A man shall be satisfied with good by the fruit of his mouth: and the recompense of a man’s hands shall be rendered unto him.
Speaking right and doing right bring rewards. The world may no longer exalt virtue, but this true proverb gives wonderful advice. If you use your mouth for kind, spiritual, and wise words, God and men will reward you with satisfying honors. And both God and men will also surely compensate you for works of charity, godliness, and truth.
The only speech that brings good and satisfying rewards is pure and wise speech, which the proverb implies. If you use your mouth for folly, lies, or boasting, it will bring trouble (Prov 10:6,14,31; 12:18; 13:3; 18:6-7,21; 20:17). The same is true of actions - things done with your hands. Only noble deeds bring good rewards (Prov 6:17; 10:4; 26:6; Is 3:10-11). Read the rest of this entry »
Well it’s been an adventure living in Africa with what I carried in on my back. I hadn’t planned it this way of course. I’d LOVE to have more than one pair of underwear for these humid, scorching past seven days, but apparently the 14 pairs I packed decided they preferred NY City to Togo and stayed there for a while.
I hope they at least bring me a t-shirt when they arrive. (Fingers crossed)
In the meantime, it’s almost like I’m African with my one outfit, plus crappy complementary t-shirt Delta gave me to tide me over for A WEEK. Read the rest of this entry »
At the risk of sounding like a horrible - if not sacrilegious - cliché, I have to say that playing golf is very much like living the Christian life. For those of you who play golf, you will have no problem understanding this; for those of you who do not, I hope you can at least allow yourselves to be amused by it. Read the rest of this entry »
When I was little, my mom liked to make breakfast for dinner every now and then.
And I remember one night in particular when she had made breakfast after a long, hard day at work.
On that evening so long ago, my mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage and extremely burned biscuits in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed! Read the rest of this entry »
At an airport I overheard a father and daughter in their last moments together. They had announced her plane’s departure and standing near the door she said, “Daddy, our life together has been more than enough. Your love is all I ever needed. I wish you enough, too, Daddy.” They kissed good-bye and she left. Read the rest of this entry »
Calvary is an unusual environment in many ways. Folks come here from traditional backgrounds and find things very different from what they have been accustomed to experiencing. Sometimes our uniqueness is well received and sometimes not. But, for those who decide to stay and get acclimated to this place, the experience usually becomes an edifying and healing one.
Some have said that Calvary Church causes them to think of a healing oasis - a spiritual MASH unit set on a hill. They share that they have come here to find rest, healing and hope again. And we frequently hear testimonies of those who had all but given up until they found this little hideaway in our small, hidden community of Reinoehlsville. Read the rest of this entry »
There were times when it seemed like eighty years and times when it seemed like only a few years. It was replete with highs and it had its share of lows. As Charles Dickens put it, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair …” [Charles Dickens, English novelist (1812 - 1870), A Tale of Two Cities] And yet, here we are after forty years together as Pastor and Congregation. Who would have thought it possible back in 1969? Read the rest of this entry »
Prayer is laying the inner man open to God; my temporal actions lining up with the will of God.
The Lord’s Prayer … the heart of Jesus open to the Father; “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father” … speaking of their unity and relationship.
WHY PRAY? Have you ever been in a situation where you have asked that question? Have you ever been in a place where nothing seems to reach down into the situation so it can be part of the solution? Have you ever thought that you needed to handle this one yourself … so why pray? Read the rest of this entry »
And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. Genesis 2:15 [JPS]
God gives good gifts. He gives us friends, companions, brothers and sisters to share intimacy in relationship with us. He gives natural family, community, church family and social environments for us to enjoy. Good gifts, every one. He also gives us spouses/lovers with whom to enjoy romance, intimacy, companionship, friendship and children to help bring fulfillment to our lives. All good stuff! Read the rest of this entry »
I wonder who among us hasn’t read through the story of the prodigal son and imagined being one of the characters in the parable. Years ago I was sitting in church one Sunday listening to my pastor preach a sermon on forgiveness. I can’t remember the text but I certainly remember the message. Read the rest of this entry »
