Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Savor the time”   Our Bible verse for today: “Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.” 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Slow down and simplify”   In 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 the Apostle Paul offers us yet another example of the theme we were thinking about yesterday, appreciating and enjoying the simple pleasures of life. In this passage he gives us an image of an entire life that is simple and quiet, focused on simply living a good life that honors the Lord and making a positive impact on those around us. There was nothing flashy or overly ambitious pictured here. Just an honest simple life.   I’ve already told you a bit about the story of pastor and author John Mark Comer, as described in his book, “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry”. John was the lead pastor of a multi-site mega church. On a typical Sunday he would preach and teach five to six times in a single day. The rest of the week was crammed full of meetings, obligations, and responsibilities. He said he felt more like a high-strung stressed-out corporate CEO than a shepherd of God’s people. Finally, he decided he needed to do exactly what Paul was describing in 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 – he needed to simplify and slow way down. So, he gave up his high-profile position, became the pastor of a much smaller church, and he simplified the rest of his life as well. He said he restructured his entire life around a few basic and simple goals that involved God, family, and serving other people – and the quality of his life went up exponentially!   John’s story reminds me of a similar book written many years ago by another high-profile pastor about his own life. The pastor was Chuck Swindoll and the book was called “Intimacy with the Almighty”. Chuck’s story was similar to John’s, and so was his solution. In the book Chuck quoted Ecclesiastes 7:29 which in the TEV reads, “God made us plain and simple, but we have made ourselves very complicated.” That described Chuck’s life, and it also describes many of ours. Most of us are not a high-profile pastor of a multi-site mega church, but our lives are still too busy in their own ways. We have indeed made ourselves very complicated.   There’s a lot to be gained in life from slowing down and simplifying. Seldom if ever does life improve as it gets busier and more complicated.   I encourage all of us to slow down and simplify. Let’s give ourselves space in life to truly savor it.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2021 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Savor the time”   Our Bible verse for today: “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out. If we have food and clothing, we will be content with these.” 1 Timothy 6:6-8 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Appreciate and enjoy the simple pleasures”   As I write this it’s an early summer morning in June. Dawn is breaking, there’s a gentle rain falling, and the birds are singing. The windows are open and the sound of the falling rain is soft but clear. I love the sound of a gentle rain, especially in the early morning. I find it soothing and I’m grateful for such a peaceful way to begin the day.   Actually, I should be working by now. But the moment is too good to pass up. I choose to sit here and savor it. My thoughts have also drifted to the time, just a week and a half ago, when Linda and I were at our son’s house in Texas to visit our new grandbaby. He’s the cutest and best grandson in the history of the world (he really is) and as I sat there holding him, with his little head resting on my chest, he seemed perfectly content to just lie there and bond with grandpa. I was content too. Deeply content. And I didn’t want the moment to end.   In 1 Timothy 6:6-8 the Apostle Paul was teaching his young protégé Timothy (and by extension us) to learn to enjoy life’s simple pleasures. Pause for them; sit with them; enjoy them; savor the moment. I’m sure you’ve heard the old saying that “The best things in life are not things.” That’s what Paul meant. The best times in life usually consist of special moments with God and with special people.   Yesterday I shared a little wisdom with you from one of my favorite contemporary philosophers, Snoopy, the dog from the Peanuts comic strip. This morning we’ll end with a little more. Snoopy says: “Enjoy the little things in life because one day you will look back and realize they were the big things.”   Yes, godliness with contentment is great gain. Savor the moment. Enjoy the simple pleasures.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2021 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Savor the time”   Our Bible verse for today: “A joyful heart makes a face cheerful, but a sad heart produces a broken spirit.” Proverbs 15:13 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Choose joy”   I’m a disciple of the contemporary philosopher Snoopy. I’m speaking of course of Snoopy the dog, from the Peanuts comic strip. Snoopy is indeed wise. He is observant and insightful, an astute student of the human condition, and as a result, he often has helpful advice for Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus, Pigpen, and me.   Take for instance, the Snoopy Dance. Are you familiar with the Snoopy Dance? You should Google it. Seriously. Take a moment, type in the search bar “Snoopy Dance”, select the YouTube video that comes up, and enjoy. It will take less than a minute.   What you’ll see is Snoopy dancing. Fast. Joyfully. His little paws are just pattering away (Snoopy stands and walks on two legs like humans). His head is back, his face is lifted to the sky, his eyes are closed, his arms (front paws) are extended wide, there’s a smile on his face, and he’s just dancing. He’s doing the Snoopy Dance. He’s thoroughly happy and joyful, and he doesn’t seem to have a care in the world.   