“I’m offended!” It seems that is a common complaint in our day. When did we become such a generation of “fragile little snowflakes” that the slightest challenge sends us into fits of offense and demands for regress?
So, what do you think is behind this age of easy offense? I certainly have my own thoughts, but…
Fr. Barnabas Powell
He looked at me right in the face and said the words I will never forget: “When you’re ready to ‘sell all you have’ to have this faith, then, and only then will you be ready!”
Whoa, wait a minute, let’s talk about this! Everything? Yep, everything.
It was a turning point in my own spiritual journey…
I looked out at the congregation and said: “If Kmart had a Blue Light special like this, they’d sell out in a minute.” Of course, you don’t know what a “blue light special is. You may not even remember KMart!
Suffice it to say it was a marketing trick that a store use to use…
My grandfather was an amazing storyteller. He was always a larger than life figure in my eyes as a boy and still is even as a grown man. He had this ability to mesmerize us grandkids with his stories of being a police officer in Atlanta, and the stories of his adventures with his friends.…
It's just not my strength. Gardening, for me, usually ends in disaster! But not for my grandmother. When I was a boy I remember me and my brothers and cousins being conscripted to help Mawmaw "put up" the vegetables from her garden. Corn and okra and green beans, and other produce was grown, harvested, canned,…
I have a habit of calling what many call “The Old Testament” the “First Testament.” And I do that because too many in the Church treat the books in the front of our Bible as either unimportant or not as valuable as the New Testament. I confess I’ve had a few folks get mad at me…
We were talking in Bible study recently about “First Principles.” It seems this is something we so rarely consider, but if we miss fundamental truths, we always end up in places we never intended to go.
For instance, if you don’t build your life on the fundamental truth that when you say “God” you mean the Holy Trinity,…
The old saying is "blood is thicker than water" and it seems that every culture has some form of this saying to reinforce the idea that family comes first!
One of the strongest memories that I have as a boy growing up is my own mother reminding me that my behavior reflects on her and how…
Our ladies group at our parish put together a recipe book as a fundraiser for their many ministries. So, one of the leaders approached me and asked "Father, would you like to include a recipe and a message in our cookbook?" Of course, I said "yes."
I love to bake, so I included a recipe for…
The preacher was telling the story of the plight of those in biblical times who suffered from leprosy. They were social outcasts and had to live in leper colonies and if they ventured out, they had to call before them to warn all around the “Unclean! Unclean!” You see leprosy was highly contagious, even to…