Hello again folks. I hope all is well with you. Not much new happening here. Life is continuing to roll on over the pot holes and rocks of resistance. It seems that every preacher has a catch phrase that he will use quite a few times in each message. Especially the more firery preachers that people like to call the ‘hacking’ preachers. I was a hacker for years and I am sure that this style would slowly creep back into my sermons every now and then. My phrase was “My Beloved.” I would say that quite a few times each message. I had an old preacher friend who was a Regular Baptist. He would often sing off his sermon in a subtile but fiery way that spoke directly to your heart. His catch phrase was “I am homesick for Heaven.” He would say this quite a few times during the course of his message. He was truly a man of God and he is now passed from this life to a better place with the Lord. However, I can still see him in my mind as he stood and hear his voice thundering through the many churches that he preached in. However, as I grow older, I can understand why he was so homesick for Heaven. I too am growing homesick. I would like to be in a place where hard times never come and the problems of life never infiltrate the heart and soul. Don’t get me wrong. I want to stay on this earth as long as God will allow but sometimes I find my mind going to a place that is perfect, peaceful and restful. There is a song called ‘I can only imagine’ that speaks of the coming time when we will actually see Him as He is and be with him for all eternity. That makes me homesick and excited for that day.
Have a wonderful day. Tony
2 comments
Comments feed for this article
October 10, 2008 at 11:10 pm
Jerry
That reminds me of the story of the preacher who asked his congregation “How many of you want to go to heaven?”
In response, every member of the congregation raised their hand.
He then asked “How many of you are ready to go today?”
At which point, all the hands went down.
October 12, 2008 at 6:28 pm
tony
I preached a message quite a few years ago on the Sunday before valentines day. I preached about the depth of love and how we should show our appreciation for our signifigant other by giving flowers for valentines day. The next Sunday I was shaking the hands of the congregation as they left the church after the service. One of the ladies said her husband had gotten her flowers on every Valentines Day since their wedding. He was following close behind and immediately said, “Preacher, during the sermon last week I realized the depth of my love isn’t worth the price of flowers.” His wife was obviously upset. I worried about this veteran couple all week and tried to call them several times with no answer. The next Sunday came and the couple was back. After the service, they were waiting on me outside standing beside the wife’s brand new Lexus sedan. Come to find out, the husband surprised her the previous Sunday night with a trip to the east coast for a week. He told her to pack a bag and they flew out that night. When they arrived at their destination, the new Lexus was parked outside with a rose for every year of marriage in a nice bundle in the driver’s seat. The roses had a card attached that stated his love for her could never be described by depth or height but by commitment and things unsaid. The couple thanked me for the Valentine sermon and then took me to a very nice restaurant for brunch.
About four years later, I was honored to be asked to preach this man’s funeral. I focused on his great love for his wife and how he chose to express it four years ago. I would guess his wife still drives the Lexus.