Priorities

What a Pitcher!

[187 words] Last November, Lindy McDaniel passed away. If you look him up in the online encyclopedia, Wikipedia, you will notice that he was well-known in baseball circles. His pitching career spanned 21 years (from 1955-1975). He was an amazing relief pitcher who “saved” many games.  Wikipedia makes one additional brief mention. It states: “He…

One Thing

[219 words] There are many voices competing for our attention. There are many destinations pleading for our arrival. There are many products and companies begging for our money. Yet only one voice matters. Only one destination is of any consequence. Only one being can inform us as what to do with / how to look…

We Become What We Worship

[413 words] Have you ever noticed the affect culture and trends have on our lives? Think about it. Doesn’t almost every person you know own an iPhone or smart phone of some sort? Things like movies, sports, clothing, and music have great influence over people. But do you ever wonder why we’re so heavily influenced…

The Christian’s Priorities

[240 words] Perhaps certain ones of us need to get our priorities straight. It may seem somewhat naive to some to say that if more professed Christians would “seek first the Kingdom of God,” fewer problems would exist in the Lord’s Church, but the statement is nevertheless true! The reason that early Christians were so…

I Wish I Would Have…

[354 words] I wish I would not have played so timidly during my high school basketball career. I wish I would not have taken chapel attendance as a suggestion my freshmen year of college. I wish, I wish, I wish… The list could go on and on in my life and I’m sure you could…

Time Well Spent

[311 words] Most if not all of us are fam i liar with financial budgets. In them, you make a list of all your available resources each month and a list of all your expenditures for each month. The goal is to arrive at a place where your income is higher than your outgo. To…

Missing!

[309 words] One Sunday morning, a preacher pointed out to one of the elders that the flower arrangement that sits in front of the pulpit was missing. The elder hadn’t noticed it, but he certainly did now. This elder pulled all the other elders to the side and asked them if they had any knowledge…

The Most Important Days of Your Life

[323 words] No, it isn’t the day you were born, married, your children were born, or even the day you lost someone of great importance to you. Not to minimize the significance of those days, but these three days are the same for everyone, and in many respects much more important. The first day is…

Our Greatest Concern

[286 words] Paul was a world traveler. He was a terrific pen pal. He was a teacher. Paul practiced the craft of tent making. He enjoyed reading. He had some health problems. He seemed to enjoy athletics. He was a fund raiser for the hungry of Judah. He had a healing ministry. He worked hard,…

Keeping Spiritual Focus

[265 words] As Christians, we know what we need to think about most in life: 1) God—His greatness, goodness, power, love, mercy, grace, care and protection;. 2) Christ—His life, teaching, death for our sins, burial, resurrection, ascension, intercession, and second coming; 3) the church—the privilege of membership in it, our involvement, service, spiritual growth, and…

What Comes First?

[191 words] Even before his outstanding years as Harding University’s quarterback, Tom Ed Gooden was noted by the Arkansas Gazette as being the best high school quarterback in his district. The newspaper ran a picture of Tom Ed with the caption, “Not On Wednesday.” It seems that another school had tried to schedule a game…

Lessons from a Former President

[380 words] John Quincy Adams may have held more important offices than anyone in the history of the United States. He served with distinction not only as the president and secretary of state but also as a senator, congressman, and an ambassador to major European leaders. He also played several key roles in the American…
Clock

You Have 24 Hours

  [92 words] Odds are that the vast majority of you who are reading this have more than 24 hours to live. But what are you going to do with the 24 hours that you have? Are you going to…  • give a word of encouragement?  • mend broken bridges?  • help someone in need? …

The Goal

  [185 words] Often times, I find myself lost in thought as to how I can improve as a worker in the kingdom of God. My thoughts most recently have been focused around the idea of the goal we pursue. So many aspects of Christianity seem to exist and all seem worthy of pursuit, however,…

Is the Young Man, Absalom, Safe?

  [368 words] The question above comes from 2 Samuel 18:32. Absalom, David’s son, had tried to wrest the kingdom from his father. He had slept with the ten concubines (wives) of his father. David had to flee his home when he heard Absalom was staging a coup and left these women to tend the…

One Thing

  [208 words] There are many voices competing for our attention. There are many destinations pleading for our arrival. There are many products and companies begging for our money. Yet only one voice matters. Only one destination is of any consequence. Only one being can inform us as to what to do with and how…

Nothing or Everything?

  [148 words] Her luggage was destroyed. Her purse disappeared. She had to exit the plane, not through an enclosed ramp, but directly into pouring rain. She would have been furious under normal conditions, but she had just survived the crash of Flight 1420 in Little Rock, Arkansas.  Later, as this lady reflected, she said,…

Who Are These People?

