In the bible, a rainbow appeared to Noah after the ark settled and they had reached dry land, to signify God’s promise to never flood the earth again.
Because of that, many today believe that the rainbow still holds that meaning. A promise from God.
When we see a rainbow, at least in our family, it gives us great comfort and signifies to us that God loves us and is watching out for us. It reminds us that He is present.
May God be present in your life.
Blessed to be a part of this wonderful church family.
Hey Northwest Tampa folks! Watch this video, it goes with our lesson tomorrow morning. The song is “Dream for You” by the Casting Crowns. Enjoy – and come to church tomorrow ready to let God dream for you.
Have you read the story? Go here first and read it, and then come back.
TELEVANGELSIST CREFLO DOLLAR SEEKS PRIVATE JET
Okay, I get it. You need to travel. It’d be nice to have your own plane. It’d be nice to not have to go through all the hassle of flying commercial.
No, wait. I don’t get it. We live in a world where I can literally be anywhere within 24 hours. And I can do it all for much less than $60million and change.
This story makes me sick. Here’s how it should have read:
TELEVANGELIST SEEKS TOP DOLLAR DONATIONS TO _________________
What goes in the blank? Anything but a private jet.
– Feed the poor
– Dig wells for clean water in Africa
– Find forever families for foster and orphan children
– Eliminate human sex trafficking
The list could go on and on. But instead he chose a private jet. I kept waiting to see if this was on a spoof/satirical website. But it wasn’t.
Christians, no humble servant of God will ever ask you for $67million to buy a private jet. Please, don’t support it. Instead, choose to support a real ministry like the ones I mentioned above, or numerous other great efforts.
David Cotham started visiting our church in Houston, the West University Church of Christ, because his son, Jeremy was at MD Anderson being treated for cancer. David was a preacher, a great guy, and was there every time he could be there. His wife, Sharon, stayed with Jeremy pretty much all the time. I witnessed the cancer attack Jeremy’s body. He started off looking like someone who was just in for treatment, but we all know what chemo does. It takes your hair, it weakens your body, it leaves you scarred.
He wore a mask when he was able to get out. He’d sit on the back row. You could tell he wanted to reach out and talk to people, but he just wasn’t allowed to do so. Eventually, when I left West U, I found that he had his legs amputated, and the cancer just couldn’t be beaten. Yesterday, after a long and hard fought battle, he went home to be with God.
I haven’t seen David or Sharon or Jeremy in months. But I kept up with him. Each week I’d get several updates from David or Sharon about his condition. Thousands of people were praying for Jeremy. I praise God for Jeremy and his influence on so many. As I read through comments on his Facebook wall last night and this morning, you could tell he had a tremendous impact on many. The last email that came through today said this:
Many of you have probably heard by now, but it is with great sadness that I have to tell you that our sweet, beloved son Jeremy passed away this afternoon.Recently as ESPN commentator, Stewart Scott, also passed away due to cancer; but before his death, last July, at the ESPY awards show, he received an award named after Jim Valvano, a former NC state coach who died of cancer in 1993 at age 47. In accepting the award, Scott is quoted as saying, “When you die from cancer, that does not mean that you lose to cancer. You beat cancer by HOW you live, WHY you live, and in the MANNER in which you live. So, live! Fight like heck (but he used another word); and when you get too tired to fight, then lay down and rest, and let someone else fight for you!” So now someone else is fighting for Jeremy, and now then Jeremy really did NOT lose then his battle to cancer this afternoon; but he beat cancer by “how” that he lived his life in the last 6 years since he was diagnosed with leukemia. He was an inspiration to all of us in “how” that he battled cancer! He was strong until the end! Never complained about his lot that life had dealt to him! He was the best son that any parents could have ever asked for, but he was taken from us way too young!Your immediate family will miss you (mom, dad, and Amber) (Bear too!)
And your large, huge extended family (relatives, friends, church members, doctors, nurses, medical staff, etc.) will also greatly miss you too!
Cancer stinks. I hate it.
When I first moved to Houston with my family to work with the church there, just a few days after we arrived I found out that my sister, in her mid thirties, had been diagnosed with breast cancer. She had the treatment, and the surgeries, and now, she is cancer free.
When my wife and I moved to Nashville, after about 10 months, we found out that Nathan, the boy of the family my wife helped so much as their nanny, was diagnosed with cancer. A hard fought battle, and several years, later, he’s cancer free. His parents informed us that if he had been diagnosed with the cancer he had just a year or so earlier, he would not have made it. That’s how far some cancer fighting technologies have come. Praise God.
