Category Archives: God

by | August 15, 2013 · 9:31 pm

“This is all for you.”

The Video

I had never heard of Mobbed, but then my daughters showed me the video I am going to share with you. They said, “This is the best video EVER!”

I sat down with my dinner in front of my computer and started watching. It wasn’t long before I was crying. My daughters and wife were snickering and pointing at me (which is typical), but they had no idea why I was really crying.

Please, watch this video. It is truly a wonderful thing to behold, and you may tear up, too. But after you watch it, please read what I have written below.

Reasons for Tears

As I was watching this video with my wife and girls standing behind me, my initial thought was, “My gosh! I wonder how much that cost?…Oh great! What am I going to do for our 20th anniversary in just 10 months?!”

Then, as the bride-to-be was walking down the make-shift isle, the groom-to-be said (10:00), “This is all for you.”

I literally wept. Oh wow!

My memory immediately recalled Hosea 11:4, “I drew them with the cords of a man, with bands of love…” Then I remembered the message of other passages…

“Hereby perceive we the love [of God], because he laid down his life for us…” 1 John 3:16a

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  John 3:16

“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8

Stop and think about it!

We are the Bride, and God has done it all. He has paid the highest price; surrounded us with a “cloud of witnesses;” guided us when we didn’t know where to go; and surrounded us with beauty and surprises at ever turn. All of it was planned long before we knew what was going on, and He did it all…all for a “yes.”

One of my daughters said, “Wouldn’t it have been horrible if she had said ‘no’?”

Yes, it would have been. But just think of how many do it every day? How horrible! How sad for Him!

If nothing else, this video made me love Jesus even more.

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by | August 5, 2013 · 11:01 am

A Thought for Monday

Today is Monday, but you’ve probably figured that out, haven’t you?

Coffee always helps.

Coffee always helps.

How did you wake up? Was it with a sense of dread? Instead of turning off the alarm clock that woke you up, did you strike it like a mosquito that had been buzzing around your head for an hour?

I don’t like Mondays any more than you. As a matter of fact, Mondays are pretty rough. Mondays should be my day off, but I am what they call a bivocational pastor; therefore, my alarm clock feels like a mosquito, too.

However, the Psalmist (David) says…

This [is] the day [which] the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. – Psalm 118:24 

Today…this Monday…every Monday…this is the day which the Lord has made. As a matter of fact, He has made every day. So, what will we do? Will we bemoan the blessing of waking up? Will we cry “foul” even before we enter the game? Will we start the day with the expectation that Monday will be like every other Monday?

This day was made by God. He knows what He is doing. Nothing will come our way that God is not already planning to use for our good – for those who love Him.

Today you may face a storm that leaves you feeling abandoned by God. You may feel like the disciples who were out on the Sea of Galilee all night fighting winds and waves. You may think that your Savior has forgotten you. Just remember that even in the worst storm, on the worst day, Jesus knows where you are. When the time is right you might even get an invitation to surf the waves of adversity (Matthew 14:27).

So, rejoice! Be glad! Seize the day! It’s been custom-made for you!

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by | August 1, 2013 · 11:44 am

Thoughts from the Beach (part 2)

Yesterday, in a longer post than normal, I told you a little about my trip to the beach. This time I would like to share one more thought that I had (thanks to my wife).

Tourist Alert

Standing in the oceanCould anyone look more like a tourist? The only thing missing from this picture is a big camera hanging around my neck. Here I am, standing in the ocean, not wearing a bathing suit, tan challenged, looking down at water containing critters that could eat me. This is not a picture of a native.

Yet, this IS a picture of someone thinking…pondering…contemplating…

The Yorktown

Before I tell you what I was thinking while standing on the beach, let me first tell you about something else. One of the highlights of my trip to Charleston was our visit to the USS Yorktown, the famous WWII-era aircraft carrier. I felt like a kid in a toy store!

YorktownBelieve it or not, being that I am from Tennessee, up until seeing the Yorktown I had never seen a real ship in person. Oh, I have seen some big boats go up and down rivers, but never something this big – not even close. And to think, this aircraft carrier is small compared to the new ones! Needless to say, I was tremendously impressed – I even got chills.