[261 words] You hear about them on the news, you read about them in magazines. But who are the Kardashians? They must be someone important, perhaps like Lady Gaga. Really, who has a name Gaga? I must be out of touch, too old to be up with the newest fad. But should I really even…

Anything for a Buck

[82 words] A bald man told a hair stylist that he had gone for a transplant, but he couldn’t stand the pain. He said, “I’ll give you $5,000 to make my hair look like yours.” The stylist said, ”No problem,” and she quickly shaved her head! We have to be careful that we don’t have…

Awake 36 Hours Straight to Satisfy a Craving

[238 words] Some people, if you let them, will play video games to the point of exhaustion. Others practice some addiction or compulsion to their great injury . “And the people stayed up all that day, all that night, and all the next day, and gathered the quail. The one who gathered the least gathered…

Burning Your Priorities

[420 words] From Jumper Fables by Ken Davis Years ago, when I was a teenager, I sat in a youth meeting and listened to a speaker talk about identifying the important aspects of your lives. “Don’t waste your time working towards goals that aren’t really important to you,” he said. “Figure out what really is…

Man’s Three Needs

“And he (Isaac) builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the Lord, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac’s servants digged a well” (Genesis 26:25). Much confusion exists in our world regarding the purpose of life. Many people are confused and uncertain about what to do with their lives. This passage,…

Parents, Please Read: There’s Trouble in the Land

  [328 words] There’s trouble in the land. No wide-awake person will deny that! These upheavals have caused many parents to express apprehension concerning the future of their children. That’s understandable. When our children graduate from high school and leave home, many of them also leave the church. Suddenly they are exposed to an environment…

At Your House

Will priorities be established in your children when… • You are early for their ballgame, but late for worship? • You check on their homework regularly, but never check on their Bible class lessons? • You won’t let them miss school even though they don’t want to go, but let them miss church worship services?…

The Leftovers

At the risk of appearing snobbish or ungrateful, I’ve got a confession to make: I don’t like leftovers, i.e. cold food that is in need of being reheated. I always have the best of intentions to pull last night’s meal out of the refrigerator, throw it in the microwave, nuke it, and consume it, but…

Be A Better Person

Don’t we all wish that everyone would be a better person? Do we not hope that some bad people would turn their lives around and start doing good? Do we wish our neighbor would treat us better than before‘? Do we hope that the people we meet each day would show us respect and treat…

Good Advice

In the blink of an eyeEverything can change.So forgive often, andLove with all your heart.You may never knowWhen you may not haveThat chance again…. We are sorry, but this content is for Annual and Lifetime members only. You either are not yet a member (Register), have yet to confirm your email address (Check your email),…

What’s First?

Rick Reilly wrote an article for Sports Illustrated in 2003 titled, “Let Us Play.” He described in his article how many families in America are opting to engage in recreational activities on Sunday instead of attending worship services. He quoted many religious leaders who have decried the loss of spirituality in our society. Reilly attributed…

I’m a Christian First

Life. Sometimes it controls us. Sometimes we get so entrenched in what we’re doing that we lose sight of what is most important. As Christians, there is one simple truth that must guide every decision we make and every move we take: Christ is to “have first place in everything” (Col. 1:18). Christ must have…

Who Are You Living For?

Who is it that we should live life for? Is it to please others, self, or God? Remember what Jesus prayed for in the Garden of Gethsemane: “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39b). It was not about…

Putting God First, Not Second

[307 words] God and Christ must be first in our lives, and not second. Jesus says, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). Our number one priority in this short life must be to go to Heaven or otherwise we most…

Are You Too Busy?

[302 words] A merchant sat at his desk, and all around him were letters, bills and other evidences that he was much absorbed in the details of his business. A gospel preacher entered and said, “I have come to try to interest you in a matter of great importance. I would like to talk to…

Putting The Fun Back In Funeral

[221 words] Would you rather go to a party or to a funeral? Pretty easy choice you might think. Now before you answer let us consider the scriptures. Ecclesiastes 7:2-5 says, “It is better to go to a house of mourning Than to go to a house of feasting, Because that is the end of…

Enjoy Your Hot Chocolate!

The old preacher brought out a large pot of hot chocolate and an assortment of glass, crystal, and plain looking cheap cups. When they all had a cup of hot chocolate in their hands, the preacher said: “Notice that all the nice looking expensive cups were taken, but not the plain and cheap ones. What…