Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Think for yourself”   Our Bible verse for today: “Every kingdom divided against itself is headed for destruction, and no city or house divided against itself will stand.” Matthew 12:25 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “United we stand, divided we fall.”   The devotional messages for yesterday and today were not the way I envisioned beginning this series on “Think for yourself”. However, my plans have been overcome by events. The rioting taking place across our nation, and the Christian response to it, bears more comment.   Yesterday I noted that the riots are being fueled by a mob mentality as violent agitators exploit a tragic situation and play on people’s emotions. While I doubt that true Bible-believing Christians are rampaging through the streets burning buildings and attacking police, there are Christians who are adding to the overall anger and tension by the things they’re posting and sharing on social media. Some of those angry and mean posts side with the rioters, but most of them express anger and even fury about the rioting. That’s understandable but it’s not helpful. No rioter is going to stop rioting simply because you posted or shared an angry rant on Facebook. However, calm words of reason may be helpful for everyone. That could help to settle people down a little.   Last night I heard a commentator on a news show share what I believe was a deeply insightful and helpful perspective on this situation. He noted that literally everyone was appalled at the video of the killing of George Floyd. I’m not aware of anyone who thought the actions by that police officer were okay. Across the spectrum of race, age, gender, religion, and all other demographics, everyone was united in their grief and anger over that senseless death.   That shared sense of grief and loss was a national unifying issue and it could have served as the catalyst for meaningful change. That’s what happened in the 60s during the Civil Rights movement. The brutal images of peaceful protestors being attacked by police dogs, blasted with high pressure fire hoses, beaten bloody and dragged off to jail, galvanized and united an entire nation across demographic lines, and it resulted in deep systemic change with regards to racism in America. This is how the Civil Rights Act ended up as law. The death of George Floyd did have, and perhaps still has, the potential to have that same kind of galvanizing and unifying impact – except that it has been hijacked and exploited by anarchists and criminals – and that’s what has created the situation we now find ourselves in.   The police officer who killed George Floyd is being held accountable and justice is in the process of being served. Also, increasing levels of law enforcement action is being applied to deal with the violence and the rioting. So, those issues are being appropriately dealt with and therefore require no direct involvement on our parts. Let the justice and law enforcement institutions do their jobs to take care of those aspects of this.   I believe the thing for Christians to do now is to (1) Pray for peace in our land; (2) Think for yourself. Refuse to allow your mind and heart to be hijacked by a mob mentality (especially on social media); and (3) Do your part to refocus everyone’s attention on the thing that initially united us – the unjust nature of this man’s death. We all agree it shouldn’t have happened, we are all grieved that it did, and we would all like to see changes come about that ensure things like this don’t happen anymore. Let’s focus on that and build on it.   “United we stand, divided we fall” is more than just the clever lyric to a popular song. It’s an important Biblical truth (as expressed by Jesus in Matthew 12:25). We need to refocus on what unifies us as a nation, and it needs to start with you and me.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

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

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Think for yourself”   Our Bible verse for today: “And the tongue is a fire. The tongue, a world of unrighteousness, is placed among our members. It stains the whole body, sets the course of life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell … it is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.” James 3:6; 8 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Don’t pour fuel on the fire.”   I had a different devotional message planned for today, but I’ll save it for tomorrow. This morning I feel compelled to share some thoughts about the riots that are taking place all across our nation. Peaceful protest is not the problem. Violent rioting is the problem. Many of the protesters are demonstrating against the unjust killing of a man in police custody. That anger is understandable and the peaceful protests are legal (although in some locations they do violate the stay-at-home orders that are still in place, but that’s a minor issue at this point).   What has happened is that violent agitators have hijacked the peaceful protests and are using them as a cover to perpetrate acts of lawless aggression, along with anarchy and looting. That then creates a mob mentality and many who would otherwise never engage in such acts, get caught-up in and swept along with the emotional intensity and the supercharged atmosphere. That’s what a mob mentality does to people.   I honestly don’t believe there are many, or any, true Bible-believing Christians out rampaging in the streets with those mobs. But there are Christians succumbing to the mob mentality on social media. Sadly, there are Christians who are adding to the anger and the supercharged emotions by posting angry rants, or sharing snarky and even mean-spirited memes pertaining to this situation. Their social media tongues are precisely what James was describing in James 3:3-12 – the tongue can be a fire, and it can create fires (sometimes literal ones), and it spreads poison.   Please don’t be that person. It only makes the situation worse. It elevates an already too high level of tension and it perpetuates all the anger and the hate. It just pours fuel on the fire. In any situation, Christians should be the calm voices of reason and clarity. We should be the agents of peace, the ones who help to calm things down.   I want to encourage you resist allowing yourself to be sucked into the swirling vortex of anger and hate. Don’t give-in to the mob mentality on social media. Think for yourself; be the calm voice of reason; help to make things better rather than worse. You may not be out in the streets breaking windows and throwing literal firebombs, but even verbal firebombs thrown on social media make a bad situation worse. Don’t be that guy.    God Bless, Pastor Jim

