Tonight I went into full teaching mode with attitude!
Wow! I just LOVE Acts, and chapter 17 is one of my favorites.
Get a glimpse inside my Sunday nights as you watch this Facebook live edition of me preaching/teaching through Acts 17:1-9.
www.facebook.com/bethlehembaptistwarthen/videos/2893988174156335/
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Do you remember the Spice Girls? Here today, gone tomorrow girl band from the U.K.? They were the ones who recorded the catchy and famous pop song “Wannabe” (I’ll spare you the video).
What was the catchiest part of the whole song? The part that goes:
“Tell me what you want, what you really, really want. I’ll tell you what I want, what I really, really want.“
As a matter of fact, just for fun, here’s a link from the movie Chicken Little. The pig and chicken characters do a pretty good cover.
Honestly, I’m not totally clear as to what the Spice Girls wanted. I wouldn’t know a “zigga” from zagga. On the other hand, I bet what they wanted was not what poor Job (in the Bible) wanted, but we’ll get to him in a minute.
Have you ever thought about what you would want to see most in Heaven? Assuming Heaven will be your home after this life (don’t assume – eternity is too long for a mistake of that nature), what would you want to see first? Tell me what you want, what you really, really want.
Do you look forward to walking on a street of pure gold? Are you excited about seeing things that can hardly be imagined, much less described? What about gates of pearl? An emerald sea? Do you really, really want to meet all the saints of old, including relatives who have gone on before. Angels? A mansion?
Do you remember Job? He was the guy in the Bible (with the book named after him) that lost everything he owned, including his wealth, family, and health. He even lost his friends, especially if you consider all they did was accuse him of wrongdoing.
Job wound up in such a state that his own wife even begged him to just curse God and die (Job 2:9). Job was a miserable wreck of a man who had every reason to want to go to Heaven. Yet, what Job really, really wanted to see first was not golden, bejeweled, or even a thing…He wanted to see God.
Remember, what you want tells a lot about your heart. Instead of wanting to exchange his suffering for a new body; his poverty for wealth; his loneliness for a reunion with loved ones, all Job wanted was to see God with his own eyes, in his own flesh. This was his hope and desire all wrapped up in one.
For I know [that] my Redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this [I know], That in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. [How] my heart yearns within me! – Job 19:25-27 NKJV
What we fail to think about is that when we see God, all the other joys of Heaven will have to seem secondary! God, the highest of all that is good and lovely, the depth of Whose attributes can never be plumbed, will one day look into our eyes in a moment of total realization, understanding, and belonging. What else could compare? Sure, there will be other things in Heaven, but who will care if it takes a million years to get around to some of them?
Tell me what you want. What do you really, really want.
Do you want Heaven, or Him? There is a difference.
Filed under Christian Maturity, Future, God, salvation, the future, Uncategorized, worship
It’s June, and weddings are all the rage. But so are bachelor and bachelorette parties.
Dear Christian, I want to ask a serious question. Why do you think it’s acceptable in God’s eyes to act sinfully? If marriage is holy, and to be with your love is the greatest joy you can hope to have, what last fling, what last wild night, what time of debauchery is to be treasured so much that it will be missed when you say your vows?
I do find it strange that people who have bachelor and bachelorette parties even commit to marriage. Have you not found the one true love to which none other can compare? If so, then what is there to capture in one last night of freedom that he or she hasn’t already replaced or proven more desirable?
If you are engaged to be married, dear Christian, you have already made clear your intent to be faithful, not only after marriage, but until that wonderful and holy day. Therefore, if what you do the night of your party is something you could never do as a married person, you already suffer from a misconception and non-biblical view of marriage.
The following was written 10 years ago following a public gathering at which I spoke.
I look back on this with sadness because of all that transpired after the event. The organizer, Shelton Brown (last I heard) became an atheist. Public prayer at football games (and all other school events) was banned. All the prayer gathering did was make everybody look bold for a few moments, but then they went on their way.
Nothing changed because nobody would be a Daniel and pray anyway.
Now, here we are in a day when the government, well-meaning or not, is wielding great power over Christians (and religious people in general) in the name of our best interests, therefore depriving us of the ability to exercise our rights.
