"So," they say, "nobody's perfect!"
But the Vinedresser won't buy that.
Given the opportunity, He will trim the unproductive suckers and shape the branches so each one will bask in Sonlight.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Consolation

      I've begun praying again for God to use me in advancing His kingdom and purpose. Such prayers usually involve pleas to make me more useful, assuming my current condition precludes such usefulness. Yet, in view of His eternal power and the indomitability of His will, my character faults, regardless how gross they seem to me, cannot interfere with His plan .



      Thus, I keep asking Him why He won't use me more powerfully—though not necessarily publicly—to influence my world for Him. The interrogative "why," however, is a futile appeal when addressed to the self-existent One; His infinite mind and eternal motives being completely outside my temporal frame of reference.

      So I reckon I'll satisfy myself with the knowledge that He loves me more than I can ever imagine, and as the Bible says, works all things for my good.
 
      Praise God for His faithfulness!.

Friday, April 22, 2011

An Eye For Glory by Karl A Bacon--a review

            For this blog tour I'll depart from my custom of posting a review largely borrowed from Bonnie Calhoun's CFBA blog. Instead, I began my personal response immediately upon finishing Karl A. Bacon's remarkable work, hoping to capture my passion for An Eye For Glory undiminished by passage of time.

            I have a hard time imagining that An Eye For Glory is Mr. Bacon's first novel. Indeed, I had to continually remind myself throughout the book that it was a work of fiction, so authentic and transparent was Bacon's voice. As I read the last two chapters aloud to my wife Nancy, I struggled to get the words out between sobs as their eternal truth impacted me again and again. But the struggle was well worth the reward of beholding anew God's glorious grace toward me.
            The novel's story line may have originated in Mr. Bacon's mind rather than as a fact of history, but its truth transcends any recounting of factual events. Without actually interviewing Mr. Bacon about his experience in writing this work, I know he shed many a tear throughout his research of correspondence and eye witness accounts of the Civil War's awful carnage.
            As a child of the entertainment age, one would think my exposure to realistic, dramatic depictions of the Civil War would have desensitized me to one more telling, but I was entirely unprepared for An Eye For Glory. I recommend most strongly that everyone read this story of one soldier's journey from unchallenged belief in a Sunday school gospel to a deep, abiding faith tested by fire and flying lead, lost friends and disillusionment. I feel that An Eye For Glory changed my life, and it just might do the same for you.
            If you would like to read the first chapter of An Eye For Glory, go HERE.
Watch book video trailer:


Friday, April 01, 2011


Spiritual Springboard

This Our Daily Bread says nothing about springboards, diving, or anything aquatic. But it did serve as a springboard for my own thought process.

Through all the preaching I've heard--the informative, the convicting, and the comical preaching--the best and most productive is that which launches me into God's word on my own ... like a springboard, if you will. Any preacher worth listening to preaches with no intention of filling his audience's brains with all they need to live as Christ to their world. Instead, he or she preaches as God's mouthpiece, allowing His Holy Spirit to convince and convict those with ears to hear, of voids, needs, and sin in their lives.

Therein enters the Spiritual Springboard, launching seekers into God's word on a holy quest for His customized, tailor-made Truth. There we will find the true filet mignon of God's word, fork-tender and palatable to our yearning heart.

The same truth, however, delivered with the subtlety of a sledgehammer on cold steel, can harden the listeners' hearts against conviction. This should alert preachers to their need for intensive prayer right along with their in-depth study, because a good word delivered out of turn can do great damage.