By Mark Proctor Pastor, Highland Park Baptist Church, Columbia Focal Passage: Joshua 24:14-28 I have a treasured book in my study containing some of history’s greatest speeches. I often read them finding myself wishing that I could compose and deliver such stirring homilies. What made those speeches great was not the composition but the passionate soul of the speaker. In Joshua 24, we hear the passion of the retiring, elderly Joshua
By Justin Randolph Pastor, Zion Hill Baptist Church, Sevierville Focal Passage: Psalm 119:153-160 I remember well my first and only experience roofing. It was on a Baptist Collegiate Ministries missions trip in Gulfport, Miss. We volunteered to roof a church that was damaged in a hurricane. We had a good system going and felt good about our work until we got down off the roof and noticed the shingles were
By Mark Proctor Pastor, Highland Park Baptist Church, Columbia Focal Passage: Joshua 22:1-8 An experienced backpacker will tell you in chilling detail of the dangers of reaching the summit after a long ascent up a mountain. With muscles weakened by fatigue and clothes soaked with sweat, the high country winds above the tree line can bring on hypothermia quickly. The top is no place to forget the rules. In
By Justin Randolph Pastor, Zion Hill Baptist Church, Sevierville Focal Passage: Psalm 119:89-96 It’s a new year! Time to make commitments we intend to keep. For example — commitments to lose weight, exercise more, read the Bible in its entirety, go on a missions trip, and be more faithful in our giving. Unfortunately, these commitments are usually easy to make, but harder to keep. Thankfully, God’s Word is absolutely permanent.
By Mark Proctor Pastor, Highland Park Baptist Church, Columbia Focal Passage: Luke 1:26-38 Twenty years ago, on the same week God called me from the engineering business into the ministry, my wife delivered another announcement: we were expecting our third child. I was terrified — a career change and an unexpectedly expanding family. At once, natural, human emotions threatened to eclipse the sovereignty of God. That balance is the struggle
By Justin Randolph Pastor, Zion Hill Baptist Church, Sevierville Focal Passage: Psalm 119:41; Luke 1:30-35 What is a miracle? A miracle is something we cannot do on our own. The reason we see miracles is because we get into situations that we cannot handle in the flesh. If I could show up and heal my brother, I wouldn’t have to pray for a miracle. If I could stop the wind
By Mark Proctor Pastor, Highland Park Baptist Church, Columbia Focal Passage: Joshua 10:6-14 Remember the old western movies with their dramatic musical scores? You could watch with your eyes closed and tell when the plot was about to change. The music became louder and more intense, the action slowed, and everyone prepared for a shoot out. Justice was at hand. The Bible contains those same pivotal moments. One such moment
By Justin Randolph Pastor, Zion Hill Baptist Church, Sevierville Focal Passage: Psalm 119:17-24 How beautiful, sweet, and innocent is a newborn baby. For many, we would keep them as babies forever, and yet we take them to their first doctor’s visit hoping that their measurements and weight indicate growth. Later in life, as their physical maturity increases, the harder work begins of helping them develop their emotional and intellectual maturity.
By Mark Proctor Pastor, Highland Park Baptist Church, Columbia Focal Passage: Joshua 6:12-25 Teachers, look at your students. Pastors, look at your congregants, and parents, look at your children. Those are warriors, battle-weary with hearts hurting from skirmishes in a mean, merciless world. What will we tell them? Joshua faced the same dilemma. As God’s leader he had to tell God’s wearied children how they were to move ahead to
By Justin Randolph Pastor, Zion Hill Baptist Church, Sevierville Focal Passage: Psalm 119:9-16 Stephen Covey is famous for encouraging his readers to “begin with the end in mind.” If you are going to reach your objective, you must first identify it and then work backwards to determine the steps necessary to get from where you are to where you are going. Psalm 119 begins with a question that is worth
By Mark Proctor Pastor, Highland Park Baptist Church, Columbia Focal Passage: Joshua 24:14-28 I have a treasured book in my study containing some of history’s greatest
By Justin Randolph Pastor, Zion Hill Baptist Church, Sevierville Focal Passage: Psalm 119:153-160 I remember well my first and only experience roofing. It was on
By Mark Proctor Pastor, Highland Park Baptist Church, Columbia Focal Passage: Joshua 22:1-8 An experienced backpacker will tell you in chilling detail of the
By Justin Randolph Pastor, Zion Hill Baptist Church, Sevierville Focal Passage: Psalm 119:89-96 It’s a new year! Time to make commitments we intend to keep.
By Mark Proctor Pastor, Highland Park Baptist Church, Columbia Focal Passage: Luke 1:26-38 Twenty years ago, on the same week God called me from the
By Justin Randolph Pastor, Zion Hill Baptist Church, Sevierville Focal Passage: Psalm 119:41; Luke 1:30-35 What is a miracle? A miracle is something we cannot
By Mark Proctor Pastor, Highland Park Baptist Church, Columbia Focal Passage: Joshua 10:6-14 Remember the old western movies with their dramatic musical scores? You could
By Justin Randolph Pastor, Zion Hill Baptist Church, Sevierville Focal Passage: Psalm 119:17-24 How beautiful, sweet, and innocent is a newborn baby. For many, we
By Mark Proctor Pastor, Highland Park Baptist Church, Columbia Focal Passage: Joshua 6:12-25 Teachers, look at your students. Pastors, look at your congregants, and parents,
By Justin Randolph Pastor, Zion Hill Baptist Church, Sevierville Focal Passage: Psalm 119:9-16 Stephen Covey is famous for encouraging his readers to “begin with the
