January 2012
1 post
Stopping the killing of innocent children in Ohio
On Sunday Jan 29th we will have the director of Ohio PersonhoodUSA speaking at our church. He will be talking about the plan to have a referendum on the November ballot this year to change the Ohio constitution. Here is my condensed version of the wording for this amendment: “Personhood will apply to EVERY human being at every stage of biological development starting with fertilization.”
In...
December 2011
1 post
Good parents can have bad kids
I have been working on this Sunday’s sermon. We are going to be talking about the parable of the prodigal son. I am going to take a different approach to this story that Jesus told. We will be talking about the whole experience of being a parent and what do we do when we see our children making bad choices. How do we handle the fact that we are not the best parents? Who is this father in the...
July 2011
1 post
Special Guest Time Traveler at church tomorrow!
I made contact with our special guest, time trraveler. It took awhile to get our ‘flux capacitor’ working but it is good. He will be with us at both services tomorrow. You don’t want to miss him. Also since it is a patriotic weekend, free coffee and cookies for all our military people who wear their uniforms to church tomorrow. I just went out and bought a cool patriotic shirt...
June 2011
12 posts
GOBA Day Six PM
Blow out one, mile twenty.
Blow out two, not too funny.
Mile forty, took a spill
Went and pedaled up the hill.
Pain in leg not too bad,
Wanted to finish, gave it all I had.
Shin swelled up like a balloon,
Crossed finish line none too soon.
Ambulance ride, emergency room,
X-rays chased away the gloom.
Nothing broken, just big bruise,
Biker safe, GOBA news.
A little early heading home...
GOBA Day Six AM
Sometimes to me it seems
Rides like this are a dream.
Farmland animals roaming free
Great scenery my eyes to see.
Such awesome people we do meet
Every hill they do beat.
Bikes of every sort are here
Threatening storms they don’t fear.
Over sixty many are
Travel here from very far.
Age does not slow them down
Fountain of youth they have found.
GOBA Day Five PM
Move over as I pass,
Young guy out of gas.
Move over number two,
Lost cleat out of shoe.
Move over number three,
Old guy bleeding knee.
Move over number four,
Air in tire is no more.
Move over number five,
Chain broke on this drive.
Move over number six,
Cable snapped need to fix.
Move over seventh rider,
Drop that weight you’d be lighter.
Move over number eight,
Lunch is served...
GOBA Day Five AM
In my mirror I could see,
On my left passing me,
Many bikers from the fold,
Making me feel quite old.
But in the end truth be told
All who finish get the gold.
GOBA Day four
Rolling hills, lots of fun,
Wind at our back till we were done
Cool temps, overcast skies
God must have heard our cries.
Crossed 200 miles today
Now on my mat I will lay.
GOBA Day three
Thoughts of quitting in her head
Such a word should not be said
David’s chant “Get on that bike,
This isn’t a hike.”
Tears rolling down her cheek
So much fun for a whole week.
Someone’s brain has a leak!
GOBA Day two
Sixty miles day is done
90 degrees in the sun
Back in camp now time to rest
One more day we passed the test
Tomorrow’s 6AM will come too soon
Start at 7 break at noon
Get back on bike pedal more
Another 60 on this tour.
When we’re done stories to tell
New friends we met, and bikes to SELL!
GOBA Day one
Flat roads all around
Heavy breathing only sound
Aches and pains they abound
Big smile, not a frown
First biker I did pass
Now I know I won’t be last!
GOBA Day three
Thoughts of quitting in her head
Such a word should not be said
David’s chant “Get on that bike,
This isn’t a hike.”
Tears rolling down her cheek
So much fun for a whole week.
Someone’s brain has a leak!
GOBA Day Two
Sixty miles day is done
90 degrees in the sun
Back in camp now time to rest
One more day we passed the test
Tomorrow’s 6AM will come too soon
Start at 7 break at noon
Get back on bike pedal more
Another 60 on this tour.
When we’re done stories to tell
New friends we met, and bikes to SELL!
GOBA Day One
Flat roads all around
Heavy breathing only sound
Big smile, not a frown
First biker I did pass
Now I know I won’t be last!
A kindness repaid
Today’s reading in Genesis chapter 24 is about a small kindness being repaid. Abraham’s servant is on a mission to find a wife for Abraham’s son, Isaac. He traveled back to Abraham’s relatives but when he arrives at the outskirts of the city he prays a prayer. “Oh God I don’t know who you want to be Isaac’s wife, can you show me a sign? I am here by the watering well, when...
May 2011
1 post
Is the world ending tomorrow?
If we are still here on Sunday, May 22nd then Harold Camping is a ‘false prophet.’ Don’t miss this Sunday’s sermon. We will be taking a break from our sermon series on the “Seven Deadly Sins” as we talk about this preacher who is predicting the end of the world this Saturday, May 21st. I will be going over some rules to follow when you hear someone teaching about the ‘end...
April 2011
4 posts
57 years old today
Fifty seven years is a lot of time
But I am thankful, I feel fine.
