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!Top Posts & Pages
- "Seeking Him First" (Matthew 6:33 sermon)
- “Comforting the Afflicted & Afflicting the Comfortable” James 1:9-11
- "How To Seek The Lord" (Isaiah 55:6-7 sermon)
- "Following Jesus" (Matthew 4:18-22 sermon)
- The Drink Offering: Don't Waste Your Life
- "This Is My Story: The Woman At The Well" (John 4:1-42 sermon)
- “What Tested Faith Looks Like” (James 1:2-4)
- "Your Best Investment" (Matthew 6:19-24 sermon)
- “What Real Faith Looks Like: Perseverance" (James 1:12)
- "The Christian Race" (Hebrews 12:1-2 sermon)
Categories
- "The Disciple's Character" series (Beatitudes Mt. 5:3-12)
- "The Disciplines of Disciples" series
- "This Is My Story" sermon series
- Book of James Sermons: What Real Faith Looks Like
- Current Events
- Devotions/Bible Studies
- Discipleship
- Doctrine/Theology
- History
- Home & Family Life
- India Mission Trip 2011
- John 3:16 sermon series
- Matthew sermons
- Ministry
- Music
- Philippians sermons
- POTS (dysautonomia) articles
- Reviews
- Sermon Illustrations
- Sermons
- The Model Prayer Series
- This Week In Paradise (pastors family blog)
- Travel
- Uncategorized
- worship
Tag Archives: time
“Working The Works Of God” (John 9 sermon)
You can definitely tell that it’s fall now — not only from the temperatures, but also from all the leaves that are falling. I spend a good deal of time Thursday afternoon gathering and burning over 11 wheelbarrows packed with … Continue reading
Posted in Discipleship, Sermon Illustrations, Sermons, Uncategorized
Tagged adoption, believe, BUCM, Burke United Christian Ministries, care, caring, church program, discipleship, evangelism, Evangelism: How The Church Speaks of Jesus, faith, Fall, felt need vs. spiritual need, John 6:29, John 9, John 9 sermon, leaves, Mack Stiles, man born blind, ministry, Orphan Sunday, salvation, sin, Sunday School, time, time change, time management, work, works
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“What Is Man?”
“Men go to gape at mountain peaks, at the boundless tides of the sea, the broad sweep of rivers, the encircling ocean and the motions of the stars: and yet they leave themselves unnoticed; they do not marvel at themselves.” … Continue reading
Posted in Doctrine/Theology, Sermons
Tagged accountability, anthropology, Bible, brevity of life, C.S. Lewis, Calvinism, choice, choices, commitment, creation, decision, depravity of man, doctrine of man, free will, freedom to choose, Genesis 1:26, Genesis 3, Hebrews 9:27, Herman Melville Moby Dick, humankind, II Corinthians 5:10, II Corinthians 6:2, image of God, Imago Dei, Isaiah 40:6-7, Job 14, Job 14:4, judgment, judgment seat of Christ, life, man, mankind, Moby Dick blacksmith anvil, original sin, Proverbs 20:9, Psalm 103:15, Psalm 90:5, salvation, seed of woman, sin, sin nature, temptation, theology of man, time
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Lord of ALL
“The men were amazed and said, ‘What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?’” (Matthew 8:27) Jesus’ disciples were just beginning to understand Who He was. Caught in their boat during a … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Uncategorized
Tagged angelic forces, creation, forgiveness of sins, healing, Jesus, Jesus authority, Lordship, Matthew chapters 8 & 9, nature, space, time
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God Of Eternity — and 2016!
“For thus says the high and exalted One, who lives forever, whose name is Holy …” (Isaiah 57:15) This is one of a number of verses in Isaiah in which God reveals something of His glory to His people Israel … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies, Doctrine/Theology, Uncategorized
Tagged eternity, God, Isaiah 57:15, New Year, time, time and eternity
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“Playing Without Ceasing?”
Have you ever noticed that it is now possible to go all day long and never have a quiet moment? We have an unprecedented amount of media available to us today — which can be a blessing in some ways: … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies
Tagged habits, I Thessalonians 5:17, media, pray without ceasing, time
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Just A Number of Days
I Samuel 27:7 says: “The number of days that David lived in the country of the Philistines was a year and four months.” The chapter begins with David thinking that Saul would eventually kill him if he stayed in Israel, … Continue reading
Posted in Devotions/Bible Studies
Tagged brief episode, God's plan, hour of trial, I Samuel 27:7, perseverance, purpose, time
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