Links & Quotes

May 22, 2015 — Craig T. Owens

link quote

“The job isn’t to catch up to the status quo; the job is to invent the status quo.” —Seth Godin

Check this out: just 2 verses of Scripture, but 22 verified historical confirmations!

J. Warner Wallace explains why we should trust a courtroom over a laboratory when evaluating the truthfulness of historical events.

Seth Godin tells us how to win an argument with a scientist.

I know you read this from me (a lot!), but I love what the folks at The Overview Bible Project do. Check out this overview of the Gospel of John.

[VIDEO] John Maxwell on the power of implementation—

[VIDEO] Dr. Bobby Conway answers a tough question: what is habitual sin?

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Poetry Saturday—While Others Are

May 2, 2015 — Craig T. Owens
William Arthur WardBelieve while others are doubting.
Plan while others are playing.
Study while others are sleeping.
Decide while others are delaying.
Prepare while others are daydreaming.
Begin while others are procrastinating.
Work while others are wishing.
Save while others are wasting.
Listen while others are talking.
Smile while others are frowning.
Commend while others are criticizing.
Persist while others are quitting. —William Arthur Ward






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I Have To Do It Now

November 29, 2011 — Craig T. Owens 




As I was wrapping up our Thanksgiving series, I was struck by the verb tense that Paul used in all of the verses I was studying.


When the Apostle Paul writes that we are to be overflowing with thankfulness, and let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts, and stay on our guard against slipping away from this, the verb tense is present tense. Simply put, he says, “Do it now.”


Not: Wait for better conditions … get things in order next Sunday at church … schedule a spiritual retreat.


The verbs are also in the active voice, which means I have to do it.


Not: Wait for a friend encourage me … hope my pastor can pump me up spiritually next Sunday … tune in to some sort of motivational speaker.


There is no better time than NOW, and there’s no better person than ME to do it.


“It is by little procrastinations that men ruin their souls. They have no intention to delay for years—a few months will bring the more convenient season—tomorrow if you will, they will attend to serious things; but the present hour is so occupied and altogether so unsuitable, that they beg to be excused. Like sands from an hour-glass, time passes, life is wasted by driblets, and seasons of grace lost by little slumbers.” —Charles Spurgeon


So what are you waiting for?!






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City On Our Knees (book review)

March 23, 2011 — Craig T. Owens 






If you are familiar with the popular musician/songwriter TobyMac, you may recognize the title of this book from the song with the same name: City On Our Knees. And if you like the message of the song, you will find the book an excellent way to see the message in action.


The overriding message in the song is one of choice:


If you gotta start somewhere why not here

If you gotta start sometime why not now

If we gotta start somewhere I say here

If we gotta start sometime I say now


You and I can choose to start something that will make a difference. This book is a collection of short stories that show people who did just that: they made a choice that made a difference.


They are stories set in the present, and stores from a couple of hundred years ago; they are stories of the educated and the illiterate; the young and the old; the trained and the untrained; men and women. Everyone can find a story that will energize them and help them to choose to act… to choose to make a positive difference.


I can imagine these short stories being especially impactful around a family dinner table, in a Sunday School class, or maybe in a youth group. Wherever you read these stories, let them be the catalyst to help you start now!


I am a Bethany House book reviewer.






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Get Up And Do

January 11, 2011 — Craig T. Owens 




I was reading an article posted on WebMD about how much damage we can do to our hearts by spending more time in front of the TV or computer than we do exercising. You’re probably thinking, “Well, duh!, isn’t that obvious?!” It should be, and yet we still have a tendency to just sit there. (By the way, you can read the article here.)


One quote from this article especially stood out to me:


“It’s not even about the exercise. It’s about not sitting,” says Suzanne Steinbaum, DO, a preventive cardiologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. “I think that sort of points us in a little different direction. In order for you not to cause harm to yourself, you really need to focus on getting up and moving.”


