Divine Serendiptity in the Seattle Airport

September 23, 2009

To put matters in perspective, 24 hours ago I was at Cedar Springs Conference Center in Sumas, Washington. Tonight I’m writing this entry from my office at home in Tupelo, Mississippi. Between then and now I’ve had approximately two hours of sleep, mostly because I had to get up at 3:15 AM to make my flight from Bellingham to Seattle. I…

Oats in the Bucket

September 22, 2009

I’m writing this near midnight from my room at Cedar Springs Lodge in Sumas, Washington. It is a serene place, a hidden jewel that is truly hidden. Sumas (pronounced Soo-Mass, I learned) isn’t exactly a destination. It’s really a little town across the border from Abbotsford, British Columbia. I never got to visit Sumas because we…

On the Road to Sumas, Washington

September 21, 2009

This morning I’m starting a long journey that begins in Tupelo and will end late this afternoon in Sumas, Washington. If you’ve never heard of Sumas, well, that’s not surprising because it’s a tiny town located on the northern edge of Washington, just across the border from Abbotsford, British Columbia. To get there I’…

The Steps and Stops of Life

September 20, 2009

A few years ago we led a tour of the Holy Land and Greece. Everything had gone smoothly until we arrived in the Athens airport. Then it happened. Two members of our group were detained by the Greek customs officials because their passports contained invalid visas. To those who never travel overseas that may not sound serious, but it is. A vi…

Give Me Jesus

September 19, 2009

Here’s a beautiful version of “Give Me Jesus” recorded by Fernando Ortega as a tribute to Ruth Graham. If you need to steady your soul after a hectic week, watch this video and let its truth wash over your soul….

Friday Night Musings

September 18, 2009

**I’m writing this note from our hotel room in Birmingham, Alabama. We drove over from Tupelo this afternoon so we could have dinner with Nick and Elizabeth. Tomorrow we plan to visit the Alabama State Fair in nearby Pelham–if it ever stops raining. It seems like we’ve had rain for two weeks, and the current forecast calls for mor…

We had Church Tonight

September 16, 2009

I am finally back in my hotel room after the most amazing Wednesday night service I’ve ever attended. Earlier this evening I spoke to about 150 people at the Couples Class at Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Florida. As soon as we were finished, Pastor H. B. Charles, Jr (you should check out his blog) hustled me upstairs so…

Three Cheers for the Church Office

September 14, 2009

The other day I received a newsletter in the mail from the First Baptist Church of Russellville, Alabama. That in itself is not a remarkable event since I’ve been receiving those weekly newsletters for 39 years. And I suppose during all that time I’ve never given much thought to it, but each week, regular as clockwork, the First Baptist…

We’re Glad to Share What God Has Given us

September 13, 2009

Here is the 8th and final thing you need to know about Keep Believing Ministries . . .8. We’re glad to share what God has given us.That means we give our stuff away. All of it, all the time. We give away all 800+ sermons, all 300+ articles, and the 100+ podcasts. And we give away blog entries also. We give away our FAQs. We email a free sermo…

Threads of Circumstance

During my college years I worked briefly at a carpet mill in Chattanooga, Tennessee. My job was fairly low-tech, mostly pushing a broom and keeping the walkways clean. In my spare moments I loved to watch the huge carpet machines at work. As I stood in the back I could see huge spools of yarn—dozens of them, of every conceivable color—s…