It took us several hours to tour the Yorktown, not to mention the USS Laffey (a destroyer) that sat next to her. If I had had my way, and if I had had a little more energy and some money to spend on refreshments, I would have stayed longer. There was so much to take in because of the scale of these ships. They were huge!

The Sky

Back to the beach…

One thing my wife told me was that she loves going to the beach if for no other reason than to contemplate God. She said that when she looks out toward the horizon she thinks to herself, “God is bigger than that.”

Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance? – Isaiah 40:12 NIV

As I stood in the water, lily-white legs and all, I looked out at the vast expanse of ocean, looked up at the sky, and thought to myself, “Just think, God is bigger than all this!” The cargo ships and cruise liners could be seen in the distance, and they looked no bigger than a twig. The sky soared above them and the ocean and surrounded me. There was no way I could grasp its magnitude.

I shivered.

 

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by | July 4, 2013 · 2:18 pm

God SAVE America!

Happy 4th of July!

flagIt has been 237 years since the colonies declared their independence. It was not an easy decision to make, however, and many of the signers paid a heavy price. But John Adams, in a letter to Abigail Adams, said he was “well aware of the toil and blood and treasure that it [would] cost us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these States.”

So, happy birthday, America! Your birth was a hard and costly one, but well worth the pain.

God Bless America?

Now, each year about this time we sing of our love for America. Irving Berlin wrote a song with a title that is repeated every time one of our presidents closes a speech: God Bless America!

God Bless America,
Land that I love.
Stand beside her, and guide her
Thru the night with a light from above.
From the mountains, to the prairies,
To the oceans, white with foam
God bless America, My home sweet home.

Last night, however, in a sermon to my congregation, I said,

“Maybe we should stop asking God to bless America. Maybe we should, on the other hand, be saying, begging, ‘God spare America…God have mercy on America!’ We have already been blessed by God more than any nation deserves, yet what are we doing with those blessings? Where is our thanks to the God who blesses? We are rapidly going down as a nation, so before God completely abandons this nation to the trash heap of fallen empires, we had better be praying God REVIVE America…God SAVE America!…God have MERCY on America!”

Franklin’s Suggestion

Benjamin_Franklin_by_Jean-Baptiste_GreuzeIn 1787, not long after the war with England, representatives sent by the people met in Philadelphia to hammer out what was to be the Constitution of the United States of America. Tensions were high, arguing was accomplishing nothing, and the whole Continental Congress was in danger of falling apart. That was when the great Benjamin Franklin offered the following words…

In this situation of this Assembly, groping as it were in the dark to find political truth, and scarce able to distinguish it when presented to us, how has it happened, Sir, that we have not hitherto once thought of humbly applying to the Father of lights to illuminate our understandings? In the beginning of the Contest with G. Britain, when we were sensible of danger we had daily prayer in this room for the divine protection.” Our prayers, Sir, were heard, and they were graciously answered. All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of a Superintending providence in our favor. To that kind providence we owe this happy opportunity of consulting in peace on the means of establishing our future national felicity. And have we now forgotten that powerful friend? I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth- that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid? We have been assured, Sir, in the sacred writings, that “except the Lord build the House they labour in vain that build it.” I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without his concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than the Builders of Babel: We shall be divided by our little partial local interests; our projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall become a reproach and bye word down to future ages. And what is worse, mankind may hereafter from this unfortunate instance, despair of establishing Governments be Human Wisdom and leave it to chance, war and conquest.

I therefore beg leave to move, that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven, and its blessings on our deliberations, be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business, and that one or more of the Clergy of the City be requested to officiate in that service. – Source

We are “groping as it were in the dark to find political truth, and scarce able to distinguish it when presented to us.”

We are “divided.”

We are “confounded.”

We are becoming a “reproach and a bye word to future ages.”

And what is worse, mankind is leaving the forming of new governments to “chance, war, and conquest.”

We should be “imploring the assistance of Heaven” before Heaven becomes deaf to our prayers.

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by | June 5, 2013 · 1:23 am

Tent Makers Unite!

In February of 2012 my wife and I decided to attend a special retreat for bivocational ministers and their wives. The retreat was held in Pigeon Forge, TN, at the Music Road Hotel and Convention Center.

We had a great time.

Bi-Vocational

Just in case the above term is unfamiliar to you, a bivocational minister is one who performs the duties expected of a full-time minister/pastor, while also having to maintain other (secular) employment. The size of their church or congregation (or how much they are compensated) has no bearing on their abilities or calling. They are only serving where God has sent them.

