I served as pastor of Southern Baptist churches in Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana for almost 30 years before taking a medical leave from the pastorate in February 2013 due to dysautonomia (POTS) and moving to Norman, Oklahoma. Blessed with renewed health, I was called as Senior Pastor of Pleasant Ridge Baptist in Morganton, NC in February 2015.
In this blog I share daily devotions from my own personal Bible readings, as well as sermons, book reviews, illustrations -- and occasional humorous "peeks" at life inside this pastor's home!
Tag Archives: dysautonomia
“The Goodness of God in the Midst of Affliction” (Psalm 119:65-72 sermon)
In February 2012, I stood to lead prayer meeting at the church in Louisiana I had pastored for 12 years, but the longer I stood the sicker I became. I had to leave during the prayer time and have my … Continue reading
Posted in Sermon Illustrations, Sermons, Uncategorized
Tagged "Fall Apart" song, affliction, attributes of God, becoming like Christ, Christlikeness, cleansing, cocoon of a butterfly, confession, conformed to His image, dysautonomia, Ephesians 6, faith, faith testing, glory, God attributes, God goodnesss, God is good, God is good all the time, god is good and does good, God's purpose, good, grace, identification, II Corinthians 12:9, it is good for me that I was afflicted, John 17:3, knowing God, lessons, life, life purpose, Matthew 13 parable of the sower, maturity, minister, ministry, My grace is sufficient, pastor, pastor Shawn Thomas, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, POTS, prayers, priorities, Psalm 119 acrostic, Psalm 119:65-72, Psalm 119:67, purification, purpose for suffering, purpose for trials, purposes for affliction, Romans 8:28-29, Ronnie Rogers Trinity Baptist Norman, salvation, Shawn E. Thomas, sin, spiritual maturity, spiritual warfare, suffering, sword of the Spirit, test, teth, theodicy, theology, theology 101, thorn in the flesh, tob good, trials, word of God, You are good, You do good
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“The Providence of God” (Genesis 37-50 sermon)
Christians have a different outlook than other people have. We believe in an unseen, almighty, all-wise God. So because of that, not only is our outlook different, but our vocabulary is different as well. Many people speak of “karma” or … Continue reading
Posted in Sermon Illustrations, Sermons
Tagged Carson Wentz, chance, church planting, coincidence, Corrie Ten Boom, Doug Pederson, dysautonomia, Ephesians 1:11, forgiveness, Genesis 37-50, God, Joseph story, Karma, luck, Nick Foles, OU Nebraska game of the century, Philadelphia Eagles, plan, POTS, providence, Providence of God, purpose, Romans 8:28, salvation, theology, trust, witness, workplace
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POTS update July 2013
I shared previously (see here) about my visit in June to Dr. Naeem Tahirkili in Oklahoma City, the changes he made in my medications, and how after the first few days I was already doing very well. With over a … Continue reading
A New Regimen: POTS Update, June 2013
I haven’t updated much on my bout with dysautonomia or POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome) in a while, basically because I haven’t had much to report. In a previous post I shared that I had been much improved since we … Continue reading
POTS Update: A Change of Geography Helps?
Due to my bout with dysautonomia/POTS, I had to step down as pastor of First Baptist Moss Bluff, Louisiana, at the end of February 2013, and my family & I moved to Norman, Oklahoma. While we are still very much in … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged altitude, dysautonomia, geography, Louisiana, Oklahoma, POTS, POTS and change of location
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My POTS experience: Peaks and Valleys
Although POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome) varies greatly from individual to individual in the type and severity of symptoms, one of the signature features of it in my own personal experience is the almost daily fluctuation of my symptoms. Journeying … Continue reading
POTS update: “Redeeming the Time”
One of the things I am starting to get used to with having POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome) is the rapid change of condition that I often experience. I wrote previously of how I was feeling pretty well a number … Continue reading
Posted in POTS (dysautonomia) articles
Tagged church office, dysautonomia, Ephesians 5:16, James 4:14, make hay while the sun shines, opportunity, pastor, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, POTS, preacher, priorities, redeem the time, time, time is a precious treasure which attracts many robbers
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