Nick’s Walk

I know I sound like a madman, but I have served him far more! I have worked harder, been put in prison more often, been whipped times without number, and faced death again and again. 24 Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty-nine lashes. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. 26 I have traveled on many long journeys. I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not. 27 I have worked hard and long, enduring many sleepless nights. I have been hungry and thirsty and have often gone without food. I have shivered in the cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm. 28 Then, besides all this, I have the daily burden of my concern for all the churches. 2 Corinthians 11 Sometimes I wonder if I’m any kind of follower of Christ. Saturday night I fell ill. I […]

I think I’m learning something about sharing the gospel from the current presidential campaign. I know that sharing the gospel is more than recounting what you say you believe and why. It takes more than doing a good job explaining theology. It takes more than talk. It takes passion and a consistent life. Talk – Let’s compare. Some give really great speeches. Some give really good sermons. I want to hear something that makes sense. I want to be touched in areas of my life that are of real concern. I want relevance.  Through speeches and sermons,  a listener might be motivated to make a change; whether it be in political direction or spiritually. I’m not sure these talks alone are enough, however. Passion – I want more than good ideas or even powerful argument. I want to feel something. I want to see some passion in the words. I want to know the speaker cares about not only what he is saying, but about those who are listening. I want to walk away with a wish to be involved. I don’t want to just agree. I want to want to join in. I don’t just want to agree […]

Today I got together with a group of men from my church. We met for coffee. There was no agenda. There was no devotional. Unless it happened before I got there, there wasn’t even any prayer. It was just what I needed. We shared everyday problems and kicked around solutions, some helpful, some just silly. In recent weeks my church participation has fallen off. Our “small group” stopped meeting before the holidays and has not started up again. I have lots of tough issues to deal with in my life, like everyone. It’s easy to begin to feel alone. It was great to spend some time with other men to relax and just to be in their company. Men don’t get together like they used to. There use to be male social clubs and lunch groups, hunting trips and sports road trips. Such gatherings have gone out of style and have even a hint of political incorrectness. I think it’s more than a societal change. I think it’s a spiritual attack.  We now speak of a man “cave” a place we can go to be alone and uninvolved. Years ago the church  I attended had a wonderful annual men’s […]

I am concerned that too many of us are getting our theology from Facebook. It’s not the same as going to the original words of Scripture. For example, I am told that God will never give me more than I can handle. That’s just so wrong. God sends me lots of stuff I can’t handle. It’s not, I’m sure, that I’m a bad guy or that God doesn’t love me. God allows bad stuff to afflict all those He loves. The goal is not that we be independent, but that we be God dependent. We were not created to handle stuff. We were created to rely on God. I am convinced that’s why it’s so tough for rich guys to make it. It’s why Donald Trump has never seen the need to seek forgiveness. He thinks he has enough money to handle anything. If, God forbid, he becomes president it might be fun to watch him try to handle a country buried in debt. I face things every day that I can’t handle on my own. I marvel at those who think they are “handling” things on their own. If you are in doubt spend some time in the […]

I love Dr. Ravi Zaharias. He is one of the finest apologists for the Christian faith. He can be a bit difficult to follow because of his accent and because he’s just so darn smart. When his teachings are broken down they are powerful. For example. he teaches that for meaning in life, We need: Wonder Truth Love Security The wisdom of this teaching is obvious when we consider what happens if focus is on less than all four of these aspects. Wonder – It’s truly sad to see someone who no longer wonders at God’s creation. Having grand kids and great grands, helps us to appreciate the wonder of creation. Not only are these young creatures wonderful, but it’s inspiring to see them discover and appreciate the wonder of our world. The can spend what seems like hours amazed by their toes or a simple object. Consider, however, the danger of being blessed with only a sense of wonder. Such  folks seem happy but wander around in wonder, accomplishing nothing. Their wonder is not grounded in the truth of who created it, the love that made it possible, and the security that makes it eternal. Truth – These […]

I am sitting in front of my television mourning the passing of Judge Scalia. I didn’t know him of course, but know he was a strong advocate of strict construction of the constitution and matched many of my views on political matters. I also mourn knowing that his death almost certainly will lead to a left shift of our Supreme Court. I think that would be bad. I know some think this is great and are partying over his death. That sure doesn’t seem right. (See what I did there? Right and right?) I am, however, not in a state of panic nor do I plan to lose much sleep over this. I have no control over the makeup of the Supreme Court. It’s because I have over who is President of the United States. I watch the campaign with great interest but I can’t afford to waste much time or energy on it. Presidential elections decided on electoral votes state-by-state. I live in Louisiana. My state is not going to vote to choose a Hillary Clinton or a Bernie Sanders. I’m happy about that but my vote isn’t going to make any difference. There are plenty of states that […]

I am very proud of my family. It’s  full of some great folks. I am particularly proud of one of my nieces. She is an impressive young lady Christian. I was particularly impressed by a Facebook post of hers this week. She said, in part: “I do have moments of Doubt. Fear. Questions . And I’m so thankful to have wise friends that have helped get my thoughts back on the right track and lead me to God’s word. ” She went on to say, “The Lord spoke to me the other day saying ‘You of little faith… You may not see what I am doing now, but you will understand later. Just rest and be strong in my grace. ‘ “ Shari has done what, I believe, many more of us who call ourselves Followers of Christ, need to do. We need to be courageous enough to admit that we have doubts, fears and questions. We need to be brave enough to answer the “How are you?” inquiries honestly. We need to be real. We need to stop believing that an admission of weakness or vulnerability is a disclaimer of our faith and trust in Jesus. Our current […]

I saw a fascinating video today. The scene is a dark street. A couple passes by and shortly after a lone figure appears in apparent pursuit. The figure is struck by lightning and falls to the ground. He stays down for a few moments and then gets up and starts after the couple. He is struck again by lightning and this time says down. There is a note on the video that at the hospital the lightning “victim” admitted that he intended to rob the couple he was following.  I have seen some posts which assert that the video is fake. It still got me thinking. How often does God send “lightning” into our lives, often more than once, to deter us from a self-destructive path? He obviously doesn’t intervene in every case. In fact, His interventions are rare. In a world, He created with free will, how significant is it when He intervenes to stop us from making, or continuing to make, mistakes. I believe He does this most often for those whose life mission is critical. He has called us to special work, yet we become distracted and drift. We often need a lightning bolt to set […]