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

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Change can be good for you”   Our Bible verse for today: “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance.” Psalm 33:10 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Will America come back to church?”   For many of us one of the most difficult aspects of the stay-at-home orders that have been issued as a result of the COVID 19 pandemic is that our churches had to suspend our physical gatherings. Suddenly we regular church-goers had to find ways to stay connected with our church family without actually being together in a building.   In our state (Tennessee), the suspension of church gatherings wasn’t mandatory. Governor Bill Lee is a strong Christian who appreciates the importance of our churches in the communities we serve. He designated the churches in Tennessee as “essential social services”, but he asked us to try to find alternative ways to continue to provide our essential service to our communities. We gladly did that. We appreciated our Governor’s best efforts to get us safely through a dangerous and difficult time and so we cooperated fully (and voluntarily).   Other states weren’t so fortunate. In other states churches were ordered to shut down and they faced law enforcement action if they didn’t. In some of those states some churches defiantly stayed open as a form of Acts 5:29 protest (We must obey God rather than men). Hopefully this time during which our churches have not been physically meeting has reminded all of us how much we value and need our church families. That’s actually a good outcome for us. It’s the old adage, “You don’t know what you have till its gone.”   Now that our churches are reopening the question becomes “Will the people return?” Have some of us gotten so used to not going to church that we have formed new habits of staying home on Sunday mornings? And also, will the pain and heartache associated with the pandemic draw crowds of non-church goers to seek God and come to church? Or, are they simply relieved that the pandemic is easing and will they now just go back to their old ways of living?   We don’t know the answers to those questions yet but I do think this is a pivotal moment for the church in America. There could be a surge of church attendance, bringing with it great opportunities for advancing the Kingdom of God in our communities. Or, we could be faced with a struggle just getting our former regular attenders to begin attending again. The jury is still out on this. The question for each of us is “How will I respond”. Are you going to continue sitting at home or, with enthusiasm and thanksgiving will you come back to your church family and will you encourage others to do so as well?   It’s time to get our church gatherings going again, and it begins with each of us as individuals. I believe we can do so safely. We will prudently observe all the appropriate health and safety protocols, and therefore the environment in church will certainly be safer than what you are currently exposing yourself to in Walmart or the grocery store or in a restaurant. Some in the high-risk groups need to continue staying home for right now but for the rest of us, it’s time to come back.   Will America come back to church? If so, it needs to start with you.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

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

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Change can be good for you”   Our Bible verse for today: “Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course … What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” Ecclesiastes 1:4-6; 9 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “It is what it is. Can you deal with it?”   In the book of Ecclesiastes Solomon was being a bit of a stoic. Stoicism is the mindset that life happens and you just need to deal with it. A stoic has a fairly stable and steady personality and he or she isn’t easily excited or upset. They don’t typically experience dramatic highs or lows. They’re just steady.   As one example of his stoicism, in the verses cited above, Solomon was simply observing that the world turns, events unfold, time passes, generations come and go, people live and die, and then it all happens again, and again, and again. That’s the tone he maintains throughout all twelve chapters. Stuff happens. Don’t be a baby about it. Deal with it and move on.   In its extreme form stoicism is a problem. Extreme stoics are unfeeling, almost lifeless, and that of course, isn’t good. But being stable and steady, not easily excited and not easily upset, that’s a good way to be. The ability to take things in stride without making an unnecessarily big deal out of them is an important life-skill that will serve you well. You still have empathy when it’s appropriate, and you are kind and compassionate as well, but you’re not prone to extremes on either end of the emotional spectrum.   That brings us to the subject of the current COVID 19 pandemic. This isn’t the first such worldwide pandemic in history. Not by a long shot. There have been others which have been even worse. Pandemics of this magnitude seem to come in cycles about every 100 years. What we’re going through right now is a rare event, a once in a century event, but it is not new. Its also not the end of the world. As bad as it is it will pass, we will recover from it, and we will get on with life.   So, it is what it is. Can you deal with it? Can you deal with the inconvenience, the disruption to normal life, the sickness, the death, the economic hardships, and all the rest of it, without overreacting in one direction or the other?  Don’t stick your head in the sand and pretend it doesn’t exist. It does exist. But also, don’t lock yourself in a bunker and cower in fear. Instead, be rational, reasonable, calm, and clear-headed as you take the precautions that need to be taken, being helpful in all the ways that are needed from you in the moment, and then get on with life as best as possible.     Perhaps this pandemic can be an opportunity for all of us to learn a little healthy stoicism. Perhaps this can be an exercise in staying calm as we do the things necessary to deal with a dangerous and damaging situation.   I encourage you to keep your head and do the things that need to be done. Be the stable and steady one. Get yourself through this, and help others to get through it too.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

