Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee, similar to rival areas like Missouri and Kansas. As he was going into a one red light town, ten men who had leprosy, a horrific, contagious skin disease, met him. They stood at a distance and hollered in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!"

When he saw them, he said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed. (Can you imagine seeing your skin heal before your eyes?)

One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice and giving Jesus three claps. He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him, and he was a Samaritan.

Jesus asked, "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" Then Jesus said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well." (Luke 17:11-19 with a few additions)

What a tragedy it would be if only 10% of people ever took the time to go give thanks to people who changed their lives. During this month in which our nation celebrates Thanksgiving, I urge you to take the time, go back, and give thanks to people of your past who God has used to change and shape your life. For example, this morning I sent an email to the person who invested two years in my life when I first became a follower of Christ in 1982.

Let's play catch! Your turn to throw!

Back in my baseball days, our team's favorite trash talking statement to an opposing pitcher when we were winning was "Stick a fork in him! He's done!" At least we thought it was hilarious back then.

But do you realize that God does not say that to His children? The apostle Paul declares that God has begun a good work in us and will carry it out to completion (Philippians 1:6). In essence, God says that we are not done. We still have room to grow. We still have room to learn.

Are you a learner? John Wooden, legendary UCLA basketball coach, once declared to his players, "When you are through leanring, you are through!" Do you set goals each year to learn new things? In the past year, what have you learned from God?

Personally, this year has been packed with learning. I have learned how to plant and harvest a vegetable garden. I have learned how to shoot a bow and actually hit a target. I have learned how to shoot clay pigeons with a shotgun. I have learned that father/daughter road trips are a blast! Most importantly, God has taught me how to commit my children back to Him. And I have learned that what God requires of me is not out of reach for me.

If you know Christ, He is not done with you. What are you learning this past year? Let's play catch! It is your turn to throw!

Have you noticed the changes in recent days? The leaves are changing colors and falling off the trees. The temperature is changing. The Texas Rangers are going to the World Series for the first time in their history. My once vibrant tomato plants are now slowly dying. The Mississippi State Bulldogs are ranked for the first time in almost a decade.

Change happens all around us, if we take the time to observe. But the most important part of a change discussion is about whether or not each one of us will make necessary changes in our lives. Leo Tolstoy once said, "Everybody thinks of changing humanity, but nobody changes himself."

As we see changes around us this fall, what needs to change in your life or what changes are you already making? For me, there are a couple of personal changes that are in progress. First, I am living my life with more urgency for the gospel of Christ. I am more urgent in proclaiming the gospel to people. I am more urgent in living the gospel. I am more urgent in pressing others to proclaim and live the gospel. And for me, the gospel in a nutshell is the saving and redemptive work of Christ in all areas of our lives and society.

Second, my prayer life is changing. I am praying scripture more often, especially the Psalms, and it is very refreshing for me and I hope for others as well.

As you notice the leaves changing colors, what is changing in your life for the good of the kingdom of God? Let's play catch! It's your turn to throw!

You are prone to be prejudice. I am prone to be prejudice. People of all races are prone to be prejudice. In this hotly contested political season, racial and prejudice accusations are being thrown by people of all political parties. The sad but comical truth is that all people are prone to prejudice.

Prejudice can be defined as making a judgment beforehand without getting the facts. And aren't we all guilty of doing that frequently or almost daily. For example, you made a judgement about the slow driver in front of you on I-70 before you know the facts. You made a judgment about the person in front of you in the check out line in Price Chopper before you know the facts. You made a judgement about the overweight person before you know the facts. You made a judgement about the single mom before you know the facts. You made a judgement about the good-looking athlete before you know the facts.

Prejudice can lead to horrible attitudes and acts toward people. For example, as a young boy in the deep south I remember seeing the KKK burn a cross in my neighbor's yard just because of prejudice. I remember many people calling me "white trash" because of where I lived and who I spent time with each day.

Prejudice runs deep in my life and in your life; therefore, we have to walk in step with Christ and seek redemption in all areas of our lives. In Christ, we are a new person, the old attitudes and thoughts are gone. One exercise that helps me overcome prejudice is to take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ (Second Corinthians 10:4-5). Another exercise that helps me is to go gather facts before I make a judgement.

There is no doubt that God does not want us showing favoritism or prejudice to others (James 2:1ff). Let us seek to be renewed in Christ each day and seek to be a good imitation of Christ each day.

