Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be thankful”   Our Bible verse for today: “So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.” Matthew 6:31-33 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Thank God for meeting your needs”   As prosperous as America is, there’s poverty in our nation too. Not everyone is doing well. We have a homeless crisis. We have families living below the poverty level. Most schools provide free breakfast and lunches because so many children are not well-fed at home. There are regions in our nation, such as Appalachia and Native American communities, where poverty is deep and systemic. Despite our abundance of provisions overall, there are great needs as well.   But fortunately, most of us do have our basic needs adequately met. Most of us do have decent housing, sufficient food to eat, and at least a modest income. That right there puts us at a level substantially above many millions of others around the world and we should be thankful to God for it. Even if you don’t live in a posh neighborhood in a home filled with expensive furniture and large pantries overflowing with food, if your basic needs are adequately met then you are blessed.   Beyond that, for those who are struggling, we’re fortunate to live in a nation with a substantial safety-net and lots of helping resources. Beginning with homeless shelters and food banks; extending to food stamps, government subsidized housing, and income assistance; to unemployment benefits, job training programs, tuition assistance, and so much more, ours is a society that places a heavy emphasis on helping those who are struggling.   In a previous devotional I mentioned that the USA is the most generous nation in the world. That’s true. But what you may not know is that approximately 80% of our charitable dollars are directed to helping our own population. We’re already the most affluent nation in the world, and we are the most charitable, but the overwhelming majority of our charity is spent on ourselves. I’m not being critical of that, I’m only making the point that even for those who are on the margins of society and who are struggling, we’re blessed to live in a land that has a substantial system of helping resources.   If you’re struggling to make ends meet, I encourage you to first thank God for what you already have. Then, ask Him to open your eyes to the ways you might be able to improve your situation. Then consider some of the many helping resources that are available to you. As Jesus taught in Matthew 6:25-34, God is aware of your needs and He is able to help you.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2020 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be thankful”   Our Bible verse for today: “And God is able to make every grace overflow to you, so that in every way, always having everything you need, you may excel in every good work.” 2 Corinthians 9:8 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “You have been blessed so you can be a blessing”   God has blessed you so that you can in-turn be a blessing to others. It’s a Biblical truth. Yesterday we considered the fact that God has blessed we Christians in the USA with an abundance of money and provisions. We have higher incomes, a better quality of life, and more access to helping resources than any other group of Christians anywhere in the world. And although we are free to enjoy the blessings God has showered upon us, we are not free to horde it or to simply use it all on ourselves. Ultimately it all belongs to God. He has placed what is His in our hands so we can then use some of it to further His efforts to bless needy people and to further His kingdom-building work.   Although the basic truth and general principle taught in 2 Corinthians 9:8 (cited above) can be applied to a wide variety of life and spiritual applications, it certainly applies to the issue of stewardship and of using our abundance to bless others in need. As I briefly alluded to in yesterday’s devotional, I don’t believe we need to apologize for or to feel guilty about the abundance of material provisions God has blessed us with, but we do need to recognize that with the blessing comes responsibility. We are to use some of what we have to bless others.   One of the reasons I so love being the pastor of Oak Hill Baptist Church is because our people are so generous and so eager to use their resources to help others. That’s the only reason our little church is able to be involved in so many humanitarian relief efforts here in our own town as well as in the state of Tennessee. We also support a partner church in the coal-mining region of eastern Kentucky as well as a children’s home in the Amazon Jungle of Peru. We provide monthly support to a church in Liberia, Africa, and we also periodically help an orphanage in Haiti. We support a family of missionaries in Southeast Asia, and another family of YWAM missionaries (Youth with A Mission) here in the USA.  This is what Paul was referring to in 2 Corinthians 9:8 when he taught that God has provided the resources so that we can then use them to help with His work.   What a blessing it is to be a conduit through which the resources and blessings of God can flow to others in need! I encourage you to spend some time this morning thanking God for that privilege.   But what if you’re struggling yourself just to make ends meet? What do you have to be thankful for then? We’ll think about that tomorrow.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2020 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be thankful”   Our Bible verse for today: “The Lord will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands.” Deuteronomy 28:12 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Thank God for provisions”   Over almost fifty years the Lord has blessed me with the opportunity to travel around the world. Between a career in the U.S. Navy, as well as leading many overseas mission trips, altogether I’ve been to more thirty countries, some of them multiple times.   One thing that always strikes me is how different most of the rest of the world is from the USA in terms of standard of living. By every metric we are far above and beyond most of the rest of the world with respect to the sheer abundance of food we have, safe and affordable housing, access to high quality medical care, dependable transportation, and so much more. Not only do we have an abundance of the essentials – at high quality, but we have all the non-essentials too, such as numerous leisure and entertainment options. There truly is no place in the world like the USA. We are blessed beyond measure and we have much to be thankful for.   