Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Writing and Reading”   Our Bible verse for today: “The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge; the ears of the wise seek it out.” Proverbs 18:15 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Seek knowledge”   I’ve mentioned in a previous devotional that one of my favorite motivational books is “The Traveler’s Gift” by Andy Andrews. It’s based upon seven resolutions a person can make that will help to guide them to building a successful life. The second resolution is “I will seek wisdom”. A condensed summary of the resolution reads, “Wisdom waits to be gathered. I will seek her out. My reading, listening, and choice of association will serve to make me wise. Wisdom is a gift to the diligent.”   That’s essentially what Solomon teaches in Proverbs 18:15 and it’s a theme that’s developed and written about by many Christian writers. In his whimsically titled book, “Mansfield’s Book of Manly Men” Stephen Mansfield includes an entire chapter on the importance of being a lifelong learner, and it builds on the subject of yesterday’s devotional about self-education. In that chapter Mansfield writes, “The truth is most great men in history have become great because they aggressively pursued knowledge. They overcame gaps in their early education. They took responsibility for their education and did not wait for knowledge to come to them.”   Mansfield tells us that Winston Churchill was such a ravenous reader that one later biographer wrote that “he became his own university”. Abraham Lincoln was so enflamed with a hunger for knowledge that he read every book he could buy or borrow, he enlisted tutors, he followed lecturers from town to town, and he spent many late nights studying a wide range of subjects. Benjamin Franklin taught himself five languages. Thomas Jefferson taught himself seven languages.   Harry Truman was a voracious reader on many subjects and he was our only U.S. President who did not have a college degree. He was a successful businessman, a county judge, a US senator, the vice-president of the United States, and the President of the United States. He presided over the end of WWII; the Korean War; the dawn of the atomic age; the founding of the United Nations; the birth of the nation of Israel; and much more – all with only a high school education followed by all that he learned on his own.   The love and pursuit of knowledge is a common factor among those who accomplish significant things in life. That’s what Solomon was teaching in Proverbs 18:15 and we see the truth of it in the lives of millions upon millions of men and women who love knowledge and who make the effort to seek it out. I encourage you to be one of them.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Writing and Reading”   Our Bible verse for today: “Hold on to instruction; don’t let go. Guard it, for it is your life.” Proverbs 4:13 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Self-education is the best kind of education”   Almost immediately after I became a Christian in 1990, I knew the Lord was calling me into full-time ministry once I retired from my career in the Navy. I didn’t know what form that ministry would take but I was certain that the rest of my life would be spent in the ranks of ordained ministers and therefore, I had a burning desire to go to Bible college and seminary. But it just didn’t seem possible. I had a demanding career in the Navy that wasn’t over yet, and I had a family to raise and support. So, Bible college and seminary didn’t seem to be in the cards for me, and I was discouraged about it.   Fortunately, an early Christian mentor pointed me to a self-education program that was offered by our Southern Baptist Convention at that time. It consisted of self-paced study courses in every aspect of Bible study, church life, sermon-writing, preaching, and more. My mentor said, “Jim, if you complete all of these courses, you will end up with as good an education in Bible and ministry as you would get in any Bible College – maybe even better.” So, I launched into those courses and ended up completing many of them over the next several years. Eventually I ended up in seminary anyway, but those courses were solid gold and they were very helpful.   Bible college and seminary are of course well worth the time, effort, and money. But self-education is even better. I truly believe we learn more from self-education than we do from formal education. There’s no more valuable teacher than experience, and therefore life experiences are crucial to our education and growth. But personal Bible study and good Christian books are also essential, and the more time you spend with each of those, the more you will learn and the faster you will grow.   Tomorrow I’ll share with you the stories of some famous people who achieved great things as a result of self-education. But for today, I encourage you to spend some time reading your Bible and reading a good Christian book. As helpful as formal education can be, I still believe that in the long run self-education is the best kind of education.