Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be gracious, even if others aren’t”   Our Bible verse for today: “Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and dearly loved, put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another.” Colossians 3:12-13 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Put up with each other graciously”   One of the things I love about Oak Hill Baptist Church is that we are all so different and yet we get along so well. I have sometimes jokingly compared our church to what I call “The Star Wars Bar”. You may remember the scene from the first Star Wars Movie when Hans Solo and Chewbacca were in an interplanetary bar. It was packed full of odd-looking creatures from across the galaxy. They were all sizes, shapes, and colors. One guy looked like Cyclops with a single eye in the center of his head. Another had five eyes along with tentacles coming from the sides of his head. And on it went. You get the picture. They were all seriously different and yet they all accepted each other, and they all got along well.   Well, that’s us! We’re a strange group, all of us very different in many ways, and yet we love each other and we get along well. A big part of being a gracious person is the ability to accept people as they are, even if they’re different from you.   How do you typically respond to people who look different than you, believe different than you, and behave differently than you? I’m not talking about people who are engaged in blatant and unrepentant sin, I’m just talking about people who see life different than you do and who therefore make different choices and decisions than you do. Can you easily accept the fact that they are different and that’s okay?   There’s an old saying that goes, “Those who dance are thought to be crazy by those who can’t hear the music.” Maybe the reason the other person sees things differently than you do is because they’re dancing to music you can’t even hear. They’re just marching through life to the beat of a different drummer (and maybe they think you’re a little weird because you’re not dancing to their tune).    We’re all different, and most of the time that’s okay. As long as we’re not talking about different in sinful ways, as long as we’re just being our own unique selves but still honoring Jesus, then it’s okay. You can be different from me, I can be different from you, and hopefully we’ll accept each other’s difference and still get along just fine.   Let’s put up with each other and let’s do it graciously.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2026 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be gracious, even when others aren’t”   Our Bible verse for today: “What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6:8 (NASB)   Our thought for today: “Grace is often one-sided”   Grace is a demonstration of love that is undeserved, unearned, and unconditional. That’s how God deals with us and that’s how we are to deal with others. So, if we are to be gracious to others in the manner that God is gracious to us it will mean that we intentionally act towards others with love and grace whether they deserve to be treated that way or not.   Now that’s tough! I can easily be gracious with those who are gracious with me. It’s not hard to be nice to a nice person. But it’s much harder to show grace to a knucklehead who I would really like to choke rather than bless.  Likewise, it’s easy and even fulfilling to do something kind and generous for a person who is appreciative and who makes me feel good in return. But it’s disappointing to go out of my way to do a good deed for someone only to have them shrug it off or not show proper appreciation. My human nature will certainly make me less inclined to do something like that for them in the future.   But grace isn’t picky or conditional like that. Grace is often one-sided. Grace depends not on the receiver of grace but on the giver of grace. God is gracious because grace is who He is. It’s simply part of His nature. Likewise, we should be gracious not because the other person deserves it but because it’s simply who we are as a spiritually mature Christian.   In Micah 6:8 the prophet describes intentional actions taken by a faithful person, and it says nothing about the recipient of such actions deserving to be treated that way. You do it because of who you are not because of who they are. You do it because you obey God and follow His commands. You do it because that’s what Jesus did and as a Christian you want to be like Him.   Grace is often one-sided and that can make it hard – unless of course that kind of graciousness has been worked into your personality by the Holy Spirit to the point that you do it simply because it’s your nature to do so. In that case grace is easy, even if it is one-sided.   Be gracious to others today, even if they don’t deserve it and even if they are not gracious back.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2026 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be gracious, even when others aren’t”   Our Bible verse for today: “For he (Barnabas) was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith.” Acts 11:24 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “You will be remembered for who you are”   Today I will perform two funerals, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Both will be for older women who lived lives of great faith and who consequently were a blessing to many. We will celebrate their lives and talk about many of the things they did in life. But more than remembering the things they did, we will remember them for who they were.   