Roger

Do you have a favorite Bible character? I have three.   I refer to them as the "Three J's!" First, I want to see Jesus !  I have personally known Him for over 48 years.  I celebrated my 48th spiritual re-birth (birthday) on August 4, 2018.  Like you, I'm not sure what I will do when I see Him face to face.  Will I weep?  Will I fall down at His feet and worship Him?  Will I be speechless?  It really doesn't matter.  I just want to see Him!  I've always loved the words to this old chorus: "It will be worth it all, When we see Jesus. Life's trials will seem so small, When we see Christ. One glimpse of His dear face, All sorrow will erase. So bravely run your race, 'til you see Christ." This wonderful Jesus changed my life so dramatically, and the older I get, the more precious He becomes! Second, I want to talk with Joseph.  The boy dreamer faced obstacles on his course that would have sidelined most.  He met with un...

How do we handle it when our dreams die, especially the ones we thought to be God-given? This question has on occasion touched me deeply, because I have grieved over the death of several dreams.   With this said, let me give you 12 examples of people in Scripture who experienced the death of their dreams. 1.  Joseph received two God-given dreams, then was cast into a pit, sold into slavery, served in Potiphar's house and ended up in prison  (Genesis 37-50). 2.  Moses was commissioned by "I AM THAT I AM" to lead the children of Israel out of Egyptian bondage.  Later, he and his brother, Aaron, were rejected by the Israelites as situations went from bad to worse  (Exodus 5). 3.  Moses sent out 12 men to spy out the Promised Land.  Only two came back with a positive report and the people wanted to stone them and cast Moses aside  (Numbers 13-14). 4.  Samson, the prophet-playboy of Israel, was raised up to judge the people, but ...

I love talking about my "call to preach!"   In retrospect, I see my call into the ministry as progressive.  Before I discuss my personal journey, let me remind you that  all of us  are called to salvation.  You are not a second class Christian if you have not been called into what people refer to as "the ministry."  Everyone, for that matter, has a ministry. I can't ever remember not wanting to be a preacher.  In elementary school, my third grade teacher asked our class one day what we wanted to be when we grew up.  Of course, the answers were pretty standard: a fireman, a baseball player, a police officer, a teacher, etc. When my turn came, I proudly said, "I want to be a preacher!"  My teacher was shocked! Guess what?  I didn't really know what preachers did, but I still had my heart set on becoming one!  Now I know it was the Holy Spirit moving in my heart.   At any rate, my focus remained on the church.  I fell in...

Television advertisements about online dating and match making services abound in today’s world.   Singles, widows and widowers, those over 50 etc, have exclusive sites.   We hear stories about couples finding true love online, but I still wonder about the on-going validity of such match making.   Relationships may begin online, but they have to be cultivated face to face!   I know about one couple that met online and today are happily married.   It’s because what they began online was taken to the next all-important level. Nothing beats relationship building one-on-one, person-to-person.  Talking to individuals in chat rooms is risky because a lot of people are masters at disguising their true identity and character.  I've personally dealt with two women who chose to go online looking for male companionship, and ended up in serious trouble--lawsuits, bodily threats and harassing calls.  I realize my comments may sound like a Lifetime Movie p...