My father-in-law used to always say, "Praise the Lord and shame on the devil!" Anyone I meet who knew him would have heard that statement many times and will comment on it often. They will unfailingly associate that saying with the man for whom it is known. All of us can think of particular sayings linked to a certain person.

On a scale of one to ten (one being okay and ten being outraged), how upset would you be if someone preached in our church's pulpit while intoxicated with alcohol?

For me, this would be a "ten" situation. Clearly, every single one of us would be incensed - and rightly so. It would be a crime against our church and a sin against God. In everyone's book, it would be sin.

Psalm 8 only contains nine verses, but it is very profound and speaks to a core doctrinal truth of God's sovereignty and transcendence. That is, God has made everything, is over everything, and needs nothing of His creation to sustain Himself.

When I Lose My Passion For Service

So many times we approach serving the Lord in our local church and we fail to remember why we are serving. Many of us go into serving with a mindset of responsibility, duty, and sometimes even guilt. We feel it is our responsibility to serve because of what God has done for us; or we serve because we think that since we are redeemed, it is expected of us to serve. This can even lead to us feeling guilted into serving God. 1 Timothy 1, Paul addresses those that are serving the Lord in the church, but adding to the gospel of Christ. In verse 6, he states that their service has become empty words. They have become so empty that they don't even understand, or have confidence in, what they are saying.

Text: Psalm 143:8

"Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee."