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DEFUNIAK SPRINGS – He was quiet. She wasn’t. He liked to hunt, while she loved her potted plants. She was 16 when they met in a skating rink. They eloped in a dump truck later that year. After 59 years of marriage, James and Lolie Brackin died Saturday morning only moments apart. “They say when you die, you’re immediately in the presence of Jesus,” said their youngest daughter, Dana Troublefield. “I think she got up there and said, ‘Where’s my husband?’ And Jesus said, ‘Just a minute. I’m working on that.’ “She didn’t like to go anywhere alone,” Troublefield added....

Even as a young child I sensed greatness in my Uncle Eldon. I remember wondering if he used the bathroom like the rest of us; surely he was too great for something so earthy. When I questioned my mother about it, she assured me all humans had to do those things, and Uncle Eldon was human. As I grew older and viewed him more realistically, I still saw him as a well-respected man who excelled in his profession, but I knew he wasn’t superhuman. In fact he was very human, which his final years clearly revealed. Childless and completely alone...

Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries "Sharing Jesus" June 12, 2009 And He said to them, "Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out." Mark 1:38 Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ: The salvation story of Jesus Christ reaches around the world. So that the readers of our Daily Devotion may see the power of the Savior on a global scale, we have asked the volunteers of our International Ministry Centers to write our Friday devotions. We pray that the Spirit may touch your day through their...

I'm a dyed in the wool baseball fan and watch a game on TV almost every day. I've noticed that many players, while on the field, cross themselves or point to heaven before and/or after their appearances. It appears to me that this is predominantly a habit with African-Americans and those from Spanish-speaking countries. While white players frequently display crosses around their necks, they seem less apt to signify their faith to other players or to the crowd. Has anyone an opinion on my observation.

From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him, "You do not want to leave too, do you?" Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God." (John 6:66-69)Jesus had preached a sermon so demanding and so hard that people were evacuating His audience in droves. Jesus knew even His own disciples were contemplating abandoning ship. Jesus pierced their hearts with an arrow when He queried, "Do you want to leave...

Then the master called the servant in. "You wicked servant, " he said, "1 canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you? " In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. (Matthew 18:32-34)Jesus said there was once a very rich king, and there was a man who owed the rich king the sum of one million dollars. As the law carefully stipulated, it was time for the king to...

Is not God in the heights of heaven? And see how lofty are the highest stars! (Job 22:12) Our great God has shrunk in the minds of modem Christians. He has become a dwarf rather than a giant. We get to thinking that He is too blind to see our stark misery, too deaf to hear our painful entreaties; His arms are too short and too weak to save us. I want to ask you: How big, how tall is your God? Have you squeezed Him into some tiny corner of your soul, or does He rule and reign on...

Do your best to come to me quickly, for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica, Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. (II Timothy 4:9-10) We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all (Isaiah 53:6)Take an ordinary coffee cup and simply turn it over. When you do, you accomplish three definite, different tasks: One, you make it empty of its contents. Two, you make it awfully dark inside. Three, you...

For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? (Mark 8:35-36)I've heard the story told that when Charlemagne (Charles the Great) died in 814 AD, the world seemed to stand still. Europe as you see it today remains the scattered fragments of his once invincible empire. When this proud monarch died, they carried him into his regal sepulcher and placed him on a priceless throne of ivory, gold and...

The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. (II Corinthians 4:4)Today's modern person is suffering from an identity crisis. Housewives are weighing whether to work out of the home and be a breadwinner or stay home and be a mom, or both. Businessmen are torn between the busy demands of the office or company and the needs of their families. Teenagers don't know whether to follow the world or the church, or both. People at work...

So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? (Matthew 24:44-45)Once upon a time, a man shipwrecked on a desolate island. As he staggered ashore, he was met by a group of natives. Expecting to be killed, he was shocked when the natives expressed to him that he was a very lucky man. They had a rule...

If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.(Matthew 18:8-9)I remember a preacher telling this story. He said a famous evangelist was preaching at a large western university....

Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these? " "Yes, Lord," he said, "you knoyv that I love you," Jesus said, "Feed my lambs. "Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me? " He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you. " Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep. " (John 21:15-16) The silver morning mist arises from Galilee, as we see Jesus speaking to His disciples after His resurrection. Jesus looks at Peter and three times asks, "Do you love Me more than these?"...

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. Jesus wept.(John 11:33, 35) When our Master saw Mary and Martha weeping over their dead brother Lazarus, He began to bathe His face in briny tears. His heart was broken because their hearts were broken. Some have suggested that the only reason Jesus cried was that He knew if He called Lazarus back to life, He would be calling a man to leave a perfect Heaven for a valley of tears called earth. Maybe. I think...

Be careful not to do your "acts of righteousness" before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.(Matthew 6:1)"I'd go to church and serve the Lord but there are too many hypocrites in the church!" You've never, ever heard that one before? Sure, there are hypocrites in the church and maybe that's exactly where they ought to be. We've said it many times: "The church is not a hotel for saints; it is a hospital for sinners." I know of a church that has a huge sign at its...