I’ve mentioned before that Barnabas is one of my favorite people in the New Testament. Acts 4:36 identifies him as “The Son of Encouragement”. Acts 11:24 says he was “a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith”. He was known for his generosity, for his encouraging ways, for being good and kind, and for being gracious. He was a man of strong faith, and the fruit of the Spirit was evident in his life. He was always lifting people up and blessing them.   The New Testament does give us some specific examples of ways in which he blessed people, and many of us remember those specific examples, but more than being remembered for what he did, Barnabas is remembered for who he was. He was the “Son of Encouragement”.   The same was true of my mother. When she passed away in April 2012 we were inundated with emails, cards, letters, and phone calls from people who just wanted to say how much they loved her and how highly they thought of her. People from across the country and from across the decades suddenly surfaced to share glowing memories about her. One old family friend from our childhood actually got on a plane in Dallas early in the morning, flew to Nashville, rented a car, drove to Crossville for the funeral, drove back to Nashville, and flew home to Dallas, all in one day and all just to be at my mother’s funeral.   The phrase people used over-and-over again to describe her was “she was such a beautiful person”. By “beautiful” they were referring to her character. She was a beautiful person in her heart, and it showed in the way she treated other people. My mom was kind, friendly, generous, and gracious. And although people cited many specific examples of ways in which she had blessed them, more than anything else they remembered the kind of person she was more than just the specific things she did.   The same will be true of you and me. People will remember us more for the kind of person we were rather than for what we did. It’s true that what you do will be a product of who you are, but in the end, people will remember your character more than they will remember your deeds.   Ask the Holy Spirit to help you be the person you want to be remembered as once you are gone.   God bless, Pastor Jim    (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2026 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be gracious, even when others aren’t”   Our Bible verse for today: “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God.” Acts 15:19 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Don’t make it more difficult than it is”   The words we read in Acts 15:19 were spoken by James, the biological brother of Jesus. The context they were spoken in was what has become known in history as “The Council of Jerusalem”. The new Christian church was very young and consisted mostly of former Jews. These formally Jewish Christians were steeped in Old Testament Law and the customs of the Pharisees. Freedom in Christ and living by grace were still new concepts to them. For them, the practice of their Christian faith still involved many of the trappings of Judaism, including rule-keeping.   But now thousands of Gentiles were coming to faith in Christ as well. Should they be required to be rule-keepers too? The Council of Jerusalem had to decide. Amazingly their answer was “No”. Following Christ did not involve keeping a lot of archaic and manmade rules. And of all people, James was the one to verbalize the decision. James was probably the strictest and most structured of the bunch.   To their credit these early disciples of Jesus were willing to embrace and share grace, even though it was a foreign concept to them when it came to practicing their faith. Extending such grace to others, rather than insisting on a legalistic practice of the faith, was a tremendously gracious act on their part, and one they struggled to arrive at.   Many people in our day struggle with it too and sadly, often unsuccessfully. The great Christian writer H.L Mencken once described a Puritan as “a person with a haunting fear that someone somewhere is happy.” Today many people would apply that same caricature to evangelicals in general, and to fundamentalists in particular. As Philip Yancey noted, “Nowadays legalism has changed its focus. In a thoroughly secular culture, the church is more likely to show ungrace through a spirit of moral superiority or a fierce attitude toward opponents in the ‘culture wars”.   When unbelievers hear the ungracious speech of many Christians, and by being the targets of stern judgmental condemnation, what do they come to think about the Jesus we preach?   We can learn a lesson from James and the early disciples. We don’t get to make the rules for everyone else. Not only do we not get to make the rules for the rest of the world, but we don’t even get to make extra-Biblical rules for other Christians to follow (rules that go beyond what the Bible actually says).   The way James and the other apostles came to their decision in Acts 5:19 was through prayer, reading scripture, and by considering the example of Jesus. They were Biblical and they were gracious. They did not try to make God say more than He really said, and they dealt with others in grace. We should do no less. The Bible says what it says. We are not to take away from it, and we are not to add to it. God has granted us freedom in Christ, and we should graciously extend that freedom to others as well. This is not a license to sin – it’s simply letting the Bible say what it says (no more and no less) and leaving it at that.   Instead of being stern rule-makers we need to be Christians who model the love and graciousness of the One we profess to follow. Again, quoting Yancey, “The world thirsts for grace in ways it does not even recognize.”   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2026 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be gracious, even when others aren’t”   Our Bible verse for today: “… for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I find myself. I know both how to make do with little, and I know how to make do with a lot. