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“Khandai Tripura, 35, of Chinchharipara village in Ramgararh district, Bangladesh, caught a cobra on 20 July and started playing with it. The snake bit him on the hand, and in his anger, he bit the snake’s head. He died in the hospital the next day. The snake also died. No word on whether they were buried together.” – Independant [sic] 22 July 1998  Why do people make the choices that they do? There are people we will invariably run across…

The word “heart” appears more than 800 times in the Bible. A few of the references actually relate to the physical heart. I Sam. 25:37 tells us Nabal’s “…heart died within him…” But, the majority of references in the Bible deal with the spiritual heart. Prov. 4:23 admonishes us, “Keep your heart with all diligence.” The spiritual heart is what motivates us to do what we do.  Think for a few moments about keeping your heart. It has to be…

 …is the sound of an alarm clock. I never thought I’d say it, but on the regular, I love the sound of this alarm. It makes my heart happy every time I hear it because I understand what it represents. Please know that I’m not talking about my own alarm clock. That is still an instrument of torture (in many cases), but this alarm to which I am referring is different.  You see, my oldest daughter has committed herself to…

Any time our culture talks about Jesus, God’s people have an open door to enrich the conversation about Jesus. As you know, during this holiday season, much will be said about Jesus that is inaccurate. These inaccuracies are not just spoken by the world, but by Christians as well. God’s own children, the “people of the Book,” even struggle to discern between fact and fiction concerning this pivotal, historical event.  May I challenge you to a short quiz? The purpose…

I’ve heard people say, “The hardest part is getting started.” I can see how that could be true in some cases.  Sometimes you have to overcome the inertia of thinking about something and just get on with the doing.  However, I think there’s also some truth to the idea that it can be easier to start something than to finish it. Every time we would drive to Dallas, we’d watch for an old house on the way that was started…

We cannot be certain who wrote Psalm 116. It would be easy enough to attribute it to David. But, we can be certain that whoever wrote the psalm asked himself a very important question. Here it is: “What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits toward me?” (Ps. 116:12)  The writer, like the rest of us, had the ability to look at his life and appreciate what he knew had been given to him. Unlike some, who…

There are times when we look at someone and smile. There are times when we look at someone and frown. Circumstances that we may face cause us to smile or to frown. Can you recall a situation where you did one or the other at either a person or a situation?  The apostle Peter at one time, because of his denial of Jesus had an opportunity to frown. Not only to frown, in fact, but to weep bitter tears. Even…

Why did Jesus have to cleanse the temple? Why was He not content to just let things go on business as usual? In John 2, Jesus “cleans house” literally because those Jews had made the temple a “house of merchandise” (John 2:16). There were things, behaviors, and attitudes that didn’t belong in a house dedicated to the Lord. 1 Corinthians talks about the temple of the Lord being both the individual human body and the collective body of the church…

What looks like a Gaboon viper, sounds like a Gaboon viper, and acts like a Gaboon viper? A Gaboon viper, of course. Also, the Congolese giant toad. With its two-inch fangs, the Gaboon viper is one of the largest vipers in Africa. The Congolese giant toad can be found only in the same habitat as the Gaboon viper. With a body that resembles the head of the viper, in that it is the same color and size, the toad can…

A number of years ago, my wife and I had the opportunity to go to Washington DC. One of the most memorable monuments for me was the Vietnam Memorial Wall. In 1965, my cousin, Joseph Meek, was in Vietnam for only two months and 17 days before he was shot and killed. I found his name on the Vietnam Memorial Wall. They have a booth there that hands out a pencil and a piece of paper so that one can…

Momentum is interesting. If it’s there, it’s somewhat hard to stop, but if it’s not there, it’s somewhat hard to get going. We have had several wonderful, momentum building things this year that have been designed to gain momentum or to “get the ball rolling.” Of late and of note, we had an excellent success with Friends and Family Day as well as the neighborhood door-knocking event (including the putting together of packets). Now how do we keep the momentum…

The apostle Peter, in the early part of his second letter, gives emphasis to the importance of Christians being diligent in the development of spiritual qualities. How diligent did he want them to be? He urges, “…giving all diligence…” (II Pet. 1:5). Later, he adds, “…be even more diligent…” (II Pet. 1:12). Since Peter wanted these saints to be diligent, he also knew the need for him to be certain he did not neglect his duty to call their attention…