Month: June 2021

“That which goes deepest to the heart, goes widest to the world…..”

I found that quote recently when I was doing a little research on a former pastor of mine when I lived in Atlanta; Dr. Vic Pentz, who was at that time, Senior Pastor of Peachtree Presbyterian Church.

This week’s focus in on all the “stuff” that tends to collude our lives and our vision. What made me think of Dr. Pentz, as it relates to this week’s devotionals, was when he preached a sermon once about everything going “back in the box” when it’s all said and done. He used the analogy of a board game, and telling kids to put everything away once the game was over. The metaphor was about our lives…and when it’s all said and done, we simply go “back in a box”.

This week, please read devotion days 58 to 62. I purposively asked Rob Miller to lead us this week. And if you think this week is another spin on “tithing” then think again. It’s more about God’s gifts and what we are charged to do with them. Where is our focus and how are we establishing priorities to the things that ultimately have come from Him first.

Some of you might be asking, so what does that have to do with the quote from Dr. Pentz? Well, to me, it’s about focusing not on our possessions…but rather on what’s in our heart. It doesn’t cost anyone a dollar to dig deep into his heart. Think about that one….until I see you on Friday.

Virtual over Zoom or treehouse options for our weekly gathering remain in place!

Peace!

I looked at my Facebook page after reading this week’s lesson (devotion days 52 to 57). I have two-thousand, one-hundred and sixty-two “friends” on my page. (I wrote that out to make it seem something greater than it actually is…)

Truth be told….I’m not proud of that number. I would rather it be…..10 friends.

Why…you might ask?

Maybe you’ll feel the same after reading this week’s lesson. Yes…I have a lot of friends…but how many of those are ones that will hold me accountable, allow me to hold them accountable, and what not.

Who do you call in the middle of the night when you need to talk?

Who do you text when you’re struggling with addictions?

Who can you debate politics and not get angry with?

Who are your top three …. friends?

I think you get my point. I’d prefer the number of friends to be 10…since that seems more of a reality.

This week, our author throws us a punch in the gut about how God defines “friends”. There’s a great section on Day 55 about the three types of friends we should have. Don’t miss that part.

Luke Nelson leads us this week. Join me in the Treehouse or via Zoom.

We’ll start at 7:30 am, per usual.

Have a great rest of the week!

Peace!

Some of you might recall growing up watching black & white versions of The Lone Ranger show. The hero always had his trusted sidekick, Tonto, by his side. Later, in 2013, Hollywood came out with a remake of the old western show, in the form of a full-feature, high definition film. Johnny Depp plays the character of “Tonto”. I haven’t seen it yet…but maybe after this week’s assignment, daily devotions 47 thru 51, I’ll give it a shot.

Our author this week opens up the a new section of the book called “No More Playing the Lone Ranger” where he stresses the importance of community….especially that community that’s found through “church”. The Apostle Paul often described the church as a “body”…bringing light to the fact that the human body has many parts….but rarely does one part do something that another part does not recognize.

Paul, and our author, use this analogy to describe the importance of the church body still today. The head does not operate all by itself. Neither do the lungs, our fingers, and our heart. The body is not set up to be several pieces of “lone rangers”.

Jason Schubert leads us this week. Zoom and in-person (treehouse) options continue to be available. If you come to the treehouse this week, there’s a good chance of Bojangles biscuits! Yum!

Have a great rest of the week. I’ll see you on Friday!

Peace!

When we last met, back on May 21st, we played out a courtroom scene where King David was on “trial” for his transgressions. Thanks to everyone who played along that morning….quite entertaining!

You’ll recall that King David, played by Jon Paschal, shouted out when questioned during our mock trial in what some might have described as “losing his cool”! It was somewhat similar to Colonel Jessup on the witness stand in the film, “A Few Good Men”, where Jack Nicholson screams back at Tom Cruise, “You can’t handle the truth” (among other things he shouted).

Soon afterwards, Colonel Jessup is read his rights, and escorted out of the courtroom….and, we expect, will be scheduled for his own trial. But what about King David? What was next for him after our own mock trial?

That’s where this week’s lesson comes into play. Homework is to read devotion days 42-46. Our author talks a lot this week about confession and forgiveness. Not the kind of confession that’s a check the block moment. Rather, true repentance.

Ernie Meland leads us this week. Two options for gathering: Treehouse (in-person) or virtual over Zoom. Please join us starting at 7:30 am ET. Ernie will start our lesson promptly at 7:45 am.

Have a great rest of the week!

Peace!