Craving Comfort, Needing Courage In Christ

by Kevin Burton    If I were a computer, my memory verses would stay memorized. But I am not a computer.    So I have to review the verses to keep them in my mental and my heart’s rolodex. One error I had been making, now has me thinking.    The verse is John 16:33, …

Living Dogs And Dead Lions From Ecclesiastes

by Kevin Burton    If I say, “God knows the heart” you know just what I mean, right?  Because you know the heart, somewhat, sometimes.    Much of the time people speaking to you in the name of a corporation will lie to you outright for the sake of profit. Or, they will emphasize the …

Draw Near To God, He Bids Us, Draw Near

by Kevin Burton    If you don’t know the Old Testament you’re going to gloss over, what is now one of my favorite parts of the gospel story.    I missed it completely until somebody on one of the radio ministries (I forget which one now), explained it.    It has to do with the …

This God-Man Jesus Receives Sinners

by Kevin Burton     What the scribes and Pharisees spat out as an accusation against Jesus, I now cling to for all I’m worth.    We turn to a passage in the book of Luke. Jesus was teaching in public as was His custom. The Jewish religious leaders of the time criticized Jesus for the …

Humbly Gleaning In God’s Good Field

by Kevin Burton    From the Old Testament book of Ruth comes a message of faithful, steady industry, to the gain of those who walk with God.    Our lesson today is about gleaning.    Ruth is a love story, but without sappy sentiment. It is a picture of what God has done for humanity, …

Understanding What Forgiveness Is Not

by Dane Massey    (Dane Massey is the former Pastor of Mulvane Christian Church. He is now in ministry in Houston, Texas.)      Last week we talked about forgiveness. Today let’s look at what forgiveness is not.    Forgiveness is not letting the other person off the hook. It is taking them off our hook …

Imitate Jesus By Practicing Forgiveness

by Dane Massey    (Dane Massey is the former Pastor of Mulvane Christian Church. He is now in ministry in Houston, Texas.)       The thought that seems to permeate through II Cor. 3:18 is that we are “transformed” not by keeping outward rules but by “contemplating” (musing, looking upon intently, meditating) the Lord’s glory …

Meaning Of  “Fearfully And Wonderfully Made”

by Kevin Burton    Not sure when I first heard the Biblical phrase “fearfully and wonderfully made,” though it has stuck with me ever since.    Now as I belatedly consider the phrase closely, it seems a little odd at first.    That which is fearful is not wonderful, is it?    Well let’s back …

Immediate Obedience Is The Best Course

by Kevin Burton    My wife Jeannette has a saying, a phrase she uses: “Here in a minute.”    This is recliner speak. She utters the phrase “here in a minute” from her favorite comfortable blue recliner. (We have matching blue recliners. I use mine mostly on NFL Sundays. She uses here year-round.)    “Here …

Hope For The Castaway Through Jesus Christ

by Kevin Burton    To get a picture of what Christ has done for us, it helps to define the word “wilderness.”    Merriam-Webster says wilderness is “a tract or region uncultivated and uninhabited by human beings.” That kind of wilderness may be wild, but it still has its potential. It just hasn’t been tended …