Think About It

How would 21st Century Americans describe heaven? When John reflected on the spiritual future for his contemporaries he included, “… the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the gates was a single pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.” (Revelation 21:21). Throughout the years believers have referenced this passage as a description of heaven, but if the information would have been revealed to modern man, what would we have been challenged to imagine? Would there be free bitcoin ATMs on every corner … complete and comprehensive health care for everyone … a debt-free existence? I don’t mean to demean the Scriptures, but it would be interesting to see how different the descriptions would be in today’s digital society. No matter what word pictures we use to describe our eternal life, at the center of it is the All-powerful and approachable God. We will no long have to worship Him from a distance, we will be together with Him forever. Let’s...

 Friday; September 30 ... A few days ago, I was visiting with a friend of mine about how his football season was going. He is a Pittsburgh Steelers fan and when his head kind of dropped his response told me that he expected a long, tough season. Then he said something that I found very interesting. As he reflected on this rebuilding year he observed that no team can stay on top all the time. The Steelers have had a lot of good seasons, but this may not be one of them. With new coaches and new key players, this year is bound to be tough. While he was not looking forward to the final outcome, he was still a fan and would still support his team. For years I have heard about “fair weather fans”. These are those of us who support their teams during the good times but tend to turn their backs on them during the difficult times. At best, we become disinterested and at worst we become critical when things are going well. As I thought about this with our sports team, I got to thi...

Every year I remember September 29 for one special event – it was the day on which our son was born, but alas, not everyone remembers the day for that reason. In fact, there are several things that are remarkable for that day, but one recently caught my attention. It was on September 29, 1988 that NASA resumed launching space shuttles. Many of us remember where we were when Challenger blew up in on January 28, 1986. After years of successful space missions our worst fears were realized when people watched the disaster. It would take two years for space program and the world to feet good enough to move on – but eventually we did. As I thought about this new beginning, I got to thinking about how easy it is to allow disasters to stop us cold. It is natural for us to reel from calamities, but it is also very tempting for us to get stuck and never move on. No matter how much success we have had, when something bad happens, it is tempting to just quit. Have we been so negatively imp...

Decades ago, Gary Chapman wrote a book, “The 5 Love Languages: The Secret To Love That Lasts”. In all honesty, I haven’t read the book, but from what I gather from those who have, there are five basic ways people can show their affection to their loved ones. A brief overview of the book indicates that we express our love (or feel loved) through words of affirmation, quality time, gift giving/receiving, acts of service and physical touch. I am sure that this work is based on extensive research – but whether it is quantitative or not, I like the idea. People feel loved in different ways and if we care about the people around us, we’ll figure out the way they want to be loved. As I reflected on this book, I was led to another author of love, the inspired Apostle Paul. Paul wrote a lot about love, but his quintessential work may come in his letter to the church in Corinth, “Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomi...

This year has been a pretty quiet hurricane season – at least so far. Unless I am forgetting something, the mainland of the United States has been spared a significant storm and even though there have been some storms in the Caribbean, it has been a pretty moderate season. Now, having said that, this week is promising to bring a significant storm to the southland of the U.S. coast. We can be thankful for how things have gone through most of the hurricane season, but some of our friends and neighbors need to keep an eye on the tropics. Each year I am fascinated by the storm season. I track storms as they spin out in the Atlantic or the Gulf. I plot coordinates, look at forecasts and watch as these freaks of nature seem to take on a life of their own. Maybe it is because I spent a lot of my growing-up years in Florida, but I also believe that one of the reasons that I am fascinated by these powerful storms is because it reminds me of the nature of God. Not only does it remind me...

Have you noticed how much confusion there is in today’s world? I guess it has always been that way, but – at the very least – it isn’t getting much better. I think this really struck home with me last week when I attended a High School sporting event. On one hand, young people are being told to respect their bodies and avoid sexual or gender stereotypes. On the other hand, many of the current styles and fads are designed to emphasize sexuality. Young people are told not to allow people to see them as objects of admiration, but they are encouraged to act and dress in ways that promote the very thing they are supposed to be rejecting. Adolescence is a confusing time as it is, this can’t be helping. Again, I am sure that people who watched my generation said the same thing about us, so this is a reminder that as times change many things remain the same – and so should the warnings offered to each generation. Centuries ago, the Apostle Paul reminded a young friend of his, “Let no ...

As you might expect, I am a big believer in identifying with a church and attending worship services. I think it is vital that we, as God’s people, demonstrate our faith and embrace a spiritual manifestation of the profession of our faith. However, there is another side to Christianity. It isn’t enough to just advocate that we are religious, we must prove it – and not just by following a predetermined set of rites and rituals. We must put the Lord’s principles into action. Centuries ago, a wise religious leader challenged the people of his day, “Every man’s way is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the hearts. To do righteousness and justice is desired by the Lord more than sacrifice.” (Proverbs 21:2-3). In other words, we must do more than just talk the talk, we must walk the walk. We must have a heart of treating people with respect and making sure that they are cared for – by society and by us! Let’s make sure that we find a way to attend worship assemblies when ...