This reminds me of Joseph (Mary’s husband) in the Bible. God seemed to speak to him quite often in dreams. Instead of just sitting there contemplating the vision, there’s a phrase that shows up after every vision…


“Joseph got up and did.”


Has God given you a vision for your life? If so, just sitting there may do damage to your heart. So follow Joseph’s example and Get up and do!






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I’m Just Not Feelin’ It

July 20, 2010 — Craig T. Owens 




Ever been here?


My job is boring…


My finances are barely making ends meet…


My relationships seem stagnant…


I’m bored…


Church just doesn’t thrill me anymore…


My devotions are lackluster…


My prayer life is sporadic…


I just don’t feel like praising God…


What do you do? You certainly can’t listen to your feelings because they will betray you as many times as they help you. My experience has been that you cannot wait until you feel like doing something to start doing something. But if you just do the right thing, then the good feelings will usually follow.


King David was in a similar position—no job, no prospects, no income, strained relationships, no chance to even go to church. Psalm 34 has this introduction, “When he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him out, and he went away.” In other words, David was not having a good day. He certainly wasn’t feelin’ it! How did he get out of this funk?


STEP 1: Use your will to praise God.


I will praise the Lord at all times. I will constantly speak His praises. I will boast only in the Lord.


David said, “I’m not really feelin’ it, but I’m gonna praise God anyhow!”


STEP 2: Be prepared for your emotions to engage.


My soul will boast in the LORD.


The soul is the seat of the emotions. It started off as an act of David’s will, but then it got down into his soul and he started feelin’ it.


STEP 3: Become an encouragement to others.


Let all who are helpless take heart. Come, let us tell of the Lord’s greatness; let us exalt His name together.


When David used his will to praise God, other helpless, hurting people began to join in. Soon it was a choir of praise!


You may not be feelin’ it, but if you’ll just use your will to praise God, you will begin to feel better, and you’ll help others to feel it as well.






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Imagine Attending 86 Funerals A Day

May 24, 2010 — Craig T. Owens 




Right after the Israelites came out of Egypt, God told Moses to count everyone (not coincidentally, this is recorded in the book of Numbers… get it?).


I’m sure you know the story well of the ten scouts who by their negative report turned everyone against Moses. They all believed that they couldn’t go into the Promised Land because of the big giants. So God said everyone in that generation (except Joshua and Caleb) would die before they entered the Promised Land.


Fast forward 38 years and God has Moses count the people again (can you guess where this is recorded in the Bible?). If you compare the two lists, you will see that 1.2 million Israelites had died.


Let that sink in: 1.2 million dead in 38 years.


That’s 31,579 funerals per year.


Or 86 funerals per day. 


Talk about mixed emotions! With every funeral the younger Israelites attended, they were sad for their loss but they also knew they were one step closer to getting out of the desert and into the Promised Land.


Every day they heard about deaths—86 of them every day.


What did these deaths remind them of? Maybe these two thoughts:


    

  • Sin causes death.
    • 

  • I’m just as capable of sinning as they were.
    • 



Every death should have been a reminder to them to stay as close to God as possible. 


Every day I hear about divorce. This should be my reminder to cherish my wife every day.


Every day I hear about a pastor’s moral failing. This should be my reminder to pursue holiness passionately every day.


Every day I hear about pornography addictions. This should be my reminder to take every precaution I can every day.


When the Israelites heard about 86 deaths every day, they had to do something positive with that. 


When I hear about divorce and sin and addiction, I cannot just shake my head and say, ‘Tisk, tisk,” but I must do something positive with it.


I must use every “death” as a reminder to move closer to God.






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Spurred On

December 24, 2009 — Craig T. Owens 




There are times when it’s not so nice to have someone behind me who is pushing me forward. Like when I’m standing in the check-out line at the grocery store. After all, I can only go as fast as the person in front of me, right? So I start to have this imaginary conversation with the shopper behind me, “Look, you can nudge and prod and bump me all you want, but I can’t go any faster.”