Now, the question is “What brought on such an expressive explosion of joyfulness?” And the apparent answer is “nothing”. In the scene there doesn’t seem to be any special reason for his joyful dancing other than that he decided to be joyful and dance. It kind of reminds me of Psalm 118:24, “This is the day the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.”   Do we really need special reasons to be joyful? Can’t we simply embrace the moment and enjoy it for what it is, a gift from God? Can’t we simply choose to be joyful and then be intentional about expressing it?   Seriously, take a moment and watch the Snoopy Dance. You’ll be glad you did. And if you’re having a down day and it’s tough to be joyful right now, then go one step further and watch the follow-on clip “Snoopy dances with the bunnies”. Snoopy was having a down day too but some dancing bunnies helped to draw him out of it. Maybe they’ll help you too. Or maybe, by doing your own version of a Snoopy Dance (you don’t really have to dance, just be joyful and express it), maybe by doing so you will end up being someone else’s dancing bunny and you’ll help them to be joyful too.   I encourage you to choose joy today. Do your version of the Snoopy Dance.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2021 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Savor the time”   Our Bible verse for today: “That Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “You need the Sabbath”   In his book, “The Relentless Elimination of Hurry”, Pastor John Mark Comer includes an excellent chapter about the value and importance of observing the Sabbath. First of all, he points out that the word Sabbath comes from the Hebrew word “Shabbat” and literally means “to stop”. It means that we are to cease normal activities in order to worship and to rest.   Doing so is so important that God commanded us to do it. Comer points out that observing the Sabbath is the only spiritual discipline included in the Ten Commandments (it’s the fourth). There God commanded us to remember the Sabbath and to keep it holy. It’s the only spiritual disciple that made it onto the list. Not fasting or Bible reading or even prayer. “Observe the Sabbath and keep it holy.”   We are to work six days and to observe the Sabbath on the seventh. God Himself even modeled it for us in Genesis 2:3 when He took the seventh day to rest and admire His creation. But of course, God wasn’t actually tired. He didn’t need to rest. He did it as an example for us. Stop your labor, your chores and errands, your relentless rushing through life, and just worship and rest. That’s what the Sabbath is for.   What Jesus was teaching in Mark 2:27 is that God created the concept of Sabbath for our benefit. The Sabbath was made for man. We need it. The regular rhythm of our lives needs to include coming to a full stop once a week for the specific purpose of worshiping God and resting our bodies. Comer writes, “The Sabbath is how we fill our souls back up.” That’s true because observing Sabbath is renewing and refreshing. It’s how we recharge our physical and spiritual batteries so we’ll be at our best the rest of the week. This is why God called the day blessed and holy.   Think of Sabbath as a weekly holiday. It’s Christmas, or Easter, or Memorial Day, or Labor Day once every week. It’s a special day for celebrating, feasting, resting, and for company. It’s filled with worship, rest, and fun. So don’t miss it! You need your Sabbath!   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2021 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Savor the time”   Our Bible verse for today: “Dear friends, don’t overlook this one fact: With the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.” 2 Peter 3:8 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Three miles an hour is a good pace”   This morning I want to continue our thought from yesterday regarding the pace of our lives. I noted that too often we blow through our days, just skimming the surface of life rather than slowing down and going deep with people and situations, savoring the moments of our lives.   Kosuke Koyama is a Japanese Christian and a professor of theology. He once wrote a book with the title, “Three Mile an Hour God.” The title comes from the fact that the average human, when not in a hurry, walks at approximately three miles an hour. That’s the average speed of a leisurely but steady stroll. It’s the speed at which we notice, appreciate, and enjoy our surroundings. We’re moving, but we’re not rushed.   Koyama’s premise is that God Himself is never in a hurry, and He seldom pushes us to hurry either because under normal circumstances, hurry is neither necessary nor helpful. Instead, He walks with us through life at the speed that is best for us – three miles an hour. Moving, but relaxed and enjoying the trip.   Read the Gospels. Jesus was never in a hurry. And if our Lord didn’t allow Himself to get frantic and agitated, rushing from here to there, and if our goal is to be more like Him, then perhaps we need to back it down a bit.   Peter’s point in 2 Peter 3:8 (above) is that God is outside of time. Time doesn’t apply to Him. Time is a construct God created within which human affairs unfold and are measured, but God is eternal and He is unaffected by time. Therefore, a day is the same as a thousand years to Him, and a thousand years is like a day. God has eternity to work with and therefore He doesn’t need to rush. And actually, the same is true for us. In reality, we have eternity to work with too.   