First Christian Church - Elizabethtown, Ky

Jesus said in Matthew Chapter 28, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Those words make it clear that we are to be Jesus’ representative in this world. Our mission is to teach others about the gospel, guide them to acceptance of grace and to help them become closer to Jesus throughout their lifetime. Jesus promises to be our leader…our boss…through this process. Jeffrey James of Inc.com wrote an article that identified the greatest traits of an extraordinary boss. He said they inspire employees to dedicate themselves to the success of their peers and to the community at large. Jesus teaches us to see others as important and to help them become a part of God’s family. James wrote that extraordinary bosses set a general direction and then commit themselves to obtaining the resources that their em

In the earliest days of His ministry, people saw something different in Jesus. While there were things they didn’t see and understand, they saw and understood enough. As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him. Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him. Matthew 4:18-22 (NIV) Imagine what it was like for these men to drop everything they were doing and follow Jesus. Why would they do such a thing? A better question may be why wouldn’t they follow Jesus? C.S. Lewis writes about Reepicheep, an exuberant talking mouse, in The Voyage of the Dawn Treade

Have you ever looked around to realize someone you needed for such a time as this has been with you for quite some time? Maybe you were one who was brought up in church, accepted Christ as your Savior when you were a teenager and were active in church throughout high school and college. However, as you entered the work force, you found that sleeping in on Sunday became a habit after a hard week at work. Soon, your science background had you even doubting what you believed so strongly in your youth and thus, you had no time for God. Talking to your aunt about her faith and church involvement caused you to rethink your doubts and Sunday morning habits. Was that aunt in your life for such a time as this? Maybe you realized your life was out of control. Sin in so many forms had taken over what seemed to be a life filled with good things. A co-worker talked to you about Jesus, introduced you to the Bible and brought you to church. After a few weeks of listening to stories about this Jesus, you gave your heart and

"In the 1993 NFL playoff game, the Buffalo Bills came back from a 32 point deficit to beat the Houston Oilers in overtime, 41 to 38. This is considered by many to be the greatest post-season comeback in all of NFL history. It’s a great story and was a great game. People love comeback stories! It gives us hope and encouragement, especially when we are down. The greatest comeback in the history of the world would have to be when Jesus Christ rose from the dead. The truth of the matter is that Jesus didn’t actually make a comeback, He is our great comeback. He rose from the dead and in so doing, conquered death. He conquered death for us…for the world! “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:17 (NIV) Rick McDaniel writes, “Anyone who confesses their sins to Jesus will be forgiven and granted eternal life. Thus, because of Jesus’ comeback any person can have their greatest personal comeback. The setback of mistakes, failures and sins can be

When we think of Samson, the first thing that probably comes to mind is his incredible strength. God blessed Samson with an incredible potential that he largely wasted. Samson could have been one of the greatest leaders in the history of Israel, but instead, his life tragically became an example of how not to live. His life was one of squandered resources and wasted potential and ability. He arrogantly threw it all away because he made some serious mistakes. His story stands as a warning of what not to do, but it is also a story that speaks of an incredible comeback. Trapped in sin, Samson ignored the warnings of those around him, until he woke up one day and it was too late. The Bible tells us, "The Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza. They bound him with bronze fetters and he became a grinder in the prison." Judges 16:21(NKJV) Sin blinds us to the reality of the destruction it causes. However, we serve a God of second chances. The Bible tells us that "the hair of his head

The story of Jacob allows us to see how the character of a man can completely change when he comes to depend upon God. Jacob was a schemer, a liar and a manipulator for a large portion of his life. He stole his brother’s birthright and blessing. He lived a major portion of life on the run. He ran from people he deceived and used. He ran from God. He used his wile and cunning to build wealth. In many ways, Jacob epitomized what we now call the “me generation.” “Me generation” people reject tradition. Jacob rejected the birthright tradition. “Me generation” people believe in themselves above all else. Jacob had supreme confidence in his abilities and relied upon himself. “Me generation” people are unfiltered. Jacob exhibited great pride in his life and wasn’t afraid to let others see it. “Me generation” people appear to shun hard work and have a sense of entitlement. Jacob made his own rules and deceived others for selfish gain. Ultimately, “me generation” people want to be seen as individuals. Jacob

