Focal Passage: Genesis 6:13-22; 7:20-24  While working in my office one morning, the FBI came to my door. That got my heart racing. He told me the FBI had received a “credible threat” made by the KKK against an event that I and others were planning at our courthouse for MLK Day. He came to warn us. We made plans because of that warning. The result was lots of police,

Focal Passage: Genesis 4:1-15  It was like any Sunday. As I made my way through the sanctuary, greeting people who had arrived early for worship, I reluctantly stopped to check in with the deacons milling around in the back. I knew what was coming. I asked who was taking the offering that day and who would be leading the offertory prayer. They shuffled their feet and looked down until one

Focal Passage: Luke 2:1-15  My wife and I decided to collect Nativity sets early in our marriage.  We would add to our collection from wherever we traveled, or if we found a unique set. Some would be to look at, others to use to tell the story of Jesus to others, while still others were for our children and now grandchildren to play with.  One year, as my wife and

Focal Passage: Genesis 3:1-7; 21-24  I have gotten into the habit of pulling from the closet before bed the clothes I will wear for the next day. It is a mindless task — picking out something that matches (hopefully) and is clean.  Occasionally, walking through a clothing store or flipping through a catalog, I decide I need something new to wear. I then place those new clothes in the closet

Focal Passage: Genesis 2:7-9, 15-25  I have asthma. It is a family trait. My grandfather and my late mother-in-law had it. My oldest son has it.  Asthma constricts the airways and makes it difficult to breathe. When my son was very young, various times he was hospitalized with his asthma.  I remember distinctively watching him in his oxygen tent in the hospital, just waiting and praying for the medicine to

Focal Passage: Genesis 1:1–5, 26-2:3  Often, when reading, hearing, or preaching on rest, our minds imagine some tropical holiday or, perhaps as we do in the Smoky Mountains, we think of a long, fall, mountain-cabin holiday weekend with a cozy fire, warm blankets, and a cup of delicious hot chocolate.  Yet, when God spoke about rest, it was not because He was tired or needed a break. Isaiah 40:28 says,

Focal Passage: Mark 16:1-14   What does the text say: Our focal passage, Mark 16:1-4, recounts the moment when several women, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome, arrived at the tomb where Jesus had been laid after His crucifixion.  They had brought spices to anoint His body, but as they approached the tomb, they noticed that the large stone sealing the entrance had been rolled away. Upon

Focal Passage: Mark 15:24-39  What does the text say?: Our focal passage, Mark 15:24-39, depicts the crucifixion of Jesus on the cross. The text reveals that they divided His garments, casting lots for them. Above Jesus’ head, a placard displayed the charge against Him: “The King of the Jews.” As Jesus hung on the cross, bystanders mocked Him, and even those crucified with Him joined in the derision. Darkness descended

Focal Passage: Mark 14:32-42  What does the text say?: In the gospel of Mark, chapter 14, verses 32-42, we find Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. He brings Peter, James and John with Him and begins to experience deep distress and anguish. Falling to the ground, He prays that, if possible, the hour might pass from Him.  He uses an intimate term for God, calling Him “Abba,” which means Father.

Focal Passage: Mark 13:24-37   What does the text say? Mark 13:24-37 contains Jesus’ words about His second coming. He paints a vivid picture of cosmic events that will accompany His return: “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars of heaven will fall, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.” Jesus then emphasizes