What exercises do you practice to overcome prejudice? Let's play catch! It's your turn to throw!

Have you ever thought something was out of reach for you? Dunking a basketball on a ten foot is out of reach for me. Being a handy man around my house is generally out of my reach.

Nonetheless, there are times we reach an accomplishment that we once thought was out of reach. For example, when I first learned to be a pitcher in the game of baseball, I thought throwing a no-hitter was out of reach. But when I was 14 years old, I threw my first no-hitter against the George County All-Stars in Petal, Mississippi. It was awesome to reach a goal I once thought unreachable!

In a similar way, we may often think what God expects of us is unreachable. Deuteronomy 30:11 declares that God's ways and commands for us are not out of reach. It is only a matter of us choosing life with the Lord and being obedient in His way. There is no doubt that God's ways and commands will be a stretch for us, but God reminds us that what He desires for us is not out of reach.

Eight years ago, God stirred my mind and heart to plant a church. At first, I thought God was crazy because being a pastor much less starting a church was way beyond my reach. Nonetheless, I went the path that God marked for me and here I am today as the pastor of a church plant that is in its seventh year of existence. And to be honest, I have had the time of my life being stretched by God as I continue this very day to learn what it means to be a pastor

What will you reach for today that God has given you to do? Let's play catch! It's your turn to throw!

There was a time when my life was empty and aimless. Then God orchestrated my life in such a way that I crossed paths with Peggy Young and Jeff Powell. I was in my late teens, Peggy was my Sunday School teacher, and Jeff was the student pastor where I began to attend church.

God used Peggy and Jeff to influence me to commit my life to Christ and I have had no regrets ever since. I have often reflected back on those days and tried to pinpoint in practical ways how God used them to usher salvation to my life.

My discovery led me to understand that both Peggy and Jeff never gave me advice that was not based in scripture. They were scripture machines! And they made scripture come alive for me. Plus, they lived their lives according to scripture as well. No obvious hypocrisy in their lives.

Another discovery was that Peggy was a picture of grace. She and her husband invited me to their home very often for fried chicken and football games. While eating and watching football games, they always gave me the utmost value. It seemed like every time they saw me, they were glad to see me.

One final discovery was that both Peggy and Jeff asked me great questions and they were not afraid to let me ask questions of them. They took the time to answer my cynical questions and they took the time to ask me probing questions that made me think like never before. I soon came to grips with the truth that I was not the Christ!

As I often reflect on my present ministry, I often see myself doing to others what Peggy and Jeff did in my life, except the heavy dose of grace part. :)It gives me great joy each year to know that God takes me on a journey with a handful of people each year and God gives me the unbelievable privilege of ushering people to salvation in Christ. There is nothing comparable to being used of God to make an impact for eternity.

Take a few moments and reflect on your salvation journey. What were some key moments in that journey? What are some ways that you try to pass on your faith in Christ to others?

Let's play catch! It is your turn to throw!

Object lessons are one of the best educational tools known to man. And Jesus used object lessons throughout the four gospels. For example, Jesus taught eternal truths using salt, a wineskin, bread, a vine, a mustard seed, and a needle to name a few. Think about some of your favorite object lessons that have remained in your mind for years.

One of my favorite object lessons is a button. I have been told for years that if you get the top button on your shirt done correctly then all the other buttons will line up correctly, but if you get the top button out of line, all the other buttons will be out of line. And that is true for life as well. If you seek God first, then all the other things of life line up correctly in their appropriate timing and place.

A few days ago, I went outside for a few moments and observed how many object lessons I could recognize within a short distance from where I was standing. I saw a garden and then immediately thought about the parable of the sower and the different kinds of soil. I felt a strong breeze and thought about the Nicodemus story and how Jesus taught him that the Holy Spirit blows like the wind in that you cannot control it or manipulate when it comes or where it goes.

As the wind blew with strength, I heard the leaves on the tress make sounds as if they were clapping. I immediately thought of the scripture that remins us that the trees will praise God if we do not. I saw birds soaring with the wind beneath their wings and of course I thought about Isaiah 40:31. I saw adults and children playing with their respective pets and I thought about the Book of Genesis and was reminded that God has given man dominion over the animals, birds, and fish.

Take a few minutes and look around and locate what objects remind you of a life lesson or eternal truth. Let's play catch! It is your turn to throw!