Unfortunately, bivocational pastors are often stigmatized as “second-rate” leaders. Some people think that if they were more qualified, more gifted, or better speakers they would pastor larger churches. The fact is that most churches, especially in my denomination, are led by men who are more than qualified to maintain a “higher station.” However, the real issue is that most congregations are smaller (35-100) and cannot afford to pay a full-time pastor.

Tent Makers

So, bivocational pastors carry on in the tradition of the Apostle Paul. Although Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:14 that it is perfectly acceptable for “those who preach the Good News [to] be supported by those who benefit from it (NLT),” he chose to continue to make tents (Acts 18:1-3). But unlike Paul, many of today’s bivocational pastors have to work another job in order to survive. Some do it by choice, but most do it out of necessity, especially those with families.

Now, it may sound bad, but there is an upside to being bivocational: we know what it is like to live in the real world. We have to deal with employers and employees. We know what it’s like to have problems at work, then go to church. We have schedules to juggle, bills to pay, etc. We are just like the people to which we minister. We don’t live in ivory towers.

Extra Tough

But one of the real downsides to being a bivocational pastor is the loneliness. Many don’t understand that we have the same demands, if not more, as pastors of larger churches – yet, with no staff. On top of that, we don’t have time to go on ministry retreats, sabbaticals, or attend conferences during the week. We can’t even get together with other pastors for breakfast to “talk shop” like full-time ministers do – because we’re usually at work. And because of all of this, we get lonely. We get discouraged. We get tired. But it doesn’t have to be that way all the time.

Bivocational Pastors and Wives Retreat

I’ve said a lot to say this: even though it is hard to make the time, sometimes we have to make the time, regardless. That is why, even though it was inconvenient, my wife and I went to the retreat in Pigeon Forge. We needed the encouragement. We needed to be around others in the same boat, on the same sea.

If you are a bivocational minister, you need to seek out and maintain friendships with other men you can trust, especially men in the same kind of ministry. It is so important that you don’t try to do things alone. Likewise, there are probably other men out there who could use your friendship.

Churches, do your pastor and yourselves a favor: plan to send your pastor and his wife on a retreat. Both of you will benefit from the encouragement. He will be strengthened, and his burden will be lightened.

Towards the end of our retreat, a beautiful time of prayer took place. It was a little impractical for us to wash each other’s feet, but we did do something special. Scripture says “how beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news,” but sometimes those feet don’t feel so beautiful, or loved. I wish all of you could have heard the weeping and seen the tears as grown men, God’s men, got on their knees and humbly prayed over the feet of their brothers. I felt like I was in a room full of heroes.

One member came up to me the Sunday after the retreat and asked, “Something happened to you last week when you were gone, didn’t it?”

I said, “Sure did…“

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by | April 21, 2013 · 8:53 pm

Yokey Dokey

(Guest post by Nick Welford)

What do you think of most during a day? What thoughts capture your mind when you are otherwise unoccupied? Whatever it is there’s a good chance that is what you are yoked to, but we are getting ahead of ourselves.

Matthew 11: 28-30 ‘Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.’

I love the imagery that Jesus conjures here. A yoke (as pictured) is a device that holds two or more oxen together while they pull their plough. The interesting thing is that an older more experienced Ox would be yoked to a young rookie. When the youngest got a bit carried away and tried to speed off and finish the job more quickly, the older Ox would pull him back in line, keeping the plough straight. When the young Ox got tired, the strength and experience of the old Ox would keep him on track. Why was this so important? Because one day the young Ox would become an old Ox himself, and on that day, when he’d learned all there was to know about ploughing a field, he would be yoked to a young rookie Ox.

In Jesus day a yoke was also another name of an interpretation of the scriptures. One Rabbi might read the Old Testament and conclude that sacrifice was the most important thing, his yoke would be sacrifice, another Rabbi might conclude love was the main message, and his yoke would be love. What is interesting is that Jesus claims His yoke is easy, but isn’t this the same Jesus that bids daily take up our crosses? That tells us to gain life we must lose ours? Hardly seems like the easiest of yokes does it? How can Jesus justify calling His yoke easy?

