy”? Maybe we are just too scared to say

Rally Cry For Prayer

2008-10-07T07:57:00.000-05:00

Good morning. What an awesome God we serve! His grace and love continually overwhelms me. The presence of His Holy Spirit supersedes my expectations.All across America, political candidates are doing everything they can think of to rally the public to come along beside them to elect the candidates in to an office. I, too, wish to rally the people along beside me, not for an election into an

Life in Christ Fellowship Ground Breaking

2008-04-03T12:29:00.008-05:00

On Sunday afternoon, March 30th we officially broke ground for our new Worship and Ministry Center. What a glorious day that was for our congregation! Dr. Dan Tipton was our guest speaker and as always, he delivered a very anointed message. He reminded us just how much God is interested in the beauty of creation even down to the smallest detail and how He is interested in us as we build this

Is It A Hard Saying?

2007-12-10T17:14:00.000-05:00

Over the next few posts, I will be showing the text of a chapter from a book that I have just read. I will not reveal the author or the book title until after I have posted the complete chapter. For all of those who have been arguing and stressing the fact of needing to be relevant in today's society, to those who have hinted that we need to lower our standards to reach the world to those who

Apologetics at the Post Office

2007-12-04T14:03:00.000-05:00

Today, December 4th, I was standing in line at the local post office when a well dressed middle aged woman came up to the counter and asked the clerk for some Christmas stamps. The clerk replied by telling her that the only ones she has left are religious. To this, the lady exclaimed, “I do not want any religious themed Christmas stamps for my Christmas cards. Christmas does not having anything

Top Ten Predictions for 2008

2007-11-26T22:03:00.000-05:00

THE TOP TEN PREDICTIONS FOR 2008 1. The Bible will still have all the answers. 2. Prayer will still work. 3. The Holy Spirit will still move. 4. God will still inhabit the praises of His people. 5. There will still be God-anointed preaching. 6. There will still be singing of praise to God. 7. God will still pour out blessings upon His people. 8. There will still be room at the Cross. 9. Jesus

Heading to Honduras

2007-08-13T10:08:00.000-05:00

This Wednesday morning at 6 a.m. I board an airplane and fly to Honduras for a week of ministry in the garbage dump in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. The ministry will be among the children that live and acquire their day to day existence from what they can acquire from the garbage. Rather it be a scrap of food to eat or a item to sell, it is all they have. Below is a link which you can follow to view

Obedience Even in the Midst of Questions

2007-07-25T16:25:00.000-05:00

Ever since I went to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has brought trouble upon this people, and You have not rescued Your people at all. - Exodus 5:23Have you ever felt like you have been obedient to the Lord for something He called you to do and all you get are more roadblocks? This is the way Moses felt. When Moses went to tell Pharaoh to release the people because God said so, Pharaoh simply

Planning and Goal Setting in the Church

2007-07-03T09:16:00.000-05:00

I have just finished this inter-active study for churches and ministry groups. I am waiting the final editing. The study is designed to be used in various styles and settings.It can be presented in a seminar/workshop setting, to the planning/vision team of the church or it can be a self study. The leader’s guide will contain the text and a series of worksheets. The participants’ booklet will

I Love My Church

2007-06-30T15:30:00.000-05:00

Realizing that there will be several individuals that will read this blog who are attendees of my church, Life in Christ Fellowship, I am tempted to misstate my feelings in this post. However, I will resist buttering up my people and just tell the truth from my heart.As the title states, I do love my church. I daily thank and praise the Lord for such an awesome privilege of serving them as their

Make Me A Sycamore Tree

2007-06-06T00:28:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite accounts of Jesus’ ministry is where he interacted with Zacchaeus. I can strongly relate to Zacchaeus because I see a lot of myself in him. I am not referring to his physical stature, because I am almost 6’2” and as the children’s song describes him as a wee little man. Nor am I referring to his profession as a tax collector and his journey to

Tribute to One of God's Servants

2007-05-21T09:21:00.000-05:00

Tribute to One of God’s ServantsRev. Don SpurgeonSouth Central District SuperintendentChurches of Christ in Christian UnionYesterday evening, May 2oth my District Superintendent passed for this world into the realms of Glory. Don was a strong leader with a heart that beat heavily for the fulfilling of the Great Commission and living out the Great Commandment. Don had a strong desire to see the

Made in the USA: Spoiled brats

2007-05-10T08:53:00.000-05:00

The following is a post done by Craig R. Smith. It has evolved from him to orginally posting it to giving Jay Leno the credit through the wonderful world of forwarding e-mails. In reality, only one paragraph came from him and it is noted at the end of this post.Craig R. SmithWorld Net Daily Exclusive CommentaryPosted: November 20, 2006"The other day I was reading Newsweek magazine and came across

Hear the Voice? Is it the giant or the giant slayer?

