Blog

A Surprising Question from an Inmate (that turned into a powerful lesson)

I was preaching to the women’s group at the Catoosa County Jail back in November when something very rare took place. My message was on the Unparalleled Resurrection of Jesus Christ out of Mark Chapter 16. But in order to prove the resurrection of Jesus Christ, I first had to show the certainty of Jesus…

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Reflections on 2018

Looking back over 2018, I have found this past year to be one of the most challenging years of ministry. I have shot myself in the foot more times than I would like to admit. I have seen more of the worst of who I am on the inside than I ever thought was there….

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Praise, my soul, the King of heaven

I came across this hymn today. It was a blessing to my heart. It was written by Henry Francis Lyte in 1834. 1 Praise, my soul, the King of heaven; to his feet your tribute bring. Ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven, evermore his praises sing. Alleluia, alleluia! Praise the everlasting King! 2 Praise him for his…

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Tomorrow

I was listening to Dr. John Phillips this morning and he quoted a poem from Robert Laidlaw’s booklet “The Reason Why” to press the urgency of the gospel call: “Tomorrow,” he promised his conscience, Tomorrow I mean to believe, Tomorrow I’ll think as I ought to, Tomorrow the Saviour receive. Tomorrow I’ll conquer those habits…

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Welcome Home

While preaching at the jail yesterday on Romans 10:13, I talked about the night I called upon the Lord. It was not a speech or a sonnet or a sermon. I just cried out to God from the depths of my being. While preaching, God brought that moment back to my heart so fresh and…

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Titus Coan and Looking to Jesus

Learned something interesting today. Titus Coan was a Missionary to the sandwich islands arriving there in 1835. He was at the center of a powerful awakening on the island where 13000 of the 16000 inhabitants we’re converted to Christ. In 1881, Coan suffered a stroke which rendered him bedridden for the last eight weeks of…

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Animal Attack Upon Christian Worshipers

It never ceases to amaze me the constant number of firsts I have in the ministry. Yesterday at the Catoosa County jail, during the ladies’ service I experienced a first in my 16 years gospel ministry. While the whole congregation was standing to sing “Love Lifted Me” I noticed a disturbance on the front row….

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Ministry Received or Achieved

The past few weeks have been unsettling. Ministry decisions have been made and directions have been taken that have had what might be considered negative consequences. And I have wondered if I have messed up future opportunities to preach at different churches. One can easily fall prey to a ministry mindset that to be used…

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99% Invisible and “My God Is A Rock In The Weary Land”

I was listening to the 99% Invisible podcast this morning. The episode was entitled “The Great Dismal Swamp” was about a huge swamp on the boarder between Virginia and North Carolina where for over a 100 years escaped slaves lived in hiding. It was a fascinating story. But at the end, the host played an…

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What Length would you go to for Forgiveness?

On July 16 of this year, two Chattanooga military locations were attacked by a lone gunman named Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez. Five American service men along with were gunned down during the attack. Also Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez was also killed. This attack shocked all of us. I remember driving back home from a meeting in Alabama…

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