Devotional Thoughts

  John 7:24   “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”  “How to Be a Christian” was the theme for this year’s Southern States Bible Conference held at Epworth by the Sea Conference Center located on St. Simons Island, Ga. This theme presupposes there is an objective definition or description given as to how the Christian is to live their life. It should be apparent that such a description or definition would come from Jesus, the Christ of God. After all, Christians are followers of Jesus. So, Jesus, along the Apostles Jesus called and sent out in his name to teach what he commanded, and the word of God, containing the whole counsel of God, is the only authoritative source that can objectively reveal what it means to be a Christian.  Yet in this growing secular humanistic culture we live in that seeks to rebel against God’s creative order and declare its own truth and define its own terms, this philosophy of subjective truth has found...

Comfort Food, you have heard that phrase before. It is a phrase you may intuitively know what it is, but it is one that may be difficult to give a good definition. I came across this definition I thought was rather good. It is, “food associated with emotional comfort, familiarity, and a sense of well-being, often connected to home, family, or positive memories.  That is a good understanding of what “comfort food” is, don’t you agree? Well from a spiritual perspective, would not it be appropriate to think of this much beloved Psalm as the believer’s “comfort food” for their souls. For it has fed the souls of countless numbers of God’s people through the ages. It is connected to the Christians true home, his true family, and the positive memories of it continue to be a source of encouragement. This is especially so for those who have gone through the hardest and darkest of times. One of the hardest and darkest of times is the death of a loved one. Psalm 23 has been the most popular p...

2 Timothy 4:2   “Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.”  “Preach the Word!” This is the plea of the Apostle Paul given to Timothy, a pastor and beloved by Paul as a fellow laborer in the word. Well, this admonition is stronger than a plea, isn’t it? It is more on the lines of a directive, a command. Preach the Word! This is a special passage to me for two reasons. The first reason is because this is the primary task for which God called me to do. This is the primary task for all who are called into the ministry as an Elder. In the book of Acts, the apostles called for men to be selected to take care of the physical needs of widows so the Apostles could give their attention to the ministry of the word of God - “It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables. “Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom...