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 7:15-29, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson, "Authority Acknowledged," for 1/11/26.
- “Building Your Life On The Rock” (Matthew 7:24-27 sermon)
- Teacher's Overview of Matthew 6:19-34, Lifeway Explore the Bible lesson, "Treasure," for 1/04/2026
- "How To Run The Christian Race" (Hebrews 12:1-2 sermon)
- "Seeking Him First" (Matthew 6:33 sermon)
- "Three Christian Attitudes" (Philippians 3:12-15 sermon)
- "God's Purpose For Your Life" (I Peter 2:4-5 sermon)
- "True Religion" (Philippians 3:2-3)
- "The Discipline of Fasting" (Ezra 8:21 sermon)
- Joshua 3:5 Sermon: "Preparing For God To Work"
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
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- Explore the Bible SS lesson overviews
- Explore the Bible Sunday School lessons
- Habakkuk "Find Us Faithful" series messages
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- Home & Family Life
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- 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
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- missions
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- POTS (dysautonomia) articles
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- Revelation sermon series
- Reviews
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- The Model Prayer Series
- The Model Prayer series (FBCA 2020)
- This Week In Paradise (pastors family blog)
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- worship
Tag Archives: Mark Twain
“The Gift That Is An Insult” (I Kings 9:10-14)
In “Henry V”, one of my very favorite plays or movies, Shakespeare tells of how when King Henry V of England was considering invading France, the French ambassador came to him with a “treasure,” saying that the Dauphin (or Prince … Continue reading
Posted in Sermon Illustrations, Sermons, Uncategorized
Tagged alabaster vial, cabul, commitment, corporate worship, dedication, discipleship, Endor, Galilee, Genesis 4, gift, gifts, giving, hard work, Hebrews 11:16, Henry V, I Kings 9:10-14, II Samuel 23, James 1:17, Jerusalem, King Hiram, Magdala, Malachi 1, Mark Twain, marriage, mission trips, missions, palace, personal worship, President John F. Kennedy, sacrifice, Shakespeare, Solomon, Sunday School, Temple, The Innocents Abroad, Tiberias, tithe, we choose to go to the moon, widow's mite, work, worship
21 Comments
“What Jesus Came To Do For You” (I Peter 3:18 sermon)
For the last several years, the social media platform “Twitter” has been gaining in popularity over “Facebook,” although the two are very different. One of the interesting things to see on Twitter is the biography that each person uses to … Continue reading
Posted in Sermons
Tagged Al Mohler, Augustine, Bill Elliff, Christ, Confessions Augustine, cross, death on the cross, face of God, gospel, health and wealth gospel, His presence, I Corinthians 15:1-3, I Peter 2:24, I Peter 3:18 sermon, Isaiah 59:2, It is finished, Jesus, John 19:30, just for the unjust, love of God, Mark Twain, Mark Vroegop, North Greenville University, prosperity gospel, Romans 3:23, Romans 5:8, Ronnie Rogers, sacrifice, salvation, sin, sinners, steamboat pilot dies, tetelestai, the cross, Twitter
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“Come Away … And Rest” (Mark 6:30-32 sermon)
In the 1860’s, Mark Twain took a steamboat tour of Europe and the Holy Land, during which he visited Rome. He wrote about his experience there: “Afterward we walked up and down one of the most popular streets for some … Continue reading
Posted in Discipleship, Sermons
Tagged 4th Commandment, balance, break, busy-ness, Christian life, cruise, daily Bible reading, day off, Ephesians 2:8-9, exercise, getaway, Hebrews 4, Mark 1:35, Mark 6:30-32, Mark Twain, prayer time, rest, rest in Jesus, rest in Me, rest in peace, retreat, Revelation 14:11, Revelation 14:13, Sabbath, sabbath rest, salvation, The Innocents Abroad, trust, vacation, work
4 Comments
Illustrations from Mark Twain’s The Innocents Abroad
Not long after the Civil War, Mark Twain joined a steamship tour of Europe and the Holy Land. His entertaining book, The Innocents Abroad, chronicles the journey in a way only Twain could. Punctuated liberally with sarcasm and irony, the … Continue reading
Posted in Reviews, Sermon Illustrations
Tagged atonement, Bible prophecy, Death, Ephesus, Holy Land, Jesus, Mark Twain, materialism, rest, Sabbath, salvation, sermon illustrations, sin, the cross, The Innocents Abroad
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The Top Shelf: Books I’ve Read More Than Once
When it came time to sell our home in Louisiana and move to a condo less than half its size in Oklahoma, we had to do some dramatic downsizing! One of the most difficult items to tackle was our book … Continue reading
“The Gospel of Glory” (II Thessalonians 2:14)
Years ago, when our older kids were very small, I took our son David to Falls Creek with me for the week — he was 3 or 4 years old. We had a great week, as we got to hang … Continue reading
Posted in Sermons
Tagged C.S. Lewis and pleasure, cathedral of Milan, Dante, doxa, eternal torment, Exodus 33:18-20, Exodus 34:7-8, Falls Creek, glory, glory of God, heaven, hell, II Thessalonians 2:14, John Sailhamer, kabod, Mark Twain, no hope, radiance, Romans 3:23, Samuel Rutherford, shekinah glory, The Innocents Abroad
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“Our Incarnate God” (Philippians 2:5-11)
Just after the Civil War, Mark Twain embarked on a voyage to the Holy Land, which he chronicled in his book, The Innocents Abroad. The work was largely humorous and ascerbic – typical Twain – but he did occasionally wax philosophical, and in the … Continue reading
“The Reward of Faith” (Genesis 15:1)
A couple of thousand years ago, the Roman statesman and orator Cicero wrote what has become a well-known maxim: “Virtue is its own reward.” It is an interesting statement, but it is not quite true Biblically. The Bible tells us … Continue reading
Posted in Sermons
Tagged cathedral of Milan, Genesis 15:1 sermon, God Himself is the reward, Mark Twain, reward
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Heralds of the Advent: Micah 5
When Mark Twain visited the Holy Land in the 1860’s, he did not find Bethlehem to be impressive. In fact, he wrote later of its “mouldy domes and turrets” and disparaged its “noisy mob” and “leprous beggars.” He said he … Continue reading
Posted in Sermons
Tagged "O Little Town of Bethlehem", advent, anxiety, Bethlehem, fear, Lordship, Mark Twain, Micah 5:2-5, Phillips Brooks, sermon, Shepherd
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