So, do we really need to rush so much? In fact, since God walks with us, and since our best speed under normal circumstances is a leisurely three miles an hour, I can picture God with His hand on my shoulder saying, “Whoa, slow it down a little, Hoss. What’s your hurry?”     Good question. What is my hurry? Three miles an hour through life is a good pace.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2021 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Savor the time”   Our Bible verse for today: “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the sun.” Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Don’t just skim the surface of life.”   I’m currently rereading a book I’ve come to value and appreciate very much. The title is “The Relentless Elimination of Hurry” by Pastor John Mark Comer. This is the third time I’ve read the book in the two years I’ve owned it. It’s really good. And helpful. Throughout this month I’ll share some of John’s thoughts with you.   The basic premise of his book is that hurry is a thief. It distracts us from the things that are most important, it causes us to miss precious moments in life, and it steals our joy. Hurry makes it impossible to truly savor moments, people, and events that should be special to us. Hurry also makes us insensitive to other people, and it causes us to miss telltale verbal clues that might have alerted us to the fact that someone else is having a bad day or is need of a hug or a kind word. Speaking of himself Comer realized, “All of my worst moments happen when I’m in a hurry.”     Amen brother.   Philosopher David Zach once referred to such a life as “hyper-living” or, “just skimming the surface of life.” We move through life at such a pace that we just blow by people and situations that really do deserve and should receive our focused attention. We greet people and ask “How are you?”, without actually listening to how they are. We speed past a beautiful view of meadows and mountains, without actually seeing the meadows and the mountains. We’re just in too much of a hurry. We’re skimming the surface of life.   I love the picture Solomon paints for us in Ecclesiastes 3:1. There’s a time for everything and a season for every activity. It’s a picture of a leisurely stroll through life, stopping to smell the roses and talk to the neighbors and pet the puppy. No hyper-living in that picture.   I encourage all of us to slow it down, take a breath, and enjoy the moments of our lives today. No hyper-living. No skimming the surface of life. Instead, take the time to pay attention and to go deep with people and situations. Truly appreciate and enjoy the gift of this day that the Lord has given to you. Savor it.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2021 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Savor the time”   Our Bible verse for today: “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Relax and enjoy it”   I have this vivid memory of a time from about thirty years ago. It was July. The previous year had been especially busy and trying, but I was on vacation now. My family and I had traveled from our home in Southern California to my parent’s house in New Jersey for a family reunion. On the day I’m thinking about I was in their backyard (which was bordered by woods), lying in a hammock in the shade of a tree. There was a gentle breeze blowing, birds were singing, and I was reading a good book. Suddenly it dawned on me that I was as relaxed and stress-free as I could remember being in a long, long time. It seemed as if all the stress and all the tension had been drained out of me. I was serene, comfortable, and content. I remember thinking “This feels soooo good …” and I savored the moment – so much so that I clearly remember it three decades later.   One definition of “savor” is: “To relish; delight in; enjoy; to appreciate fully.” But if we’re going to be able to savor our time – especially our special moments – we have to slow down and truly focus on the person before us, or enter deeply into the event we’re participating in, so we can fully enjoy and delight in the moment. But how often do we do that? How often do we truly enter into and savor the moments of our lives like that?   The moment I described from my parent’s backyard thirty years ago involved a very simple event, lying in a hammock in a backyard, yet it turned into one of the special moments of my life. It’s one I make an effort to recreate as often as possible. And actually, every moment has the potential to be savored. In Psalm 118:24 the Psalmist reminds us that every day is a gift from God. We can read that “every moment” is a gift from God. And if properly handled, it can be embraced, enjoyed, and savored.   Let’s learn to slow down and savor life. Let’s relax and enjoy it. If we don’t, we will miss the best moments in life.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2021 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Savor the time”   Our Bible verse for today: “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” James 4:14 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Life is short, time is precious, enjoy it while you can.”   The other day I attended the funeral of an old friend who died rather suddenly. He was seventy-seven, but he had been a healthy and vigorous seventy-seven. However, one day they discovered he had cancer and seven weeks later he was dead. Just like that, he was gone.   Many of you reading this know that last year my daughter Tracy died suddenly as well. The cause was also cancer. It was exactly one week from the time they discovered she even had cancer until she died. One week. I have another friend who lost his daughter instantly, in a car accident. One moment she was alive and well, and the next she was dead.   