With family and friends I am rich
Serving others, I found my niche.
Grateful am I for what God has done
Forgave my sins, left not even one.
And now what does the future hold?
A lot more years, till I say “I’m old.”
I have so much left to do and say,
Better start now while it is still day.
Thank you to each and every...
Blog title...
Well Passion week is here again. A few things to keep in mind. This is a good time to spend some extra time in prayer. Our ‘Upper Room’ prayer center is open all this week from 6 AM to midnight. It is a great place to spend some time in prayer. Lots of things in that room that will inspire you to pray.
On Friday you might consider skipping breakfast and lunch and fast instead, and if you can stop...
Sealed for eternity
Today’s reading from Revelations 22:11 states, “He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still.” This is basically saying that when we die, we are sealed. Jesus talked about this in Matthew chapter 25, when He explained judgment day. He said the goats will be on the one...
Does God really care about our environment?
Today’s reading in Revelations 11:18 God will ‘destroy those who destroy the earth.” This is a reference about the time of Judgment that will eventually come upon the earth. At that time, every human being will be held accountable to God for what they have done with their lives and there is a specific reference to those who have destroyed the earth. Since the 1960s, there has been a lot of...
March 2011
1 post
No Fear
Today’s reading in I John 4:18 “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment.” So many people live their lives in fear. They are afraid of the future; they are afraid of getting sick; they are afraid of financial disaster, and so on. Now to be sure, there are some fears that are good to have. We should fear a hot stove; we should fear going too fast in a...
February 2011
9 posts
The two parts of forgiveness
Today’s reading from I John 1:7-8 states, “If we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Many years ago God opened this passage up to me and it has been a life verse ever since. When we come to God and confess our sins, He forgives us, not because...
Florida Bicycle Trip THE END
Seven miles and it’s done
Mike and Mark their bikes still run
My bike is on the rack
On the road I can’t go back
Left leg on the mend
Can’t seem to make it bend
A great trip this has been
Like all good trips it now must end!
Floriday bicycle trip Day Four Last Leg
Last leg of the trip
When we finish take a dip
Charlie horse twitch and shakes
Even aches inside my aches
Farthest south we can go
Then head north to the snow.
Florida Bicycle Trip Day Four
Back spoke broke
This is no joke
Tried to fix but tire went flat
Not much could do with that
Reserve bike off the rack
Heavy frame hard on back
Today’s the day
I know people pray
Almost took a nasty fall
Truck bumped me against a wall
The hand of God was clear to see
Only the 2nd bike could have saved me!
Lots of rocks, lots of gravel
Made it very hard to travel
My bike slipped...
Florida Bike Trip Day Three after lunch
Half hour lunch break
Lots of carbs to partake
5 hour energy drink
Legs like gears in sinc
Crossed the everglades today
Quite a sight I have to say
Roadkill everywhere
Drivers don’t seem to care
4 turtles and 92 snakes
3 alligators not fakes
14 birds on the ground
Even one large hound
Twenty miles yet to go
Energy now can’t run low
Won’t complain at least no snow!
Florida Bike Trip Day Three
Flat tire on the road
Forty miles feeling old
Heat bearing down on me
Sweat makes it hard to see
Half way and its noon
Lunch break coming soon
Sleep tonight will be sweet
My legs will be beat.
Florida Bike Trip Day Two
Brown snake on the road
Not just a harmless toad
Quickly did it try to strike
Pedaled fast on my bike
Now resting on my bed
Glad that I’m not dead!
Florida Bike Trip End of Day One
Day one now is done
Wind and heat stole the fun
Alligator made us run
So glad I had my gun!
Florida Bike Trip Day One
Florida is in full bloom
One the roads there’s no room
Pedal hard and fast we must
On eachother we will trust
Soon our 1st day will be done
All in all we’re having fun.
January 2011
3 posts
Is Jesus returning May 21, 2011?
Apparently there is some religious cult that has posted a billboard on the east side of Columbus that says “The Lord Returns May 21, 2011” and then it gives some website to go to for more information. I went to that website and read their material. I have been a Christian for over thirty years. I have studied and read the bible from Genesis through Revelations over 20 times, teaching through it...
I am surrounded!
I am surrounded! In my reading today I came across this passage, “Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” Hebrews 12:1. We are surrounded We are surrounded by men and women who have made following God their one passion in life. Their lives can be...
Why should I go to church every Sunday?
Today’s reading out of Hebrews 10:25 is “Do not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.” This is a reference to a regular gathering of God’s people. I am amazed at how many people don’t have any hesitation when it comes to skipping church. ‘I am tired, the weather...
December 2010
1 post
Be strong in grace
Today’s reading in 2 Timothy 2:1 says, “Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” I was challenged, “How can I ‘be strong’ in grace?” I think the reality for most Christians is that we don’t even know what grace actually is. Often we get it confused with mercy. Here is a simple way to remember the difference between justice, mercy and grace....
November 2010
1 post
Being thankful for ALL things?
