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In that, they remind me of the rest of the world. Boy, do we ever live in a complaining society. People complain about everything. For instance, the following are actual responses from comment cards given to staff members at the “Bridger Wilderness Area.” People wrote: Trails need to be wider so people…

Now this causes us some confusion, because if we look at the circumstances of life seeking to discern God’s concern, it may be hard to trace out. Just ask the distraught mother who is watching her little baby struggle to breathe in the ICU if God cares and, in that moment, she may doubt. There’s a reason…

I can draw a picture of this from the NFL. Just a few weeks ago, Philadelphia was playing New York. New York came out on fire and jumped to a big lead. I’m sure the Giants were feeling confident that they would win. But then there was an amazing comeback, and the Eagles ties the score. New York got the…

Yet, even in the church, it is often rare, especially among our “celebrities.” I’ve heard the horror story of prima-donna pastors and persnickety Christian music stars. In fact, humility is so rare, we’re surprised when we find it. Gordon MacDonald tells of one such moment: It was in his earlier years…

I still remember hearing Bro. Bert Tippett preach a message on this passage of scripture many years ago now. Little did I know at the time that I would be privileged to have his son as my partner in ministry, nor did I know that I would be treated to a front row seat as this man of God showed all of…

Many of you in this church serve so consistently and quietly that you rarely get any praise. It touches my heart every time I see some of our faithful ladies arriving early to work in the nursery or coming out during the work to clean toys, put up bulletin boards and set up their rooms. The other week…

The reason I am so excited about this is because I have seen it work. It was just before Christmas of 2008 when I looked at my office phone and realized I had a message. I dialed in and listened. On the other end of the line there was a voice that said, “Hello, This is Gordon. I’d like to come by and…

Police visited Vladimir, a resident of Berlin Germany. They confiscated his air raid siren because neighbors were complaining about it’s piercing wail. Which may leave you asking the question, “Why did Vladimir have an air raid siren to begin with?” It’s simple: Vladimir was tired of his wife’s loud…

Another married couple had a quarrel and ended up giving each other the silent treatment. A week into their mute argument, the man realized he needed his wife's help. In order to catch a flight to Chicago for a business meeting, he had to get up at 5 a.m. Not wanting to be the first to break the silence,…

I read of one man who read a book entitled, Man of the House, while he was riding the train to and from work. On the evening he finished the book, this newly “enlightened” husband stormed into his home and confronted his wife. Pointing his finger in her face, he said, "From now on, I want you to know…

I still remember hearing Bro. Bert Tippett preach a message on this passage of scripture many years ago now. Little did I know at the time that I would be privileged to have his son as my partner in ministry, nor did I know that I would be treated to a front row seat as this man of God showed all of…

It was this calling that Dietrich Bonhoeffer heard. In his book, The Cost of Discipleship, Bonhoeffer wrote, “When God calls a man, He bids him (to) come and die.” Bonhoeffer knew whereof he spoke. He was a rising academic, a promising theologian and a german pastor. His promising academic and ecclesiastical…

Pastor and writer, John Ortberg writes of what he said was one of the most important moments in his spiritual life. He sat down with a longtime Christian friend and told him, “I don’t want to have any secrets anymore.” He says, I told him everything I was most ashamed of. I told him about my jealousies,…

In 1730, Count Zinzendorf told the Moravians about the urgent need for missionaries to evangelize the slaves on the Virgin Islands. Leonard Dober listened to Zinzendorf’s appeal. As he pondered God’s calling, Dober felt led to respond. God was calling him to reach out to the slaves there, so he decided…

Author Henri Nouwen tells the story of a family he knew in Paraguay. The father was a doctor who courageously spoke out against the terrible human rights abuses of military regime which was in power. As you can imagine, the two-bit dictator of this impoverished country took issue with this offense. Local…

Happened to me back in the summer. Kathy and I were ready for vacation. We were going to the National Association Meeting in Oklahoma City. Since driving there would take us through Arkansas, guess what we did. That’s right! We drove! (The reason for those of you who don’t know is that my grandson and…

You see, every sin you’ve ever committed in your life was, ultimately, a failure of faith. And it is really amazing to note just how quickly our faith can fail: They arrived at the mountain with great anticipation. Moses had told them that something great was going to happen. They’d seen the power of…

A police officer in a native settlement in northern Canada told this story. One day a rabid wolf came into the camp. Eventually, the police officer killed the wolf, but he was not able to do so before it attacked a young man and his Grandmother . . . in their home, making kindling out of a chair the…

Ok, I know that picture may give you the “willies.” It sure does give them to me! This is an Anaconda and, according to National Geographic, these snakes can grow to a weight of 550 pounds! Wow! Now you know why I’m not ready to go on the mission trip down the Amazon! Someone in the Peace Corps once…

There was a time in our world during both the First and second World Wars when men and women who served their country would go off and many times would be gone four or five years before they ever came home. We're told that a good Marine serving his country went off to fight. When he left, his wife was…

It was A.D. 111. The governor of Bithynia was a lawful man named, Pliny, the younger. He wanted a peaceful reign, but it was not to be. Christianity was the problem. It was so prevalent in his province that the idol temples were all but abandoned. Christianity was catching on like wildfire. Something…

The truth is that, often, we want to be anything but a shepherd. And, by the way, that’s often what our people want to. In 1875, the following want add appeared in the Milwaukee Sentinel Wanted- A rector for St. James' Church. He must possess all Christian graces and a few worldly ones; must have such…

His was a rags to riches story. One day he was a slave, the next day he was a Prince. As an infant, he was placed in the Kings care and everything he ever thought about wanting was his. But there was a calling on his life. From the day he became aware of anything, his mother taught him that he was not…

German pastor Martin Rinkart served in the walled town of Eilenburg during the horrors of the Thirty Years War of 1618-1648. Eilenburg became an overcrowded refuge for the surrounding area. The fugitives suffered from epidemic and famine. At the beginning of 1637, the year of the Great Pestilence, there…

Those are some of my favorite scenes from that movie where Bruce Willis, in his hard-hearted personality, tells whiners to call the “wambulance.” Do you ever feel like that? I do sometimes. I especially feel like that when I hear some of the criticism that the world has for the church today. I feel that…