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

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Change can be good for you”   Our Bible verse for today: “Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding.” Proverbs 3:13 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Seek wisdom”   Wisdom is different than knowledge. Knowledge is the accumulation of facts and information about a subject. Wisdom is the ability to apply what you know in a meaningful way that makes life better for you and for others. Knowledge can be acquired from the study of books and by memorizing information. Wisdom comes mainly through experience and requires a healthy dose of clear thinking and common sense. It is possible to have a lot of knowledge but little wisdom. Conversely, it’s also possible to be a very wise person without having much formal education.   The book of Proverbs is primarily about seeking and finding true wisdom. The premise is that when a person understands and lives by Biblical principles, that person will be wise in all the ways that matter most. This is more than just being familiar with the Bible and memorizing scripture. Doing that falls largely into the category of having accumulated knowledge. Biblical wisdom on the other hand, comes from a clear understanding of what God requires of us and then applying that understanding in the way you live.   A person who has acquired a lot of Biblical knowledge can perhaps be a teacher who communicates that information to a classroom of students, who will then have similar knowledge. A person who is Biblically wise however, is a person who others will seek-out for counsel regarding difficult life issues. Sharing knowledge is an exercise in communicating information. Sharing wisdom is life-giving and makes life better for the people involved.   How have you used this experience of the COVID 19 pandemic, with all its associated side issues? Have you accumulated lots of new information about infectious diseases, economic downturns, and civil liberties? Or, has this been a time of deep and thoughtful contemplation as you’ve considered the ways of the God, the ways of people, and how it is that faithful Christians can make a meaningful difference in the midst of a world in crisis? In other words, have you become wiser as a result of what you have experienced?   This isn’t over yet. The first wave of the virus seems to be receding, the stay-at-home orders are being lifted, and the economy is starting to get on it’s feet again. But this isn’t over. There are many more challenges yet to be dealt with, and there will continue to be a lot of people with a lot of facts and figures (along with strong and dogmatically held opinions), making a lot of noise and being critical of anyone who doesn’t agree with them. For the most part, that will not be helpful. But there will also still be plenty of opportunities for truly wise people – Biblically wise people – to have a positive impact. That could be you.    I encourage you to seek wisdom – true wisdom, and then share it.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

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

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Change can be good for you”   Our Bible verse for today: “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Matthew 4:18-20 (ESV)   Our thought for today: “Hit the reset button”   In March of 2009 new Secretary of State Hilary Clinton started her tenure with a rather embarrassing moment. In her first official meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrof she presented him with a large red “reset” button. The idea was that the two countries could press the “reset” button and enter into a kinder, gentler, friendlier relationship. Unfortunately, the Russian word which the Obama administration thought meant “reset”, (which they had printed on the button), was actually the word for “overload” (which turned out to be a more accurate description of our relationship with the Russians anyway). It was a silly mistake that was part of a naïve initiative which never resulted in the desired change in Russian behavior. However, the concept was sound and it’s one that can be useful to us as individuals.   The idea that we can press the reset button in life and get a fresh start is both appealing and true. Each day is filled with opportunities to make choices that can change our lives for the better. In Matthew 4:18-20 we find Jesus offering such a reset to Peter and his brother Andrew. Up till then they had been simple fishermen, but Jesus was offering them a dramatic change in direction. From that point forward they could be on-mission with Him to change the world. They embraced the opportunity, reset the course of their lives, and nothing was ever the same for them again.   Everyday you have the opportunity to press the reset button in life and start fresh. Sometimes doing so could result in a major course correction, such as for Peter and Andrew. Most of the time it will probably pertain to smaller things, like a simple change in habits. You can stay stuck in your old routines, or you can unstick yourself by making better choices. You can remain on your current path in life, or you can let Jesus alter your course. As I explained in yesterday’s devotional, God’s not done with you yet. He is always in the process of molding and shaping you into the person He wants you to be. Usually that involves slow but steady refining and fine-tuning which occurs a little each day, but at other times it requires a complete reset and a new direction.   The good news is that if you are unhappy or dissatisfied with any aspect of your life, big or small, you can always hit the reset button and start out fresh. There are things that can be done to make almost any situation better in some way. Every day is a new opportunity to hit the reset button.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