A teenager at the church my parents attend, Whit, had some discouraging news today. He was diagnosed with cancer a few months back. His family wrote today – “For those who don’t already know, we got bad news yesterday. The cancer has spread to his brain and spine. He will start chemo today and will be on the original schedule but higher doses plus a chemo pill. The doc says he stands a good chance of the chemo getting it all but won’t know until the next MRI in 6 weeks. Thank you all for your love and support.”
Cancer stinks. I hate it.
My closest and dearest friend that I grew up with, Jason, lost both of his parents to cancer.
In fact, I’m pretty sure that all of us know someone who has gone through this. Some defeat it. Some do not. I don’t understand why.
Today, i’ve shed a few tears thinking about Jeremy. His parents loved him so much. They spent so much time away from home, traveling back and forth to Houston, but I consider them heroes. Kerry and Melinda Lackey, are heroes. Jason and his sister Tara, heroes. Tammy and Neal Robertson, heroes. All of you who fight the fight alongside those who have the disease are heroes for helping them, being there for them, loving them, being selfless.
If you know someone struggling with cancer today – send them a text, write them a note, give them a call, go and give them a visit, and let them know you’re there for them. May God strike down this horrible disease.
In honor of Apple releasing a new item – their smart watch – I thought I’d post a pic today of my journey to the land of China, and the Apple Store in Shanghai.
What are your thoughts on the Apple Watch?
Do you remember your first girlfriend or boyfriend? Perhaps it was in junior high. You held hands. You went to a ball game together. You talked to each other in the hall. Maybe you let her wear your jacket. Maybe you let him wear a ring of yours on a chain around his neck.
I remember my first “dating” experience. I was innocent. I was in love. I was so awestruck that someone would want to go out with me. I was in 7th grade, she was in 8th grade. I asked her out at a church youth rally. How’s that for romance, huh? I wrote her a note while some guy was speaking, and she replied with a note in return.
After we had been “dating” a week or so, a group of friends were going to go to Opryland (yes, it was still a park then, and yes, it was awesome). I remember on the “Skyride” cable cars that went across the top of the park, we finally held hands.
And then, the next day, she called me and dumped me because someone else had asked her out. So goes a junior high romance.
I remember I could not eat for days. I was heartbroken. I went to bed thinking about it, and woke up the next day with it on my mind again. I realized then and there – its hard to be in junior high. But its also hard to forget about that things that hurt us.
Paul had a few things to say about forgetting. In Philippians 3, he says “Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.”
I honestly thought I’d never forget about her. To a 14 year old boy, it was devastating. I would never love again. I’d live my life alone. No one would ever want me. Simply put, that was not true. Yes, she tore my heart out when she did that, and yes, it hurt. But, that was just a passing moment in my life, that helped me learn and grow.
Paul says we need to forget about the past, and move on. In this situation, he’s talking about his past mistakes in persecuting Christians, how he at one time thought it was what God wanted him to do, but he realized the error of his ways. I’m confident Paul would do anything to go back and change how he treated so many before he saw the light of Jesus shining down on him, but he couldn’t. So, he did the next best thing – he forgot about it.
I’ve always hated it when people say “Forget about it.” Or, they say things like “Man, you’ve just got to let it go.” Its hard when someone wrongs you to just let it go. But simply put, what’s in the past is in the past. And the fact that Paul has repented and moved on to bigger and better things, helps us see that the best way to forget about the pain in our life is to move forward and move on.
I haven’t been a saint all my life either. I’ve made my fair share of mistakes. I’ve apologized, I’ve repented, I’ve changed my way – and sadly, even with all of that done people still want to hold those things against me. We all know people who can’t forget about what things have been done against them. So, in that case, I have to move on. You have to move on. You have to forget about the past and press ahead to the goal, because that’s what God has called us to do. And while you’re at it, pray for those who can’t forget about it.
I don’t know how Paul was able to say this so confidently, but he did. I want to know how you can “forget” about something, but mention it so many times like Paul does. Had he truly forgotten about it? I think he was so confident in his forgiveness and repentance, that he could mention it and it not phase him at all. He knew he would not return to that lifestyle.
So, the question to ask is this – what’s lurking in your life that you need to forget about so you can move on? Who has caused you pain? Who has hurt you? Who has done you wrong?
What have you done to hurt others? Have you sought forgiveness? Have you changed your path?
Remember this: Satan loves to use our past to prevent us from a great future by keeping us miserable in the present. He’ll stop at nothing to keep you from Heaven. Its time to forget and move on.
Saw this tonight – I needed to see it. How about you?
Today is my dear love’s birthday. I don’t know that in the 11 plus years of our marriage if there has been a single day I haven’t praised God for bringing her into my life. She is the most wonderful woman in the entire world.
Happy birthday my love. My sweetheart. My bestest friend in the entire world. I love you.
Being Changed from the Inside Out 