Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012
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AT CHRISTMAS ALL ROADS LEAD HOME
Marjorie Holmes writes, "At Christmas, all roads lead home. The filled planes, the packed trains and overflowing buses all speak eloquently of a single destination: home. Despite the crowding and the crushing, the delays, the confusion, we clutch our bright
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012
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THE UNEXPECTED CHRISTMAS
When I was in seventh grade, like so many youth at that age, music became a huge part of my life. I was awakened to the sounds of music of Elton John’s Greatest Hits, SuperTramp's Breakfast in America and Led Zeppelin 2. So my hope and dream was to build a stereo system
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012
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THE TABLECLOTH
The brand new pastor and his wife were assigned to their first church in Brooklyn and were to reopen it. They arrived in early October excited about their opportunities. When they saw the church, it was run down and needed a lot of work. They set a goal to have everything done in
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 26, 2012
THE PLACE OF ABUNDANT ADVENTURE
Mike Slaughter tells the story of going to Darfur, Africa to minister to the refugees. "It was the first time in my life I knew I was going into a situation with a probability I could die; a situation that was utterly dangerous. There were people with guns. We would
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 26, 2012
IT ALL GOES BACK TO THE HEAD
Mike Slaughter tells the story of his dog Luka, a giant schnauzer. Luka had an infected toe for several months on his back leg and one of the things that he noticed is that Luka will tend to drag that back foot causing him to scrape his toe. Their vet couldn't figure
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 26, 2012
DREAM CENTER
At age 16, Matthew Barnett dreamed of a church that would be open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year serving the inner-city’s physical and spiritual needs and bringing a message of hope to the hopeless. In 1994 at the age of 20, he moved from Phoenix to Los Angeles to pastor a small
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 26, 2012
OBJECT LESSON: LEGO BRICKS
When you came in you received Lego building blocks of differing sizes and shapes. I’ve got a challenge for you; I want you to build something with your Lego blocks but there is one condition, you cannot use anybody else’s Lego block. Now what can you build with one Lego
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Methodist
Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 26, 2012
WHERE ARE YOU?
But to be able to get where you’re going, you first have to know where you are. I learned this over Thanksgiving when I was in Atlanta. We used our Garman to get around as we were unfamiliar with the area. Garmans are great because all you do is enter the address of where you want
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 26, 2012
OPEN TABLE MINISTRY
Open Table started with a chance encounter with a homeless man named Ernie who simply asked a youth group serving him a meal if he could come worship at their church. The adult youth workers were moved to agree to come the very next day to bring Ernie to their church service.
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Jul 1, 2012
ROGER WILLIAMS: WORSHIP AS A "RELIGIOUS FIX"
Roger Williams was thumbing through a magazine on a short flight from Sacramento to San Diego. He had taken his seat when two well-dressed, attractive 20-something-year-old women sat down next to him. Their conversation competed with his attention to
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Jul 1, 2012
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WORSHIP: IT TAKES TIME TO WARM UP
When I was a kid in Kansas City, we lived next door to a family who owned a publishing company. They had an old 4 door Mercedes that they would let their son drive to school. He was 3 years older than me and also named Tim. On those winter mornings when the
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Jul 1, 2012
COULD IT HAPPEN EVERY DAY?
Jeff Ingle tells the story of spending four days with 75 other pastors in a Pastor's Prayer Summit in Wisconsin.
He writes, "In my time I've been to many camps, conferences and retreats but never have I been to anything like this. For four days, we met together with no
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Jul 1, 2012
WHAT COMMITMENT?
When I was in my first year of ministry, I walked into our District preachers meeting at the same time as Bobbie Potter, who was pastor of Munholland UMC in Old Metairie. He asked if I preach last Sunday which I did. Then he asked, "What did you ask them to commit to?" I said I
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Jul 1, 2012
OBSTACLES TO WORSHIP
Don Chapman writes,
"Recently I visited a church where I had to jump over a few unnecessary hurdles before I finally took my seat in their worship service. There was no sign out front. I drove to the church's location and was surprised not to see a sign. Was I in the right
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Jul 30, 2012
Jim Buskirk was pastor of Tulsa First UMC for many years. He’s been a mentor in my ministry. I listened to his sermon tapes for years. He once told this story.
A man named Henry got off the bus near his church. As he walked up the street, he noticed a young boy sitting by a flower bed near a
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Methodist
Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 21, 2012
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J Vernon McGee told the story of the days before the Civil War in a city in the south. At the center of town, there is a commotion as a crowd gathers for a public auction to watch the proceedings. In the crowd is an uncouth, foulmouthed, loud, boisterous man who is the meanest, cruelest, most
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Methodist
Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 21, 2012
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WORKING HARD TO EARN SALVATION
United Methodist Bishop Reuben Job writes,
"If we are just good enough, do enough, deny ourselves enough, we will be forgiven, redeemed, and reconciled to God. Following this path brings no peace, assurance, or sense of companionship with God. Rather than asking
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 21, 2012
Jaymalis Davis was highlighted in the Times-Picayne series entitled, “Louisiana Incarcerated.” He lives in central city surround by drugs, crime and unemployment. His mother is crack addicted and largely absent from his home and his father, who was in and out of jail for drugs and car theft and
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Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 21, 2012
During his first year of seminary, Alan Hirsch led a small group of newly converted Christians that included “gays, lesbians, Goths, drug addicts, prostitutes, and some relatively ordinary people.” After graduating, he and his wife were called to go to South Melbourne Church of Christ in 1989 where
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