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Merry Christmas 2014!

Merry Christmas 2014!

Can you imagine what it would have been like if Jesus had not come?

A number of years ago a remarkable Christmas card was published by the title, “If Christ Had Not Come.” It was based on these words, “If I had not come….” (John 15:22). The card pictured a minister falling asleep in his study on Christmas morning and then dreaming of a world into which Jesus had never come.

In his dream, he saw himself walking through his house, but as he looked, he saw no Christmas decorations, no Christmas tree, no wreaths, no lights, no crèche, no Christmas cards, and no Christ to comfort and gladden hearts or to save us. He then walked onto the street outside, but there was no church with its spire pointing toward heaven. And when he came back and sat down in his library, he realized that every book about our Savior had disappeared. There were no carols or Christian music on the radio and no choirs or Christmas concerts on television.

The minister dreamed that the doorbell rang and that a messenger asked him to visit a friend’s poor, dying mother. He reached her home, and as his friend sat and wept, he said, “I have something here that will comfort you.” He opened his Bible to look for a familiar promise, but it ended with Malachi. There was no Christmas story, no angelic chorus, no shepherds or Wise Men, no Sermon on the Mount, no parables, no miracles, no “Come to me all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” There was no gospel, no light of the world, no “God so loved the world”, no Lord’s Prayer, and no promise of hope and salvation, and all he could do was bow his head and weep with his friend and his mother in bitter despair.

Two days later he stood beside her coffin and conducted her funeral service, but there was no message of comfort, no words of a glorious resurrection, and no thought of a mansion awaiting her in heaven. There was only “dust to dust, and ashes to ashes,” and one long, eternal farewell. Finally he realized that Christ had not come, and burst into tears, weeping bitterly in his sorrowful dream. There would be no Easter, and no hope of the kingdom of heaven and an age to come.

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December 22, 2014 Filed Under: Community Tagged With: faith, family, featured, God, holiday, Jesus

Why All The Questions About Ferguson Are Perfectly Answered Through Jesus Christ

Why All The Questions About Ferguson Are Perfectly Answered Through Jesus Christ

If you turn on the TV or do any surfing on the Internet you will run into a story surrounding the events in Ferguson Missouri. The nation watched as many in the town of Ferguson reacted with outrage and disappointment, when the prosecutor announced that officer Darren Wilson would not be indicted in the shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown.

I am not weighing in on the justice or injustice of the events surrounding Ferguson, I am writing about a deeper issue of humanity.

Honestly, I never understood how the color of someones skin defines that person. Never understood the anger of the Black Panthers in one direction and the anger of the KKK in the other. While the modern race problem has economic, political, and social implications I believe its primarily a moral and spiritual problem.

Jesus loved without discrimination, without looking at our worthiness.

—Tim Keller

Parsing through all the news narratives and ambient conversations on social media, I wanted to highlight the words New Orleans Saints tight end Benjamin Watson shared in the national conversation on race, racism and policing in America.

In a thoughtful commentary that was liked on his Facebook page more than 800,000 times and shared more than 450,000 times as of November 30th, Watson explained that he chose to write down his thoughts on the Ferguson decision after news broke Monday night.

Here are those thoughts and more…
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December 2, 2014 Filed Under: Community Tagged With: broken, featured, God, life, relationship, self-worth

Do Dads Matter?

Do Dads Matter?

One of the foundational topics that’s shared on Heartstone Journey is fatherhood and being a dad. I was recently challenged by a friend on social media to take the “Do Dad’s Matter” challenge started by MochaDad. If there can be a viral outpouring for ALS, why not support of dads?

So, do dads Matter?

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September 2, 2014 Filed Under: Community Tagged With: dad, husband, kids, leadership, relationship

3 Things I Learned From A Golfer

3 Things I Learned From A Golfer

Was the end of a long day and I sat down down on the couch to decompress. Navigating the endless channels of ‘nothing to watch’ on cable, I stumbled on a movie called Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius

Bobby Jones was a child prodigy who became The Man.

A short-tempered, club-throwing youth, Jones turned into an even-dispositioned and unruffled champion. In the Golden Age of Sport, Jones took his place alongside such giants as Babe Ruth, Jack Dempsey, Red Grange and Bill Tilden. From 1923 to 1929, the Georgia gentleman dominated golf, birdieing his way into this country’s heart by winning nine major championships.

Then in 1930, he won the Grand Slam, which one writer picturesquely called “the impregnable quadrilateral.” He was so popular that he was accorded a ticker-tape parade in New York — before he won the final two legs of the Slam.i

So, what did I learn from a golfer? Was it golf?

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August 5, 2014 Filed Under: Community Tagged With: identity, leadership, life, story, success, value

Remember The Fallen

Remember The Fallen

For most of us, Memorial Day means the “unofficial kickoff” of summer when we go away or get together with loved ones to grill up some great food.

Not at all suggesting that there is anything wrong with this, but I challenge you to pause and think about what it means when a soldier dies fighting for your freedom. Think about the scene playing out in slow motion as the loved one of a fallen soldier hears that knock on the door.

Will you pause for a moment and remember the fallen brave as that familiar bugle sound plays in the background…”Taps”.

Here is a bit of history of Taps.

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May 25, 2014 Filed Under: Community Tagged With: broken, courage, family, holiday, leadership, life, love

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Favorite Quotes

There is no University for a Christian like that of sorrow and trial. -Spurgeon

Cool Scripture

Whoever has no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, without walls. -Proverbs 25: 28

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