Peter was a part of the inner circle. He was a leader and often took on the role of spokesman for the Twelve. In the presence of Jesus, Peter was brave. “Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.” Matthew 14:29 (NIV) When he took his eyes off the Lord, he began to sink, but Jesus rescued him. When the detachment of soldiers was sent to arrest Jesus, Peter, “who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant,” and Jesus commanded him to put away the sword. Here again Peter demonstrated his courage as he bravely challenged the soldiers. Peter boasted to Jesus that he would never deny Him, “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.” But Jesus responded saying to Peter, “…you will disown me three times.” Yet Peter professed his dedication more emphatically, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” Matthew 26:33-35 (NIV) Peter was courageous and bold while with Jesus. Peter did deny Jesus three times. His courage and bravery escaped

Moses knew what it was like to be alone and in trouble. It started when he was a baby, left alone in a basket, floating among the reeds along the banks of the Nile River. It continued as an adult when he had to run away from his homeland to escape the consequences of killing an Egyptian. You may wonder how often he thought about God’s plan for his life after he was rescued from the river by Pharaoh’s daughter and raised as her son. You may wonder if, during the years he lived in a foreign land, he even considered the possibility that God was at work. Those years had to be quite a setback for a person who grew up among royalty. He had plenty of time to regret his crime and attempted cover-up. What’s interesting is how little time we spend thinking about the difficulties that shaped the life of Moses. Our thoughts go straight to Moses leading the Hebrew nation through one of the most incredible comebacks in history. Without the setbacks Moses may have never recognized his limitations and God’s power. Cons

It’s really rotten when you find out you’re wrong, isn’t it? It’s difficult to admit it to yourself but even harder to admit it to someone else, especially to someone who may have suffered from your being wrong. It’s also difficult to put that change from wrong to right into a new way of living. Going from wrong to right—what does it take? If we look at the life of Paul, also known as Saul, we find that it involved several things. An Intervention: Saul had a light-filled, instructive encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. A Time to Realize You Are Wrong: Saul was blind for three days, giving Saul plenty of time and little distraction to realize how wrong he was to persecute the new believers. Call to Living a New Life: God used Ananias to deliver the good news that Jesus wanted Saul to see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit. A Conversion: Saul immediately accepted this word from Jesus, had his sight restored and was baptized. Assistance from Friends: Saul was in danger but was hidden by fri

The Bible has a lot to say about patience and endurance. It teaches us that when we wait on God, we are to enjoy the wait with anxious anticipation and in the end, we will triumph. Matthew 10:22 — “You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.” (NIV) Romans 5:3-4 — “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” (NIV) Galatians 6:9 — “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” (NIV) Philippians 1:6 — “Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (NIV) Hebrews 10:36 — “You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.” (NIV) Hebrews 12:1 — “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything th

A popular Taylor Swift song contains these lyrics: I keep cruising Can't stop, won't stop grooving It's like I got this music In my mind, saying it's gonna be alright Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake Shake it off, shake it off While Taylor doesn’t have a master’s degree in theology, she does give us some sound practical advice in those words. Sometimes we simply have to let things go. The apostle Paul puts it this way in Philippians 3:13-14 “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” We are called to own our part in our circumstances and to rethink and learn from the mistakes we’ve made. And then we are called to release it by forgiving not only ourselves for our screw ups but we are to forgive those who have contributed to the failures in our lives. We are to

“We made too many wrong mistakes.” - Yogi Berra We are all experts in mistakes. We all make them and that is really o.k. We learn from our mistakes in the areas that matter least. We repeat our mistakes in the areas that matter most. Too often, we look at our pasts and our decisions don't even make sense to us. We end up asking, "What was I thinking?" “Success does not consist in never making mistakes but in never making the same one a second time.” - George Bernard Shaw Mistakes – too often we think of those as bad things. Once, maybe twice, might be acceptable, but repeating mistakes is the big mistake. Yet some of our best learning opportunities come from our mistakes. How do we avoid getting stuck in cycles of repeated mistakes that take our lives down the wrong path? Examination, assessment and learning lessons after making a mistake is the path that leads us to changing behavior. “And a step backward, after making a wrong turn, is a step in the right direction.” - Kurt Vonnegut So, mistakes ar

You get a speeding ticket because the State Trooper set up a speed trap. You strike out because the umpire can’t tell the difference between a ball and a strike. You get a bad job review because the supervisor doesn’t like you. The “you” in each situation gets a negative result. But for some reason, the “you” was never at fault. Here’s a safe prediction. The future will bring more speeding tickets, more strikeouts and a job search. There is a simple explanation. If bad results are never your fault, there’s no reason to change. And the same actions will almost always bring about the same results. Let’s be honest. We don’t like to take responsibility for our mistakes. It’s almost a reflex action to look for someone else, anyone else, to blame. We do this in spite of the fact that we want to do better next time. Repeating mistakes is incredibly frustrating. A fresh start sure sounds good. Starting over requires change. The best way to bring about positive change is to own your past, take responsibility f