It doesn’t matter a hill of beans whether or not there is a virus; we must always be wary of elected officials who deny believers the right to pray in public, specifically in gatherings. And, when necessary, we need to do more than complain. Otherwise, we are not worthy to feed to the lions.
October, 2010
Last night I had the honor to participate in an event of community prayer. I was invited to speak by Shelton Brown, a student at Soddy Daisy High School. If you don’t know what happened, a whole bunch of people gathered together in the park to celebrate our right and freedom to pray, even though it was recently mandated that prayer be stopped before football games. This meeting was organized by students who decided enough was enough.
In my closing remarks (I spoke for 7 1/2 minutes) I brought up the story of Nehemiah, specifically a part in chapter 4, verse 20. Nehemiah, in response to threats from enemies intent on stopping them from rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem, set people on the wall as lookouts. Being that the wall was big and spread out, and being that there were few people, Nehemiah came up with a plan. He said :
The work is great and extensive, and we are separated far from one another on the wall. Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us.”
To me, and I am just little ol’ me, there should have been a lot more people present last night. Why? A trumpet was sounded for the body of Christ to come to the aid of not only Soddy Daisy, but for all of Hamilton County. An attack on our freedoms, as both Christians
and Americans, has come to our soil. Why is it that our schedules and programs and our own sections of the wall are more important than stopping the enemy somewhere else?
Last night was your typical “Wednesday night prayer meeting” night. Besides the fact that prayer is rarely the object of attention at most of these meetings, what would have been wrong with jumping in the church bus and heading to where the trumpet was sounding? Where there may have been 500+ at this event last night, there should have been 1-2000. Why were they not there? Because it was more important for local congregations to remain safe and snug in their own little sections of “the wall.” Here was a prime example of LEGALISM in action, for many did not want to participate in an event that featured speakers that weren’t of a particular denomination. Here was a prime example of LAZINESS, for it may have been difficult to get people together to go somewhere on a weeknight, especially if it wasn’t to Ryan’s or the bowling alley. Here was a prime example of DENIAL, PRIDE, and APATHY, for there were others that did not attend because they either didn’t think there’s a problem; it wasn’t their idea; or they just really didn’t care. Folks, what has been “typical” needs to be trashed.
This past Sunday I told my congregation that I would be in Soddy Daisy on Wednesday night because a trumpet had been sounded. I went to stand in the gap with my brothers and sisters that cared enough to make a public stand against the tyranny of a few over the wishes of the people. In the future, when other trumpets are sounded, I pray that the churches of our county and our country will rally together in defence of the few walls we have left in this nation that, for now, claims to be “under God.”
May our God truly fight for us, for we don’t seem to want to fight for oursleves.
…Remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses. – Nehemiah 4:14
Hey folks, may I encourage you to check out my friend Mitch Teemley and give some serious thought about watching his movie this week?
Mitch is a Christian blogger, but he’s also a movie guy – like as in making them, not just watching (like the rest of us). I’m going to watch it this week with my wife, then I’m going to share my honest thoughts about it.
Let’s all watch it and give God the glory for what he’s doing through our brother in Christ, Mitch!
God bless you, my friend! Maybe He will even throw in an Oscar 🙂
Healing River, a feature film I wrote and directed (originally titled Over-the-Rhine) has just premiered on Amazon Prime–and right on time for your weekend Movie Night! (Even if you’re not a Prime member you can watch it by clicking on the link below.) Winner of over twenty film festival awards, nominations and selections, Healing River is a powerful inspirational story about “forgiving the unforgivable.” You can watch the trailer now, and then watch (or order a copy of) the movie by clicking here.
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Just this week I uploaded a daily devotional I do online to YouTube. Then, as I usually do, I posted it to our church’s Facebook page.
The subject of this video is that of accepting God’s forgiveness, even when we don’t feel forgivable.
I would love your feedback.
Sorry for the goofy-looking face 😉
Filed under Bible Study, Christianity, Faith, Uncategorized
This is from my photo blog. In one of the pictures you can actually see the church I pastor from the front porch of our parsonage. I love living here 🙂
A Cross Trend
Not too long ago a lady put up a cross in her front yard, wrapped it with Christmas lights, and wrote on it, “FAITH OVER FEAR.”