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Writing and Reading”   Our Bible verse for today: “Therefore, I encourage you to rekindle the gift of God that is in you …” 2 Timothy 1:6 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Don’t be bored and don’t be boring”   One of the things I love about reading good Christian books is the helpful insights and clever sayings we often get from the authors. An author who’s books I’ve come to appreciate in recent years is Richard Morgan. Richard was a pastor, counselor, author, and devotional writer. He spent most of his career counseling and ministering to older people, especially in assisted living facilities and in nursing homes. Even when he himself got to the point that he needed to be in an assisted living facility, and then in a nursing home, he continued his ministry. He simply became the chaplain for the nursing home and proceeded to preach, teach, counsel, and write for his fellow residents.   Richard ended up writing a collection of daily devotional books about how to grow old with grace and dignity and with a good attitude – determined to live every day to its fullest no matter your circumstances. He encouraged his readers to do what Paul wrote about in 2 Timothy 1:6 – rediscover and rekindle the gift of God that is in you. In one of those devotionals, as he was encouraging his readers to stay engaged and to have a purpose in life, he wrote, “It is easier to grow old if we are neither bored nor boring.”   I love it! Don’t be bored and don’t be boring. You can take that and apply it to all of life, regardless of your age.   I’ve always had great respect for those who age with grace and dignity and who also stay engaged in life, productive and active. Clarence Thomas is seventy-three and still serving well as a Justice on the Supreme Court. Charles Stanley and Chuck Swindoll are in their eighties and they are both still preaching, teaching, and writing (I hope to do the same). The Apostle John wrote the book of Revelation when he was close to ninety. One of the greatest American novelists, James Mitchener, didn’t write his first book until he was in his forties. He ended up writing more than forty of them, many of them best sellers, and he was still writing in his late eighties.   I’ve never met Richard Morgan, but I came to know him through his writings. As a result, his insights and his personal example have served as an inspiration to me. Good writing does that. I encourage you to identify authors whose work resonates with you, and then read everything they’re written.   And please, regardless of your age, stay engaged. Have meaningful things you’re involved in. Live with purpose and passion. Don’t be bored, and don’t be boring.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Writing and Reading”   Our Bible verse for today: “This is a saying that is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” – and I am the worst of them.” 1 Timothy 1:15 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “You’re a ragamuffin and I am too”   In recent days we’ve been considering the importance of spiritual reading. Spiritual reading is the reading of good Christian literature which builds and expands on Biblical truth. It can take many forms, including books, pamphlets, essays, articles, and devotional messages, and it can be instructive, inspiring, and even entertaining.   In one of those daily devotional messages, I shared with you some of my favorite books – what I term “The best of the best”, and I invited you to share some of your favorites with me. There was a pretty robust response to that and this morning I want to share some of your favorites with your fellow daily devotional readers. It turned out that several of my favorites were also on your lists, including “Experiencing God” by Henry Blackaby; “Boundaries” by Cloud and Townsend; and “The Traveler’s Gift” by Andy Andrews. Some of the others you mentioned were “Heaven” by Randy Alcorn; “Unbroken” by Lara Hillenbrand;” “In the Grip of Grace” by Max Lucado; “The Prayer Code” by O.S. Hawkins; anything by Charles Stanley or Tony Evans.   Another that was mentioned was a special little book which I read years ago but which I’m going to go back and reread now that I was reminded of it. It is “The Ragamuffin Gospel”, by Brennan Manning. It’s based on the premise that we are all flawed individuals who have sinned and failed, and then sinned and failed again. And as a result, we often live with remorse and regret, spending years of our lives beating ourselves up over our shortcomings and failures.   Brennan would know. He was an alcoholic defrocked former Catholic priest. It took him years to finally embrace the truth that God loved him and accepted him anyway. Brennan’s book illustrates the great truth expressed by Paul in 1 Timothy 1:15 (above) that each of us is “the worst of all sinners”, but Christ died to save us and God loves and accepts us just the same. The message is that you’re a ragamuffin and I am too. We all are. But the Gospel of Jesus Christ is all about grace and it’s for ragamuffins just like you and me.   Brennan’s book is encouraging, reassuring, and uplifting, and that’s exactly the point of spiritual reading. That’s why we invest the time to read good books. God uses the writing of others to build into our own lives and we end up better, stronger, and happier as a result.   I encourage you to select a good Christian book and commit some time to spiritual reading today.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Writing and Reading”   Our Bible verse for today: “I am about to go the way of all the earth. So be strong and show yourself to be a man.” 1 Kings 2:2 (CSV)   Our thought for today: “Man up”   To “man up” means a man has to be brave enough and tough enough to do what it takes to deal with a difficult situation. Traditionally, historically, across cultures and down through the ages, there has been the expectation of men being strong and courageous, principled and trustworthy, protectors of the weak and the vulnerable.   