Neglecting to follow instructions can cause problems, some serious, some not so serious. A child who disregards the teacher’s instructions to “keep your hands to yourself and be quiet” while in line with his classmates on their way to the cafeteria may find himself sitting with the teacher at lunch. A student working on a science project who didn’t follow the written instructions for the project may find that her hypothesis couldn’t be proven true when she conducted her experiment. Thus, she will need to rethink the project and do it again. A person who doesn’t pay attention to his finances may find that he doesn’t have enough funds to make the car payment and thus, his credit rating may be lowered. A husband or wife who fails to follow God’s directions for their marriage may find themselves in a relationship with someone new. Their marriage may end because they didn’t put God, their spouse and family first. Each of these examples will require a form of starting over—a reassessment of what is important and

NO can be a tough thing to hear and a hard word to say. We all want to be supportive and helpful. Telling someone NO when they need something or our help…well, it just doesn’t seem right. But NO has a positive side. We all have gifts and want to share because this allows us to do all we can. But, if we take on too many things, spread our gifts and time too thin, we can quickly be in a place where we are of little help to anyone. We lose focus. And coming to the rescue—prioritization! Finding there is not time enough to get it all done? Determine what is most important, set Priorities and get ready for it. Then tell some of those with requests and needs, NO, you just cannot help. Okay, don’t use the capital N-O, be polite and maybe even take a moment to explain your limitations. Explain the need for focus. Even Christ found that NO sometimes was the answer. We learn this from Mark 1:35-39 (NIV): “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary pla

Many of us are activity focused and experience driven. We are crazy busy and on the go. At the same time we are relationally poor, especially within our own families. Too often we cater and contribute to our kids’ entertainment and education but not so much to their eternity. We must reverse this by becoming relationship focused and driven. Our families need each other. Husbands need their wives; wives need their husbands; and children need their parent’s attention, affection and love. They need time and they need us! In Proverbs 22:6, King Solomon says: “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” Some of us have mistakenly taken this as a guarantee that if a child is taught the truths of God when they are young, they will return to God even if they stray. As much as we would like that to be true and as much as we may have seen it to be true on occasion, it is sadly not always true. Sometimes children and people drift away so far that they have lost the d

Taking time to be alone to recharge our body and our mind is a biblical principle. God included it in the Ten Commandments. “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work.” God knows us. He knows us so well because he fashioned and made us in His image. God directed that we take time out on a regular basis to stop pursuing our vocation and all the busyness in our lives. Many of us probably wonder if this commandment really applies to our lives today. After all, we have problems, pressures and responsibilities that seem greater than at any other time in history. We’ve got to be problem solvers and doers constantly it seems. But it is exactly because of those things that we need times of solitude and rest. God is concerned about our well-being. He is concerned about our relationship with Him. He knows that we need to take time outs and get away from all of the things that do

NO can be a tough thing to hear and a hard word to say. We all want to be supportive and helpful. Telling someone NO when they need something or our help…well, it just doesn’t seem right. But NO has a positive side. We all have gifts and want to share because this allows us to do all we can. But, if we take on too many things, spread our gifts and time too thin, we can quickly be in a place where we are of little help to anyone. We lose focus. And coming to the rescue—prioritization! Finding there is not time enough to get it all done? Determine what is most important, set Priorities and get ready for it. Then tell some of those with requests and needs, NO, you just cannot help. Okay, don’t use the capital N-O, be polite and maybe even take a moment to explain your limitations. Explain the need for focus. Even Christ found that NO sometimes was the answer. We learn this from Mark 1:35-39 (NIV): “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary pla

Some of the world’s greatest, most fearless athletes could never hit a 400—foot home run, throw a 60—yard touchdown pass or block a dunk attempt by LeBron James. What they can do is excel on the balance beam. Gymnasts would be completely out of place on the baseball or football field and overpowered by an NBA player. On a four—inch wide wooden beam, they are magnificent. Many things happen on the beam: flips, jumps, spins. Whatever the move, the key to success is balance. Yes, a gymnast has to be flexible and strong, both physically and mentally. But balance is vital. Still, even the greatest gymnast will sometimes fall. Acrobatic moves take them to the very edge of, and even beyond, their abilities. That’s all right as long as they fall on the beam and not while trying to be LeBron James. LeBron was made to play basketball and you will never see him try to do a back flip on a balance beam. Each person is given something to do that shows who God is: everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits. All kinds o