The other day, someone asked me, “How are you?” I said, “Things are going along just fine” and the retort came back, “You must be living right.” A while back, I played a round of golf in Montreal at the second oldest golf course in North America. On one hole I hit a lucky drive… Continue reading The Relationship Between Sin and Suffering
Category: Insights for Preaching
WHAT HAPPENED WHEN JESUS DIED?
The cross of Jesus is … – the center of all we believe, the heart of all we experience with God, and the basis of all we love about our faith – Jesus Christ did not come just to preach a gospel – he came to die that there would be a gospel to preach… Continue reading WHAT HAPPENED WHEN JESUS DIED?
ELIJAH – 2: The man who heard God’s voice
How do you react when someone says, “God told me…?” Some people are awestruck, some are skeptical and some are confused and don’t know how to respond. A man once told me that God had spoken to him. He said, “God told me to marry a certain woman.” I listened to his story. He was… Continue reading ELIJAH – 2: The man who heard God’s voice
ELIJAH – 1: God’s Man For A Dark Day
I’m excited by the good things happening in the kingdom of God. There are some churches that are impacting secular culture. Some congregations are growing through conversion growth. Many churches are practicing the love of Christ in their communities. But at the same time, the church seems to be having less of an impact on… Continue reading ELIJAH – 1: God’s Man For A Dark Day
THE MINISTRY OF THE SPIRIT
“He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. “ (2 Corinthians 3:6). A few years ago, a missionary friend of mine was driving down a rural road. Everything was going well as he approached a… Continue reading THE MINISTRY OF THE SPIRIT
Getting Ready To Preach
Preaching has been described as the fine art of talking in someone else’s sleep. Most of us would plead guilty. We intend to rouse our people to spiritual vitality and dedication, but too often our listeners just yawn. The Bible doesn’t preach homiletics. There is not one set way to craft a message. There is… Continue reading Getting Ready To Preach
For Better, Forever – Dream Marriage
– Nothing starts out with such high expectations as marriage – when you go to a wedding, everyone is smiling, everyone is dressed up and everyone is on his best behavior – brides wear pretty dresses; grooms squeeze into tuxedos – people sing songs with the word “forever” – there’s a lot of sentiment, or… Continue reading For Better, Forever – Dream Marriage
For Better, Forever – Nurturing Your Marriage
– as we’ve gone through the series, people have been giving me all kinds of stories i. a man was involved in a serious car accident and when he awakened, he was in the arms of his wife – he began to talk to her and as difficult as it was, he began to say… Continue reading For Better, Forever – Nurturing Your Marriage
For Better, Forever – Women are weird; Men are a Mess!
This message was given jointly by Pastor Calvin Ratz and his wife Ruth Ratz – This morning, Ruth and I are going to try to explain why women are weird and why men are a mess – we’ve been married for 45 years – we love each other a lot more now than we did… Continue reading For Better, Forever – Women are weird; Men are a Mess!
For Better, Forever – The Fatal Flaw
– a while back I bought an expensive crystal serving dish for my wife. Shortly after getting it home, she was washing it in warm water. She did not hit it or drop it but as it was in the water, it broke in two pieces. Actually there was a flaw in the crystal dish… Continue reading For Better, Forever – The Fatal Flaw