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being content – whether well fed or hungry, whether in abundance or in need. I am able to do all things through him who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:11-13 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Be gracious in times of adversity”   Pastor Chuck Swindoll once wrote, “In all my years of walking with the Lord, I have yet to meet one Christian who has ‘lived happily ever after.’ On the other hand, I have met a great many significant saints who have endured affliction, loss, disappointment, setbacks, failures, and incredible pain through the years. And I have seen many of those same men and women cling to their joy, radiate hope, and sustain a winsome spirit, even through heartache, even through tears, even at death’s door.”   I agree with Chuck, I have never met a Christian who lived a fairytale life of pure bliss, just skipping along the yellow brick road of life. However, I have known many Christians who faced the hardships and trials of life with a sense of peace, confidence, and even joy, despite the pain and heartache. They were people who maintained a winsome personality and radiated a sense of hope and happiness even though they were dealing with great trials.   Early in my years as a seminary student, I had the privilege of knowing a woman by the name of Phyllis Forte. She was a member of our church, and she was one of those great saints who simply radiated joy and love, despite the circumstances. Phyllis had diabetes, and it was slowly eating her alive. Over the years I knew her I watched the disease take a toe, and then another, and then all of them, and then the entire foot, and then half a leg, and then the other leg started to go. Soon she was confined to a wheelchair and finally she was homebound and a shut-in.   I used to visit her frequently, and we would even celebrate the Lord’s Supper together – just the two of us at her kitchen table. No matter what she was dealing with personally, she was always upbeat and funny (and fun). She never wanted to talk much about herself or her problems. Instead, she wanted to know all about me and my family. She asked how Linda and the kids were. She wanted to hear about what I was learning in seminary, and if I was taking proper care of myself, and so on. She was kind and gracious and a great joy to be with!   In Philippians 4:11-13 the Apostle Paul described a depth and maturity of faith that enabled him to be happy and content regardless of his circumstances. That’s because his joy came from within his heart and radiated out, rather than coming from outward circumstances and working its way in. His joy, contentment, and graciousness came from Christ and not from circumstances.   Paul and Phyllis were content, joyful, and gracious, regardless of the circumstances they found themselves in. May the same be true of us.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2026 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be gracious, even when others aren’t”   Our Bible verse for today: “The Lord has repaid you for all the blood you shed in the household of Saul, in whose place you have reigned. The Lord has given the kingdom into the hands of your son Absalom. You have come to ruin because you are a murderer!” 2 Samuel 16:7-8 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Watch those words!”   The other day I came across an interesting phrase which I had not heard before: “Avoid not only the words you may have to eat, but the words that may eat you.” It was said about a guy by the name of Shimei, whose words you just read in 2 Samuel 16:7-8. Here’s what happened:   King David had just been overthrown as king of Israel by his son Absalom, and he was now fleeing for his life. As he was trudging along the rural dusty roads leading to his exile, he encountered a man who was a descendant of King Saul (who God had removed from being king before David). His name was Shimei. Shimei hated David because he thought David had stolen the throne from Saul. So now that David himself had been overthrown, Shimei encountered him on the road and began to mock David and shout curses at him and even throw stones at him.   Okay, so fast forward some short time into the future, to the time that the army loyal to David defeated the army of Absalom, and David was now headed back to Jerusalem to reclaim the throne. Once again, he would be the king over all of Israel (and the king over Shimei). So, in 2 Samuel 19:19-20 Shimei, realizing that he was now in deep doo-doo, hustled out to meet the returning King David and he begged the king’s forgiveness, “When Shimei son of Gera crossed the Jordan, he fell prostrate before the king and said to him, ‘May my lord not hold me guilty. Do not remember how your servant did wrong on the day my lord the king left Jerusalem. May the king put it out of his mind. For I your servant know that I have sinned, but today I have come here as the first of the whole house of Joseph to come down and meet my lord the king.”   In this case Shimei had to eat his words. Lucky for him David was gracious and forgave him, but as punishment, David placed certain restrictions on where and how Shimei could live for the rest of his life.   Now fast-forward again, this time to 1 Kings 2:8-9 and we find that David, now very old and approaching death, has passed the kingship to his son Solomon. Shimei (evidently thinking he was now free and clear because David was no longer king), violated the terms of his agreement with David. He no longer adhered to the restrictions David had placed upon him. Hearing of this, Solomon had Shimei arrested and executed. Therefore, ultimately Shimei’s foolish words from all those years earlier ended up eating him.   