David and Jeremiah – What a Contrast!

I've been reading through the Bible every year since 1976. This year I made up my own schedule. Just a simple plan, nothing really well thought-out or directed toward any specific purpose. So I just "happened" to read the end of 1 Chronicles at the same time I was reading near the end of Jeremiah. Saw an interesting contrast by doing that, which I though worth mentioning. David and Jeremiah were both men of God. But how different their lives were because of the situations in which they found themselves! It's why I always say we need to read the whole Bible, not just our favorite parts. That's the only way to get a balanced view of things. 

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Surviving Hurricane Hermine

Well, for those of you on Facebook, you already know what I wrote there. The hurricane came through north of us, so we dodged the bullet in that respect. But oh, don’t think we didn’t get hit at all! The forces of nature are so powerful! That storm is still hammering people, all the way up the east coast!

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Our back yard
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Looking across our street
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Our neighbor across the street
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This is our new house – an island to itself!
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I’m standing in the middle of our street, looking south
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Here I’m looking north on our street
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Do you think the mail will come today?

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From Desert to Swamp

VBOR 2Tuesday we put a contract on a house. It’s not what you see on the right. That’s just where we’ve been staying. But we think we’ve found the one for us here in Homosassa Springs, Florida.

What a contrast between El Paso Texas and Homosassa Springs! El Paso is a Western city. This is the Southeast. El Paso is desert. This is an area where boats and water are the main drawing card. El Paso is so dry. This is a place of springs and swamps, rivers, lakes, the Gulf of Mexico, heavy humidity and almost daily downpours of rain.

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A New and Living Temple

A New and Living Temple

Ez. 47:1-12

In the short time my wife and I have been here at Beth El, pastor Eric has been speaking about how Jesus said He would build His Church. But Ez. 47 is about a Temple. What’s the connection? The Church is actually the new temple of God, according to 1 Cor. 3:16-17 and 6:19-20. We are all individual temples, and together, we form the corporate temple. Temples are very important to God, and often spoken of in scripture, as in our text this morning. The Temple of God is meant to communicate some really important facts about God, our relationship with Him, and our mission as His people.

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The Holy Spirit’s Role in Raising up Leaders

In my final paper for a graduate course in Foundations of Christian Leadership, there were five questions or issues I was to address. My purpose was to develop each of the assigned sections into a statement of principles that would serve as foundations for my responsibilities and continuing growth as a Christian leader. After completing the course, I was to develop a teaching or study to share with others. What follows is the first section of the paper, tweaked just a bit to make it into a study for others to read and consider.

In the first question or section, I was to affirm the role of the Holy Spirit in the emergence and raising up of Christian leaders. I found this to be very appropriate, because it seems to me that recognizing the Spirit’s role is key to everything else of importance in the realm of Christian life, leadership, and ministry. Let me first explain why I believe that…

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