Some folks asked me to share the video clip I showed this morning from Art Linkletter’s show Kids Say The Darndest Things. Enjoy!
Love Those Kids!
June 14, 2015 — Craig T. OwensThat Grand Old Flag
June 14, 2015 — Craig T. Owens
Today is Flag Day in the United States of America. I proudly fly the stars and stripes outside my home, and I get misty-eyed every time I sing the national anthem or say the pledge of allegiance. These words from Rev. Henry Ward Beecher penned many long years ago still ring true today for me—
“If one asks the meaning of our flag, I say it means just what Concord and Lexington meant, what Bunker Hill meant. It means the whole glorious Revolutionary War. It means all that the Declaration of Independence meant. It means all that the Constitution of our people, organizing for justice, for liberty, and for happiness, meant. Under this banner rode Washington and his armies…. It waved on the highlands at West Point…. This banner streamed in light over the soldiers’ heads at Valley Forge…. It crossed the waters rolling with ice at Trenton…. Our flag carries American ideas, American history, and American feelings. Beginning with the colonies, and coming down to our time, in its sacred heraldry, in its glorious insignia, it has gathered and stored chiefly this supreme idea: Divine right of liberty in man. Every color means liberty. Every thread means liberty. Every form of star and beam or stripe of light means liberty. Not lawlessness, not license, but organized, institutional liberty—liberty through law, and laws for liberty. This American flag was the safeguard of liberty. Not an atom of crown was allowed to go into its insignia. Not a symbol of authority in the ruler was permitted to go into it. It was an ordinance of liberty by the people, for the people. That it meant, that it means, and, by the blessing of God, that it shall mean to the end of time.” —Henry Ward Beecher
Links & Quotes
June 13, 2015 — Craig T. Owens
“The books or the music in which we thought the beauty was located will betray us if we trust to them; it was not in them, it only came through them, and what came through them was longing. These things—the beauty, the memory of our own past—are good images of what we really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshippers. For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited.” —C.S. Lewis
My thankful lips shall loud proclaim the wonders of Thy praise,
And spread the savor of Thy Name where’er I spend my days. —Isaac Watts
“A sure sign of spiritual growth is that you take every problem and crisis immediately to Jesus. You have learned that you have a place to go.” —David Wilkerson“If you want to walk as Jesus walked, you can’t allow your human passions to be inflamed by headlines. Christ died for every lost soul on this earth, including abortion doctors, murderers, rapists, child molesters.” —David Wilkerson
Proud of our State Governor Rick Snyder for signing the bill that protects our freedom of religion.
Another man I have always admired is Ronald Reagan. Yesterday was the anniversary of his powerful speech at the Berlin Wall. The Daily Signal has some pictures from that memorable day, and here is the video of President Reagan’s words—
Poetry Saturday—Not By Wrestling
June 13, 2015 — Craig T. Owens
Not by wrestling, but by clingingShall we be most blest;
Wrestling only brings us sorrow;
Clinging brings us rest.
When we stay our feeble efforts,
And from struggling cease,
Unconditional surrender
Brings us God’s own peace.
And from struggling cease,
Unconditional surrender
Brings us God’s own peace.
Lean we all our weight on Jesus,
Who alone can save;
He by might of love hath triumphed
O’er His willing slave.
Who alone can save;
He by might of love hath triumphed
O’er His willing slave.
