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 17:1-13, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson, "Glory," for 3/22/26
- “Building Your Life On The Rock” (Matthew 7:24-27 sermon)
- Teacher's Preview of Matthew 16:13-26, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson: "Following Jesus" for 3/15/26
- "How To Run The Christian Race" (Hebrews 12:1-2 sermon)
- "The Message of the Cross" (I Cor. 1:18-24 sermon)
- Teacher's Preview of Matthew 15:1-11+, Lifeway "Explore the Bible" lesson for March 8, 2026, "Real Devotion"
- "This Is My Story: The Man Born Blind" (John 9 sermon)
- "Christ's Suffering/Our Salvation" (I Peter 3:18 sermon)
- "The Church That Made God Sick" (Revelation 3:14-22 sermon)
- "The Word That Sustains In Difficult Days" (Habakkuk 2:1-3 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
- 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
Tag Archives: love
A Ministry to PEOPLE
“Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19) From the very beginning, Jesus indicated to those who would follow Him, that our ministry was to focus on people: “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Ministry, Uncategorized
Tagged John 3:16, love, Matthew 4:19, ministry, motivation, people
2 Comments
The Motivation of Love
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son …”. (John 3:16) Among the rich truths this well-loved verse gives us, is the Lord’s motivation for saving us. Jesus said, “For God so LOVED the world.” … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Ministry, Uncategorized
Tagged evangelism, John 3:16, love, ministry, motivation, motive, witness
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“The Disciple’s Character: Peacemaking” (Matthew 5:9 sermon)
In 1994, North Korea precipitated an international crisis, when they took the rods out of their nuclear reactors, which would allow them to create nuclear weapons. Many thought we might be on the brink of war. But Jimmy Carter, years … Continue reading
Posted in "The Disciple's Character" series (Beatitudes Mt. 5:3-12), Sermons, Uncategorized
Tagged Beatitudes, character, doing peace, Ephesians 2:14-16, evangelism, Jimmy Carter Peacemaker, love, making peace, Matthew 5:3-12, Matthew 5:9, peace, peace with God, peacemaker, peacemakers, relationship pyramid, The character of Christ, The Disciple's Character
1 Comment
Real Love Speaks Truth
:8 “For though I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it –” (II Corinthians 7:8) One thing many people fail to apprehend about Christianity today is that it is not all … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged II Corinthians 7:8, love, repentance, sorrow, truth
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Your Real Resume
“Do we need, as some, letters of commendation to you or from you? You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men; being manifested that you are a letter of Christ, cared for by us, … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Ministry, Uncategorized
Tagged discipleship, II Corinthians 3:1-3, letter of recommendation, love, ministry, people, resume
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“This Is My Story: The Prodigal Son” (Luke 15:11-32 sermon)
A few years back, in a state prison in Hominy, Oklahoma, they had an area in the kitchen they called the “pig slop” pit, into which they would throw all kinds of animal renderings and other food wastes, which they … Continue reading
“This Is My Story: The Woman At The Well” (John 4:1-42 sermon)
Several summers ago, a father and his son were out for a walk in a farmer’s field in northern England. The son had brought a metal detector with him, and all of the sudden, it started to squeal. They decided … Continue reading
Posted in "This Is My Story" sermon series, Sermons
Tagged chair illustration, eternal life, evangelism, faith, forgiveness, grace, Isaiah 59:2, Jesus Christ, John 4 sermon, John 4:1-42, John Bunyan, love, love of God, Peter Ackroyd Shakespeare biography, salvation, sin, The Woman at the Well
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The Sin of “NOT …”
We often think of sin as something we “do”, but Romans 1 reminds us that it also often involves what we do NOT do. Verse 31, speaking of those who are worthy of God’s wrath, says that they are: “unloving, … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies
Tagged apathy, Elie Wiesel, indifference, James 4:17, love, mercy, opposite of love is not hate, Romans 1:31, sin
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God’s Unchanging Love
Psalm 25:6 says: “Remember, O LORD, Your compassion and Your lovingkindnesses, for they have been from of old.” The Hebrew word for “compassion” here can mean “feelings of love, loving sensation, mercy, compassion.” “Lovingkindness” is the almost undefinable word “chesed”; … Continue reading
“Second-hand Cares?”
Job evidences one of the signs of his righteousness in 30:25, “Have I not wept for the one whose life is hard? Was not my soul grieved for the needy?” I wonder how many of us could really say this … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies
Tagged care, compassion, concern, Job 30:25, love, needy, poor
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