It has been said, "Mercenaries will defeat draftees, but volunteers will crush them both." Mercenaries are people who driven by money to accomplsih tasks. Draftees are people who are forced to accomplish tasks. Volunteers are people who are driven by heart and passion and faith to accomplish tasks.

From my perspective, I validate the above statement to be true. Forcing me to do a task will not produce a good product or outcome. Financial compensation is not a sustaining motivation for me to accomplish a task at a high level. But if I volunteer for a task, I will have sustaining motivation for the task and most likely produce a product or outcome at a high level.

When I first became a follower of Christ my mentor often asked me, "What would you do with your time even if you were not getting paid for it?" That question assisted me in discovering what God wanted me to do with my life, instead of letting salary levels determine what I did with my life. And I have no regrets in what God has called me to do with my life, and sometimes I think it is comical that I get compensated for things that I would do with my life any way.

I always wanted to be a baseball coach and win titles, but God did not allow that to happen. God called me to be a pastor and as a friend reminded me years ago, a pastor is like being a life coach. Instead of building people through the game of baseball, God has called me to build people through scripture and the church. And to this day I would strive to build people each day through scripture whether I got compensated or not.

I have come to recognize that there is great power and inspiration in volunteers! That is why the church should have great power; Christ is our Head and each follower of Christ is gifted and empowered by the Holy Spirit to do good works as a volunteer. Each follower of Christ has a place and opportunity to scratch the itch of his or her God-ordained passion.

What would you do with your time even if you did not receive compensation for it? Why do you think God puts so much trust in volunteers?

Let's play catch! It's your turn to throw!

It has been said before that if a person wants to have a satisfying life, the person needs three things: something to believe, someone to love, and some task to do. I guess you could call it the BLT for life. Personally, I generally agree with that formula for a satisfying life.

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and I believe in Jesus Christ, God's Son, and my Savior and Lord, and I believe in the Holy Spirit who regenerates and empowers my life. I believe in the church, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the dead, and life everlasting. What I believe makes my life very satisfying. Of lesser importance, I believe the annual opening day of the Major League Baseball season should be a national holiday and everyone is excused from work and required to watch a baseball game and spit sunflower seeds.

I love my wife Dawn and I love that she is different from me because God uses her to make my life more whole. If I were stranded on a deserted island and had to choose one person to be there with me, it would be Dawn without any hesitation. And left to my choosing, we would not try to get off the island either. Loving Dawn and being loved by her makes my satisfying.

My task in life is to build people. It is refreshing to have an opportunity to make people better even in small ways. I believe the best minute is the minute I invest in the life of another person. The task of building people makes my life satisfying.

If you do not agree with the above BLT for life, you can always have the traditional BLT, a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich. I suppose that would make life satisfying as well.

Let's play catch! It is your turn to throw!

In early August, I went to a leadership conference with a handful of people from Gateway and God used one of the speakers to grab my attention. And not just a tap on the shoulder kind of attention, but a resounding gong kind of attention!

The speaker was talking about her involvement in a ministry that rescues young women from the despicable slave trade or human trafficking. The speaker told us about a conversation with a young woman that had been rescued. The speaker told the young woman that God loves her and the rescued woman asked the speaker, “If God loves me, why did you not come to rescue me sooner?”

That question rocked my mind and heart as I sat listening to the speaker at the conference. The word “sooner” was imprinted in my mind and I kept hearing the speaker say the word “sooner” all day long. And still to this day, I can hear the speaker saying “sooner.”

God impressed upon me that day that I am not always waiting on the Lord for an answer or a prompting but many times God has already given an answer or prompting and I have not acted. Therefore, many people are wondering where is God’s love because I have not acted “sooner” on God’s prompting and provision. As I think about poverty, oppression, injustice, lostness and the like, I wonder if all that dark ugliness would be extinct or at least very limited if only I and others acted “sooner” on the promptings and provisions of God. I believe many times we are guilty of blaming God for His failure to act when in actuality we have failed to act.

Since the conference, my commitment is to act “sooner” on God’s promptings and provisions and to lead others to do the same. I believe if we act “sooner” in the name of Christ, God will reveal more heaven on earth to us and that will cause us to grin more!

Let’s play catch! Your turn to throw!