My reading this morning was in Ephesians 5:20. It says “giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” I felt prompted to stop and just meditate on all the things I was thankful for. As I was doing this a few things came to my mind that I was not thankful for. So I began to pray and ask God how could I be thankful for ‘all’ things, since there were...
October 2010
2 posts
What is it like to pastor at the same church for...
I study the Word and I pray,
So I can help to point out the Way.
Meetings with people throughout the day,
Counsel to those whose nerves have frayed.
Encourage the staff to work and pray,
Careful at home to do what I say.
Loving my neighbor, come what may,
Building a church that’s here to stay.
32 years have passed us by,
Many things still yet to try.
A brand new life people have found,...
When are you good enough?
There are many people today who call themselves Christians who think that if they are good enough, when they die they will go to heaven. I believe this is the true dividing line between those who have had a spiritual awakening and those who have not. Many people are what I would call ‘cultural’ Christians. They grew up in America, went to church for a period of time and feel that makes them a...
September 2010
1 post
I know what you are going through
Today’s reading in 2 Corinthians 1:4 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” No one likes to go through hard times, but when we do and we are comforted with God’s comfort,...
August 2010
5 posts
Do this in memory of me
Whenever someone dies a tragic death, people often say, “You will not be forgotten.” Many times a special fund is started in that person’s name or parks or buildings are named after them. On the anniversary of their death or on their birthday often people will take a few minutes to remember the life of the person who passed. There is something in each of us that yearns to be remembered after we...
Can I eat a Big Mac to the glory of God?
Today’s reading is in I Corinthians 10:31, “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” What a liberating passage of scriptures this is. Instead of living some kind of divided life, part of it doing things that I think ‘are to the glory of God’ and part of it ‘just stuff I do’ Paul says everything I do can be to the glory of God. So if I am cleaning the...
When people are rude
This past week, we heard about the Jet Blue Airline steward, Steve Slater, who blew up on a passenger who was giving him a hard time. As soon as this story hit the internet, tens of thousands of people responded, most of them applauding him for what he did. I don’t condone what Steve did. In Proverbs 12:16 we read, “A fool’s wrath is known at once, but a prudent man covers shame.” He is a...
All things work to my good
Romans 8:28 is one of the great promises of the Bible. Over my years of reading the Bible I have chosen this to be one of my ‘life’ verses. “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” As we go through life sometimes things happen to us that are difficult to handle and hard to understand. We may face a challenging...
Animal rights or animal respect?
In Proverbs chapter 12:10 we read, “The righteous man regards the life of his animal, but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.” Animals are to be treated with respect, but there is a difference between animal respect and animal rights. The PETA organization pushes for ‘animal rights.’ They feel that animals should have the same rights as humans. They feel that it is wrong to eat animals, to...
July 2010
3 posts
Turning the world upside down
When Jesus went about preaching the ways of God’s kingdom many of the things He said were so unique and opposite of the way people thought. Jesus said, “The first shall be last,” and “If you want to find life you have to lose your own life,” and “Give and it shall be given to you,” and “The meek shall inherit the earth,” and many other spiritual truths. Truly God’s ways are not our ways. When the...
From god to a bum!
Reading today in Acts chapter 14 and Paul is used by God to heal a man and the people think he is a god and want to worship him. He stops them and says he is just a man like them. Then a short time later the people are influenced by the Orthodox Jews and decide that Paul is no longer a ‘god’ but now he is a heretic and they stone him! So much for deriving your self identity from others. How...
It takes faith to believe a miracle
Many times I have had people say to me, “I would believe in Jesus if He would perform a miracle right in front of me.” In my reading today I was reminded of the fact that even though a person may see a miracle take place right in front of them, it still takes faith to believe it was a miracle and that it was done in Jesus name. In Acts chapter 3-4 we read about Peter healing a cripple man in...
June 2010
2 posts
GOBA fighting the hills
Monster hill 1, mile six. Goliath stood tall, to all he would call. ‘You can’t come up here. In you I strike fear.” But up we must go, everyone must know, every hill can be beat if you just peddle your feet.
Monster hill 19, mile 25. Up at the top I saw a mirage. Two angels in white waving me on. “You can make it. You can make it.” Peddled hard wish I was fit. When I got to the top wiped the...
The real mummy!
I thought it was interesting in my reading today, John 19:40, that when Jesus was taken from the cross and put in the tomb, He was wrapped in ‘strips of linen.’ He wrapped like a mummy. No wonder it says in 20:5, that when John looked into Jesus tomb and saw ‘the linen cloths’ lying there ‘he believed.’ He was looking at an empty mummy case. The only way that...
May 2010
4 posts
Coffee Myths busted tomorrow!
We are going to skype a real barrista from Australia tomorrow at church for our ‘Expresso Yourself’ sermon series. He is going to tell you things tomorrow that will forever change the way you ‘do coffee’ and the way you espresso yourself. Don’t miss this!
Sunday Sermon, cool illustration
Got a cool idea for an illustration for this Sunday. I hope it works and no one has a heart attack. If it doesn’t work it was Chip’s idea! Be there!