The key, I think, comes when we compare Jesus yoke to all the other yokes around Him. All the other yokes will let you down, none of the other yokes can cope with you! If you yoke yourself to a teaching or a theory what happens when you get headstrong? When you make a mistake? An ideal cannot forgive you, it cannot pick you up, dust you off and walk the road with you. In short words cannot teach you to plough. Yoke yourself to Jesus though, and he will teach you how to live.

In our day and age we may not yoke ourselves to Rabbi’s teachings, but the world provides plenty of other ideals to attract our devotion. Consumerism, individualism, money, sex, power. All of these and more bid for our loyalty, and yoke ourselves we do. But when we stumble and fall these things have no compassion, no pity. They cannot love us, or provide for us. All they can do is spit in our faces and laugh at us, and we take it all, thinking that is all there is to life. Yoke ourselves to Jesus though, and He will pick us up every time we fall, He will give us rest from the constant demands of the things we use to yoke ourselves to. Yoke ourselves to Jesus and He will teach us to be more like Him, so we can show others too.

 

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by | March 12, 2013 · 3:21 pm

A “Perfect” Role Model

Sermon Prep

Not long ago I was doing some research for a sermon on Jonah. In the process I came across a Muslim website that made an interesting observation (and I will paraphrase), “The Bible proves it is not true because God would not allow the prophets’ reputations to be smeared.”

It went on to say (paraphrasing, again), “What kind of role model would a prophet be if we read of him making mistakes?”

What kind of role model? That’s a good question! Was the Muslim author trying to say that role models had to be perfect in order to be real? Here’s a shocker – in one way or another, everybody is a role model.

If the defining characteristic of a role model is “perfection,” that would rule out King David, Solomon, Moses, Joshua, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Peter, Paul, Sarah, Mary (all of them), the woman who washed Jesus’ feet with her tears, and many, many others…

…especially Jonah.

Jonah

Now, Jonah wasn’t exactly the type of person after which I would want to pattern my life, but he was a prophet of God. He had some serious character flaws, though. He was angry, disobedient, and was a racist who constantly talked suicide. He even spouted off to the Lord for being too forgiving!

No, Jonah’s not the type of person I would want to emulate. But hold the whale puke! I am more like him than I thought!

  • I have run from God.
  • I have harbored racism at times, as much as I am ashamed to admit.
  • I have been angry and disobedient.
  • I have wondered if life was worth living.
  • I have even wanted to see whole cities destroyed, innocent people and all, after September 11, 2001.

I have been more like Jonah more than I care to admit.

The Encouraging Part

The fact is that the Bible is not only full of role models, but models of the people we already are. Flawed, broken, and human. But here is the encouraging part: even when we are not perfect, God can still use us – and change us.

  • Jonah ran from God, but God pursued.
  • Jonah disobeyed God, but it didn’t derail God’s plan.
  • Jonah got angry with God, but God responded to him with the understanding kindness of a wise Father.
  • Jonah even wanted to die, but God never belittled him. He only focused Jonah’s attention on the bigger picture: 120,000 souls, not to mention animals, whose lives were spared (Jonah 4).

I thank God that the Bible doesn’t white-wash humanity. There are so many examples of how people, just like me, can find hope, even when we’re not perfect.

The Perfect One

It is not hard to come to the conclusion that there were some really dysfunctional people in the Bible. But you know what? That’s what adds to the authenticity of Scripture. There are no “perfect” role models in the Bible, except for one – Jesus.

“For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth.” – 1 Peter 2:21-22 ESV

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are–yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” – Hebrews 4:15-16 NIV

I want to be more like HIM!

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by | February 14, 2013 · 11:04 am

God’s Not Dead

Nietzsche said it, so it must be true. Right? 

God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. —Nietzsche, The Gay Science, Section 125

I disagree.

IMG_8606The News Boys have been around a long time. When Michael Tate became the lead singer, their sound changed a little, but not the message in their music. That’s why I really like this song.

I know that stuff like this is a juicy worm wrapped around a hook, just hanging there for you atheists to chomp. But please, don’t think of it as bait; it’s not, really. It is just a great video proclaiming what many others, beside myself, believe to be true.

God’s NOT dead.

