School is about to Begin - Ready...Set...Go!

Hello again from up in the country, Enola, Arkansas and your friend and gospel preacher, Mickey Burleson and the Enola Church of Christ.  Well, our teachers and students have a couple of days and then it’s back to the old school routine, up early, gone all day, back home tired out, and in bed early.  We all need to remember to be a little more patient with each other until we get acclimated to our new way of life.  Organization always helps make the transition easier.  My parents always had us lay out our school clothes each night before we retired to bed.  Taking a bath or shower at night gives us a little more time to sleep.  Eating a good breakfast makes the school day and work day better.  I’m not necessarily talking about a “big” breakfast.  I am talking about eating something nutritious and lasting to start the day off right.  Cindi and I have been eating fruit and nut smoothies in the morning with a piece of toast or bagle.  I make the smoothie in our “Ninja” blender while Cindi is getting ready.  Fresh fruit is always good if we have it, but if not I put in frozen strawberries, peaches, blueberries, mango, almonds or some other nut, a small amount of oats, and a little yogurt and some almond milk and maybe a little orange juice for a little bit of tangy flavor and a few ice cubes.  Delicious!!  As a matter of fact, I could eat (or drink) one right now.  It’s quick, nutritious and delicious. 

Speaking of food; man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.  Jesus said that when He was being tempted and was very hungry.  How are you doing when it comes to reading, studying, thinking about, applying, and sharing God’s word, the Bible?  I read the Bible every day.  This “spiritual food” sustains my soul (the real me) and helps me with life’s difficulties.  God’s word is indeed a lamp to my feet and a light to my path (Psalm 119:106).  God’s word makes my faith stronger (Romans 10:17).  God’s word is true.  This fact may be the reason few people read it.  In the Bible book of James, we find that the Bible is a mirror.  When we read it, we are seeing ourselves as we really are, just like when we look into the mirror in the morning before we depart for school or work.  I look pretty silly in the morning.  The other morning my youngest granddaughter told me that I had “crazy hair.”  Well, I took a little time with some water, hair gel, and a brush and I was ready for the day.  No more crazy hair.  Sometimes I have “crazy hair” in my life.  The Bible directs me to make the changes in myself that need to be made to be the man I need to be for God, for my family, and for others.  I’m glad God gave us His word in a book, the Bible.  Are you reading it?

This Sunday morning at Enola we will be studying about Paul’s Greatest Desire – To Win Christ, To be found IN Him, To KNOW Him, To know the POWER of His Resurrection, and To know the Fellowship of His Sufferings.  We’re on lesson four.  On Sunday evening we meet at 5:00.  We are looking at Jesus Parable of the Prodigal Son.  This younger son began the journey of sin, went on the journey to the far country, wasted his time, treasures, and talents on sin, was humiliated by sin, and was lost in sin.  We have studied the first few lessons and will now study about the “lost-ness of sin.”  I am so very happy that this young man “came to himself” and came home to what is good and right.  If you are somewhere in the way of sin, come to yourself and come home to God.  Jesus said it best in Matthew 11:28-30.

Do you know my Jesus? Have you heard He loves you?

Hello again from up in the country, Enola, Arkansas and the Enola Church of Christ.  We’re enjoying a wonderful August.  Everyone is excited about getting back into the old school routine here in just a few days.  Well, almost everyone.  Our teachers would probably like to have a few more summer days.  Our students are ready for a new school year.  Parents are too.

Our theme for Sunday Morning at Enola is “Paul’s Greatest Desire.”  We have already studied about Paul’s desire to “gain” or “win” Christ and his desire to be found “in” Him.  This Sunday morning we will look at Paul’s desire to “know” Christ.  Now, how can we know anything?  And just what does it mean to “know” Christ?  I hope you can come out on Sunday morning at 11:00 to study with us.

Our theme for Sunday Evening at Enola is – “A Sinning Son and a Loving Merciful Father.”  Sin has a beginning.  Sin takes us on a journey to a far country, a country that is away from God.  In sin we waste ourselves, our time, our treasures, and our talents.  This Sunday evening we will look at the humiliation of sin.  Can you ever see yourself eating something really disgusting?  It is true.  When a person gets hungry enough, even bugs, rats, and even pig food begins to look delicious.  Sin does this to a person.  I am so happy that God is greater than our sin, that He is ready, willing, and able to forgive any sin and welcome any sinner out of the far country and back home.

This song is on my mind this morning.  “Do You Know My Jesus” by W.F (Bill) Lakey and V. B. (Vep) Ellis in our hymn book # 553 at Enola.

Have you a heart that’s weary, tending a load of care;

Are you a soul that’s seeking rest from the burden you bear?

Where is your heart, O, pilgrim? What does your light reveal;

Who hears your call for comfort when naught but sorrow you feel?

Who knows your disappointment, who hears each time your cry;

Who understands your heartaches, who dries the tears from your eyes?

