Posted by Ray Pritchard on 9.21.10 in Devotional
If a pastor has 50 people in his church, 60 is a big increase. And 75 is even better, and 100 is a near-miracle. But what if 700 people suddenly showed up one Sunday? Would that be a miracle or a nightmare?Moderate success we can handle. Overwhelming success can destroy us because we’re not ready for it. When Jesus called Peter in Luke 5…
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 8.15.10 in Devotional, Prayer
Last year I wrote several times about my friend Andy McQuitty, pastor of Irving (TX) Bible Church, who was diagnosed in the summer of 2009 with Stage 4 colon cancer. Marlene and I have known Andy and his wife Alice since 1983 when we served together at Northeast Bible Church in Garland, Texas. They are dear friends to us. On Monday and Tuesda…
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 7.27.10 in Devotional, Questions, Theology
An email arrived from a friend with some discouraging news. She and her husband had launched out on a new venture that, so far at least, has not worked out, putting them in some financial difficulty. A friend at their church urged them to consider applying for help from a fund set up for that purpose (I am leaving out some identifying details). Wha…
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 7.22.10 in Devotional
Since Monday I’ve been speaking on the of “Outrageous Grace” from the book of Jonah at Pinebrook Bible Conference. After I finished my final message tonight, it occurred to me that I left one important detail hanging in the air.Did Jonah ever repent?We know that when God told him to go to Nineveh (in modern-day Iraq), he boarded a…
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 7.16.10 in Devotional
I met a pastor several years ago who shared a thoughtful insight with me. Sometimes in our attempt to reach out to the prodigals we know, we can intervene too soon. Do remember what happened to the prodigal son in Luke 15? After he had wasted all his inheritance in wild living, he ended up feeding the pigs. As Eugene Peterson puts it, “He was…
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 7.1.10 in Devotional
I woke up this morning and realized that the first half of 2010 is already gone. How quickly the days and weeks pass from us. As we enter the second half of the year, here are three questions that help us focus on relationships that may need mending. 1. Is there is a broken relationship in my life that I need to deal with?All of us have relationsh…
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 6.10.10 in Devotional, Theology
I’ve been pondering Paul’s statement in Ephesians 1:15 that he prayed for them when he heard about “their faith in the Lord Jesus and their love for all the saints.” It’s that last phrase that grabbed me. The NLT says, “Your love for God’s people everywhere.” Clarence Jordan paraphrased it as, “…
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 6.9.10 in Devotional
Why is it taking me so long to get better?Most Christians have asked that question at one time or another. Or maybe you’ve wondered why the Christian life seems so hard. Why is it so easy to drift and so hard to grow? At his blog Between Two Worlds Justin Taylor quotes a very challenging statement from Don Carson’s fine book For the Lov…
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 6.3.10 in Devotional, Questions
Maybe you shouldn’t have changed jobs.Maybe you shouldn’t have bought that new house.Maybe you shouldn’t have moved to a new city.Maybe you shouldn’t have taken that big promotion.What do you do then? It’s always easy to look back and criticize yourself for the decisions you made years ago. We’ve all done our sha…
Posted by Ray Pritchard on 6.3.10 in Devotional
Yesterday I ran across this little story in an interview with art collector Charles Saatchi. The final question was “Is bad luck often a case of stupidity?” Here’s Saatchi’s answer:In New York in 1977, a man was knocked down by a car, and got up uninjured.But a bystander suggested he feign injury, lay back down in front of t…
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