I don’t believe we need to apologize for what we have or feel guilty about it, but we do need to be very grateful to the Lord for it. For His own divine reasons God has chosen to allow the USA to be blessed financially and materially far beyond any other nation in the world. I know it has much to do with democracy, a free-market economy, and an entrepreneurial spirit, but there’s more to it than that. God has blessed us and provided for us beyond measure and I’m not sure we can fully understand it this side of heaven, but I do know we need to be thankful for it and we must be careful not to take it for granted.   I encourage all of us to spend some time this morning thanking the Lord for all He has blessed us with. Tomorrow we will think about how it is that our abundance creates great opportunities for ministry.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2020 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be thankful”   Our Bible verse for today: “Dear friend, I pray that you are prospering in every way and are in good health, just as your whole life is going well.” 3 John 1:2 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Be thankful for your health”   I once read a story about a wealthy man who was dying. The essence of the story was that he was relatively young, perhaps early sixties. He had lived a soft life of over-indulgence and had as a consequence developed numerous lifestyle-related health problems. Now he was dying younger than he otherwise would have or should have. For a while he frantically tried to regain some of his health by using his wealth to pursue the very best medical treatments, but it eventually got to the point that nothing further could be done for him. He was dying and his wealth couldn’t buy him any more time, so he decided to tell his story in hopes of helping others to avoid the mistake he had made of not taking good care of himself.   Unfortunately, we often don’t realize how valuable our health is until it’s gone. And once we lose it, we realize that all our worldly wealth and possessions and accomplishments mean little if we aren’t healthy enough to enjoy them.   Earlier this year (2020) Dr. Nicole Saphier, a nationally known medical authority and a regular contributor on Fox News, published a book with the title, “Make America Healthy Again: How bad behavior and big government caused a trillion-dollar crisis”. Her basic premise is that the American healthcare system is in crisis and the situation is unsustainable. There are multiple reasons that is true, but far and away the biggest part of the problem is that most of us don’t take proper care of ourselves. According to her extensive research, approximately 70% of all the issues Americans seek medical attention for can in some way (either directly or tangentially), be traced back to poor lifestyle habits. Her point was that if we would all just do simple things to take better care of ourselves, that in itself would lift a huge burden off of the healthcare system – not to mention how much it would improve our personal lives.   I encourage all of us this morning to spend some time thanking God for the health we have. Thank Him for allowing you to live in the greatest country in the world, with the highest quality healthcare in the world. And then ask Him to bring to your attention some things you could do to take better care of yourself. The people in your life love you and need you to take good care of yourself so you will be with us for a long time to come.   We don’t realize what a precious gift good health is until it’s gone.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2020 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be Thankful”   Our Bible verse for today: “And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” Colossians 3:17 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Thank God for meaning and purpose in your life”   Author Eugene Peterson tells a story about his father that he has titled, “The priest in the butcher shop.” His father owned a butcher shop in their small town. He was also a leader in their local church, a deacon. The butcher shop was not only the place where most people in town came to purchase their meat, but it was also a place where a lot of church business was conducted, as well as a place of fellowship where brothers and sisters in Christ hung around and enjoyed each other’s company. Peterson says his father was essentially a priest in a butcher shop. His place of business was also his place of ministry.   That’s the kind of thing Paul was referring to when He wrote in Colossians 3:17, “And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” He expressed the same idea in 1 Corinthians 10:31 where he wrote, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.”   At every stage of life, in every season of life, whether fully employed, retired, or something in-between, whether at work, at play, at leisure, socializing, doing volunteer work, or whatever it is you happen to be doing, your meaning and purpose in life is to bring glory to God through your words and deeds and to bless other people – and you can do that everywhere, all the time, regardless of what particular activity you’re engaged in.   This is an important understanding and not everybody gets it. Many people just shuffle through their days either unhappy with what they’re doing, or not clear on what difference it makes. Any activity is sacred and meaningful and important if it’s done for the glory of God and for the purpose of blessing others. That’s the meaning and purpose of the Christian life.   I encourage you to spend some time this morning thinking about how all of your varied activities today can be used to glorify God, nurture and enhance your relationship with Him, and bless others as well. Then thank Him for giving you such a clear and meaningful purpose in life.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2020 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be Thankful”   Our Bible verse for today: “Stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” Matthew 12:49-50 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Be thankful for your church”   Readers sometimes find this passage from Matthew 12:46-50 confusing because it sounds as if Jesus was being dismissive of his mother and siblings and treating them as if they were unimportant. In this scene He had been ministering in the region of Galilee, and large crowds were following Him day after day. On this day, He was in a home that was packed to overflowing. At one point his mother and brothers and sisters arrived wanting to see Him, but they were unable to get inside because of the crowds. So, someone informed Him that His family was outside asking for Him. That then led to the response we just read in verses 49-50.   