This is what James was referring to in James 4:14. There’s a thin line separating life and death and any of us can cross it at any moment. Life is fragile, unpredictable, sometimes short, and it often ends abruptly. Therefore, we must savor and guard and cherish the time that we have. Time is precious and shouldn’t be wasted. That’s why one of my favorite sayings about time, and one which I often think about, write about, and use in my preaching and teaching, is the one from Benjamin Franklin which, when rephrased in contemporary language says, “Do you value your life? Then value your time. Because time is the stuff that life is made of.”   Too many of us waste our time, or we rush through our lives allowing ourselves to be so busy that we don’t really enjoy it, or we don’t give our time to the people and things which are most important. The older I get the more I appreciate and value my time.   All this month I would like to explore with you the idea of slowing down, focusing on the people and events that matter the most, and truly savoring this gift of life the Lord has given us. Let’s learn together how to truly savor our time.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2021 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “You have been set free”   Our Bible verse for today: “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Others sacrificed so we can be free.”   It’s fitting and appropriate for our study of “You have been set free” to conclude on Memorial Day. Memorial Day is the day each year when we as Americans stop to honor those who have given their lives in defense of our nation. They died to protect our freedom. We owe them a great debt of gratitude and they are perfect examples of what Jesus described in John 15:13.   However, as we have learned this month, the far greater sacrifice was made by Jesus when He died upon the cross to win for us freedom far greater than our constitutional freedoms. As precious as those are, they pale in comparison to the spiritual victory Jesus won for us. Our spiritual freedom is so much more important. If you would be interested in learning more about our spiritual freedoms, I encourage you to do a personal in-depth Bible study of the book of Galatians. Two helpful tools for such a study that I have used myself and which I recommend to you are, “Be Free: Exchange Legalism for True Spirituality” by Warren Wiersbe, and “The Life Application Bible Commentary on Galatians” published by Tyndale House. Galatians is a study in freedom.   Over the centuries millions of American service men and women have made the ultimate sacrifice so we can live as free citizens of the greatest nation in the world. Be grateful for their sacrifice. Honor it and celebrate it. Almost two thousand years ago Jesus made an even greater sacrifice so we can be free for eternity. People need to know this, and we can be the ones to tell them. Since today is Memorial Day, people are thinking about and celebrating freedom as citizens. We Americans cherish our freedom and therefore, the subject of freedom can be a great conversation starter to lead a person into a discussion about true freedom found through faith in Jesus Christ.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2021 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “You have been set free”   Our Bible verse for today: “Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible.” 1 Corinthians 9:19 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Help others find freedom too”   As we near the end of our study on the theme of “You have been set free”, I think it’s important to remind ourselves of the two primary reasons Jesus has set us free. First, He set us free from the penalty of our sins so that we can spend eternity in heaven. And second, once we received that salvation and experienced that freedom, He then left us here on earth in order to help others find that freedom too. As we have learned, we are now to be on-mission with Him in this world blessing others and leading them to faith in Him.   The Apostle Paul understood that. From the moment He was saved on the road to Damascus, the focus of his life was to help others find the freedom from sin that he himself had received. That’s what he was describing in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23. In the rest of the passage, he went on to describe all of the sacrifices he was willing to make in order to reach people with the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.   Not only did Paul live that way himself, he taught the rest of us to do so as well. In Galatians 5:13 he wrote, “You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature, rather, serve one another in love.” Likewise, in Philippians 2:4 we read, “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” The Apostle Peter taught this as well. In 1 Peter 4:10 he wrote, “Each one of us should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.”   And all of this of course, is based upon the example that Jesus Himself set for us. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45. And, “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.” John 13:15. Jesus even went on to say that as far as He is concerned, the greatest and most faithful followers are those who are the best servants: “The greatest among you will be your servant.” Matthew 23:11.   The teaching is clear – we have been set free from our sins, now we are to help others discover that same freedom. The best way to do that is to serve them in the name of Jesus, then tell them the Good News of the Gospel. Nothing we do will be of more benefit to our society and to our nation than for Christians to be on-mission with Jesus in the communities where we live.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2021 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.