For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.(I Corinthians 3:11)And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.(Matthew 16:18)Who is the foundation of the Christian Church? Certainly not man. Not rules or traditions. Not even the Holy Spirit or God the Father. Certainly not Mohammed, Buddha, Joseph Smith or any other earthling. We have sung before: "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness; I dare not trust the sweetest...

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. (I Timothy 6:17)Jesus had more to say about money than He said about Heaven and hell put together. Money is the second most talked about subject in the Bible. Nearly one half of his 37 parables are about stewardship and money. One out of every six verses in the Gospels is about money so, if God wants us to talk...

Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare. (Isaiah 55:1-2)Guy de Maupassant's story, "The Necklace," tells the tragic story of a girl named Mathilde. Invited to an exclusive and elegant dance, she borrowed a most costly necklace from a rich friend. The necklace...

Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me." Jesus replied, "Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you? " (Luke 12:13-14)In this scene, our Lord is masterfully teaching, as no one else can, when all of a sudden a raspy voice interrupts, "Lord, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me." Our Lord refused to get involved when He said, "Who made me a referee between you and your brother?" Jesus was saying that to get involved over something so useless would be a waste of everyone's...

But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:22-23)We sometimes start believing that because everything else in our culture has changed, maybe God has changed. Maybe the Bible has changed. Truth is: nothing important has changed. The wages of sin is exactly the same today as it was in the Garden of Eden. That is death. Sin still...

"This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many, " he said to them. "I tell you the truth, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God." (Mark 14:24-25)Jimmy Davis, the former Governor of Louisiana, used to sing an old country western hit, "Come home. Come home. It's supper time." The gist of the song is recalling the days of his youth, when evening would come and the shadows were lengthening fast and his mother would step out on the...

We love because he first loved us. (IJohn 4:19)This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. (IJohn 4:10)One version of an often-told story goes like this: A man named Ed had restored his MG sports car to perfection. He had carefully and, at great expense, restored it to showroom condition. He washed and polished it often and fussed over it like a restless mother hen fusses over her chicks. One day Beth, his wife, had to run an errand and her car wouldn't start...

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. (Hebrews 4:15)Jesus, in His final hours of passion leading up to His death, suffered every known kind of pain: physical, mental and spiritual. No other could suffer nor has suffered as He did. In the realm of bodily pain there are five types of suffering: 1. Concussion - caused by being violently hit or beaten by a bloodthirsty mob.2. Laceration - when the flesh is cut...

And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.(II Timothy 2:2)Jesus is the Great Mathematician! He invented multiplication. Here is His simple plan for planet earth: "Somebody told you, now you are to tell somebody else, and that somebody else is supposed to tell others." Jesus wants you and me and everybody to be a personal evangelist. There are three reasons I want to get in on His multiplication plan.1. My life belongs to God. We call it "my life," but it isn't...

Nearer, My God, to Thee - Words: Verses 1-5, Sar­ah F. Adams, in Hymns and Anthems, by William Johnson Fox, 1841; verse 6, Ed­ward H. Bick­er­steth, Jr. Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!E’en though it be a cross that raiseth me, Still all my song shall be, nearer, my God, to Thee. Refrain Nearer, my God, to Thee, Nearer to Thee! Though like the wanderer, the sun gone down, Darkness be over me, my rest a stone. Yet in my dreams I’d be nearer, my God to Thee. Refrain There let the way appear, steps unto Heav’n; All...

Or do you think Scripture says without reason that the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. "(James 4:5-6)It is a scary moment when I'm driving a car and lose control. I step on the brakes but the car doesn't stop. I have my hands on the wheel but the car does not respond. I have lost control. My automobile is now at the mercy of other forces. I am its prisoner and victim. No matter what...

For, "All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever. "And this is the word that was preached to you. (I Peter 1:24-25)The first steel skyscraper was built in New York back in the 1880's by architect Bradford Gilbert. It was to be a steel frame building, 13 stories high and only 21 feet wide. People said it couldn't be done; that it would never withstand high winds. In 1886, when the building was ten stories high, New...

Then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved. (Acts 4:10, 12)Years ago, a fire burned joy out of hearts and homes in Camden, South Carolina. A wooden schoolhouse caught fire and 70 young souls perished in only minutes of time. Horror-stricken parents raced to the rescue. In...

He ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. The son said to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. " But the father said to his servants, "Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. " So they began...

But the king replied to Araunah, "No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing," So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels of silver for them. (II Samuel 24:24 )David's heart was bursting with gratitude now that the plague of suffering was over. He was trying to buy a piece of land from a farmer, so he could erect an altar and sacrifice a burnt offering to his God. The farmer said: "David, don't pay me anything for the land....

To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it. (Revelation 2:17)The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. (Exodus 16:31)The Bible closes with God's promise to give the hidden manna to the redeemed. You remember what manna from Heaven is, don't you? Way back yonder in the Old Testament, when God's people were being freed from slavery and were wandering the wilderness,...

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure. (IJohn 3:1-3)One morning as Robert Browning, the...

