“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!

Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland (Is.43:18-20 NIV).”

Remember this expression, “You can't see the forest for trees?” Well that's got to be applied to our preoccupation with time. We get bent out of shape by the concept that 'oh, oh, another year has past and a new one is here.' This means “time marches on” and we're trapped in…

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!

Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland (Is.43:18-20 NIV).”

How does this passage speak to us?

For those who understand its implications this is a new day, a new opportunity, a new time and a new place. There is a resurgent sense of the Holy Spirit and the open door to a restoration of God’s plan. Just as each Christmas…

While we have been concentrating on the Second Coming during Advent it is time we look at what it will produce in the present. It is why we continue to celebrate Christmas year after year. Because we are looking forward to Jesus returning it is that vision that gives us purpose in the present. This is what makes every next moment a living moment. Building on that expectation gives us the essence of our individuality, why we are here. It is to be like Him. When we become more like Him the…

The third part of the Blue Ridge parallel was building an accessible highway through the mountains. Here is where the vision and the planning became a reality. Here is where the idea, the organizing for the idea, the gathering of all the skills and equipment necessary actualized the idea. Here is where the idea became a hands-on day-to-day combination of all the administrative, leadership, engineering, supervising and specific tasks. Everything from project management to that guy with axe in…

The second part of the Blue Ridge parallel was putting people to work during the Great Depression. Having the vision for a highway needed planning, surveying, contractors, skilled artisans and a labor force to do the actual clearing and paving. It’s a massive wilderness to overcome. Facing seasonal changes, gathering the machinery, accommodating the needs for food, clothing and medical supplies presented an enormous challenge.

This is the same challenge the Body of Christ faces as it…

Let’s look again at the three-fold purpose of the Blue Ridge Parkway: first, preserving a way to behold the beauty of Creation for all future generations, second, putting people to work during the Great Depression and third, building an accessible road through the mountains.

Right now we will look at the first one, preserving a way to behold the beauty of Creation for all generations. The parallel here is to return humanity to its source, our Creator God. It’s interesting to note that…

“In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him (Mt.3:1-3 TNIV).’”

When the Blue Ridge Parkway was built in the 1930’s in Virginia and North Carolina through the Blue Ridge and Smoky Mountains, the forests, mountains and valleys were…

One thing we need to keep before us is that the Bible is spiritual history. It records the world's spiritual descent through sin and the spiritual recovery of its people through Jesus the Christ whose final judgment ends in the destruction of all that is evil. The lingering despot behind its collapse is the devil whose presence continues to assail the human heart but in a final cataclysm is eternally erased. This happens when the Lord Jesus returns.

In Advent we just need a bit of a…

One of our vacations a few years ago found us driving from North Carolina across the border into a remote part of Tennessee. As we moved toward the border we saw an increase in hillsides that had been stripped of timber. Crossing into Tennessee it became worse. It must have once been strip-mined. We arrived in a small town with buildings that looked beaten down and people actually looking as beaten as the buildings. We drove slowly down the main street, which curved to the right. I even hit…

Years ago on the Grand Ol' Opry there was a comedian named Stringbean. In his good old Tennessee drawl he'd let go a few rural wisdom remarks and end up his short skit by saying “Heart, heart, heart, heart” his voice fading to end it. Just being a good old country boy, obviously loved by all his Opry pals, led you to look forward to seeing him again. It seemed he had a warm and engaging heart.

Now shift.

I'm sure you've had the feeling when walking down a dark road that your…

In my trips to get new glasses the same procedure greets me. I'm put through a series of tests where the eye examiner probes with light techniques to determine the health of my eyes. Then a focus test is given to measure the strength of vision and a prescription is arrived at to make glasses that adjust sight to a relative 20/20 focus.

Advent is a good season to use the light of the Word to shine on our mind, heart and spirit and test their strength for spiritual insight and action.…

“We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ (2Cor.10:5 The Message).”

Regardless of where a person is in mind, heart and spirit there are coping methods individuals use for self-protection. Self-protection is a product of sin. It arises out of the need to adjust to the world around us based on the fear of not…

On weekends when you go to a few of the big discount stores like Costco or BJ's there are people dressed as cooks at the end of some of the aisles preparing bits and pieces of different kinds of foods for you to taste. Their intention is to get you to buy a box or more of their product. If you like the flavor of the foretaste you'll want more. The idea is not only to get your family to enjoy it but also you might even be inspired to invite friends to share it at a party or…

The most important thing about preparation is what you are preparing for. Advent is a period of preparation for...? That's right, Jesus' return. Of course we are all getting ourselves ready for Christmas celebration at worship, family get-togethers, memories, the fireplace, the tree, carols and all the festivities that surround the expectation of the Savior's return. The last words of Scripture are, “Come Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people…

Part of my self-survival training in New York City during my high school years was getting a job. I don't remember any of the other guys on the block doing that but I knew it was important for me. I had several. One was walking polo ponies at a local indoor arena off Park Ave. (That's a story in itself). Two others were as a delivery boy for a drug store and a luggage shop. In those my deliveries involved customers who lived in exclusive high rises on Park and 5th Avenues. I learned very…

“The world is unprincipled. It's dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn't fight fair. But we don't live or fight our battles that way—never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren't for marketing or manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped…

“Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning (Lk.12:35)”

If you really think about it the longest trail in the world is between hearts. We can take a plane and in one day be in Asia. We can go by car and reach the West Coast in a comfortable five days. We can ‘Skype’ on the computer and in a matter of seconds see and communicate with people around the globe. Physical distance is no longer a barrier. But there is a distance that seems to be getting longer, more challenging…

In cross country skiing you have a forerunner, that is, someone who blazes a trail through new snow to make way for the next skiers. If you are a group of people you each take a turn blazing the trail since new snow takes more effort and energy. Each one may take a few hundred yards then the next does the same and so on. Each skier helps the one behind. They all know where they are headed and what has to be done along the way.

When the Blue Ridge Parkway was built in the 1930’s in…

Matt.12:6 Jesus said, “But I say unto you, that in this place is one greater than the temple (KJV).”

Which is really greater? Is it the building, the people, the leaders, the institutional forms and rules under which they operate, or the One for whom the building, the institution and the people exist? Another way of putting it, are the forms more important than the substance? Are the structures superior to the One who initiated them? ““The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the…