2007-04-24T08:29:00.000-05:00

All around us are a multitude of voices calling out our name. So many are trying to give us the advice and direction that will grant to us the tried and true answer. Society seems to have the right solutions at all times, but yet there is such a variety of answers for the same questions.We are called to be tolerant and inclusive of all people. If we hold to only one solution, we are considered

Four Attributes of a Life God Blesses

2007-04-15T14:55:00.000-05:00

This is a devotional that I received from Prime Time With God, written by O.S. Hillman"So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed." - Isaiah 28:16Whenever God calls us into a consecrated life, it is made up of four distinct stages. Christ often compared this process

Here Is God

2007-04-02T09:04:00.000-05:00

This is an article that I place in our last monthly newsletter for our church. It is exciting to see God working among and through us. As you read through this, think of areas in your life in which you may be experiencing the unknown or new borders of new territority. Places of testing or the stretching your faith. Remember, "Here is God".An interesting map is on display in the British Museum in

Living Sacrifices

2007-03-27T10:00:00.000-05:00

The apostle Paul gives an urgent plea to believers in Christ “to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship” (Rom. 12:1). Paul makes such a plea based upon “the mercies of God.” We are objects of His saving grace; therefore we are to put our lives at His disposal. Paul uses the sacrificial word for the Jewish Levitical offering

Only a Quarter

2007-03-20T15:53:00.000-05:00

This is a story that was sent to me via an e-mail. Do you see yourself any where within this story? Even though it may be easy to brush this story aside and say it doesn't hold much water, but does not the spine of the story/parable relate to how our actions/attitudes/speech reflect Christ?Several years ago, a new preacher moved to Houston, Texas. Some weeks after he arrived, he had occasion to

Depending upon God

2007-03-17T11:15:00.000-05:00

We often hear and use the phrase … “Just depend upon God and you’ll make it.” Or, “My trust and dependence is upon what God can do.” Have you said these or something similar? Just what do we mean when we say we are depending upon God to see us through?Life is filled with a vast amount of opportunities to stand still and see God do great and mighty things. But do we stand still long enough to see

Culturally Relevant Gospel

2007-03-14T11:13:00.000-05:00

There is a story about two boys, and each was given a block of wood and a knife. They were instructed to begin whittling. Both set off with great determination to complete the task given them. They were aggressively making the wood chips fly. When they finished the given task, they were asked to present their final product. The first handed over a nicely carved boat and the second handed over a

Marketing The Church

2007-03-09T10:09:00.000-05:00

“Share The Dream … Build The Team” Ten keys for revitalizing your church, Donald W. Morgan.In the chapter “Let your light shine” Morgan makes this statement. “We in the church are called to do a first-rate public relations job. We’re to do a first-rate communications job, a first-rate sales job and a first-rate advertising job. These are not to be an afterthought, of marginal consideration, or

Shall We Become Relevant?

2007-02-27T01:34:00.000-05:00

New day. Emergent Church. Vibrant Church. Relevant Ministry. And a whole lot more. There are a vast amount of terms used today through out the church world to describe the status of ministry that the church should obtain and/or function at. Why do we, church leaders find ourselves so often wrapped up in making sure we have the “correct” terminology as the basis of what we do as a church? Don’t

Caught By the Hand of God

2007-02-23T09:42:00.000-05:00

Caught By the Hand of God Psalms 37:23-24It was a cold and dark winter night when the phone rang, awaking me from a peaceful sleep. The initial thought that passed though my mind was “not what?” The day leading up to this greatly sought after rest was filled with many tasks that ran from encouraging a grieving family, to sermon preparation then onto the monthly board meeting that seemed to have

Belief Level

2007-02-20T14:47:00.001-05:00

The following is an excerpt taken from Bob Buford’s book, “Finishing Well, what people who really live do differently". It is a discussion between him and Dr. Dallas Willard in regards to the thought “is there something more?”The Knowing/Doing Gap… the church has always taught the importance of surrender, yet we don’t (perhaps can’t) let go of our own desires and ambitions in order to let God