Sabbath This July

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Sabbath This July

At Walgreens this weekend, the new clerk struggled with the touch-screen register. I stood in one line; he was trying in vain to check out customers in the other line. Exasperated, he called the manager over and said, “I keep pushing buttons, and nothing is working.” The manager replied, “The more buttons you push, the […]

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The Three Hands of Ministry

The Three Hands of Ministry

Most ministry involves three kinds of hands. A hand out to those less fortunate. We give food, extend mercy, and love unconditionally. A hand up to those trying to be empowered to make it on their own. We teach someone how to fish, or plan, or work so that they can feed their families. A […]

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Learning From the Kranks

Luther and Nora Krank are religious empty nesters featured in John Grisham’s novel Skipping Christmas. With their daughter Blair safely away on a Peace Corps mission to Peru, the Kranks decide to give themselves a Christmas gift. Normally, they host an annual Christmas Eve neighborhood gathering. People have come to count on it in this […]

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Life Groups

Over the past two weeks, I’ve preached about Life Groups. They’re outward-focused small groups in places, phases, and pursuits of life. They’re designed to reach the unreached, unchurched, and uninvolved in our community. In other words, they’re patterned after the groups that formed in Acts 2:41-46. FBC members will host and facilitate the groups, and […]

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Slow Miracles

Several years ago, a friend of mine went through a terrible car accident. His recovery was slow and difficult. He never regained his full abilities, but he and his wife survived to tell an incredible story. They called it a “slow miracle.” In their testimony, they shared that the process of recovery and partial healing […]

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Go On Speaking

According to Acts 18, Corinth was a thriving capital of commerce and industry based on business, sports, and religion. There was only one thing missing: a church committed to working with the city. The people credited for the spiritual turnaround in Corinth are usually Paul, Priscilla, Aquilla, and Apollos. Corinth had two very large ports […]

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Responsible Stewardship

Before Kelly and I visited Israel in 2011, we updated our will to make sure our families were cared for through our estate. Stewardship is a responsibility we take personally in life and death. I want to invite you to an important seminar designed to help you plan and provide for the people and church […]

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Weird Animals

This year’s VBS has surpassed expectations in attendance and impact. Rhonda Smith and our volunteers dedicated a week of their lives helping kids know that Jesus loves them. Using the template of “Weird Animals,” each child has discovered that they are uniquely created by God. Jesus loves them even though they are alone, don’t understand, or do bad […]

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A Full Summer

When Leah Larsen volunteered for “A Full Summer,” she wanted to help people who might “starve to death” this summer without the food. On Saturday, she and 250 other volunteers sacked, rice, beans, and vitamins in just under 2 hours. Our combined efforts provided 50,000 meals for hungry children in Leon County. Leah is a […]

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Show the Truth

Christian love moves in four directions simultaneously—up, in, out, and across. We look upward to Christ as he reaches inwardly to change our hearts. We extend our hands outwardly to those who need this love, working together across the church with Christian sisters and brothers. 1 John 3:13-16 defines this four-fold love this way: “We […]

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