Yielding, we shall know true conquest;
Dying, we shall live;
“Not my will, but Thine” prevaileth,
Victory to give. —J.H. Stuart
Dying, we shall live;
“Not my will, but Thine” prevaileth,
Victory to give. —J.H. Stuart
Links & Quotes
June 11, 2015 — Craig T. Owens
“One profound biblical insight we need to know is that our heart exploits our mind to justify what the heart wants. That is, our deepest desires precede the rational functioning of our minds and incline the mind to perceive and think in a way that will make the desires look right.” —John Piper
“‘No hope’ is a cry which no human tongue should utter, which no human heart should heed. May God grant us grace whenever we get an opportunity to go and tell all we meet with that are bowed down, ‘There is lifting up.’ And tell them where it is likewise. Tell them it is only at the Cross. Tell them it is through the precious blood. Tell them it is to be had for nothing, through simply trusting Christ. Tell them it is of free grace, that no merits of theirs are wanted, that no good things are they to bring, but that they may come just as they are, and find lifting up in Christ.” —Charles Spurgeon
“We must not be naïve about the power of reason. Reason can only do so much. No one can be reasoned into believing the Gospel. That requires a work of the Spirit of God, a work of faith. Reason can clear the way for faith, but it cannot engender it. Only God can do that. … So, even as we reason with our unbelieving friends, we must remember that only if God the Spirit works with our words—and if our words are faithful to the Word of God—will are friends come to faith in Jesus Christ. Reason is a tool, but the Holy Spirit is the power for faith and eternal life.” —T.M. Moore
“The best reason to brand someone with a pejorative label is to push them away, to forestall useful conversation, to turn them into the other. Much more useful: Identify the behavior that’s counter-productive. When we talk about the behavior, we have a chance to make change happen. What would happen if the behavior stopped? When we call someone misogynist or racist or sexist or a capitalist, a socialist or an abstract expressionist, what are we hoping for? Every one of us is on the ‘ist’ spectrum, so the label becomes meaningless. Meaningless labels are noise, noise that lasts. If that person stopped acting like a _____ist, what would change? Because if there’s nothing we want to change, the labeling is useless. And if there’s a change that needs to be made, let’s talk about what it is.” —Seth Godin
Does anyone else find this statement ironic? “Christ, what does this mean?” says Greger Larson, an evolutionary geneticist at the University of Oxford, UK. Let me contrast two words: Christ (as in Jesus, the Son of God) and evolutionary (as in, don’t believe in God). Even the supposed God-deniers cannot help but evoke His name!
For anyone who works with students, Tim Elmore shares three balancing acts we all need to keep in mind.
Nancy Pearcey has an eye-opening post about the transgender fascination in our culture. In part, she writes: “The worldview implicit in the transgender movement is that our physical bodies have no particular value—that our biology is irrelevant to who we are as persons…. It is a worldview that drives a wedge between one’s body and one’s sense of self, which exerts a self-alienating, fragmenting effect on the human personality….” Please read Transgender Politics Vs. The Facts Of Life.
Thursdays With Oswald—Standing In A Crisis
June 11, 2015 — Craig T. Owens
This is a periodic series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.
Standing In A Crisis
If, when no one is watching us, we are building ourselves up in the Word of God, then, when a crisis comes, we shall stand; but if we are not building on the Word of God, when a crisis comes we shall go down, no matter what our wills are like. …
We may be able to give a testimony as to what God has done for us, but does the life we live evidence that we are not listening now, but living only in the memory of what we once heard? We have to keep our ears trained to detect God’s voice, to be continually renewed in the spirit of our mind. If when a crisis comes we instinctively turn to God, we know that the habit of harkening has been formed. … We have to learn to hearken to Jesus in everything, to get into the habit of finding out what He says. … The Holy Spirit will bring back to our remembrance a certain word of our Lord’s and apply it to the particular circumstance we are in, the point is—are we going to obey it?
From Our Brilliant Heritage
Standing in a crisis involves two things: (1) Reading the Word of God regularly, and (2) Obeying the Word of God every time the Holy Spirit illuminates it to our heart and mind. It’s not a matter of if a crisis will come in your life, but when. Will you be ready?
Links & Quotes
June 10, 2015 — Craig T. Owens
“In this version of the Lord’s Prayer (Luke 11:2-4) Jesus says, ‘When you pray say’ … and then in verse 4 He includes this petition, ‘and forgive us our sins.’ So, if you connect the beginning of the prayer with the middle, what He says is, ‘Whenever you pray say … forgive us our sins.’ I take this to mean that this should be as much a part of all our praying as ‘Hallowed be Thy name.’ Which means that Jesus assumes that we need to seek forgiveness virtually every time we pray. In other words, we are always sinners. … It doesn’t matter how obedient we have been before we pray. We always come to the Lord as sinners—all of us. And God does not turn away the prayers of sinners when they pray like this.” —John Piper
“What if I say that it is not unjust but according to law that when a woman gets into debt her husband should bear it? And with the church of God sinning, it was but right that her Husband, who had espoused her unto Himself, should become the debtor on her behalf. The Lord Jesus stood in the relationship of a married Husband unto His church, and it was not, therefore, a strange thing that He should bear her burdens.” —Charles Spurgeon
“We can have confidence in our ability, through reason, to help our unbelieving friends consider the Good News of Jesus Christ and His Kingdom. We know this because God Himself is reasonable, and we believe He commends the use of reason in making Himself and His will known to men.” —T.M. Moore
“Listen to your conscience. Don’t be afraid not to join the mob—if you feel inside it’s wrong. Don’t confuse being ‘soft’ with seeing the other guy’s point of view. … Avoid self-righteously turning on a friend, but have your friendship mean enough that you would be willing to share with your friend your judgment. Don’t assign away your judgment to achieve power.” —George H.W. Bush, in a letter to his sons during the Watergate scandal
Some interesting lessons in Fast Company’s list of the 50 most well-liked CEOs in the United States.
