Category Archives: Home & Family Life

A Verse For Harried Hosts on Thanksgiving. And other days.

Posted on 2016/11/23 by Shawn Thomas

“Be hospitable to one another without complaint.” (I Peter 4:9) Reading this verse the day before most Americans celebrate Thanksgiving, with all the busy-ness of pre-holiday preparations, leads one to ponder how it might apply to us today. Surely it … Continue reading →

Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Home & Family Life, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Before You Give Up Praying For Your Loved One, Try This

Posted on 2016/09/26 by Shawn Thomas

Alexander Whyte (1836-1921) was considered by many of his contemporaries to be the  greatest preacher in Scotland of his day. His book, Lord Teach Us To Pray, consists of a number of sermons on prayer from a variety of scripture … Continue reading →

Posted in Discipleship, Home & Family Life, Ministry, Sermons, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Smiles From Romania

Posted on 2016/05/09 by Shawn Thomas

Cheryl & I are so grateful to God for a safe mission trip to and from Romania the past couple of weeks, for the ministries we shared in, and especially the relationships we were able to establish and deepen. There … Continue reading →

Posted in Home & Family Life, This Week In Paradise (pastors family blog), Travel, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Fears, Circumstances & Providence

Posted on 2016/03/22 by Shawn Thomas

After the wicked King Herod died in Matthew 2, an angel told Joseph that he could take Jesus and Mary back to Israel. But it wasn’t that easy. There would be some “complications”: verse 22 tells us that Herod’s son … Continue reading →

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From Joy To Crisis: The Principle of Undulating Circumstances

Posted on 2016/03/21 by Shawn Thomas

It is difficult to imagine how amazing it must have been for Mary & Joseph to experience the visit of the magi — and to receive from them the opulent gifts that they brought.  What an emotional “high” they must … Continue reading →

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From A Little Cottage In The Foothills

Posted on 2016/01/26 by Shawn Thomas

Well we are just about dug out of “Snow-mageddon 2016” here in our “Little Cottage In The Foothills.”  I haven’t heard the official total on how many inches of snow we received, but the rain gauge at the “Little Cottage” … Continue reading →

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Family Gingerbread House Contest 2015

Posted on 2015/12/24 by Shawn Thomas

It’s that time of year again! Yes, Christmas, of course, but along with that comes our annual family gingerbread house contest.  If you’d like to participate, then peruse the pictures of the entries below, and you can vote via the … Continue reading →

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Beloved, “Sister”, Friend

Posted on 2015/07/23 by Shawn Thomas

The Song of Solomon is a challenging book to study. In some ways, one feels that to attempt to analyze it is akin to A.T. Robertson’s analogy of “dissecting a flower” by examining the individual characteristics of love in I … Continue reading →

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Let’s Take The Long Way! 

Posted on 2015/06/20 by Shawn Thomas

The trip home from the Southern Baptist Convention in Columbus to our “little cottage” in Morganton, North Carolina could be made in 6-7 hours, but Cheryl & I decided to “take the long way” back — almost no interstates, and … Continue reading →

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From A Cottage in the Foothills … (June 2015)

Posted on 2015/06/13 by Shawn Thomas

The past couple of weeks have been busy at “the cottage”; with all of the kids and grandkids coming in. We had a lot to celebrate — and then to recover from! ARE YOU MY MOTHER? Adding to the typical … Continue reading →

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