That’s not macho strutting; it’s not exaggerated or aggressive male pride; and it’s not in any way denigrating of the female half of the human race. It’s simply an observation of fact that men were designed by God to be the larger and stronger of the two genders, and there is a Biblical expectation that a man will conduct himself in particular appropriate ways. That’s what David meant in 1 Kings 2:2 when, on his deathbed, he urged his son Solomon to show himself to be a man by demonstrating courage, conviction, and integrity.   Tragically, in our society today a lot of men are confused about what it means to be a man. The concept of Biblical manhood is especially derided as being patriarchal and misogynistic (strongly prejudiced against women). But nothing could be further from the truth. The Biblical man is the best kind of man, and Biblical manhood is what our society needs much more of.   I came across a great statement the other day which I believe is important and insightful. It reads, “Masculinity is not something given to you, but something you gain.” In other words, a boy may be male by birth, but he still has to be taught how to be a man. Today, many men need to be taught how to be men.   Sunday is Father’s Day. It’s the day we celebrate fathers in particular, but all men in general – especially Christian men. I always use it as an opportunity to preach and teach about Biblical manhood, and I also use it as an opportunity to lift up and encourage our men. I will do that this Sunday at Oak Hill Baptist Church. The title of the sermon is “A Man of Grit Who Will Not Quit”. I hope you will join us in person or online.   Today I also want to share with you a few of my favorite Christian books about Biblical manhood: “Man of Steel and Velvet” by Aubrey Andelin; “Strong Men in Tough Times” by Edwin Louis Cole; “Disciplines of a Godly Man” by R. Kent Hughes; “Kingdom Man” by Tony Evans; and, if you would like a fun read that is insightful and inspiring but also a little whimsical, I recommend “Mansfield’s Book of Manly Men: An Utterly Invigorating Guide to Being Your Most Masculine Self” by Stephen Mansfield.   Finally, many years ago I wrote an essay about the role of a man within a truly Biblical marriage. It’s based upon the Apostle Paul’s teaching in Ephesians chapter five and if you would like a copy of it, let me know. I would be happy to send it to you.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Writing and Reading”   Our Bible verse for today: “Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus by birth, the one the apostles called Barnabas (which is translated Son of Encouragement), sold a field he owned, brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.” Acts 4:36-37 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Good books are a great source of encouragement.”   Barnabas is one of my favorite characters in the New Testament. His real name was Joseph but the disciples gave him the nickname Barnabas, which means “Son of Encouragement”. Barnabas was an encourager by nature. In the scene depicted in Acts 4:36-37 we find him encouraging the disciples and the rest of the church family by making a generous donation to help those in the church who were in need. Later, in Acts chapter eleven, we find him going to Antioch to help and encourage the Christians in that city. Then he goes to Tarsus to find Paul and to draw him into further ministry. Then he spends years assisting Paul in his ministry. And then he spends more years serving as a mentor to his young cousin John Mark.   Encouragement is an important aspect of life in the family of God and Barnabas is the patron saint for the ministry of encouragement. He was an encourager in life, and he has continued to be a great encourager by his legacy.   Many people are like Barnabas, they are encouragers by nature and we should thank God for them. Good Christian books serve to encourage and inspire us too, and that’s one of the reasons I’ve always loved reading them and sharing them with others. Back in the 1990s Linda and I actually owned a book company which we called “The Barnabas Book Company”. Our slogan was “Encouraging books that will change your life”. We held book fairs in churches and at Christian schools as well as at special events, and we even set up in flea markets. It was great fun. We loved sharing good books with others. Unfortunately, I was a terrible businessman. I was so eager for people to read our books that I probably gave away more than I sold.   For thousands of years the Holy Spirit has been using the ministry of Christian writers to lift up, strengthen, and encourage Christians by means of good Christian literature. Good books are a great source of encouragement and therefore I urge you to develop the habit of daily reading.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Writing and Reading”   Our Bible verse for today: “When you come, be sure to bring the coat I left with Carpus in Troas. Also bring my books, and especially my papers.” 