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  Right or Wrong When you retire from a business such as General Motors, Microsoft, Ford, Chevrolet, Alabama Power, Exxon, and similar corporations, you will be assured of receiving continued support from the corporation through medical insurance, pension and so forth. We all know this and we all expect this from the reputable companies that have been around for a long while.  It is unthinkable for the corporations such as these to not do what they plainly stated they would do. To not do what they said they would do would cause their reputation, integrity, and trustworthiness to be compromised. For example, if you retired from Ford, and you decided after you retired to associate with Chevrolet, Ford would still live up to what they said they would do and continue to support you for the work you did for them. Maybe you worked for Exxon and retired from them. Exxon would still support you even if you were affiliated with Shell or one of the other gas companies. You would think that these
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  Salvation occurs when we fully trust Jesus Christ as our Savior. He forgives us, transforms us, and sees us as righteous. In that moment, known as justification, we are redeemed, and though we will continue to struggle with sin, it is a defeated enemy. Then as time goes on, our service, gifts, time and love for God should naturally become stronger.  Unfortunately, a lot of "Christians" sit in church each week after week, going through the motions yet lacking passion and failing to grow. How is that possible? Tragically, many believers are totally unaware of the essential ministry of God's Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a member of the Trinity and co-equal with God the Father (Yahweh) and God the Son (Jesus). The first chapter of the bible tells us that He existed before the formation of the earth and participated in creation (Genesis 1:2, 26). The Holy Spirit is a gift to every child of God. His presence within us isn't something we have to earn. Rather it is a wonderfu
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  Three major problems in our society! There are three major problems within our society and they affect many areas of our culture and country. The three problems are Pluralism, Relativism, and Tolerance. So we are all on the same page I offer the following definitions of these terms: Plurality/pluraliam -- the view that there are many ways to salvation, of which Christianity is one path. Relativism - (specifically moral relativism)-moral relativism asserts that truth cannot be found in any particular god, set of faith beliefs, or in any individual world religion. It believes a particular behavior might be deemed right for you but not for me. It leads that there can be no absolute truth. Tolerance - sympathy or indulgence for beliefs or practices differing from of conflicting with one's own. These three are strongly pushed by the Left and they are dangerous for our society. For example, we, as a society, are strongly urged to tolerate homosexuality as normal behavior. We see ads on
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 A Look at funerals.....                                               Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven; a time to be born, and a time to die." In the hospice industry, obviously, I deal with a lot of death and funerals. I have had several people ask "What good is a funeral?" or "What is the purpose of a funeral?" I considered these questions and this is how I would answer. Besides the potential for spreading potentially contagious diseases, we dispose of bodies via burial or cremation as an act of closure. But the funeral, known as a post-death ritual and ceremony, provides much more for the living. The funeral itself is a form of therapy. There is the therapy of language.- There are no silent funerals. Much of the language used in a funeral is repetitious. The bereaved vent their feelings through wailing, crying and sorrowful talk and find relief in the outlet. There is the therapy of sharing.
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  PRAYING   (Luke 11:5-13)  I am sometimes fascinated when some people pray. They seem to have a shopping list of requests they want Him to supply. These same people often give up praying if they feel God is not answering their prayers in the way they want them answered. And often they give up if He does not answer their prayers fast enough. This parable teaches the importance of persistence. The friend who needed bread kept asking for bread because he was confident of the outcome. People must not be deterred by an apparent lack of response. Jesus stated that God will certainly answer our prayers. If an answer is not evident, it may be that god has heard the prayer, but we have not listened to His answer. If we truly accept that god knows our needs better than we do, we must allow Him to respond to our prayers as He sees fit--not what we think is best. Sometimes it may be years after we have prayed for something that we realize that God did indeed hear or listen to our petitions.
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  Adulterous Woman (John 8:3-11) It can be difficult for people to break free of their past reputations. Ex-prisoners may find it hard to convince potential employers that they are reformed. People who have recovered from mental illness may still be viewed with suspicions by neighbors. Diseases such as multiple sclerosis can cause negative effects on people's attitudes. I remember not long after I was in the ministry I was appointed to a charge of three churches in south Choctaw County, Alabama. Before I entered the ministry I had been a security technician (read bouncer) at a local nightclub. Some of the people in one of these churches knew this and I experienced the hometown prophet syndrome. (see Luke 4:24) My reputation had preceded me. In the story about the adulterous woman ( John 8:3-11 ), those who brought the adulterous woman before Jesus were ready to publicly humiliate and condemn her for her immoral behavior. Jesus clarified the situation by turning the accusers back on
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  Read Luke 15:4-10-The Parable of the Lost Coin In the parable of the lost coin, in the ancient Middle East with dirt floors, low areas and limited light, it would have been easy to lose a coin if it was dropped in the home. The economy of the time made it so that a simple coin was valuable for the people. In the modern Western world, people are more likely to be concerned about the loss of a key, a ring, or a credit card than of a coin.  But a society in which people spend time and energy in recovering personal possessions does not always show the same determination to help those who are lost, such as the unemployed, the homeless, or alcoholics, to rediscover a meaningful worthwhile life.  People today may have trouble believing that God is so determined to find and bring home those who are separated from Him. When people accept God's love, however, they can pass it on with the same single-mindedness as the shepherd and the woman who lost the coin. This is surely a cause for joyf
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