For the past year, our Strategic Planning Committee has led us through a spiritually renewing time of prayer and discernment about our vision. We have been blessed by Dr. James Furr’s insights as consultant and received numerous suggestions from our church. In September, the deacons recommended this report to the church. On Wednesday, October 28, […]
Read More »Lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called. In David Brooks’s new book on character, he describes the difference between the “resume” virtues vs. the “eulogy” virtues. The resume life is focused on success, achievement, decision-making, and progress. These are the things we use to apply for various jobs and […]
Read More »Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. Those who trust in Jesus guard their hearts from fear by following Jesus’ commands. It’s a fascinating reciprocal relationship we have with Jesus. By keeping his commands, we are freed from fear and worry. By worrying, being resentful, or spreading vengeance, […]
Read More »And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together. Just as Jesus came to earth as the body of a man, he calls the church to be his body in the world. So much of life is disembodied. We see a screen on the wall […]
Read More »The Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed in him the breath of life. The Bible begins with a marriage and ends with a wedding feast. Our lives began in a garden with a river and a tree of life and will one day be complete, as Revelation says, with […]
Read More »Each member belongs to all the others. For Christians, membership in a church is a verb. We “member” each other the way a body takes care of its parts. In his novel Jayber Crow, author and farmer Wendell Berry illustrates how church membership works through the eyes of the fictional residents of the town of […]
Read More »My imprisonment is for Christ Few of us know what it’s like firsthand for a preacher to be arrested. The Philippians did, and they were embarrassed—and probably a bit worried about their own fate. In a high-achieving, competitive world, they had never imagined a pastor who would be so humiliated. They could not imagine following […]
Read More »Two weeks ago, we celebrated Rhonda Smith’s new role as Minister of Pastoral Community. On Sunday, October 25, I want to invite you to join me for a reception honoring Marty and Janice Smith’s ministry at First Baptist. For twenty years, this “retired” ministerial couple have shepherded our internationals work throughout the community. They have led people […]
Read More »I have made myself a slave to all. In his book Celebration of Discipline, Richard Foster writes about the discipline of service. He says that it’s not a list of things we do—mow the lawn, feed the neighbor’s dog, and teach Sunday School. Service is a lifestyle. In the marketplace of life, we seek out […]
Read More »Then God spoke all these words. When I traveled with my college choir, our director, Dr. Gene Black “DB,” handed out a rule book. His wife, affectionately known as “Mama B,” told us how this book came to be. She said, “Every rule is written because someone did something wrong, and we had to write […]
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