Filled With Expectation

As I read the verses for today, I think of the Johnny Carson show where Ed McMahon announced, “Heeeeere’s Johnny!!!” The expectation of the audience was raised when those words were spoken with excitement. I remember watching the Johnny Carson Show and loving hearing him announced. I think a similar response happened with the crowd aroundContinue reading “Filled With Expectation”

Life Lived for Christ

Max Lucado says, “think what you think about.” One of the things I appreciate about this is that is forces us to think about why we do the things that we do. Our life is supposed to show our love of God and love of people. Jesus said in John 13, “everyone will know youContinue reading “Life Lived for Christ”

Peace of God

The hustle and bustle of the Christmas season will bring even the best of us to out wits end. We hear the story of Christ being born; yet we go about our busy lives as if nothing has changed. There are so many things to worry about. The media doesn’t help. God is with usContinue reading “Peace of God”

Sing to the Lord

What are some of your favorite songs to sing this time of year? Mine are “Joy to the World” and “O Holy Night.” In fact, these are two songs I would like to be sung at my memorial service after I pass away. The reason is because, even in death, there still can be joy.Continue reading “Sing to the Lord”

Rejoice!

Christmastime is such a joyous time of year for so many people. This is the time we celebrate families with gift giving, parties, travel, and much more. We can see the good things in life, when we get together. Unfortunately, many people do not have this same experience of this time of year. So manyContinue reading “Rejoice!”

Salvation & Hope

Are we really ready for Christmas? This is the question we should ask ourselves during the season of Advent. There is so much more than just a baby being born and angels in the skies and shepherds. This is the story of God coming down to be on of us and live the life weContinue reading “Salvation & Hope”

God’s Invading

Last week, a New York newspaper ran a headline that said, “God is not fixing this,” in response to the shootings that happened in San Bernardino, CA. The article was saying that something has to be done and people can’t “hide” behind meaningless phrases – more specifically, “my thoughts and prayers with with…” When weContinue reading “God’s Invading”

Wilderness & Crooked Paths

Advent is a season we prepare our hearts and lives for the coming of the Christ child and anticipate His return. As we look into the process of preparing our lives, we can see how crooked and off the path we have gotten at times. It seems to be human nature to look after onlyContinue reading “Wilderness & Crooked Paths”

Proclaiming God’s Forgiviness

We have several topics of conversation during the Christmas holidays. We’ll talk of love, family, weather (good or rough), relationships, parties, gifts, etc. Our conversations are around the goodness of the season. Yet, this is one of the most stressful times of the year. During this season, it seems we are more likely to beContinue reading “Proclaiming God’s Forgiviness”

John the Baptist

John the Baptist is one of my favorite biblical characters because he definitely stands out and people take notice of him. He is memorable, not only of his message, but of his clothing and food choices. Though the Gospel of Luke does not mention him wearing camel’s hair and eating locusts and wild honey, MatthewContinue reading “John the Baptist”