Once each year we have a special night at our church called “Vision Night.” This is usually New Year’s Eve or the first Sunday of a new year (as it is this year), and it is one of my favorite church services of the year. It is the time when we cast fresh vision to the church family. We share goals, express plans, and hand out materials to energize and rally our church family around a new twelve months of ministry. We hand out ministry goals, share PowerPoint presentations and visuals, and preach God’s Word.

When God lays a vision upon your heart, you must define it, picture it, and then stand before people and inspire them to love and trust God enough to own it and see it take place. There are few moments more exciting in a church’s life than when God brings to reality what was once embraced by a spiritual leader and church family only by faith. These moments are simply awesome! They exalt God. They turn faith into sight. They energize a church to press forward. They literally catapult a church into a new era of ministry.

The casting of your biblical vision should be something you do strategically. Here are some thoughts: (more…)

This October Terrie and I revisited the site of our first date of October 1979

Yesterday, Terrie and I celebrated thirty years of marriage. It’s hard to believe that something that seemed too wonderful to be true on our wedding day is even better now! I praise God for a godly wife and for the ever-deepening relationship He has given us.

Every newly-married couple knows that marriage is one of God’s greatest gifts. But, after the newness wears off, far too many couples treat their marriage like the kids who get the toy “I’ve always wanted” for Christmas.” They enjoy the gift for a short period, but very soon it is forgotten or neglected.

Marriage is for the long haul. And it actually gets better through the years when it is given continual attention. If you want a marriage that lasts, then you need these five “stays”: (more…)

How is it that the season first announced with peace and good will toward men (Luke 2:14) can become one of our most frazzled and hurried seasons of the year? Below are ten guidelines to help us keep the joy in Christmas:

1. Remember the purpose of the holiday. Christmas was not set as a holiday to give families a time of exchanging gifts or a delicious dinner (although I appreciate both of these traditions!). It was not about school Christmas plays or office parties. Christmas is about Christ. Every day during this season, take time to worship Him. “O come, let us adore Him!”
2. Remember others. There’s nothing that will boost your joy like encouraging another. Take your children to visit a local nursing home, write Christmas cards to the widows in your church, have another family over for dinner. Find ways to demonstrate to others the love we celebrate at Christmas.
3. Don’t neglect unsaved relatives. Rather than avoiding unsaved relatives, anticipate the opportunities to spend time with them at Christmas. Let them know you’re thankful to be part of the same family, and look for opportunities to share the Gospel.
4. Avoid debt. If you can’t pay for it in thirty days, don’t buy it. As much as we want to give our children everything they would like and more, we are giving them a greater gift if we are financially responsible. Besides, your love, time, and attention really does mean more than any toy or gadget to your children.
5. Create memories. I’m thankful for Terrie’s carefulness to take pictures and make family times special. With both your immediate family and extended family, spend time shaping special memories for your children.
6. Witness at every opportunity. Christmas is one of the easiest times of the year to witness. Steward this season wisely, and be prepared to share the Gospel everywhere you go. Hand out Gospel tracts, invite neighbors to your church, witness to unsaved loved ones. Look for opportunities, and you will be surprised how many there are!
7. Prepare for the new year. Before January each year, I spend some time alone with the Lord setting goals for the coming year. I review each area of responsibility in my life and ask the Lord to direct me in how I can grow and reach further for His glory.

Follow these guidelines, and your Christmas can be “the most wonderful time of the year”!

One hundred seventy years ago this month David Livingstone sailed for the continent of Africa. As I read the biography of Livingston this summer, I was struck by the appropriateness of the book’s subtitle: One who followed Christ. As a missionary-explorer, Livingstone’s life was spent carrying the Gospel into the deep interior of the dark continent of Africa.

Livingstone preached the Gospel in hundreds of African villages, and he saw some fruit from his labor. He couldn’t have known, however, of the fruit that would come in the generations to follow. The missionaries on African soil today are there largely because of the sacrifices Livingstone made to follow Christ through unknown paths, staggering on through fever, loneliness, and even abandonment. (more…)

What a joy it was to see our church packed both Saturday and Sunday evenings with hundreds of visitors for the Christmas musical. On Sunday evening, we had many extra chairs set up, and there were still people in the lobby watching by video.

The musical presentation was The Voices of Christmas, and it highlighted the prophecies of Christmas before Christ was born, the very first Christmas, and what Christmas means to us today. Before the last choir song, I preached a salvation message and gave visitors an opportunity to receive Christ as their Saviour. We praise the Lord for the many guests who trusted Christ both evenings.

In my message, I pointed out four of the voices of Christmas that we may hear: (more…)