Do you know my Jesus?  Do you know my Friend?

Have you heard He loves you, and that He will abide till the end?

Please think on this hymn today and know that there is One who loves you.  He loves us all.

VBS @ Enola - We're Traveling to the Promised Land

Hello from up in the country, Enola, Arkansas.  We had a great beginning to our annual VBS this evening with 119 in attendance.  We have sessions for every age; babies, adults, and every age in between.  Our theme is “The Promised Land or Bust.”  We’re studying from the Old Testament this year about the flight of the people of God out of Egypt to the Land of Canaan.  Thank you to every Christian who is so generous with their time and talents to make our VBS the great success it is.  God knows and so do we, what a blessing it is to meet together for Bible study, worship, and fellowship.  We are so very blessed.

Our VBS will continue Monday evening through Wednesday evening at 7:00 each evening.  Maybe you can make the drive up in the country to visit.  We would love to see you.  And the trip would do you good.

Can you believe it?  Our teachers have only three weeks left before the new school year will begin.  Our students have a few extra days of summer break and they’ll be back to school too.  My, my, where has the summer gone?  We are growing.  And that’s a good thing.

We concluded our Sunday morning sermon series entitled “When Faith is a Struggle” today with a lesson about God’s providence.  When we suffer God doesn’t explain it.  People try to explain suffering, but God doesn’t.  When we suffer God usually doesn’t remove it.  We may pray for God to remove our suffering and sometimes He does, but not usually.  He knows that suffering produces perseverance.  Perseverance produces character.  Character produces hope.  The Holy Spirit tells every one of us this in Paul’s letter to the Romans, chapter 5, verses 1-5.  Read this for yourself and see.  He writes about our faith in Christ that saves us.  Our salvation in Christ makes peace between us and God because our sins have been forgiven.  Because we have peace with God, we have access to His grace and stand in it every day.  Our hope for now and for forever is founded in God.  Then Paul writes about how good it is to suffer and why.  The little phrase “No Pain – No Gain” is true.  Think about this too:  “Know Pain – Know Gain.”  This is also true.  It is difficult to suffer, but let us follow God’s plan and purpose and let suffering produces patience and then let patience have its perfect work (James 1).

I want to say a word or two about the 5^th Annual Gospel Crusade we all enjoyed last week at UCA in Conway.  What a wonderful opportunity the crusade was to showcase the gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in such a dynamic fashion.  Every preacher taught the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth right from the Bible.  Every person who attended left encouraged in the faith and motivated to continue the fight for what is good and right.  I know I did.  Every year the gospel crusade gets better and better.  Thank you to my fellow Christians in Faulkner County, Arkansas for letting the light of Christ shine so brightly.  Let’s keep it up.

Living in View of Heaven...

We had a marvelous Sunday a couple of days ago up in the country, Enola, Arkansas and the Enola Church of Christ.  The church building was packed with Christians and we had several guests with us.  I’m so happy to be a Christian and a member of the church that belongs to Christ.  Maybe you have been thinking about life, decisions, the past, the future, heaven, hell, eternity - you know the things that really matter.  Jesus’ invitation has stood as a guiding light for generations…Matthew 11:28-30:  “Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.”  After every sermon I preach, I extend the invitation of Christ.  He invites all who are burdened and tired of sin to believe in Him.  Sin separates us from God (Isaiah 59:1-2).  Jesus came to forgive sin and unite us to God (John 3:16-18).  All who believe in Jesus Christ must repent of their sins (Luke 13:3).  Repentance includes sorrow for sin and a desire to turn from it.  All who come to Christ in repentance must confess that He is the One and Only Son of God, the Savior of the world (Romans 10:9-10).  When a person confesses Jesus as the Christ the very next step to salvation is baptism.  Every sin is washed away in baptism (Acts 22:16).  It is very difficult for me to understand how some people, even those who claim to be preachers and religious leaders just leave baptism out of the plan of salvation.  Jesus was baptized to fulfill all righteousness.  He left us the “Great Commission” in Matthew 28:18-20 and when you read it, note that He included baptism.  He said, “Go…teach…baptize…teach those who are taught and baptized to go and teach and baptize.”  Baptism is not the end of anything, but the beginning of everything.  Every Christian, every day, lives a saved life, adding to their faith the Christian Graces: virtue, knowledge, self-control, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love (2 Peter 1:5-10) walking in the light as Christ is in the light (1 John 1:7) bearing the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5) abstaining from the works of the flesh (Listed just before the fruits of the Spirit).  The Christian life can be hard sometimes and suffering is part of every life this side of heaven.  Jesus taught us this fact when He concluded His sermon on the mount in Matthew 7.  He said that the rain descends.  The wind blows.  The flood rises in every life.  The foundation makes all the difference between standing and falling.  I am building my life on Christ, not on the sand.  You can too.  Hear.  Believe.  Repent.  Confess Christ.  Be baptized.  Live in view of heaven.

