There’s a Peanut’s cartoon where Lucy and Linus are sitting in front of the television set when Lucy says to Linus, “Go, get me a glass of water.” Linus says, “Why should I do anything for you? You never do anything for me.” So Lucy says, “On your 75th birthday, I’ll bake you a cake.”…
I don’t know how you mark the beginning of the Christmas season, but every year, Christmas season for me begins when I get the first report that someone has gotten pepper sprayed at a Wal-Mart fighting over the latest toy. That’s when I know that Peace on Earth, good will to man has truly arrived.…
I want to begin this morning by asking a question – How many of you feel that life turned out to be just as easy as you thought it would? You see, I think, most of us, when we’re young, think that life is going to be like a beautiful day at the beach. We…
Last Sunday, we looked at a conversation that a mother, Mrs. Zebedee, had with Jesus. This morning, I want us to take a look at a conversation that a father had with Jesus. Now, I think it’s safe that mothers and fathers are very different and they have totally different parenting styles. Those of you…
This morning, I want us to take a look at a conversation between Jesus and Mrs. Zebedee. Now, I call her that because the only way Matthew identifies her in our text is as “the mother of Zebedee’s sons”, although her name was probably Salome (and you can figure that out by comparing all the…
In just a few days, we will celebrate Thanksgiving, one day that is set aside every year to give thanks to God as a nation. I don’t know if you’ve noticed this or not, but it appears to me that, in the stores, it’s gotten where Thanksgiving has become completely overlooked. We no longer see…
I am fascinated by the changing popularity of baby’s names through the years. Sueanne and I were like most parents – we put a lot of thought into naming our children. We wanted names that weren’t too popular (especially because of the last name of Smith), but we didn’t want names that were too strange…
The story is told about an old synagogue in Eastern Europe. When a particular prayer was said during their service, half the people in the congregation stood up and half of them remained seated. The half that was seated started yelling at those who were standing to sit down, and the ones who were…
One of the great joys in life as a parent is listening to our young children pray, because their prayers are so very honest. I heard about one mother who was eavesdropping on her young daughter one night and she overheard her praying, “Dear God, please send a new baby for Mommy. The new baby…
This morning, I want to begin a 3-week series of lessons based on Jesus’ prayer in John 17. We know from reading the gospels that Jesus prayed a lot, but the gospel writers hardly ever tell us what Jesus prayed or how he prayed. And even when we are told what Jesus prayed, it’s usually…