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by | January 1, 2013 · 11:57 pm

13 Things (I Don’t Want to Do)

Year-End Sermon

On Sunday night, December 30, 2012, I preached the final sermon of the year at Riverside Baptist Church. It was an honor to stand before the congregation and deliver a word from the Lord. So, what was the message I chose to encourage and motivate us all as we faced the new year?

Forgetting the past and reaching toward the things before has been preached countless times. Beginning again has been covered, as well as how to have a prosperous new year. Therefore, this year I decided to do something a little different. Instead of talking about resolutions or remembering, I simply listed 13 things I do not want to do in 2013.

I Don’t Want to…

1. Believe another politician. Why did I ever? I won’t do it this year, that’s for sure. Even if he/she is telling the truth, how would I know? Let God be true, and every man a liar, especially those running for office (Romans 3:4).

2. Eat more in one sitting than the average family in Africa eats in a week. (Prov. 23:21; 21:17)

3. Lie, cheat, or steal, even when it’s socially acceptable. This is especially important during tax season, but there are many times we lie to each other, deprive each other, and take what isn’t ours. Have you ever told someone you were “fine” when you actually weren’t? You lied. Used two coupons instead of one, just because the cashier didn’t notice? You stole.

4. Be angry.  Anger rarely solves anything. Angry people are miserable and always finding fault. Angry people turn a leisurely drive into a demolition derby. “Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools” (Ecclesiastes 7:9).

5. Whine or complain. What do I have to complain about? Really?

6. Tell people how stupid they are. I don’t understand why some people act the way they do, but I need to be a little more understanding of idiots, morons, ignoramuses, and bone-headed nincompoops. They must answer to God, not me, for their actions (Rom 14).

7. Add another x to my large. I can’t afford any more clothing. Even now I must wear Hawaiian shirts year-round because nothing will stay tucked in. I mean, seriously! The last thing I need is to expand the “temple.” (1 Corinthians 6:19)

8. Lose another favorite sock. I can’t figure out how it happens, but something has to be done.

9. Waste time.  Today I listened to my two girls play with a new ukulele. They laughed and sang.  Soon they will be grown, and there will be no more music, games, or bedtime stories. “Man is like to vanity: his days are as a shadow that passeth away” (Psalm 144:4).

10. Get a divorce.  Many do it because the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence. They don’t realize the unnatural stuff has a nasty aftertaste. I want to stay with the woman God gave me. Who could be better than a gift from God?  “Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth” (Proverbs 5:18).

11. Give one more dollar to a guy on the street….without offering the gospel as a condition. If he wants a dollar, then fine. I’ll give him $5 if he lets me tell him about Jesus.

12. Be on a reality TV show. So many people say, “Anthony, your family would make a great reality show.” I say, “Yes, I know.” However, it ain’t gonna happen. The world isn’t ready for it.

13. Forget to pray. I don’t pray enough. More is better. What I need is to follow David’s example and pray morning, noon, and evening (Psalm 55:17). I shudder to think how much I’ve given up by forgetting to spend time with God.

James 4:17  “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.”

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by | December 15, 2012 · 3:39 pm

Leaving? Where Will You Go?

Jesus asked Peter, “Are you going to leave, also?”  Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life.” – John 6:67-68

In times of great trial many of us are tempted to walk away from our faith, but Peter realized that there was nowhere to go, at least nowhere that offered the “words of eternal life.”

Today is no exception. With so much going on in the news, many who once claimed to follow Christ are turning their backs on Him. But where will they go? To nothing? To self? To mankind that is becoming less trustworthy every day? To other gods?

Back in the early days of Israel, many were tempted to follow after other gods, even after all that had taken place since crossing the Jordan. In response to those were thinking about leaving, Joshua said the following…

“And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” – Joshua 24:15 ESV

And that is where I stand. Even when tragedy strikes…even when my dreams are destroyed…even when it seems like God is nowhere to be found…”as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” His thoughts are higher than my thoughts, and His ways beyond my knowing. Therefore, I will say as Job of old said, “though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job 13:15).

Come On Let’s Go!

Check out the stories of people who are saying, “Come on let’s go!” Maybe you can relate to Bernie, the Sony Records executive, or Jose, the cocaine dealer.

comeonletsgo

The God I serve is a good God, and He can change lives. He can make a difference in your life, just like those above. When He does, you will understand what Peter meant when he said, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life.”

Already gone? Why not come home?

Leaving? Don’t!

 

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