Does God have a specific church where we are called to serve Him, or does He allow us to choose from a list of doctrinally-sound churches and still be in His will? And once we’re involved in a good, doctrinally-sound church, is there ever a time when God elects to move us? Romans 11:29 says, “For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.” That means God doesn’t change…
After Mary had lived with us for a year, and she finally got ready to move into her own apartment, I asked her if we could claim her on our taxes since she didn’t file for herself. Her response stunned me. “I can’t allow that. One time my personal information was stolen, and they told me to never give it out. So I can’t give it to you.” She’s lived…
Our church in Georgia met in a big school gymnasium with a beautiful hardwood floor. The school actually belonged to the church, but at that time, we did not have a nice church building in which to hold services. So every Wednesday afternoon and Saturday evening, someone set up chairs for services. Then after services, the chairs were put away again because the gym was used for sporting activities during…
This blog was written by a missionary who requested that I withhold his last name due to the dangerous mission field where he’s serving Christ. But his words are a powerful reminder of our responsibility to share the Gospel with friends, family, and coworkers, to pray for the lost, and to support missionaries (through our finances and our prayers) who take the Gospel to places that we’ll never be able…
The New Year represents a new beginning; a time to re-think, re-organize, and start over with a clean slate. And as 2013 came to a close, people all across the country were looking back at the year in retrospect. What was accomplished? What goals were met? What resolutions did they keep? What relationships were established? Are they sitting better financially than they were a year ago? And a lot of…
My greatest challenge seems to be prioritizing my day. There’s a lot of things I enjoy doing; a lot I want to get done, and an awful lot I need to get done. I don’t have the time now to do all the things on my agenda. Regardless, I took on a new task. We needed the money, so I added a part time job to my schedule. Now as…
Faith is incredibly important, and whether or not you realize it, you exercise faith everyday. The question is, where do you place your faith? The Bible defines faith like this. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1 ) Let’s consider that definition… “The substance of things hoped for.” You enter an address into your GPS You run down directions through…
I have a balance disorder that I’ve lived with my entire life. Because of it, I didn’t learn to walk until I was three. It took me longer to learn how to ride a bicycle and I never mastered roller skating. I easily lost my balance and fell, even as an adult. Since poor equilibrium kept me from walking a straight line, I couldn’t march in military basic training. Over…
As I mentioned in a previous blog, when we lived in Valdosta, Georgia, we started a Bible study in our home for the single GIs who were stationed at Moody AFB. One of our regular attendees was Rodney. He became a good friend. He enjoyed playing with the kids or serenading little Jamie on his guitar. Rodney was also a member of our church and he was just as faithful…
The United States of America, despite all her problems, is still the greatest nation on Earth. Our freedoms are second to none, although we are gradually losing them one by one. We reside in a nation where we can select our careers, live where we choose, attend church and worship God without fear of retribution, share our faith openly for the most part without being arrested. Most American believers have…