Earlier in the summer, most of my tomatoes had blossom rot or some blemish on them, and I was getting discouraged. Nonetheless, in recent days the same plants have done a 180 and produced some flawless, perfect tomatoes, at least in my opinion. And that has created a grin on the face of this rookie gardener! And get this, I do not even like to eat tomatoes.

Years ago, some of my ministry colleagues called me the “redneck mystic” because I spend time reflecting on all my life experiences. And in line with that habit, I have spent some time reflecting on those flawless, perfect tomatoes.

My thoughts went to Noah in the Old Testament. Genesis 6:9 declares, “Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God. Later, Genesis 6:22 pronounces, “Noah did everything just as God commanded him.”

Then my thoughts went to Galatians 5:7 and it proclaims, “You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth?” That passage reminded me that like some of my earlier tomatoes, I have some blemishes in my life.

And true to form, my reflection kept expanding and I pulled out some statements that have been true in both history and my life. One statement is “God does not call us to minimums” and another statement is “Direction, not intentions, determines my destination.”

And of course, my reflection took me to the game of baseball. I remember that every time my coach gave me the game ball and sent me to get warm in the bullpen, I wanted to pitch a perfect game that day. I never threw a perfect game but I did through a couple of no-hitters and a handful of shutouts. Nevertheless, each game I sought the perfect game.

My reflection on flawless, perfect tomatoes ended with a renewed desire to pursue a life that is blameless among the people of my time, and a renewed desire to lead a church who will do everything just as God has commanded us. I keep telling myself, “Keep the bar raised high!” And one day, I hope to see a grin on God’s face and hear him say to me, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”

Let’s play catch! It’s your turn to throw!

Many mornings I arise around 5:15 and head out the door about 30 minutes later for an appointment. A few days back, when I went out the door, my eyes were captivated by the brightness of a full moon. I stopped for a few moments and gazed at the moon and gave a few claps to the Lord before I drove away. Almost every time I see a full moon, I think of Psalm 8:3-4, “When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?”

When I consider all that God has done and still does, I am overwhelmed that he is mindful of me. That means that God thinks about me all day long and other scripture passages declare that God does not sleep and He watches over me. Upon reflection, that attribute of God is meaningful to me because I am not like that. Without Christ, my life and mind drips with arrogance and I am not mindful of anyone but myself.

When Christ is having His way with my mind and actions, I am mindful of others. Some manifestations of that is I will write notes to people with blessings of scripture, I will tell my wife the wonderful words she deserves to hear, I will do things for my family without being asked, I will act on divine promptings of service, and I will empower others to do the good works in which they were created.

My daily battle is that I am not mindful of God like He is of me. And I definitely do not want to be like the people described in Ezekiel 23:35,”Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Since you have forgotten me and thrust me behind your back, you must bear the consequences of your lewdness and prostitution.” I do not want to be guilty of throwing Christ in the backseat and telling him, “I got this and I do not need you today.”

Upon further review, I have a good day when I have captured all my thoughts and actions ahead of time and made them obedient to Christ. Being mindful of God is such much better than being mindful of me. What or who is on your mind today?

Let’s play catch. It is your turn to throw.

Earlier this week, a friend gave our family tickets to the Royals game. The night was awesome in that we ate Chick-fil-a before the game, we enjoyed time together as a family, and the location of our seats was incredible, five rows behind the dugout. As for the game itself, the Royals got beat like a rented mule by the Twins 19-1; nonetheless, that did not discourage me because I am not a Royals fan per se, I am a baseball fan. What I enjoyed about the game was watching Joe Mauer, the Twins All-star catcher and a future Hall of Famer, play a seemingly perfect baseball game. He had five hits in five plate appearances and to my count he had seven runs batted in. Personally, I am drawn to watching people who execute a skill or talent at a high level or watch people live life at a maximum level.

Watching a future Hall of Famer play baseball got me to thinking about the Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11. I thought about Abraham, Noah, Moses, and the like. Hebrews 11 tells us that “by faith” these people lived a life that makes your heart beat fast and they were used of God to do things that we still talk about today. Then I started thinking…who are those people today? I saw a future Hall of Fame baseball player earlier this week but where do I see the Hall of Faith people today.

After a time of reflection, God refreshed my spirit and brought to my mind a significant number of people who live “by faith” and who are obedient to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. Let me tell you about some of those people and I will refrain from using the names of the people just for the sake of not causing any embarrassment or unwanted recognition.