She posted a picture of it on Facebook and before she knew it the idea took off. Now, at least in our area, there’s a community Facebook page solely devoted to pictures of crosses people have put in their yards.
My Version
It was no time until I started getting requests for me to put up a cross. People in my congregation messaged me, even my wife asked me, and so I was happy to join in with the movement.
I didn’t have any 2×4’s or the like, but I did have some decent particle board. And since I couldn’t drive it into the ground in my yard, I used zip ties to attach it to a column on our front…
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I was stunned when I understood what I was reading. The post I’m sharing came from David Welford, our precious friend in England. Please honor his godly mother by reading this.
Please pray for Rev. Ken Welford, David’s father.
My mother was born in 1933 in Aberdeen, Scotland. Two years before the start of the Second World War she and her mother relocated 600 miles south to Portsmouth, following her grandfather, James Robbie McDonald, who had moved to Portsmouth a few months earlier.
By moving south and into foreign English territory James Robbie McDonald set into motion a chain of events that resulted in his grand-daughter meeting my father some years later when Dad was based in Portsmouth while serving in the Royal Navy. I believe that God prompted James Robbie’s move south, and the set of circumstances that resulted in my parents meeting, falling in love, and remaining in love. There is of course photographic evidence showing that my father was a good catch, cutting quite a dashing figure in his naval uniform (almost as dashing as I was in mine!).
Doreen Helen Welford – Aged 18
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Do you ever catch yourself singing commercial jingles for no apparent reason? Well, when I am driving, bored, and a little (or a lot) sleepy, I tend to start singing songs I learned as a child. In particular, one song is tops on my repertoire…
The Oscar Mayer Wiener Song.
Oh, I wish I were an Oscar Mayer wiener / That is what I’d truly like to be ‘Cause if I were an Oscar Mayer wiener / Everyone would be in love with me.
First appearing in 1965, this song has become boiled, grilled, steamed, fried, and even micro-waved into our memories. But recently it struck me…what in the world am I saying? Am I so desperate for the attention of others that I would be willing to become an unhealthy food source?
There are many hurting people in the world who would wish for nothing more than someone to love them. They go to great lengths to be prettier, richer, more popular, or even more “available” – all to find love. But do you really think it’s a good idea to wish you were a hot dog?
What most people don’t know is that there was a second verse to the Oscar Mayer wiener song. In the 1965 commercial a truly intelligent boy quickly understood the true ramifications of the song’s wish and sang the following:
Oh, I’m glad I’m not an Oscar Mayer wiener / That is what I’d never want to be/ ‘Cause if I were an Oscar Mayer wiener / There would soon be nothing left of me.
Sing it, brother! You tell ’em! Why would anyone want to be a hot dog? Do you really want to be loved so badly that you would sacrifice your humanity and allow yourself to be eaten? It’s not worth it, people…believe me!
The lyrics to this song could be re-written to expose what people are really saying. “Oh I wish I was something else instead of human / A tube of meat is what I want to be / I’d gladly die alone in boiling water / If you would only say that you loved me.“
Look, there is no reason to want to become a hot dog (you might get eaten by one). Really, there is nothing to be gained by having your body boiled or grilled on an open flame; covered in chili, relish, mustard, and onions; then chewed repeatedly until you’re swallowed by someone who will forget you an hour later (unless the chili upsets them). Stay human. It’s better that way!
Ironically, someone did become something He was not in order to die for love. The big difference is that He was God and became Human, not a hot dog. And what’s more, He didn’t die to be loved – He died because He loved. His name is Jesus, and He died for you.
“For God so love the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting life.” – John 3:16 KJV
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8 NIV
You are VERY loved!
Filed under Food, General Observations, salvation, Uncategorized, Witnessing
The age of tolerance has become nearly intolerable.
I read a current event article titled “Swiss Airline May Have Dropped Christian Chocolate Company over Its Pro-Life Stance.”
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Preaching at Bethlehem Baptist
