Begin with Jesus

The autobiography of G. Stanley Jones is titled A Song of Ascent, and it’s considered to be a spiritual classic. Jones was a great man: a missionary to India, a friend to Gandhi, a tireless world traveler, and a Read more

Weeds

Have you ever been responsible for a task you didn’t particularly enjoy? Perhaps you can relate to one homemaker who developed a unique perspective on some of her less enjoyable household duties. She said: I don't do windows because I Read more

New Each Day

Patrick Henry, whose primary contribution to the history books is the phrase "Give me liberty or give me death," made another memorable statement. He said, "I know of no way of judging the future but by the past." Repeat this before Read more

I Am Second :: Remi Adeleke

"I made it through the Bronx, the streets, became a Navy Seal, and nobody could tell me nothing." Remi Adeleke craved money, the power and respect as his success in life. He found it being a thug, a hustler, a Read more

Baggage

We've all got it and it's really hard to let it go. In this skit, Tommy and Eddie give us a window into a young man's life who seems to be dealt one blow after another and becomes weighed Read more
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Empty Stage, Empty Tomb

Posted on April 3, 2013 by Mike Tucker in Articles | Leave a comment

tomb5In his book, There I Go Again, Steven Moseley tells about Anna Pavlova, a Russian ballet superstar of the early 1900s. Ms. Pavlova has been acclaimed as the greatest ballerina of all time. Her most memorable performance, however, took place after her death.

Anna was to play the role she made famous, the Dying Swan, at the Apollo Theatre in London. Tragically, she succumbed to pneumonia and died two days before the event.

Still, on the appointed night, a crowd of her fans packed the Apollo Theatre. The orchestra began playing, the curtain rose, a spotlight flashed through the dark, and the entire audience rose to its feet. They all stood gazing at a pool of light wandering around the stage, accompanied by the orchestral theme. As the light danced and the orchestra played, they remembered Anna Pavlova. In their hearts they could see her on stage, dressed in white with flashing dark eyes. And when the music stopped at last, they gave the vanished Anna a thunderous ovation that echoed on and on in the night.

An empty stage with only a spotlight, but in their hearts she was alive.

As Christians, we believe that Jesus, God’s own Son, came to earth taking on the form of a man.  We believe that He lived among us, died, and on the third day rose again. With Jesus, there is no empty stage, for our Lord is alive and well and reigns supreme in the Universe. As a result, we will live forever. Immortality is ours because of Jesus.

Remember Woody Allen’s comic assessment? “I don’t want to achieve immortality through my work,” he said. “I want to achieve immortality by not dying.”

Which is it? Are we immortal because there are those who remember and cherish the fact that once we walked this earth, or are we immortal because Christ has once and forever battered down the gates of death? Is it an empty stage or an empty tomb?

Seeing God in Others

Posted on March 27, 2013 by Mike Tucker in Articles | Leave a comment

bh1One of the most horrific stories that comes from World War II, is the story of how the Japanese built the Burma-Siam railroad using allied prisoners of war as forced laborers. For every mile of track, 393 men are said to have died.  Wearing nothing but loincloths, they worked for hours in scorching temperatures, chopping their way through tangled jungles.  Those who paused out of exhaustion were beaten to death by guards.  Treated like animals, the prisoners became themselves like beasts trying to survive.

Each night the Japanese guards would count the work tools before anyone was permitted to return to camp.  One evening, when a shovel was found to be missing, a guard shouted relentlessly that the guilty man must present himself.  When no one responded, he ordered callously, “All die!  All die!”  At this, a young man stepped forward, confessing to the theft, and was immediately killed before them.

Upon returning to the camp, one of the guards discovered a mistake in their counting.  There had never been a missing shovel.  The young man that stepped forward was innocent; he had sacrificed his life to preserve the lives of his fellow inmates.  After this incident, attitudes among the camp began to change dramatically.  The men began to look out for each other.

The transformation in the men of the prison was so thoroughly unlike the world they were forced to live in that one could only point to God as the reason for the transformation.  “Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”  The sacrifice of one innocent man can reverse the flow of history.  Perhaps the kingdom of God is indeed among us, a spring of living water in a dry and weary land.

One Thing

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Mike Tucker in Articles | Leave a comment

url-3In the movie City Slickers, Curly (Jack Palance) tells Mitch (Billy Crystal) that the secret of happiness is found in one thing.

“What’s the one thing?” Mitch asks.

Curly says, “You have to find out that for yourself.”

Paul defined the one thing for himself. He said: “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.” (Philippians 3:13-14)

His “one thing” was winning the prize — the prize of knowing and being known by Jesus. This goal was the driving force behind all that he did.

Paul was a driven man.  He was driven to accomplish great things in life.  But more importantly, Paul was driven first by the desire to know Jesus. His devotional life, not his ambition, fueled his ministry.

Here’s how this plays out in my life. When I’m driven by the desire to see results, I’m frustrated most of the time. Nothing, not even success, is quite good enough. When I’m driven — as I always should be — by the desire to know Jesus, two things happen: One, I tend to work harder. Two, I have peace in the process.

Actually, everyone is already driven by one thing. Some can define it, some can’t. When your one thing is the goal of knowing Christ and becoming like Him, as Paul says in Philippians 3, you will find peace. And when your work for Him is fueled by your devotion, not your ambition, it will becomes less of an exercise in frustration, and more of the adventure God intends it to be.

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