Posts filed under The Gospel
Holy Snake Handling Batman!
Jamie Coots, a preacher in a church in Middlesboro, KY, died recently from a snake bite. Coots was a "snake-handler" and frequently used snakes in the church as part of a show of "faith." This brand of Christianity is sadly still alive and well in the mountains of my home state of Kentucky, as well as Appalachia in general. But Jamie Coots is dead.
Real or Not . . . What My Fake Curls Teach Me
People want to touch it...they run their fingers through it...they laugh when it springs back. Goodness... my hair has been a real source of wonder for those around me since I curled it....the only thing is...the curl is fake. It is the result of a very costly well done perm. It acts like a regular head of curl would act but there are distinct differences that set it apart.
And the Grammy Goes To . . .
Apparently Americans are no longer free to get up and walk out on a performance or awards show or speech without being accused of all sorts of crazy vile things. (Funny thing, I have people get up and walk out while I'm preaching nearly every Sunday. Some return. Others stay gone. But nobody is accusing them of crazy vile things.)
The Duck Dynasty Dilemma
It was inevitable.
When to Have Kids?
A Gallup Poll found that most Americans think women should start having children by age 25. Seems reasonable to me, if not a bit late! But then again I'm considered "far right" and far too religiously conservative for "most Americans."
Distracted Homes
A few weeks ago I received a pamphlet advertising Christian Youth Camps and Events across North America. This particular organization puts on various camps with various emphases, such as a missions camp or an urban camp. But one of the options really got stuck in my craw sideways and has been lodged there ever since.
What Sportsmanship?
If we were to ask a random sampling of parents of high-schoolers what purpose sports serve, we might get some of the following answers:
Waiting
I hear it when I go to Wal-mart....when I stand in line at subway...when I do business at the bank....everywhere I go...
Your dog or your neighbor?
Ray Comfort has a new DVD titled "Evolution v. God" It is typical, solid stuff that we have come to expect from our brother Ray. I would encourage you to purchase the DVD or watch it on the web Here. Then share it with others and show it to others.
Where did it go?
Time is a funny thing. It moves all the time. It moves quietly so you're not even aware of it leaving. Life happens and things are busy and it just keeps moving while its busy. Today my daughter, my youngest daughter Rebecca, got engaged. What a joyful lovely day for Becca and all those who love her! And while I sit here on my couch (that my precious beautiful friends bought me) I think about all the time I've had to love Becca. I can see her so clearly down through the years. I see her running around with a basketball in her shirt because she thought it was funny. I see her hiding from her sisters behind the tree while she was yelling I'm here I'm here. I see her crying because she lost Jewel Parkhill whom she loved so dearly .....asking all kinds of questions about God and death and why. I see her face lit up when daddy comes in the door... so excited to see him. I see her wrestling with her sisters in the living room floor laughing hysterically because she could finally take them. But the thing I'm thinking most right now is the ending of this season. Did I treasure it enough? Did I love it? Sometimes when our kids are little we think things like ....its always going to be this way ...what good am i doing? It's because we can't see the long-term picture. It's because we get caught up in the small everyday things and we forget we are raising adults who someday will leave. I thank God today that I treasured every minute. I think God that even the hard days were treasures to me and her dad. While I sit and remember I pray this... I pray that I will love this new season. I pray that I will love this new joy. I pray that I will only mourn for a short time and then I will rejoice in what God is doing with her.. to her.. through her ...and for her. Seasons come and go. Time does not stop. You can choose how to spend your time. You can choose how to enjoy your seasons. You can gripe about the snow... you can gripe about the cold.. you can gripe about the heat...but you cannot change the seasons of your life. They will pass and they cannot be retrieved. I beg you live them with screaming joy....live them with passion...live them unto the glory of God who made them. Live them with tears and laughter. Live them in real genuine truth. Live them so that you wont regret when they are gone.