2 Timothy 4:13 (NLT)   Our thought for today: “There is great value in spiritual reading”   There’s an old truism about writing and reading that goes, “Writers are readers”. What that means is that we learn to write by reading, and the more you read the better you will write. Personally, I’ve never met a writer who didn’t also love to read.   The Apostle Paul was undeniably a great writer. He wrote two-thirds of the New Testament. And Paul was obviously also a lover of reading. We know from his personal history that he was a diligent student and a scholar, and in 2 Timothy 4:13 we learn something about his love for books. There he instructs his young protégé Timothy to gather up some of his (Paul’s) personal belongings and bring them to him in his prison cell in Rome. He specifically tells Timothy not to forget his books and papers. Older translations refer to them as scrolls and parchments. We don’t know what those books and papers or scrolls and parchments contained, but obviously it was reading material that was important to Paul and which he wanted in his possession.   There’s a discipline in the practice of the Christian faith known as “spiritual reading”. Spiritual reading is the reading of Christian literature other than the Bible but which builds on, explains, and enhances our study of the Bible, as well as our understanding of and application of Biblical principles. The most common sources of literature for spiritual reading are Christian books, articles, pamphlets, essays, and devotional messages. By reading this devotional message today you are engaging in spiritual reading.   Spiritual reading is an essential part of our growth and maturity as a Christian. The Holy Spirit uses the writing skills of others to communicate to us insights and understandings that we might not have otherwise come to grasp. Therefore, including the reading of good Christian literature as a regular part of your practice of the faith is important. Regular reading of the Bible is the most important kind of reading you can do. Reading other types of Christian literature is second to that, but still very important. We’ll think more about spiritual reading in its various forms in the days to come. In the meantime, thanks for reading this devotional message today. Now I encourage you to select a good Christian book to add to your daily reading as well.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Writing and Reading”   Our Bible verse for today: “So my word that comes from my mouth will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish what I please and will prosper in what I send it to do.” Isaiah 55:11 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Voltaire was wrong”   From its earliest days the Bible has withstood vicious attacks from the enemies of God as no other book ever has. Many have tried to ban it, burn it and outlaw it, from the days of the Roman empire right up to today in communist and Islamic countries. Perhaps one of the most notable and ironic stories is that of the infamous French writer and philosopher Francois-Marie Arouet, better known in history as “Voltaire”.   Voltaire was a popular and prolific writer who produced numerous works in every literary form including plays, poems, novels, essays, histories, letters, pamphlets, and scientific expositions. He even owned his own printing press. It was said that in his lifetime (1694-1778) he wrote over 20,000 letters and more than 2,000 books and pamphlets. But the thing that Voltaire is remembered for most is his hatred of Christians, Christianity, and the Bible. Much of his writing and public speaking involved scathing denunciations of Christianity in general, and the Bible in particular. He once claimed that within one hundred years of his death Christianity as a faith would be swept from existence and the Bible would be found only in museums.   Well, not only was Voltaire wrong regarding the demise of Christianity, but fifty years after his death the Geneva Bible Society purchased Voltaire’s home in Paris and his printing press that was in it. They then used the printing press to mass produce Bibles and Christian pamphlets, and they used his home to store them. It was one of the most ironic twists of fate in recorded history.     It’s estimated that worldwide, since the time of Voltaire’s death, over 5 billion Bibles, or portions of the Bible, have been printed in over 2000 languages. Today over 100 million Bibles are printed annually around the world (25 million in English); 168,000 are given away free every day; and Gideon’s International reported distributing over 59 million Bibles worldwide in 2021 alone. Additionally, with the advent of digital Bible apps, over 66,000 people worldwide are accessing a digital Bible app at any given time, and three people share a Bible verse online every second of every day.   Oh, and there are more professing Christians on this planet today than at any time in the two-thousand-year history of the faith. So, Voltaire was wrong. He was very wrong. Christianity and the Bible have survived very well, thank you, and a copy of the Bible is available for almost anyone who wants one. That’s especially true in the developed nations of the world. Our challenge, and our shared responsibility, is to get people to actually read it, and to read it deeply.