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

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Change can be good for you”   Our Bible verse for today: “I will instruct you and show you the way to go; with my eye on you, I will give counsel.” Psalm 32:8 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “God’s not done with you yet”   The Russian novelist Leon Tolstoy once observed, “Everyone thinks of changing the world but no one thinks of changing himself.” To a large degree he was right. We all acknowledge that our world is a mess, and we all agree that significant change is needed, but most of us believe its other people who need to change. Other people should change their political views, or their positions on social issues, or the way they communicate on social media. Other people should be nicer, more generous, more considerate, more helpful. They should be better neighbors, better co-workers, better citizens. They should be more faithful in their church attendance, take a turn in the nursery, stop parking in the visitor’s parking spot (J.C. Cook).   We’re pretty good at spotting the ways in which other people need to change. We’re less good at seeing the ways in which we need to change. Part of the reason for that is that we’re so busy, we’re so consumed with just living life that we’re not especially self-aware in this way. Instead we’re distracted and superficial (we’ve talked about this). But part of the reason is also because as human beings we just have natural blind spots about our own faults.   Hopefully one of the experiences we’ve all had during this time of staying at home is that we’ve had more time for introspection and we’ve become a little more self-aware. The fact is that God is never done molding and shaping you into the man or woman He wants you to be. He is always in the process of growing, refining, and changing you. The more thoughtful we are about the ways in which we need to change, the more aware we will become of the things God is attempting to do in our lives.   I remember in seminary one of the things we prospective pastors were told was “The most powerful sermon you will ever preach is to live a faithful life.” We were also urged to “Be the change you want to see in the world.” In other words, whatever it is you believe should be different about other people, should be true of you first.   There are always ways in which each of us can change and improve. I encourage you to prayerfully consider what changes still need to occur in your life. You are a work in progress. God isn’t done with you yet.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

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

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Change can be good for you”   Our Bible verse for today: “No one has greater love than this: to lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Be more thoughtful and appreciative.”   Today is Memorial Day. It’s the day each year that we as a nation have set aside to honor those who gave their lives in defense of our country. It’s different from Veteran’s Day. Veteran’s Day is observed on November 11th of each year and is meant to honor all those who have ever served in the Armed Forces. But Memorial Day is specifically for the remembrance of those who made the ultimate sacrifice and gave their lives in combat.   The origin of Memorial Day is complex and a bit uncertain. The Department of Veteran’s Affairs lists twenty-five localities which all claim to have been the place where Memorial Day was first observed. Most of those early claims date back to Civil War days. At that time the actual designation was “Decoration Day” and it was the time when families, friends, and civic groups would decorate the graves of the war dead.   The other day on a radio station I was listening to a listener called in and urged the audience to stop saying “Happy Memorial Day”. He noted that there is nothing “happy” about this day. Instead, it’s supposed to be a somber reminder of the great sacrifices that have been made in order to protect the freedoms that we all enjoy. The caller suggested we say instead “Have a “memorable” Memorial Day”. In other words, “I hope you have a day that is deeply thoughtful as you consider and appreciate the sacrifices that have been made on your behalf.”   Personally, I like that a lot better and I think it’s much more appropriate. It also reminded me of a statement I read not too long ago in the book “The Burnout Society” by philosopher Byung-Chul Han. He was commenting on how scattered and superficial our thinking often is because we are so busy and distracted. He noted that all of the greatest cultural achievements of humanity have come as a result of contemplative attention and deep thinking. As individuals we’re at our best when we take the time to slow down and to think deeply about things.   One of the good changes that can come out of this time of social distancing, the stay-at-home orders, and the isolation, is that perhaps we will all slow down and think more deeply about issues that truly matter. Thinking deeply about the meaning of Memorial Day, and gaining a new or deeper appreciation for the sacrifice others have made for the sake of our freedom, would be a good start.   I wish you a “memorable” Memorial Day.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

