Proverbs 4:18 - But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day. I just heard someone say, "In God, your future is so bright, you have to squint to see it". Don’t you love it!? I instantly thought of today's verse, which has blessed me countless times. That’s why I never have issues with...
Read MoreDon't Get Mess-Merized
Ephesians 4:17 "this I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their minds". Have you ever spoken to someone who was there physically, but you knew that they weren’t there mentally? Have you ever been someplace physically, but your thoughts were someplace else far away?...
Read More"Whatsup"
Revelation 3:20 "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to Him, and I will SUP with him, and he with ME" (Emphasis mine). "Whatsup" or "whasup", that's what my kids always would say to me years ago. "Hey dad, WHASUP?" It's a combination of two words, what's and up. Recently a beautiful family from a church that I had been privileged to preach at, invited me to their home for "supper"...
Read MoreExhale
Genesis 12:2 (Amplified Bible) - “And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you {with an abundant increase of favors} and make your name famous and distinguished, and you will be a blessing {dispensing good to others}”. There's a really great song that says it all for me about grace, it's called Exhale by Plumb. Listen to these powerful lyrics...
Read MoreAll in the Family
Genesis 12:3 (Amplified Bible) - "And I will bless those who bless you [who confer prosperity or happiness upon you] and curse him who curses {or} uses insolent language toward you; in you will all the families {and} kindred of the earth be blessed [and by you they will bless themselves]." If you are over 50 years old, you may remember the 1970's hit TV comedy, All in the Family, depicting a so-called typical blue collar family from New York City. Who can forget the head of the house, Archie Bunker, extremely...
Read MoreThe Perfect Resort
Psalm 71:3 (Amplified Bible) "Be to me a rock of refuge in which to dwell, {and} a sheltering stronghold to which I may continually resort, which You have appointed to save me, for You are my Rock and my Fortress." Whether you made your summer vacation plans many months ago or several days ago, the anticipation of getting away is like no other. The countdown starts…
Read MoreWhat a View - by Natalie Fortunato
Psalm 61:2 (New King James Version) “From the end of the earth I will cry to You, when my heart is overwhelmed; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” Several summers ago our family celebrated my sister’s wedding in Ouray, Colorado, professed to be (by its residents) as the “Switzerland of America”. A perfectly fitting name for this picturesque little town...
Read MoreThe Honeymoon is Never Over
Romans 5:8-9: “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.” For those of you who are married, remember how wonderful your honeymoon was? I hope so! You and your spouse...
Read MoreJust Bring Yourself
Hebrews 8:10 - "I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people". When I was single, I got a lot of dinner invitations to people's homes, and I would always ask them, "What can I bring?". Being that I wasn't the most domesticated bachelor, I couldn't bake, and I couldn't cook very well, they would always answer...
Read MoreError Message
Romans 2:4 – “…the goodness of God leads you to repentance”. For so long, Satan has trapped people into a sin consciousness, always thinking about what’s “wrong”, a performance based system of measuring our worth, accusing us of every little thing. That’s a lousy way to live, but so clever on his part. Why? He knows if he can...
Read MoreWhat's In YOUR Attic?
Hebrews 11:15 – “And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return.” There are two really cool things that I remember about the house that I grew up in. First...
Read MoreAdding Fuel to the Fire
1 Corinthians 15:56 – “The strength of sin is the law”. Recently in the news was a story of a man that accidentally set fire to three cars while trying to get rid of bed bugs! The New Yorker was hospitalized after dousing the interior of his rental car with...
Read MoreA Living Legacy
Hebrews 9:17 – “For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.” The late great North Carolina Men’s Basketball coach, Dean Smith, who passed away this past February at age 83, was one of the most successful college coaches in history. Smith was called a...
Read MoreBed, Bath, Beyond
John 5:8 – “Rise, take up thy bed and walk”. Many of you are familiar with the retail store called Bed, Bath and Beyond, great name, right? Great truth too…from John’s gospel, a bed, bath and beyond experience like no other!...
Read MoreWho's Your Daddy?
John 17:25-26 – “O righteous Father, indeed the world has not known You; but I have known You, and these have known that You have sent me. And I made known to them Your name, and will make it known, so that the love with which You have loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” In the movie Taken, Liam Neeson plays a character named Bryan, the father of a young adult girl abducted in Paris by a human trafficking ring. The outlook is not good as the daughter...
Read MoreBobo's Back!
Matthew 6:9 “Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed by thy name”. Some of you may remember me talking about Bobo in recent years, a dog in my neighborhood where I grew up. He was chained up in the yard at his house, all day long, rain or shine, near the softball field where we played. Bobo was a huge black dog with matted fur and very large teeth, and barked nonstop. Unfortunately...
Read MoreAbsalomic Vinegar
2 Samuel 15:2 – “And Absalom rose up early, and stood beside the way of the gate: and it was so , that when any man that had a controversy came to the king for judgment, then Absalom called unto him, and said, Of what city art thou? And he said, Thy servant is of one of the tribes of Israel.” I really enjoy a nice salad with my dinner…and my dressing of choice – balsamic vinaigrette! Did you know that the name balsamic comes from...
Read More"Thanks-given"
2 Peter 1:3 "According as his divine power has "given" unto us all things..." My favorite holiday to celebrate has always been Thanksgiving. As a child, I have great memories of our family going to the big rivalry football game on Thanksgiving morning and then...
Read MoreThe 24-Hour Rule
Philippians 3:13 - “But this one thing I do, forgetting...” After a touch and go, back and forth, high drama battle against a top 10 college team, Hugh Freeze, coach of the Ole Miss Rebels football team, finally came out on top. It was the first time in decades that the University of Mississippi was on the radar for an important game. Amidst the celebration and student stampede to take down the goal post, ESPN interviewed Coach Freeze right on the field. They asked, “You just won one of the biggest games in Ole Miss history, what are you gonna do next week for an encore?” His answer...
Read MoreThe "Mess-terpiece"
Ephesians 2:10 (New Living Translation) “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago”. If you haven’t seen it already, I highly recommend the movie Moms Night Out for you and your family. It’s a wonderful celebration of the “mess” that sometimes comes with parenting. In the movie, when the moms go out for a much needed night out with the girls...
Read More