What did Jesus mean when He referred to the crowd of followers in front of Him and declared that they were in fact His true family? Was He being disrespectful and dismissive of His biological mother and brothers and sisters?   Not at all. Instead, He was making reference to the fact that brothers and sisters in the family of God are united by a spiritual bond that is deeper and more important and longer lasting than the biological bonds that unite a human family. It’s not that the human bonds aren’t important, they are, many passages in the Bible teach the importance of the family unit and of loving and honoring our parents and siblings. It’s just that the blood bond between family members end at death, but the spiritual bond between members of the family of God lasts for eternity. That’s why being part of a good church family is so important, and it is why God intends for every Christian to be a fully participating member of a good church family.   Not only is the Christian united by a spiritual bond with fellow members of the family of God – a bond that will last for eternity – but a church family provides many benefits now, in this lifetime. Read the Bible. Both the Old and New Testaments are filled with passages and illustrations which teach the importance of fellowship with other believers. We unite with others in worship; we support and encourage one another in times of heartache and struggle; we assist each other with finances and provisions; we also socialize and spend time together; and much more.   The church family is intended by God to supplement and enhance our lives with our biological families and in some cases, it even substitutes for life with a biological family. That’s why Psalm 68:6 says that “God places the lonely in families …” The Psalmist was talking about church families. God takes those who don’t have biological families and He puts them in a good church family instead.   I encourage you to spend some time today thanking God for your church family. And if you aren’t already part of a good church, I encourage you to join one right away. If you’re close to Crossville, Tennessee, we invite you to visit with us at Oak Hill Baptist.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2020 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be Thankful”   Our Bible verse for today: “This is why a man leaves his father and mother and bonds with his wife, and they become one flesh.” Genesis 2:24 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Be thankful for your family”   This weekend I will be one of two ministers who will share the privilege of performing a wedding for a fine young Christian couple. I get to help them start their new life as husband and wife. As of Saturday, a new family will have been started. For now, it will just be the two of them. In years to come there will probably be children as well. It’s a blessed and encouraging event. It reminds us that God isn’t done with the human race yet and with couples like this forming new families, the future looks promising. I love weddings.   Family was God’s idea. It was His design to bring a man and woman together to be life partners, to form a home, and to bring children into the world. Families are also generational. We certainly see that in the early chapters of Genesis, especially in chapter ten (The Table of Nations), and in chapter eighteen where God describes how He will bless the entire world through Abraham’s line of descent. The influence of family life is strong, it runs deep and extends far into the future.   The family unit is the structural foundation of any society. Strong traditional family units are essential to the health of communities and nations. A father, mother, and children, all living together under the Lordship of Christ is the key to a stable and prosperous homelife. And stable family units are the key to a healthy society overall. When the traditional family unit breaks down, it means trouble for everyone. It’s a proven sociological fact that the fewer strong and stable traditional family units a society consists of, the more social ills that society will experience. For instance, the primary problem faced by the African-American community in our country today is the large proportion of fatherless homes. Children need the structure and stability of an intact traditional family.   I encourage you to spend some time this morning thanking God for your family. Thank Him for your immediate family, and thank Him also for your extended family including aunts, uncles, cousins, in-laws and outlaws. Then I encourage all of us to do the things necessary to keep our families healthy and strong.   But what about those who don’t have an intact biological family to be a part of? What about those who are alone? We will talk about that tomorrow.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2020 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be Thankful”   Our Bible verse for today: “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance.” Psalm 33:12 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Be thankful for our country”   I love patriotic songs and one of my favorites is “God Bless the USA” by Lee Greenwood. Many years ago, I had a chance to meet Lee and to spend a few minutes with him. It was in 1985. I was on active duty in the U.S. Navy and serving as an officer onboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Kitty Hawk. I was an Officer of the Deck, which meant that every day I spent four hours up on the bridge of the ship giving orders and directing the ship. I was the guy who would say, “Right full rudder, all engines ahead two-thirds!” And then I would strike my best John Paul Jones pose as I stood there trying to look important and in-charge.   Aircraft carriers are impressive ships and tend to get a lot of V.I.P. visitors. Once, while we were at sea off the coast of Southern California, Lee Greenwood flew out on a helicopter to visit the Kitty Hawk. I was the Officer of the Deck at the time and so when Lee came up to the bridge, I was the one who got to explain things to him. I even handed him my binoculars so he could scan the horizon, and then I stepped aside so he could give some orders to the Helmsman to alter the ship’s course.   