An important part of being a gracious person is found in how we speak. It matters what you say and how you say it, and who you say it too. Foolish words – words that should not be spoken, often have a way of coming back and biting us. Sometimes you will have to eat those words, and sometimes those words will eat you.   Gracious people speak in gracious ways – all the time. So, watch those words!   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2026 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be gracious, even when others aren’t”   Our Bible verse for today: “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” John 8:7 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Grace is a little taste of heaven”   The Pharisees were hyper-legalists. They were also cold, hard, and mean. In John 8:1-11 we read of a time they caught a woman in the act of committing adultery. Knowing Jesus’ tendency to be kind and compassionate and wanting to trap Him in a violation of their law, they brought the woman to Him. They asked Him to pass judgment on her for her adultery (which was unquestionably a sin and for which the Law of the Pharisees allowed execution by public stoning).   The Pharisees challenged Jesus to pronounce judgment on her but instead, He pronounced judgment on them for being so totally lacking in grace and compassion. He said that if there was one among them without sin, they should be the one to throw the first stone. And of course, since they all had plenty of sin of their own, there was no one who would dare to step forward to pick up that first stone. So, they all quietly slipped away. Jesus then forgave the woman and sent her on her way.   This story is like one Philip Yancey tells in his book “What’s So Amazing about Grace?” In that case there was a drug addicted prostitute who sometimes sold her four-year-old daughter to be used by men for kinky sex. She made more money from that in an hour than she made selling herself multiple times throughout the night. She was wracked with guilt for doing it and yet her addiction drove her to continue selling her daughter. Finally in desperation she went to see a counselor for help. The counselor suggested she go to church. The prostitute looked at the counselor with confusion and shock. Then she said, “Go to church? Why would I do that? I already feel bad enough about myself!” In other words, she was sure the people of the church would only judge her, condemn her, and make her feel worse than she already did.   Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia (a strong Christian) was once giving a speech about law and justice. In it he explained the difference between legalism and grace. “In heaven there will be no law because there will be no need for it. The lion will lie down with the lamb. In hell there will be nothing but law, and it will be rigorously enforced without mercy. Grace gives us a little taste of heaven. Legalism gives us a little taste of hell.”   When we are gracious with people we give them a little taste of heaven. When we are judgmental and hard we give them a little taste of hell. I encourage you to give people a little taste of heaven today. Be gracious.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2026 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be gracious, even if others aren’t”   Our Bible verse for today: “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that I may benefit those who listen.” Ephesians 4:29-30 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Is it true, is it helpful’ is it kind?”   This morning, I want to share with you a rather long quote directly from the “Upside-Down Kingdom” study Bible. This came from my own personal Bible study time yesterday and it pertains directly to our theme for this month.”   “In the social media era, “unwholesome talk” has become normative and, even more insidiously, desirable, at least to a certain extent. The computer algorithms that fuel most social media platforms are designed to amplify the extremes, and research has proven that the extremes produce an inordinate amount of clicks, comments and likes. Clicks, comments and likes are what fuel the digital economy. In other words, bitterness, rage, anger, slander and maliciousness sell. As a result, unwholesome talk reigns supreme online.”   The editors go on: “The original word for unwholesome can be translated “rotten” or “corrupt.” The seeds of thought rumbling around in our minds and hearts hold tremendous potential, for both good and bad. Out of the same mouth can come both praising and cursing (Jas 3:10). Will we express our thoughts in words that are unwholesome, rotten and corrupt, or words that build others up? As social media continues to push culture further toward the extremes, Christians are called to stand in loving defiance by speaking with kindness, compassion and forgiveness. Rather than carelessly lunging into the polarized fray, armed with our opinions and grievances, followers of Jesus must seek to build up with our words.”   The instruction from the Apostle Paul on this subject continues in verses 30-31 of Ephesians 4: “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”   It grieves the Holy Spirit of God when Christians become part of the problem rather than the solution by joining in the ugliness. If others are mean and unkind in their remarks, we are not to respond to them by being like them. Instead, we are to be like Jesus. Paul felt so strongly about this that he returned to it just a few sentences later in Ephesians 5:4, “Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.”   There’s an old rule of thumb that applies here, and which can be very helpful, it’s also consistent with Paul’s instruction to us here in Ephesians: when choosing your words and tone, before you decide what to say and how to say it stop and ask yourself, “Is it true; is it helpful; is it kind?”   