“satan has tripped up many Christians by convincing them they’ve lost something in the Lord.” But David Wilkerson urges us to forget those things!
If you are praying for one of your loved ones to accept Jesus as their Savior, Tim Dilena has an encouraging word for you in The Amazing Now Becomes More Amazing.
[VIDEO] Conrad Mbewe shows how the so-called prosperity gospel isn’t honest with the entirety of Scripture—
Lifewalk 2015
June 10, 2015 — Craig T. Owens
Alpha Family Center provides some amazing services for families in Cedar Springs. Every year on the Saturday before Father’s Day they hold their annual Lifewalk fundraiser.
I would be most appreciative if you would consider giving a financial gift to support Alpha. You can donate via PayPal by clicking here and scrolling down to the PayPal link. I promise you that all of the money you give will go toward promoting pro-life and pro-family work in Cedar Springs.
Thank you!
15 More Quotes From “Success 101”
June 10, 2015 — Craig T. Owens
One of the things I enjoy about John Maxwell’s books is the number of other resources he employs to make his point: motivational sources, historical sources, quotes, stories, personal examples, and more. Here are some of the quotes Dr. Maxwell shared in his Success 101 book.
“Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life. Everyone must carry out a concrete assignment that demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated. Thus everyone’s task is as unique as his specific opportunity to implement it.” —Viktor Frankl
“There is no man living who isn’t capable of doing more than he thinks he can do.” —Henry Ford
“A blind man’s world is bounded by the limits of his touch; an ignorant man’s world by the limits of his knowledge; a great man’s world by the limits of his vision.” —E. Paul Hovey
“Failure is really a matter of conceit. People don’t work hard because, in their conceit, they imagine they’ll succeed without ever making an effort. Most people believe that they’ll wake up someday and find themselves rich. Actually, they’ve got it half right, because eventually they do wake up.” —Thomas Edison
“Sir, I salute you not only as a great leader of men, but as an indomitable Christian gentleman who wouldn’t give up.” —General Charles Cornwallis, when he surrendered to George Washington
“I start where the last man left off.” —Thomas Edison
“Success is a little like wrestling a gorilla. You don’t quit when you’re tired—you quit when the gorilla is tired.” —Robert Strauss
“Every successful person finds that great success lies just beyond the point when they’re convinced their idea is not going to work.” —Napoleon Hill
“The greatest mistake one can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.” —Elbert Hubbard
“He who makes no mistakes, makes no progress.” —Theodore Roosevelt
“Nobody whoever gave their best ever regretted it.” —George Halas
“If you do what you can, with what you have, where you are, then God won’t leave you where you are, and He will increase what you have.” —Bill Purvis
“Each time you decide to grow again, you realize you are starting at the bottom of another ladder.” —Ken Rosenthals
“Start doing what is necessary; then do what is possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.” —Francis of Assisi
“The only conquests which are permanent and leave no regrets are our conquests over ourselves.” —Napoleon Bonaparte
I also shared some quotes from John Maxwell himself in Success 101. You can read those by clicking here.
Links & Quotes
June 9, 2015 — Craig T. Owens
“Such is the Christ with Whom we have to do, full of grace and truth. Let us draw near; let us keep near; let us allow Him to pour out His love on us; let us bring others to Him to be partakers of the same overflowing love.” —Horatius Bonar
“O soul, if you trust Christ, the blood is on your brow today; before the eye of God there is no condemnation. Why, then, do you need to fear? You are safe, for the blood secures every soul that once is sheltered thereby. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved, but if you believe not, trust where you may, you shall be damned.” —Charles Spurgeon
“I can’t believe that there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secrets of making dreams come true. This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four Cs. They are curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of all is confidence.” —Walt Disney
“You have a body. But it is not yours. ‘You have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body’ [1 Corinthians 6:20]. You are always in a temple. Always worship [1 Corinthians 10:31].” —John Piper
Speaking of our bodies, more young men are having heart attacks. Check this out to protect your health.
Have you ever thought about God being reasonable? T.M. Moore has an insightful post on this—God Who Reasons.
Brett Kunkle shares a great apologetic piece on an early and reliable account of Christ’s resurrection.
Taking a Sabbath rest is a reward, not a restriction.
[VIDEO] God wrote a book—
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