Month: November 2010
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Good vibes for me, Jesus!
Christians expect to have an experience of the Presence of the Holy Spirit. This is both good and right for the Lord is an active Person in our lives. Yet, there is real danger in defining our discipleship around ‘spiritual experience.’ Seeking an experience can set us up for manipulation by unscrupulous leaders who play […]
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How to Get a Better Pastor
Sometimes I feel a little like the Wizard of Oz, a man who lives behind a curtain of misperceptions. One little girl saw me in the grocery store and said, “Mommy, God left the church.” That’s not good! Yet, even many adults do not really understand the reality of the daily life of ministers. Many […]
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Dangerous Blessings
My life has been filled with good things – a rich spiritual heritage, food, health care, shelter, and creature comforts more than I need, a wonderful wife, and great children. I get to go to work everyday in a profession I love. I know peace with God and, because of His grace, I am assured […]
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I deserve better
One of America’s great struggles over the next five years will be with government’s so-called ‘entitlement’ programs. With spending out of control and mountains of debt threatening to break our national economy, courageous politicians will have to make hard choices about raising the age of when a person can take a Social Security pension, about […]
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Not quite dead . . .
Last week, headlines of reports implied that “marriage is dying in America.” Well, not quite. Despite the best efforts to convince us otherwise, most Americans still believe in the institution as a man and woman and the they hold onto the ideal of life-long commitment. Many things around the house have changed. In just 50 […]
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Does God care about what I eat?
“Would Jesus eat cheese doodles and lime jello at the church potluck dinner?” was the question posed by Leslie Fields in a provocative article in Christianity Today magazine, November, 2010. (http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/november/9.22.html) It was enough to get my attention. Initially, I was ready to dismiss her as another tree-hugging, nut-eating goof who is completely out of […]
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Taken off the farm
Self-anointed, self appointed prophets are annoying and bring disgrace on the name of Christ Jesus. Remember the crank in Florida a couple of months ago whose cockeyed scheme to burn the Quran caused such a tempest? It’s since been reported that this wasn’t his first publicity stunt. Seems that he enjoys the spotlight a little […]
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Knock me off my feet!
My life is devoted to serving the Lord. His wisdom guides my life but I would be lying if I told you that He appears to me every day to chat about life. Do I know Him? Yes; yet He is not my Buddy and there is much about Him I cannot understand, even as […]
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Too much, too soon?
China, home to a fifth of the earth’s human population, is an economic powerhouse. While it still is not even close to the USA in gross domestic product, it is coming on strong and fast! In a news report last night, the discipline of the people was noted as remarkable. Employees work long hours at […]
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In love with a feeling?
Are you emotional? We all are. Some of us are more prone to display our emotions than others, but emotions are present in every man, woman, and child. God made us with the ability to know joy, to be able to feel afraid, to become anxious or to settle into a state of serenity. A […]