I'm a retired Southern Baptist pastor of almost 40 years. My wife Cheryl & I moved to Norman, OK in March of 2025. I share a weekly overview for Sunday School teachers of the weekly Lifeway "Explore the Bible" lesson, as well as texts of my sermons and other articles.
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Top Posts & Pages
- Teacher's Overview of Matthew 18:21-35, Lifeway "Explore the Bible" lesson, "Forgiveness," for 3/29/26
- "The Message of the Cross" (I Cor. 1:18-24 sermon)
- Teacher's Overview of Matthew 17:1-13, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson, "Glory," for 3/22/26
- “Building Your Life On The Rock” (Matthew 7:24-27 sermon)
- "How To Run The Christian Race" (Hebrews 12:1-2 sermon)
- "God's Purpose For Your Life" (I Peter 2:4-5 sermon)
- "The Lord Our Provider" (Philippians 4:15-23 sermon)
- "Lessons From Gethsemane" (Matthew 26 sermon)
- "Seeking Him First" (Matthew 6:33 sermon)
- Teacher's Preview of Matthew 16:13-26, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson: "Following Jesus" for 3/15/26
Categories
- "The Disciple's Character" series (Beatitudes Mt. 5:3-12)
- "The Disciplines of Disciples" series
- "This Is My Story" sermon series
- Beatitudes Series 2020 FBCA
- Book of James Sermons: What Real Faith Looks Like
- COVID-19 crisis assorted messages
- Current Events
- Devotions/Bible Studies
- Discipleship
- Discovering FBCA Membership class lessons
- Doctrine/Theology
- Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews
- Explore the Bible Sunday School lessons
- Habakkuk "Find Us Faithful" series messages
- History
- Home & Family Life
- I Peter sermons
- India Mission Trip 2011
- Isaiah 53 sermon series Suffering Servant Glorious King
- John 3:16 sermon series
- Luke 10:38-42 Mary & Martha series
- Luke 2 Christmas series
- Matthew sermons
- Ministry
- missions
- Music
- Philippians sermons
- POTS (dysautonomia) articles
- Psalms studies and messages
- Revelation sermon series
- Reviews
- Sermon Illustrations
- Sermons
- The Model Prayer Series
- The Model Prayer series (FBCA 2020)
- This Week In Paradise (pastors family blog)
- Travel
- Uncategorized
- worship
Category Archives: Devotions/Bible Studies
What God Brags About
When Satan appeared before God in Job 1 & 2, the Lord had a word for him. Both in 1:8 and 2:3, He asked him, “Have you considered My servant Job?” This is a living example of what Psalm 147:10-11 … Continue reading
A Friend Who Is Near
When distress is near, you need God to be nearer still. This was David’s desire in Psalm 22:11, where he prays: “Be not far from me, for trouble is near.” Notice the parallel: the “trouble” (the Hebrew word can mean … Continue reading
Are You Turning Away From Evil?
Job 1:1 says that Job “was blameless, upright, fearing God and turning away from evil.” That phrase “turning away from evil” is an important one, which should challenge each of us:
Lay Down Our Lives?
I John 3:16 says: “We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for our brethren.” This verse should challenge those of us who claim to be Christian … Continue reading
When The Platitudes Don’t Work
It’s easy to quote popular spiritual platitudes to ourselves and others in times of difficulty. But what happens when they don’t “work”? We find in Psalm 22 that David knew something about that. In :4-5 he says, “In You our … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies
Tagged Hebrews 11:, platitudes, Psalm 2:2, spiritual cliches, suffering, trial
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Spirituality and Trials
“What did they do to deserve this?” Whether we verbalize it or not, we often wonder such things when we observe people going through difficult times. But we might be surprised at the real answer! In Job 1:8 the Bible … Continue reading
When You Feel Forsaken
Where do you turn when you feel forsaken? David cried in Psalm 22:1, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken me?” These were the very words that Jesus later used to express His own desolation on the cross. Perhaps … Continue reading
Praying For Your Family
The first chapter of Job describes the central character of this book as a man who was not only “blameless” and “upright” before God (:1) but as one who loved his family, and ministered to them spiritually. Verse 5 says: … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Home & Family Life
Tagged family, I Samuel 12:23, intercession, Job 1:5, prayer
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Be Still and Trust Him!
“Be very still right now; I am about to do something very tricky.” Since the lady speaking those words had an electric razor in her hands, and she was cutting my hair, you can bet that I was very obedient! … Continue reading
A Heart For Worship
The way a person responds to God’s work in his life reveals a lot about his heart. In Acts 3:8 the Bible tells us that when the lame man outside the Temple was healed, “With a leap he stood upright … Continue reading
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