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

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Change can be good for you”   Our Bible verse for today: “Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their efforts. For if either falls, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to lift him up. Also, if two lie down together, they can keep warm; but how can one person alone keep warm? And if someone overpowers one person, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not easily broken.” Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Life is hard but it’s easier when we do it together.”   If you’ve read the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes then you know that much of it is pretty grim. The author was King Solomon and it was written towards the end of his life. In it he is reflecting back on a life filled with hard lessons, most of them learned through painful experiences which resulted from the many poor choices he made.   But it’s not all grim. Some of it is upbeat and some of it is very helpful – such as this passage from Ecclesiastes 4:9-12. Here Solomon reminds us of how much we need each other. The fact is that life can be hard, but it’s a lot easier if we face the tough times and the difficult problems together. He writes about the benefits that come from companionship with close friends and brothers and sisters in the family of God. When we face things together, we can draw strength and encouragement from each other and we are then better able to face the trials and tribulations of life. There is strength in numbers.   For many of us one of the most difficult aspects of this current period of social distancing and stay-at-home directives has been the social isolation and the inability to gather together with our church families. Although most of us have made an extra effort to stay connected through social media and phone calls, it’s not the same. We need to actually be together.   This Sunday, May 24, 2020, we at Oak Hill Baptist Church will recommence our group gatherings. We’ll start by simply meeting for worship at 10:00. In the weeks to come we will slowly begin our other times of gathering as well. We’ll be smart about it, and we will emphasize safety, but we need to do this. We need to be together again.   Hopefully one of the positive outcomes from all of this is that we will all gain a new appreciation for our church family and we’ll be even more committed than before to being actively involved in the full life of our church. Sometimes you don’t realize what you have until its gone. Well, we lost that aspect of our church life for a while, but now its back. Let’s appreciate it for the special thing that it is.   Life can be hard, but it’s easier when we do it together.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

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

Good Morning Everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Change can be good for you”   Our Bible verse for today: “Pay careful attention, then, to how you live – not as unwise people but as wise – making the most of the time, because the days are evil.” Ephesians 5:15-16 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Less is often more and good is better than bad.”   In the late 1970s (back in the days when I used to watch television), there was a weekly show I enjoyed called “WKRP in Cincinnati”. It was about a radio station trying to transition from sedate music to top-40 rock ‘n’ roll. The new DJs included Venus Flytrap and Dr. Johnny Fever. A holdover from the old staff was a neurotic newsman named Les Nessman who had a bad habit of including way too much detail in his reports. In an attempt to get him to say less, the other characters tried to convince him that “Less is more.” They would chide him, “Less is more, Les, less is more”. Meaning that his newscasts would actually be better if he would include less information instead of more.   That’s often true for us too. We typically fill our lives full of things that don’t really need to be there. Sometimes they are bad things that are harming us; at other times they’re neutral things which are just taking up space in our lives and which we could easily do without.   God wants us to clear out both the unnecessary clutter from our lives along with the bad stuff, so that He can replace it with something better. He wants to fill our lives with good things – but usually we need to empty of it bad and/or unnecessary things in order to make room for the good things. The editors of “The Men’s Study Bible” ask you to imagine that you are walking along the beach and you find a small chest washed up on the shore. You eagerly open it only to discover its only filled with sand. As you stand there in your disappointment a rich man comes along, sees your disappointment, and offers to fill the chest with gold coins for you. You’re eager to receive those gold coins but there’s a problem – the chest is already full of sand. In order to allow it to be filled with the coins you will first need to empty it of the sand. Would you do it? Of course you would. You would much rather have the coins instead of the sand but first you will need to make room for the coins by getting rid of the sand.     What things have you filled your life with that you really need to get rid of? Perhaps there’s just too much stuff and too many activities and clearing some of it out would actually improve the quality of your life (less is more). Maybe some of it is bad and God wants to replace it with things that are much better, but you will need to clean out the bad in order to make room for the good. In Ephesians 5:15-16 Paul simply urges us to make wise choices about such things, but take a moment to read his lesson in Galatians 5:19-23. There he is much more specific about it when he gives us a list of what he calls “the works of the flesh” and he explains that if we will rid our lives of those things, then there will be room for God to replace that bad stuff with “the fruit of the Spirit”. Turn there in your Bible for a moment and compare those two lists. Which of them you would rather have your life filled with? You will have to get rid of the bad stuff in order to make room for the good.   Less is often more and good is better than bad. You have to choose what you want your life to be filled with. I encourage you to be wise about it and make good choices.   God Bless, Pastor Jim

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