Take a drive up in the country this coming Sunday and meet with the Christians at the Enola Church of Christ (253 Hwy 107 N in Enola).  You’ll hear a good lesson from the Bible in one of our Bible study sessions at 10:00 a.m.  We gather in the main building in the auditorium at 11:00 for worship.  I will be preaching the second sermon in our series “When Faith is a Struggle.”  Last Sunday we looked at lesson one and found that though people try to explain why we suffer, God does not.  He talks a lot about suffering, but just doesn’t’ explain it.  This Sunday we will look at lesson two and find that God does not usually remove suffering.  Think about it.  Jesus suffered.  His Father didn’t remove His suffering.  His apostles suffered.  They all gave their lives for His mission.  Paul suffered.  Have you ever read about his “thorn in the flesh?”  He prayed for God to remove his suffering.  God said no.  Paul finally died for preaching Christ.   I know this is a tough series of lessons and people don’t usually want to hear about suffering and the facts of life but as a gospel preacher, I am called to present the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

Sunday evenings at Enola are so good.  We meet at 5:00 for just an hour.  We are beginning a new series that will probably take us into the fall.  We will be studying Jesus Parable of the Prodigal Son and the Forgiving Father.  I’ve entitled this series “A Sinning Son and THE Father’s Loving Grace.”  This Sunday we will consider “The Beginning of Sin.”  May God help us to read Psalm 1 and check our own lives.  Am I walking in the counsel of the ungodly?  Am I standing in the path of sinners?  Am I sitting in the seat of the scornful?  Or am I delighting and meditating on the law of the Lord night and day?  I want to prosper, so I am delighting in His law, meditating on His law, and willingly obeying His law night and day.  I need some help.  I need you.

5th Sunday at Enola - What a wonderful Day!

Yesterday was Sunday, June 29^th, the 5^th Sunday in June.  We had a terrific Lord’s Day with a good crowd (132) present for Bible study, fellowship, and worship.  Still we had several who were vacationing, working, traveling, not feeling well, or for some other reason unable to gather with the church.  We always miss our Christian brothers and sisters who are absent when we meet.  Because this was a 5^th Sunday in the month, we enjoyed a very special Enola potluck lunch together.  My, my, what a treat!  I believe that just about every person stayed to enjoy the warm and friendly fellowship we enjoyed. And still we had enough food for many more.   After lunch we all walked back over to the auditorium to hear Brother Bob Turner of the Bear Valley Bible Institute in Colorado. Thank you for staying and supporting Brother Turner.   He gave us a report of all the good things that were happening around the world for the cause of Christ.  We have been blessed and it is good and right to share our blessings with those who do not yet know our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  We are continuing our “Great Commission” given to us by Christ before He ascended to His Father and ours.  We find our commission in Matthew 28:18-20.

I asked the church of Christ yesterday to take a special test, a friend test.  We sang the hymn “I’ll be a friend to Jesus.”  The first verse goes this way,

They tried my Lord and Master, with no one to defend.

Within the halls of Pilate, He stood without a friend.

I’ll be a friend to Jesus.  My life to Him I’ll spend.

I’ll be a friend to Jesus, until my years shall end.

After we sang the song, I asked the church if they really believed what they sang.  Am I a friend to Jesus?  Am I spending my life for Him?  Will I be His friend until my years shall end?  I offered the following test:

1.       Friends enjoy being together.  If I am a friend to Jesus I will enjoy spending time with Him.  I will take advantage of each opportunity I have to be with Him.  I will enjoy talking to Him in prayer.  I will enjoy reading His letter (The Bible) to me.  I love to read John 6, at the end of the chapter where Jesus asked His disciple if they would leave Him like others had.  Peter said, “Lord, to whom shall we go.  You have the words of eternal life and we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of God.”  Peter loved Jesus and understood friendship.  I know that he let Jesus down later on, but who stood up in front of the world in Acts 2 to declare his friendship?  Peter!  Am I…are you a friend to Jesus?

2.       Friends sacrifice for each other.  If I am a friend to Jesus I will do whatever I need to do to show my love for Him. Am I…are you a friend to Jesus?

3.       Friends speak often of each other.  If I am a friend to Jesus I will have no trouble speaking about Him and sharing our friendship with anyone who would listen.  Am I…are you a friend to Jesus?

4.       Friends defend each other.  If I am a friend to Jesus I will I will defend Him.  Am I…are you a friend to Jesus?

5.       Friends are loyal to each other.  If I am a friend to Jesus I will be loyal to Him in good times and in bad times.  Am I…are you a friend to Jesus?

I hope you are a friend to Jesus.  Do you remember what Jesus said in John 15:14?  He said, “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.”  Well, do you?  You can also read in the Bible in John 14:15 where Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.”  No opinions.  Just stating facts.

I hope to see you soon up in the country.  God bless you and keep you is my constant prayer.