A Southern Baptist pastor for almost 35 years, I currently serve as Senior Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Angleton, Texas, and post my weekly sermons here. I am grateful to see these messages read in countries around the world, and pray that God will use His word to help individuals to walk with Him daily, and churches to glorify Him with their worship and obedience.
Top Posts & Pages
- "Following Jesus" (Matthew 4:18-22 sermon)
- “Building Your Life On The Rock” (Matthew 7:24-27 sermon)
- "How To Seek The Lord" (Isaiah 55:6-7 sermon)
- "Seeking Him First" (Matthew 6:33 sermon)
- “The Golden Rule” (Matthew 7:12 sermon)
- "Becoming An Acts 1:8 Church" (Acts 1:8 sermon)
- “The Narrow Way To Heaven” (Matthew 7:13-14 sermon)
- "The Christian Race" (Hebrews 12:1-2 sermon)
- "The Message of the Cross" (I Cor. 1:18-24 sermon)
- "This Is My Story: The Gerasene Demoniac" (Mark 5:1-20 sermon)
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
- Doctrine/Theology
- History
- Home & Family Life
- I Peter sermons
- India Mission Trip 2011
- John 3:16 sermon series
- Luke 10:38-42 Mary & Martha series
- Matthew sermons
- Ministry
- missions
- Music
- Philippians sermons
- POTS (dysautonomia) articles
- Reviews
- Sermon Illustrations
- Sermons
- The Model Prayer Series
- The Model Prayer series (FBCA 2020)
- This Week In Paradise (pastors family blog)
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- Uncategorized
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Category Archives: Ministry
“A Body In Motion” (Ephesians 4:11-16 sermon)
Sir Isaac Newton, the English scientist, is famous, among other things, for the “laws of motion” he formulated in the 1600’s: among them being that a body at rest tends to remain at rest, and a body in motion tends … Continue reading
Posted in Ministry, Sermons
Tagged balance of truth and love, Bill Russell Player coach, body in motion, body of Christ, Christlikeness, church, church activities, church discipline, church equipping ministry, church growth, Church ministry, deceivers in the church, each part, Ephesians 4:11-16, equip the saints, equipping, every joint, false prophets, First Baptist Church Angleton, Isaac Newton, it takes us all, maturity, ministry project, pastor, pastor as coach, pastor as equipper, pastor as example, pastor as player-coach, people of God, Rosaria Butterfield, speaking the truth in love, spiritual maturity, unity of the faith, whole body, working together, Your relationship with others must be as strong as your words
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“Reaching, Teaching, Caring” (Matthew 4:23 sermon)
I came home from work last Monday night and Cheryl was sitting on the couch wrapped up in a blanket, and she said, “You remember that thing you said in the sermon yesterday about how ‘If you worshiped God first … Continue reading
Posted in Discipleship, Ministry, Sermon Illustrations, Sermons, Uncategorized
Tagged "reaching, Abraham Lincoln, Acts 2:42-47, care, caring, Carl Sandburg Abraham Lincoln, church, church calendar, Church Council, church leaders, discipleship, evangelism, gospel, I Peter 2:21, in His steps, Jesus cares, love, Luke 9:56, Mark 1:15, Mark 6:34, Matthew 14:14, Matthew 4:23, Matthew 4:23 sermon, Matthew 8:14-16, Matthew 9:35, megachurches, mercy, ministry, ministry priorities, ministry team, mission, priorities, purpose, R.H. Dana, Reaching Teaching Caring, repentance, repentance and faith, salvation, see feel compassion do, service, spiritual growth, Sunday School, teaching, Two Years Before The Mast, What Would Jesus Do?, worship, WWJD
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“I Wait For The LORD”
“I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait, and in His word do I hope …” (Psalm 130:5) (1/28/19) I just told Cheryl this morning, “The biggest thing we have on our list right now, we can’t do anything … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Ministry, Sermon Illustrations, Uncategorized
Tagged character, discipleship, perspective, Psalm 130, Psalm 130:5, trust, wait on the Lord
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“Culture-blind” — or Cowardly?
In Washington Irving’s delightful The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, the author journals about his attendance at a venerable English country church: “The congregation was composed of the neighboring people of rank, who sat in pews sumptuously lined and cushioned, … Continue reading
Posted in Current Events, Devotions/Bible Studies, Ministry, Sermon Illustrations, Uncategorized
Tagged C.S. Lewis, church, compromise, courage, cowardice, culture, culture blindness, favoritism, James 2, James 2:1, James 2:1-6, Lesslie Newbigin, partiality, poor, preaching, reform, rich, The Country Church, The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Washington Irving
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“The Greatest Mission Trip” (Philippians 2:5-13 sermon)
After our morning service today, we have the opportunity to stay for soup and sandwiches, sponsored by our student ministry, to support the Hamburg, Germany mission trip that they will be going on this summer. I’m excited that a dozen … Continue reading
Posted in Ministry, Sermons
Tagged Bill Borden, Borden of Yale, Burke United Christian Ministries, Christology, church on mission, deity of Jesus, Dr. Jim Smith, Elf at the CoMMA, Everyone wants a revolution no one wants to do the dishes, glory, God the Son, greatest mission trip, humility, Incarnation, India missions, Isaiah 6, Jesus, John 17:5, Lesslie Newbigin, lifeguard, little things, local mission, Lottie Moon offering, Luke 19:10, Matthew 20:28, mission trip, missionaries, missions, Philippians 2:5-13, ransom, sacrifice, salvation, service, Son of God, The Greatest Mission Trip, Thou didst leave Thy throne song, Tish Warren The Liturgy of the Ordinary, Trinity
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A Time For Certainty
“But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed.” (Galatians 1:8) In our era of “what’s true for me may not … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Discipleship, Ministry, Uncategorized
Tagged anathema, certainty, confidence, evangelism, Galatians 1:8, gospel, Orthodoxy, witness
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A Gospel “Hallelujah”
Our son Michael shared his first public solo in church this morning, and Cheryl & I were extremely proud of how well he did. He taught himself to play the guitar this past year and has been developing both vocally … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Doctrine/Theology, Home & Family Life, Ministry, Music, This Week In Paradise (pastors family blog), Uncategorized
Tagged Cohen Hallelujah, Hallelujah alternative lyrics, Hallelujah lyrics, Leonard Cohen Hallelujah alternate lyrics, Michael Thomas, North Greenville University, Pleasant Ridge Baptist Church
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