A Living Legacy

Hebrews 9:17 – “For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.”  The late great North Carolina Men’s Basketball coach, Dean Smith, who passed away this past February at age 83, was one of the most successful college coaches in history.  Smith was called a...

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I Don't Own a White Flag

Hebrews 12:3 - "Consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest you be wearied and faint in your minds".  Did you know that the state of New Jersey has established what is called a "safe surrender" program offering persons wanted by the police for non-violent crimes to turn themselves in...

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Sweatless Grace

Ezekiel 44:17-18 – “And it shall be, when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with bleached linen clothing. And no wool shall come on them while they serve in the gates of the inner court, and inside. Turbans of bleached linen shall be on their heads, and shall have bleached linen undergarments on their loins. They shall not clothe themselves with anything that causes sweat.”  Did you ever buy a deodorant that didn’t…do what it was supposed to do, stop the sweat?  I have...

 

 

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Who's Your Daddy?

John 17:25-26 – “O righteous Father, indeed the world has not known You; but I have known You, and these have known that You have sent me. And I made known to them Your name, and will make it known, so that the love with which You have loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”  In the movie Taken, Liam Neeson plays a character named Bryan, the father of a young adult girl abducted in Paris by a human trafficking ring.  The outlook is not good as the daughter...

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C.S.I. - Christ Scene Investigation

John 20:6-7 (21st Century King James Version) "Then came Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulcher and saw the linen cloths as they lay and the napkin that had been about His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but wrapped together in a place by itself."  The hit show C.S.I. has been around for a long time, and although I am not a fan, I am fascinated by...

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Once Shaved, Always Shaved

1 Corinthians 1:8-9 – “Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.  God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.”  I know that beards are making quite the comeback these days, but every day, no matter what, like most men, I shave...

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Bobo's Back!

Matthew 6:9 “Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed by thy name”.  Some of you may remember me talking about Bobo in recent years, a dog in my neighborhood where I grew up.  He was chained up in the yard at his house, all day long, rain or shine, near the softball field where we played.  Bobo was a huge black dog with matted fur and very large teeth, and barked nonstop.  Unfortunately... 

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Take What's Yours

Matthew 6:11 – “Give us this day our daily bread”.  Some of my favorite memories are of dinner time as a young boy in the Fortunato household.  Imagine five kids, mom, dad, around the kitchen table…a lot could, and often would happen.  People talked over one another, lots of hijinks, questions were asked that you were supposed to answer, it was really interesting.  But there’s one thing that none of us ever did...

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Dynamic Soaring in 2015

Isaiah 40:31 “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”  When I was in the window and siding business many years ago, there was a saying among the sales people, “Are you working hard, or working smart?”, meaning...

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The Naughty and Nice List

Romans 4:4 “Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt".  Christmas brings back some really great memories for me from my childhood.  How about the lyrics to the song “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”?  We used to sing that song all the time, loved it.  But as I got older and really listened to the lyrics...

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"Thanks-given"

2 Peter 1:3 "According as his divine power has "given" unto us all things..."  My favorite holiday to celebrate has always been Thanksgiving.  As a child, I have great memories of our family going to the big rivalry football game on Thanksgiving morning and then...

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The 24-Hour Rule

Philippians 3:13 - “But this one thing I do, forgetting...”  After a touch and go, back and forth, high drama battle against a top 10 college team, Hugh Freeze, coach of the Ole Miss Rebels football team, finally came out on top.  It was the first time in decades that the University of Mississippi was on the radar for an important game.  Amidst the celebration and student stampede to take down the goal post, ESPN interviewed Coach Freeze right on the field.  They asked, “You just won one of the biggest games in Ole Miss history, what are you gonna do next week for an encore?”  His answer...

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The "Mess-terpiece"

Ephesians 2:10 (New Living Translation) “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago”.  If you haven’t seen it already, I highly recommend the movie Moms Night Out for you and your family.  It’s a wonderful celebration of the “mess” that sometimes comes with parenting.  In the movie, when the moms go out for a much needed night out with the girls...

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Have Your Logged Onto "Faith-Book" Today?

Romans 10:17 – “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God”.  Did you know there are currently 1.32 billion monthly active users on Facebook?  That’s astounding to me.  Americans spend an average of...

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Take a "Bible-Selfie"

Remember back in the day when we used the self-timer feature on our camera to take a self-portrait?  Don’t need to anymore.  With mobile phones and digital cameras, “selfies” are the new and easy way to go.  You can hold your camera at arm’s length or point it at a mirror and voila!  Although the word “selfie” has been around since...

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Less Than $1 Grace...Free

Ephesians 2:8 (Amplified Bible) – “For it is by free grace (God's unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment {and} made partakers of Christ's salvation) through [your] faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves [of your own doing, it came not through your own striving], but it is the gift of God;”  Did you hear the story of the people who put some antiques out on their front lawn with a sign that read “free” on them?  People could have taken whatever they wanted, but...

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From Beggar to Businessman

1 Samuel 10:6 – “And the Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee, and thou shalt prophecy with them, and shall be turned into another man”.  American author, salesman and motivational speaker, “Zig” Ziglar tells this story…A number of years ago, he was walking down a major street in a large American city, and he saw a beggar with a container of pencils for sale for $1.00...

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Effortless Flight

Psalm 55:6 - “And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest.”  I love this time of year, the sky is so blue and so high, it amazes me.  So often, I notice a hawk circling our neighborhood (hence, the name of the local elementary school mascot), just gliding on air, not moving its wings, carried effortlessly by the current.  Far more proficient in flight is the... 

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