Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit"; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that." (James 4:13-15) Those verses are not only familiar, they are in some ways even comforting. There is a marvelous unkno

In just the first three chapters of the Bible we go from the creation of humanity to the first recorded sin. It doesn’t take long to come face to face with the idea of free will. God put Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden and gave them the power to choose. Sometimes we describe children as going through the “terrible two’s.” Child psychologists describe this phase of life as the beginning of oppositional behavior. The truth is that little children about this age are just di

Bro. Joe Barnett wrote a great little booklet on the nature of the churches of Christ titled, “Who are these people?” I had a call from a neighbor many years ago who wanted to know what special program our church was having on Christmas Eve. He was shocked when I told him “none.” He was genuinely curious when he asked, “Why not? Everybody else is!” For those coming from a denomination to begin to understand churches of Christ , they must sooner or later frame this question

Thursday and Friday of each week are typically designated as “bulletin days.” Other things are done but completing the bulletin is big on the list. The bulletin is a highly coordinated effort that starts with Betty Hall, then it gets sent to me for editing, creative filling, an article or two and then goes back to Betty for printing and folding. This process goes on despite the challenges of holidays. Even Thanksgiving. While sorting through some old papers this week, I f

For some of us “old timers” who sing along with the “classic rock” stations, there’s a good chance you still remember the opening lines from a song released in 1970! Even if you’re not a fan you may still remember the chorus: “Does anybody really know what time it is? Does anybody really care (about time).” My dependence on an electronic clock (my phone) and an electronic calendar (on my phone) declare I care about time. So do you. Our schedules are crazy complicated. Ou

(John 2:11) This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee... and his disciples believed on him. (John 2:23) Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did. (John 3:2) ... “Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.” (John 6:2) And a great multitude followed him, because they saw his miracles whic

One of the most divisive and chaotic election campaigns has come to an end. During this time Christians in America have faced many opportunities to exercise patience and let our faith shine. Chances are each of us have experienced some failures and some successes. Politicians and pundits will now judge and discuss the consequences of the election. But whatever those consequences may be, for Christians there are three truths to which we must now turn our attention. Your brothe

The phrase “Word of God” or “Word of the LORD” occurs 329 times in the Bible (KJV). The Word is not to be treated with disrespect. I personally recall as a boy going to Athens' Bible School that my Mom had taught me to put the Bible on top of all other books. We were taught early not to scribble or draw pictures in our Bible and certainly never to tear pages out of this precious book. It was not because of the cost or that the book itself was so precious, but the respect wa

Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. ”But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was t

If you have listened to a country radio in the last few months, you have likely heard the song called "Be a Light" (given that they have a rotation of what seems to be like about 10 songs). The premise of the song is rooted in the fact that we live in a world filled with hate and darkness. The plea of the artists is that in a world that is filled with such evil, we need to stand up and be a light. The song has a great message, especially since it was a message first coined

NOTE: The following article appeared originally in the Forest Park Newsletter in Atlanta. It was later reprinted in the bulletin published by the North Jackson congregation in Jackson, TN, and now it is reproduced here. 2006 marked the centennial of the official split between the Christian Church and the Churches of Christ. One key difference then and now is the issue of instrumental music in the worship. Two stories surrounding J. W. McGarvey are presented below in the hopes

A huge part of all relationships is built on trust. Marriages do not usually last very long after one of the partners comes to the point where they do not trust the other anymore. In going rock climbing with Lonnie and various groups of kids, I saw some scoot quickly up a rock face. Then after reaching the top they were almost paralyzed with fear when they had to lean back against the rope (trust it) to come down. There was a time when I was flying dozens of hours a month f

We were walking across the hotel parking lot where our group was staying. It was a pleasant day with just a slight breeze. The warm sunshine gave the solid promise of spring nearing. The conversation had ranged through many topics. Eventually we landed on the nature of television programs and both of us were equally dismayed at the display of flesh, sexuality and profanity. We agreed that at home, neither of us subscribed to the cable channels which carried the worst of s

Blessed are those who are too tired and busy to worship God, for they are praising my name. Blessed are those who gossip liberally,  for they can divide the greatest kingdoms. Blessed are those critical of church leadership, for they are destroyers of confidence and creators of doubt. Blessed are those who work tirelessly for schools and clubs and themselves, but never for the church, for their loyalties are clear. Blessed are those Christians who speak ill of the church a

Jesus prayed for his followers to be one, “that the world may believe." Denominational division in “Christendom” and strife and factions in Christ's church hinder evangelism and missions. At the World Missionary Conference in 1910, a delegate from the Far East said, “You have sent us your missionaries, who have introduced us to Jesus Christ, and for that we are grateful. But you have also brought us your distinctions and divisions: some preach Methodism, others Lutheranism,

”Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, {3} explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.” {4} And some of them were persuaded; and a great multitude of the devout Greeks, and not a few of the leading women, joined Paul and Silas. {5} But the Jews who were not persuaded, becoming envious, took some of the

Money may buy housing, but not a home. Money may buy bedding, but not sleep. Money may buy clocks, but not time. Money may buy books, but not wisdom. Money may buy food, but not an appetite. Money may buy influence, but not respect. Money may buy medicine, but not health. Money may buy security guards, but not peace of mind. Money may buy companionship, but not love. Money may buy insurance, but not safety. Money may buy things, but not satisfaction. Money may buy religion, b

But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, ”Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”' (Luke 15:17-19) Those beloved words from Jesus give us the heart of repentance. They include many concepts of which we will note only four. Re

Tim, I enjoyed your sermon Simply Jesus and it has been on my mind this week with all of the things going on for our family. I decided to jot some of my thoughts down, that maybe you could use in the bulletin (or not) but wanted to pass along. Keep up the good work and keep fighting the good fight. - Seth What it is made of is nothing special, just some stained wood connected with screws. It is however special, better than what most people buy. It is solid, sturdy, and ma

When I was growing up, our summer church camp was Camp Bandina. The camp was about forty miles northwest of San Antonio, Texas, in the rolling hills of central Texas. It was a rustic place at the time. Most of the cabins just had screen windows. The dining pavilion was open air with just a top. One of the highlights for most kids at camp was swimming. There was no sissy swimming pool at Camp Bandina; we swam in the river! It was COLD spring-fed river water right out of the Te