But it’s a whole different story when the way in front of me is wide open. Now my imaginary conversation changes, “Okay, here we go! You’re nudging and prodding is really going to make me fly now!”


I think this is might have been what the Apostle Paul was thinking when he wrote, “Follow me as I follow Christ.” In essence, it was a thank you note to those behind him, “Thank you for spurring me on to preach better, teach better, live better, be better.”


Here’s what Jesus did for us: He was spurred on both by those of us who would be following Him and by the calling of His Heavenly Father. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting Him, He endured the Cross, disregarding its shame. Now He is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.


So Paul said he could follow that example in his own life. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.


I’m in awe of what God has called me to do.


I’m grateful for the way Jesus has opened up the way for me.


I’m thankful for those who spur me on every day. Especially my family and my congregation. You make me want to preach better, teach better, live better, be better. Thank you!


Who’s spurring you on?






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Take The Initiative

September 29, 2009 — Craig T. Owens 




“You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.” —John Bunyan


I love doing something unexpected for someone. Something kind and thoughtful, but totally “out of the blue.” It’s especially nice when the person for whom you do something nice needs it the most, yet would be the last person to ask for help.


In Matthew 25 Jesus talks about people who take the initiative to help the poor, the hungry, the needy. Jesus never says that they asked for help, but simply that His followers saw the need and addressed it. Jesus concludes by saying, “When you did it to one of the least of these My brothers and sisters, you were doing it to Me!”


Even better: we take the initiative to bless one of the least of these and we get a blessing from God. How cool is that!


Over the weekend our youth group showed up at a precious lady’s house unannounced. We all affectionately refer to Thelma as “Grandma.” We didn’t tell her that we were coming, we just showed up and started cleaning up her yard. (Disclaimer: I have to admit that we did get an immediate blessing, in that Grandma’s daughter Joan made us a cake, so we got a slice before we left.) Pictures are here.


I’m so proud of these young servants who showed up to bless Grandma. As you helped her, you were helping Jesus. Great will be your reward in heaven—way to go!






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Success Is Going

June 4, 2009 — Craig T. Owens 




King David is one of the most well-known characters in the Old Testament. Such incredible stories are told about him that his life can be summed up in one phrase that occurs four times in Scripture—The Lord gave David victory everywhere he went (2 Samuel 8:6, 14; 1 Chronicles 18:6, 13).


When David was faced with a challenge or an enemy, he threw himself fully into meeting the enemy head-on, and he was always successful. There is no record of David ever being defeated in battle. If he went out, he won.


Aha, keyword alert—The Lord gave David victory everywhere he WENT.


The only times David was defeated was when he stood still:


• When his son Absalom killed another of David’s sons, Amnon, David didn’t do anything. Even when Absalom returned from exile, David stayed home and didn’t reconcile with his son (2 Samuel 13-15).


• David’s son Adonijah behaved inappropriately and eventually rebelled against David, too. But David “never interfered with him by asking, ‘Why do you behave as you do?’” (1 Kings 1:6).


• David lusted after and then committed adultery with Bathsheba when, “In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, Joab led out the armed forces. … But David remained in Jerusalem” (1 Chronicles 20:1).


• David angered God by ordering that a census be taken of all of the men eligible for military service in Israel. “So David said to Joab and the commanders of the troops, ‘Go and count…” (1 Chronicles 21:2). In other words, David stayed while others went.


Solomon correctly noted, “The path of life leads upward for the wise to keep him from going down to the grave” (Proverbs 15:24). There are only two directions: forward (or up) OR backward (or down). There is no standing still.


The Lord gave David victory everywhere he WENT, not everywhere he stood still. To stand still is to begin to go backward.


Is there a battle you need to fight? Is there a challenge you’ve been avoiding? Is there something you need to complete? Are you waiting for something to happen? Are you content just to stand still?


Stop standing still and start going! If you are following God, He will give you victory everywhere you go.






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