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Writing and Reading”   Our Bible verse for today: “After this letter has been read at your gathering, have it read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you also read the letter from Laodicea.” Colossians 4:16 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “The printing press changed everything”   History is a little fuzzy regarding who actually invented the first printing press. We do know that the Chinese had a very crude form of a press in the late 800s A.D. which used wooden blocks and produced only a single copy at a time. In the 1300s the Koreans had a more advanced version of the press which involved moveable type and which was a little faster than the Chinese printing press.   But it was in 1436 that a German goldsmith by the name of Johannes Gutenberg invented a mechanical movable printing press that was efficient, dependable, and fast, and which launched humanity into the era of mass media. Prior to this, printed literature was produced painstakingly slowly and at great expense. But now it could be copied quickly, in quantity, and inexpensively. Soon broadsheets, newspapers, pamphlets, books, and especially Bibles were being mass produced and widely disseminated.   As a result, from that point forward, the literacy rate in Europe more than doubled every 100 years. Now that printed material was so widely available, everyone wanted to know how to read. And read they did! Especially the Bible. The advent of the printing press, and the corresponding widespread availability of the Bible in the language the people actually spoke, helped to spur the Protestant Reformation.   So, what a tragic turn of events that today the trend is in the opposite direction. As we’ve already learned this month, fewer and fewer people do very much serious reading anymore – not even reading of the Bible. Instead, there’s a sad regression taking place. Digital technology has clearly brought with it a corresponding trend towards short superficial reading rather than the deep reading (which used to be so common), like that which spurred both the cultural renaissance and the scientific revolution of the1600-1700s. This regression cannot bode well for civilization.   The answer, of course, is for each of us to read more, and to encourage others to read – especially the Bible. If we can’t get Christians to read other types of literature frequently and deeply, let’s at least work to get them to read the Bible that way.     Tomorrow I’ll share with you a story associated with the history of the printing press and the Bible that is both sad and ironic, but which also offers us some hope.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Writing and Reading”   Our Bible verse for today: “Open my eyes Lord so that I may contemplate wonderous things from your instructions. I am a resident alien on earth; do not hide your commands from me.” Psalm 119:18-19 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Plunder the Bible”   One of the truly amazing aspects of the Bible is how it can be both shallow and deep at the same time. It is shallow in that many of its truths are right there on the surface and therefore easily understood, even by children. It is deep in that even the most educated scholars can study it for a lifetime and learn something new every time they read it.   Recently I came across a statement written by the eminent Bible scholar, professor, and author Martin Marty. He said that the Bible must be searched and plundered. That conjures up images in my mind of pirates searching for buried treasure, finding it, and then eagerly plundering the treasure chest. While I don’t think we Bible students are pirates, I do love the image of the Bible containing buried treasure just waiting to be discovered. And I do love the idea of me as a treasure hunter discovering and uncovering the treasure, and then joyfully plundering it.   Those of you who have read my book “Walking with Paul” might remember a story I told in one of the chapters. It’s about a farmer in Texas who lived a long life trying to scratch out a living on a poor piece of land. For years he and his family struggled through dust storms, droughts, diseased crops and sick animals, as well as all the other problems faced by small farmers in that area. He always dreamed of one day striking it rich, maybe winning the lottery.   One day a representative of an oil company knocked on his door and said the company’s geological survey indicated there might be oil located under his land. He asked the farmer for permission to sink an exploratory well. The farmer gave his permission and in only a short time they discovered a substantial oil field right under his farm. Almost overnight he went from being a dirt-poor farmer to being a multi-millionaire.   The sad part of the story is that the wealth had always been there. All those years when he was poor and struggling that wealth had been his and was right there waiting for him, but he didn’t know it because he never searched for it. That’s true for many Christians as well. There are precious nuggets of spiritual truth and insight waiting to be uncovered in the Bible, but most Christians never discover them because they never do the work to dig for them.   At Oak Hill Baptist Church we dig for them. Every Sunday morning in Sunday school and in the sermon; on Sunday nights in our seasonal Bible studies; on Wednesday nights in our midweek prayer meetings and Bible studies; and every day in our daily devotional messages we dig for and discover Biblical treasure. I invite you to join us as we plunder the Bible together.   God bless, Pastor Jim

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