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2026 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Be gracious, even if others aren’t”   Our Bible verse for today: “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Pray for our nation”   Today we in the USA celebrate our 250th birthday as a nation. The USA is the greatest, healthiest, and most successful representative democracy there has ever been. The entire rest of the world has been and is blessed because of America’s success story. We have a lot to celebrate.   But we also have a lot to be concerned about. Historically, nations don’t continue to survive and thrive indefinitely. Sooner or later, all great powers have eventually declined – and many have ceased to exist altogether. The historical odds are not in our favor.   There are powerful negative forces at work attempting to undermine our democracy and to significantly alter the social, cultural, political, and economic landscape in our nation. Marxism and socialism ideologies are gaining in popularity among the population. Cultural changes are taking place that would have been unthinkable just a decade ago. So, while we have much to celebrate on this Fourth of July, we also have much to be concerned about.   But the USA has proven itself to be unique among the nations of the world in many ways. So, we could defy the odds and continue to thrive when other nations have not. That’s especially true if we continue to have the hand of God upon us and the blessings of God being bestowed. But for that to happen, God’s people must step-it-up and rise to the occasion.   What our nation needs right now, perhaps more than at any other time in our history, is a strong and vibrant Christian community playing a major role in the ebb and flow of everyday life in America. We must rise-up and be the church – and that must start with prayer. Pray for our nation. Pray for our leaders. Pray for the Church to be a powerful influence for good in our land. And pray for yourself, that you will recommit yourself to doing your part to advocate for and model Biblical principles in your little corner of our nation.   God has promised that if His people will pray, repent, and turn from our own wicked ways, He will hear from heaven and there can be healing in our land.   On this 250th birthday of our nation, I encourage you to pray for our country.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2026 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: Be gracious, even when others aren’t”   Our Bible verse for today: “My dearly loved brothers, understand this: everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger, for man’s anger does not accomplish God’s righteousness.” James 1:19-20 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Confidence leads to calmness”   Yesterday I told you about the conference on Biblical sexual ethics that I attended and how impressed I was by the friendly and respectful way in which the leaders and attendees discussed the difficult and emotionally charged issues being addressed. This was especially impressive considering it was not a one-sided discussion. The presenters and attendees included people from across the cultural spectrum including conservative evangelical Christians, leaders of the gay and lesbian community, Republicans, Democrats, liberals, conservatives, and everyone in-between.   To introduce yesterday’s devotional, I quoted 1 Peter 3:15-16 which tells us that we must be prepared to present our views when the opportunity arises, but we have to do it with gentleness and respect, “Always be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you. However, do this with gentleness and respect, keeping your conscience clear.”   One of the reasons the leaders and attendees at that conference were able to discuss such difficult issues in a calm and reasoned manner was because they all had a quiet sense of confidence. They had all done their homework. Everyone had taken the time to thoroughly study the issues from their own perspective, and from the perspectives of those who saw things differently. Then, after lots of research, thoughtful listening, and a genuine desire to get to the truth, each participant arrived at the point of knowing what they believed and why they believed it. Therefore, they were confident in their positions and prepared to discuss it in a calm and respectful way.   One of the reasons people often get upset and defensive when they’re discussing difficult issues is because they feel threatened. And one of the reasons they feel threatened is because they’re not sure of themselves. They often don’t have good answers for hard questions, and they attempt to compensate for that by raising their voice, or using exaggerated language, or silly clichés.   But people who are sure of themselves – people who know what they believe and why they believe it, and who are prepared to discuss it, tend to have a quiet sense of confidence. They are therefore not threatened by opposing points of view. This is why at Oak Hill Baptist Church we are a “teaching church”. In other words, there’s a heavy emphasis on teaching the truth of Biblical principle and doing it in ways that are easy to understand and easy to apply to everyday life situations. Therefore, our folks know what they believe and why they believe, and they’re prepared to discuss those beliefs.   When we know what we believe and why we believe it we will feel comfortable discussing those issues, even with those who disagree with us – and we will do it with grace. This is true because confidence leads to calmness.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2026 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571