Our students are going to TPX Camp in Colorado in a few days and I saw a few students last week pool the $100 they were given back in March at a worship service at Gateway and help some of their friends go to camp who would otherwise not be able to go. “By faith” they were patient and hung on to their money for just the right prompting and they did a Hall of Faith act.

“By faith” people in our church have adopted children or are in the process of adopting children or “by faith” people in our church have committed to being foster parents for children. Psalm 82:3 declares that we should defend the cause of the fatherless and many people in our church are pleasing to God because they have done what matters to God. Those people are definitely worthy of the Hall of Faith.

“By faith” a person went the extra mile in giving care for a family member and then answer the prompting of God to share the Good News of Christ with the same family member and as God would ordain, the family member gave his life to Christ and now will have eternal life. Now that is a Hall of Faith story.

I am reminded this week that I am pleasing to God when I live by faith in Him. I am reminded this week that I have a deep hatred for mediocrity and I want to live a life worthy of the Hall of Faith.

Let’s play catch. Your turn to throw.

This is my inaugural blog, so please be patient with the length and I promise to be brief in upcoming days.

Playing catch is one of the “heaven on earth” experiences that a person can enjoy, because simultaneously you can enjoy God’s favorite sport of baseball, you can experiment with different pitches, you can take great delight in the popping sound the ball makes when you catch the ball in your glove, and you can have meaningful conversation that is both meaningful and humorous.

Like any person reared in the South, I value time spent on the front porch thinking about life and I have a deep hunger and preference for fried foods.

Hence, this blog will be an opportunity to play catch back and forth with some thoughts that are not reactive but are battered and coated with truth and time and experience. Do you hear and smell the bacon grease popping already? That means something deep fried and tasty is coming shortly. Put down your broccoli and cheese and let’s get ready to eat something together that is so good you will want to hit someone!

In recent years I have set annual goals and some of the goals are to accomplish some things I have never done before. One of my personal goals this year was to plant a vegetable garden. Way back in my past I definitely had experience in pulling weeds out of my grandmother’s garden or I had experience with the thumb-numbing task of shelling bushels of beans or I had experience in stealing watermelons out of someone else’s garden or I had experience in the thrilling role of shooting rabbits to keep them out of a elderly couple’s garden. But I never had the experience of my own garden.

This past April, Steve and Polly Wilson, who are garden gurus, gave me their insight and then Steve came to my house and we tilled up a portion of backyard. He showed me how to get the ground ready for planting and then he gave me the green light to put plants or seeds in the ground. I went to Ben’s Nursery and they were very helpful with plant choices and their corresponding care. So I planted various tomatoes, bell peppers, hot peppers, onions, cucumbers, squash, zucchini, and cantaloupes.

Since late April, I have been on a mission each day to spend time in my garden. I pulled numerous weeds. I have watered the plants. After seeing evidence that rabbits were eating my plants, I put up a fence instead of buying a gun and using my skills from earlier years. I have done many things to nurture my garden, even to the point where I have worn a path around the fence as I have walked each day to inspect the various plants. Sometimes my wife Dawn thinks I like the garden more than I like her, but I remind her that is not true and I only planted things that she wanted to eat. I am just trying to speak a love language to her!

In recent weeks we have harvested way more food than we can eat and there is more still growing. We have resorted to giving some of the food to neighbors and friends, so please let me know if you want some home-grown vegetables. More importantly, the process of gardening has led me to reflect and think on a number of scripture passages. For example, Jesus says in Mark 4:26-29, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain, first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”

Each day as I work my garden God reminds me I have a part to play in the process but ultimately God determines the growth and harvest. Every morning I go outside and see that God has worked again in the garden since I last saw it the evening before. I do not know how God does it but He does, and I am thrilled that I get to be a small part in the process. And relationships are very similar to my garden. The growth of a relationship is a process and I have a part to play in the process, but ultimately, God has to make it grow.

I have yielded to the truth that I personally cannot make anyone grow nor can I make anyone follow Christ. I have yielded to the truth that my success in life is not determined by the quantity of the harvest, but did I harvest the ones God gave me. Consequently, each day I ask God to show me where He is working; that is, I look for opportunities where God is stirring the mind and heart of another person. I look for opportunities that can only be explained by God’s activity. I look for opportunities that will make an impact for eternity. I look for heaven on earth.

Let’s play catch. It’s your turn to throw now.