PTL Wednesdays

Why is having sex while we’re single wrong? Our bodies were designed for sex and if two consenting adults want to enjoy its pleasures, then why not? The problem with this way of thinking is that God forbids sex outside of marriage. Sadly, most people don't see that as a hindrance, especially our young adults. Their mindset is to live the way they want now and they’ll worry about all the Bible stuff when they get older. But before anyone decides to run wild and free, they need to consider the following: God's laws have real world benefits and the choice not to follow has real world consequences.   Sex is designed to bond a couple (male and female) together. Imagine if you were a virgin on your wedding day. The closeness of experiencing sex for the first time with the love of your life would be amazing! Y’all would learn and grow sexually together and    you’d share one of the strongest bonds a person can have with one another. The sexual passions of our youth causes us to ...

Wake up; go to work; go back home; go to bed. Wake up; go to work; go back home; go to bed. Wake up; go to work; go back home; go to bed. It sounds so mundane doesn’t it?     Life is surely more than just our jobs so why do we put so much stock in what we do for a living? If we have a good job that pays well, we think we’ve found our purpose our calling. If we don’t like our jobs, then we look at things quite differently. We start to question when, if ever, we will find our purpose. This way of   viewing ourselves is– to put it mildly– flat out wrong.   Your career, no matter how important or insignificant you think it is, doesn’t matter. Whether you’re an engineer or a waiter none of it matters. How can I say such a thing when we’ve been taught from day one to get a good education so we can get a good job? Because all of us have bought into the world’s way of conflating our profession with our purpose. We’ve missed the true reason why we’re here so let me give you a...

The sky illuminates with blinding light and a deep rumble is heard from every corner of the earth. The penetrating sound of the mighty trumpet echos across the globe signaling the end of this age.     With a roar so thunderous the mountains start to shake, the heavenly hoast proclaim “All hail King Jesus! All hail Emmanuel!” Thousands upon thousands of angels descend from the sky then suddenly… He appears. The great I Am has returned to fulfill His promise. In an instant all of His children rise from their graves and the oceans give up the souls of the saints for death no longer has claim. Around the world miraculous scenes unfold. Somewhere in a small town hospital a woman is lying in bed clinging to life. Her loved ones have gathered around and watched her take her final breath. Just as the family begins to mourn she awakens! With her new immortal body she rises to meet the Messiah.  Elsewhere a couple is being evicted from their home. Struggling to hold back tears the ...

“Another one,” I said to myself while staring at my newest gray hair. “Now I’m matching on all levels,” I sighed as I realized my eyebrows were starting to join the party. The only thing keeping me from looking like a box of Uncle Ben’s Rice was the hair dye sitting on the counter. That was 25 years ago and Father Time loves to remind me his steady march continues. Nowadays it takes a good 5 minute stretch just to work my kinks out and thoughts of beating my grandsons in sports are quickly fading. If you’re like me, you wish you could keep the looks and vitality of youth but I’ve come to realize the aging of our bodies is a daily alarm for us to get right.   We all know people who live the same sinful lifestyle they did when you first met them. Hugh Hefner was 91 years old when he died. Supposedly, he lived exactly how he did when he was in his twenties until the very end. To see someone reject the gift of enteral life because they’re too caught up in this one is disheartening. How...

Every muscle in your body is wound up like a spring ready to explode. Your foot begins to feel the pressure of the starting block as you deepen your cheetah-like stance. With your head facing downward, the granular details of the track come into focus but your attention quickly shifts in anticipation of the starting gun. That loud popping sound you’ve grown so accustomed to as a track star is all that matters now. Upon hearing its arrival you burst out the blocks sprinting towards your destiny.  I can only imagine the thrill of representing our country in the Olympics, especially in track. It’s my favorite Olympic sport and like all the other events, years of preparation come down to one moment. In track those years go back farther than we think. You literally have to crawl before you walk and walk before you run. Ironically, the same thing holds true for being a Christian. We begin as babes in Christ but God expects us to mature and become champions for Him. Sadly, so ma...

I’m so full of joy today that I can’t hold back my praise! God is good! God is awesome! He’s not good because He’s good to me. God is good because He’s the very embodiment of goodness and love. I got out of the bed today and if you know my story, it’s something I can’t take for granted. I woke up this morning and the fog had finally lifted. I could think clearly. The debilitating pain of a migraine that usually awakens with me was not there. For the past 13 years the pain has accompanied me. I have moments of reprieve but even on my good days a stabbing pain would shoot across my face just to remind me it’s still there. But today felt different.   Flashback 45 days and I was at a breaking point. Withdrawal symptom from my old medication left me unable to focus. Sharp pains that felt like I was being tasered would strike me to the point that I longed to go back to sleep. Sunrise became nothing more than a race to sunset for sleep was my only refuge. But even at my breaking point God...

One of my closest friends loves to use the  phrase “call a cat a cat.” He’s a straightforward kind of guy and that phrase is as straightforward as it gets. It means to speak frankly and truthfully about something without sugar coating it even if it’s unpopular or unpleasant for people to hear. Unfortunately, in today’s society if Christians try to speak out about the sinful lifestyles so many people live, they’re called intolerant or judgmental. There’s been such an erosion of morals that this Bible warning couldn’t be more timely: “Doom to you who call evil good and good evil, Who put darkness in place of light and light in place of darkness…” (‭‭Isaiah‬ 5‬:‭20‬ ‭MSG‬‬). You don’t have to look very hard to find people who take what God says is evil and make it appear good. It’s guy pride month and there are pride parades and celebrations all over the country. Gay pride celebrations?! Let that sink in. People are actually taking pride in openly rebelling against God. They want to f...