The gospel never changes. But our tone and tools should, if we hope to reach young adults.

Occasionally, a song, usually an old hymn, reverberates in my mind. I believe this is one of the ways God has of prompting me to do or write something to His glory. I delight in these things because they make me happy in serving the Lord Jesus.

When it comes to church finances, trust is everything. Every dollar given in tithes, offerings, or designated gifts is an act of worship, and our churches have the responsibility to handle those resources with integrity

The Georgia Baptist Mission Board is continuing our new round of Public Affairs Training events this fall. These trainings are designed to equip pastors and church members with the tools and insights they need to effectively engage in today’s cultural and political landscape. We have already had 5 training sessions this year. There are 4 more events planned in October through November.

Something is happening in America that I have not seen in my lifetime and that is the nation’s response to the death of Charlie Kirk. I remember in meticulous detail the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, civil rights leader Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Senator and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, but this assassination of 31-year-old Charlie Kirk seems to be different and the nations’ response to his death is quite remarkable.

The Bible describes Job as blameless, upright, and God-fearing. He was not a perfect man, but he was good enough that God called him “My servant Job.” Job was a great and wealthy man, but Satan told God that Job was good only because God had put a hedge around his life. Satan claimed that if God sent adversity, Job would curse Him to His face.

A growing number of teenagers are turning to artificial intelligence for friendship, according to a new national survey and an Associated Press article that has stirred conversations among parents, educators, and faith leaders.

What started out as a glowing introduction bombed when the host pastor said of his guest preacher, “Our speaker has never bored anyone with a long sermon. He always does it quickly.” 

​You’ve probably heard the old story of the husband and wife who were driving along, and the wife says, “Honey, do you remember back when we used to sit really close to each other in the car. We’d be riding together, and we’d cuddle up right next to each other.”

Never before have we needed to have our senses more trained to discern good and evil than now. Scripture tells us in Hebrews 5:14, “But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.”

Spiritual fruit includes love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, and temperance (Galatians 5:22-23).

If you live outside of Jackson, Tennessee, you are likely unfamiliar with the name Ann Marie Kelley. Those of us who call this community home, however, recognize her as a bit of a local hero. Diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2021, her initial prognosis was bleak. Yet, with the innovation and progress of modern medicine as His means, God supernaturally healed Ann Marie’s body of all cancer, giving her a new lease on life.   

Do you give people a second chance? The joy of life is usually found in our relationships.

I join many Kentucky Baptists in praising God for faithful men and women who have dedicated much of their lives in the defense of the unborn. Because of God’s blessings on their efforts, we live in a state where medical elective abortion is banned. Because of the hard work and prayers of many, the EMW Women’s Surgical Center, our state’s primary abortion clinic, was shuttered in 2022, and Planned Parenthood is no longer able to list abortion as one of the services it provides in Kentucky. 

In 2021, Professor John Kindt (former professor at The University of Illinois) and I were a part of hosting a gambling symposium at a downtown Atlanta hotel. In that meeting, Professor Kindt was able to present many facts regarding the detrimental impact of gambling in the United States.

Fresh research says Gen Z and Millennials are now attending church more frequently than older adults, a reversal of decades of assumptions. The data points to a surge in participation among adults under 40, inviting us to reexamine our church growth and ministry strategies in light of this trend.

Though he is a doomed and defeated foe, the devil delights in generating counterfeits to the gracious gifts that God provides. Nowhere is this more evident than when considering His greatest attribute, love.

After Pilate relented and sentenced Jesus to death, the Bible tells us, “Now as they led Him away, they laid hold of a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, who was coming from the country, and on him they laid the cross that he might bear it after Jesus” (Luke 23:26).

I just wanted to know when dinosaurs lived. That’s it. That was the most profound biblical mystery swirling in my head when I began seminary. I landed in the survey class of a professor considered one of the Southern Baptist Convention’s foremost Old Testament scholars at the time. Surely, he’d know about dinosaurs.

Of all the strategies that Satan uses to sow destruction into the lives of Christians and unbelievers alike, none is more deceptive nor comprehensive than the lies surrounding human sexuality. Littered among the movies we watch, the music we listen to, and the commercials we mindlessly absorb are both subtle innuendo and explicitly obscene enticements which woo us away from the sanctity and design intended for one of God’s most wonderful gifts.

​Let’s be upfront. Nowhere in the New Testament do we find the command, “You must join a church.” Clearly, the Bible indicates the only way to heaven is by receiving Jesus, so joining a church does not grant an automatic ticket to heaven.

In Ephesians 2:8-9, the Apostle Paul said, “For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” The phrase “by faith alone through grace alone” is a central tenet of Protestant theology.

If you’ve been keeping up with the news lately, you probably saw that Cracker Barrel stirred up quite the fuss. The company rolled out a new logo—sleeker, more modern, and, in their minds, more appealing to a younger crowd.

“You cannot continue as a member of this church while you are actively unfaithful to your wife.” “You cannot remain a member in good standing if you continually sow discord in the body.” “You cannot deny the bodily resurrection of the saints and call this your church home.” These are just a few examples of the real conversations I have had over the years in an attempt to reinforce our congregational commitment to truth in the body of Christ.

Artificial Intelligence, AI, is a wonderful tool for research and information. However, I don’t want my deepest relationship to be with a chatbot, chatgpt, robot or anything related to AI.