At that time, Lee’s song “God Bless the USA” was at the top of the music charts. After he left the bridge, he went down to the Hanger Bay where much of the crew had assembled and he sang his song for us. “God Bless the USA” is still a much-loved song today, almost thirty-six years later, because it beautifully depicts the wonders and the glories of our great land.   Today our nation is in the middle of what seems to be a perfect storm of turmoil and struggles. We have a lot of problems and we are deeply divided as a people. But this really isn’t so unusual. In the history of our nation there have been many times like this before, and one thing we learn from that history is that the USA is extremely resilient. We have withstood terrible wars, economic recessions and depressions, pandemics, times of social unrest, big shifts in political power, and worse. There have been many times when things looked bleak but we have always come through it in the past – and we will this time too!   I encourage you to spend some time this morning thanking God for our great country. For almost 250 years God has used this nation to accomplish much good in a broken and hurting world, and I believe He will continue to do so. We are an exceptional nation, founded on Biblical principles, with a long history of honoring God and of being a blessing to the world.   Pray for our country. Pray for our leaders and for our entire population that we will find ways to come together for the greater good and that we will once again be one nation under God. As Lee’s song reminds us, God has blessed us richly in the past and He wants to bless us even more in the future. If we bless God, God will bless us.     God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2020 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be Thankful”   Our Bible verse for today: “We always thank God for all of you, making mention of you constantly in our prayers.” 1 Thessalonians 1:2 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Thank a veteran”   Today is Veteran’s Day. It’s the day each year that we as a nation have set aside to give thanks for and show appreciation to all those who have served in our Armed Forces. It’s different from Memorial Day. Memorial Day is in May and it is a day to remember those who gave their lives in defense of our nation. Veteran’s Day honors all those who have ever served in the military.   Despite our many problems, the USA is still a beacon of hope and promise for the rest of the world. We have the most effective and equitable system of government in the world; the fairest justice system; the strongest economy; the highest standard of living; the highest quality healthcare; and we are the most generous nation in the world. We are still the land of opportunity, and that’s why millions of immigrants flock to our shores every year looking for a better life.   America is exceptional among the nations of the world, which is why so many other nations strive to copy the American system. But we also have enemies. Not only is the USA loved, but the USA is also hated. China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and others hate us and seek to do us harm. It’s our military that deters our enemies and keeps the homeland safe. But at any given time, there are fewer than 1.3 million men and women serving on active duty in all branches of the military. That’s .5% of the population protecting 99.5% of the population. Additionally, of the 328 million citizens of the USA, fewer than 22 million are veterans. That’s 7% who have given some number of years of their lives to safeguard the other 93%. And, of the 535 members of Congress (100 Senators and 435 members of the House of Representatives), only 18% have ever served in the military.   I encourage all of us to take some time this morning to thank God for those who have sacrificially served our nation by means of military service. Then go and actually thank a veteran personally.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2020 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be thankful”   Our Bible verse for today: “I have treasured your word in my heart so that I might not sin against you.” Psalm 119:11 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Thank God for His moral standards”   Yesterday we took some time to thank God for the gift of the Bible. In a similar vein, today we will thank Him for His moral standards. In the Bible not only has God told us everything He wants us to know about Himself and about His ways, but He has also told us how we are to live. From cover-to-cover the Bible is filled with instructions and principles to guide us in living life according to God’s moral standards. And here’s the thing, He gave us those standards for our own good. It’s in our own best interest, and in the best interest of everyone else around us, that we all live according to God’s moral standards.   The sixth of the Ten Commandments says we are not to commit murder. Imagine if it didn’t. Imagine if murder was acceptable and everyone routinely resorted to murder to solve their problems. The eight commandment tells us we are not to steal, but imagine if stealing was an acceptable and legitimate way of getting what you want. Numerous Bible passages instruct us to feed the hungry, house the homeless, take care of the sick, look out for each other, and to put the interests of others above our own. But what if the exact opposite was true? What if there was no compassion for the needy? What if everyone was entirely selfish and looking out only for themselves?   And on and on we could go. The Bible is packed full of instructions and principles for right living, and God’s standards for living are timeless, they transcend generations and cultures. They apply to all people in all places at all times and they are always in everyone’s best interests. The more any society or grouping of people live according to God’s moral standards, the better off everyone is. And the less they live that way, the worse the situation will be. This is precisely why the Founding Fathers of the United States of America wove Biblical principles into the very fabric of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States, and into the Bill of Rights.    God has given us His moral standards to guide our conduct because He loves us and He wants what’s best for us. I encourage you to spend some time this morning thanking Him for His standards, and then I encourage all of us to live by them.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

Copyright © 2020 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved.