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I read a story about a man whose wife asked him what he wanted for Christmas. He didn’t want to come right out and say it, so he dropped a hint: “Honey, I want something in the driveway on Christmas morning that will go from zero to three hundred in six seconds.” His wife smiled and said, “I think that can be arranged.” On Christmas morning, the man woke up excited, convinced a brand-new muscle car was waiting for him.…

As we were riding down the road one day, Anna Jean and I were listening to the a cappella version of a worship song called “Gratitude.” If you have never heard the song before, one of the lines in the chorus that is repeated several times goes like this: “So I throw up my hands and praise you again and again because all that I have is a hallelujah.” This song reminds us that our words fall short in expressing…

This Sunday, as we continue moving through the Sermon on the Mount, our plan is to discuss what Jesus teaches about being great in the kingdom of heaven in Matthew 5:19. According to Jesus, we are to both do and teach what He says. His teaching, as the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets, should direct how we live and what we teach others. Thinking about this reminded me of a quote I have heard from several different individuals:…

Martin Luther, who was a key figure in the Reformation movement of the 1500s, once had a dream where he was being attacked by Satan. The devil unrolled a long scroll containing a list of sins that Luther had committed and held it before him. When the scroll was completely unrolled and every sin had been read, Luther asked the devil, “Is that all?” “No,” came the reply, and a second scroll was put in front of him. Then, after…