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives. (I John 1:8-10)God commands us to confess our sins. Church is not a good place for this, because you will need more time and quiet than is usually allowed. Find a good, solitary place, kneel down and...

So do not worry, saying, "What shall we eat? " or "What shall we drink? " or "What shall we wear? " For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:31-33)I used to scan that passage and think it was just another nifty, neat verse in the Bible. But years of study have taught me that my utmost concern and my primary priority in this earthly life should be the Church...

If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.(John 15:10-11)Salvation is delightful. When Christ calls us to follow Him, He is not inviting us to a funeral parlor or concentration camp. He isn't asking us to eat a strict diet of cactus. Old Satan has marvelously tricked many into thinking that the Christian walk is dull and drab and utterly void of fun. I...

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.(Romans 8:1)That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11) Some day, every human that has ever breathed life on this planet will bow on his knees before Jesus Christ and confess His holy name. No one can escape this. If you don't confess Him here and now, you will some day be forced to do so. All the people...

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. (Matthew 7:13-14) When the Titanic sank, it emphasized what God had been trying to tell us: "There is a huge difference between fact and theory." Theory said the ship was unsinkable. In fact, that's about all that ship ever did: sink. Theory said that the ship could cut through an iceberg of 66,000 tons. Fact is, they...

Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them. (Genesis 26:18) It is the task of every person, every church and every Christian to rebuild those good things by which our forefathers were once blessed. Isaac's daddy, Abraham had come into the enemy stronghold and dug wells so that his people might have water to drink. Years afterward, the Philistines came along and filled them all back up. Enemies are standing by for...

Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty-welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability, entirely on their own. (II Cor. 8:2-3)Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. (II Cor. 9:7) A few years back, two Christian businessmen were in Korea and saw the strangest, most perplexing sight. They saw a man in a field with huge ropes around his shoulders pulling a plow....

Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. (Ephesians 5:15-16) I have a confession. Recently, I have spent a lot of time on my computer involved in something I should not be involved. I just get sucked in. Every time I go near my computer, I hear it calling my name. No, I am not talking about Internet pornography, but I am talking about something that can be just as potentially devastating: solitaire. You may laugh and say, "Come on, are you serious? I thought...

Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38)We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. (Romans 8:26) Salvation or regeneration contains two aspects. First is the forgiveness of our sins. And the second aspect is receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit. It is imperative that we remember His Spirit inhabits this temple we call the physical body. Would to God...

He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. (Isaiah 53:3) This is one of the most chilling, haunting statements in the Bible. It makes the blood run cold to give it serious thought. Notice this prophecy does not say He will be denied or unaccepted. It predicts He will be despised and rejected. Who are the despisers of His great grace? Those who refuse to receive Him, and those who hesitate to step forward and march under...

I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. (Romans 7:18-19) Paul is saying: "Whenever the 'I want' crosses the 'I know,' sin is the result." Some very educated philosophers have asserted, "Knowledge is virtue." Nothing could be further from the truth. America has reached its zenith in available knowledge but sin and crime...

But he said to them, "I have food to eat that you know nothing about. "My food" said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. " (John 4:32, 34) Not only was Jesus tired and thirsty after walking along rugged terrain all morning, but the pain of hunger had motivated His disciples to walk to a nearby town for food. Although Jesus could have journeyed with the men to His next meal, He chose to stay behind and witness to a foreign woman. Jesus spent time telling her about Himself, letting...

All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away. (Isaiah 64:6) For those who remember the Seventies, a fashion trend began that is still in vogue today. In malls across America, people purchased jeans that had the small, white label "Calvin Klein" stitched into the waistband. Everything else about the jeans looked the same as any other pair, but people paid extra money just to have a designer label on display. Through the years,...

"Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'? You will not surely die, " the serpent said to the woman. "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. " (Genesis 3:lb, 4, 5) We discover in the book of beginnings the spoken words of our Creator, our biological parents and even the enemy of our souls. Although there was a pristine quality to the creation story, everything changed when the serpent appeared on the scene. The words the...

But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars— their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death. (Revelation 21:8) The word fearless ought to describe every Christian. There are 365 "fear nots" in the Bible. One for every day of the year. Paul told Timothy that God has not given us the spirit of fear (II Timothy 1:7). There's a long list of folks in our text who aren't going to escape the lake of fire. Some of those...

And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. (Hebrews 11:32-34) There is someone just like you in the Bible. The Bible is God's masterpiece. It is composed of 66 books by 40 different authors. These inspired writers represented...

Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. (Habakkuk 3:17-18) Matthew Henry, a wonderful scholar of another century, was robbed of his wallet. A mature Christian in the fullest meaning of the word, he commented on the unfortunate scene, not out of a sense of whining or complaining, but true thanksgiving. Henry said,...

How can I repay the LORD for all his goodness to me? I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the LORD. (Psalm 116:12, 17) Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. (James 1:17) I heard my father once quote this poem: "One starry midnight, silvery and still, I dreamed that I received this bill: Ten thousand breathless dawns all new, and ten thousand roses fresh with dew; Ten thousand sunsets painted gold and a million snowflakes...