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I think the reason most people rarely, if ever, attend church is because too many churches are not worth attending. Church can be incredibly boring.I also believe that it’s a sin for church leaders to let things go that way. But sadly, too many do.We aren’t often accused of being boring at The Bridge. Actually, we work hard at bringing music that reflects the excitement and depth of the Gospel. And those who teach spend a lot of time preparing, not just so that we teach the t

Timanthes was an aspiring Greek artist in the Roman era. While studying under a well respected tutor, he was nearing completion of a major painting. Upon arriving in the morning, he found the canvas blotted out with paint. Enraged, he confronted his teacher who admitted destroying his work. He said, “You were spending so much time admiring what you had done that you were no longer improving. This was a great painting for some, but not for you. You can do much better.”Timanthe

My wife was talking with an older woman in our church who has been here for decades. The woman said, “Look at all these stains,” and pointed around the lobby carpeting. Linda acknowledged what was obvious (we have a hard time keeping up on it), and then the woman said, “And I love it!"“What?” my wife asked."It means this place is full of people and it’s being used. I remember when we didn’t have to clean the carpeting very often. I like it better this way."Proverbs 14:4 says,

My wife is the creative one. Every Christmas she brings to our family a new and often creative idea for focusing on Jesus at Christmas in a special way. We do many of the traditional Christmas practices. We decorate a tree (often the day after Thanksgiving), put up a some lights outside and greenery inside. We wrap a few and simple gifts and exchange them Christmas Eve. Because Christmas Eve is an all day work day for me, We have Christmas Eve brunch and later have light but

Some of you are really stressed out.Some of you admit it…and maybe your family, friends and coworkers are even tired of hearing about it. Some of you don’t really admit it. But your sleepless nights, stomach issues, and high blood pressure reveal what’s really going on.Stress is deadly. Mayo clinic claims that it is the chief cause of early onset heart disease, along with a myriad of other health issues. Stress inhibits our bodies' immune systems, complicates autoimmune disea

Paris two weeks ago and this week, San Bernardino. There is no doubt that terror is on the rise, and it is a threat in the United States.Husband and wife, Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik, both bent on religious Jihad and with terrorist ties, charged into a conference room filled with many of Syed’s co-workers celebrating Christmas. They were wearing body armor and brandishing military guns. They opened fire, killing fourteen and wounding another seventeen.The news in re

I love Thanksgiving and wish I could enjoy it, but the merchandisers want us thinking about Christmas.The truth is, if we lived out Thanksgiving daily, we’d all be a lot happier. Grateful people are happy people. Greedy people are not.But for some reason, even though we all say that we hate the merchandising of Christmas, we give way to it. The message of Jesus’ birth was lost a long time ago and now the greed that took over Christmas has invaded Thanksgiving too. Black Frida

They often are not.I recently visited a couple of locations where television programs are regularly taped for the History Channel. I was surprised both times. Television can be very deceiving. Some of it is due to the nature of camera lenses and TV screens, and the way our imagination fills in what is past the camera’s periphery. But a lot of it is intentional deception written into the director’s instructions to give a desired illusion. All-in-all, these two locations were e

I know that’s not what you really want. Everyone who has ever lived has had an internal desire to make a difference, to live in such a way that their lives will outlast their time on earth. And you’re no exception. But a lot of people go through life without making any kind of impact. In your heart, you don’t want that to happen. But here’s how it often does. No commitment is ever made to anything worthwhile, outside of their own consumption. So they never accomplish anythi

Jim Carey said, “I think everyone should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.”I’m reading the little Old Testament book of Amos. He wrote to Israel during the zenith of it’s prosperity and power in the world. But his message was not a positive one.It’s not that Israel’s prosperity was a bad thing. Instead, He seems to indicate that they were blessed with riches and influence in the world. And he promises those wh

No, I’m not talking about Wednesday evening’s Republican primary debate. I think there’s mixed reviews on how good that was.

Two landscapers were working vigorously in a park. But a casual observer was confused by what he saw. One man was digging a hole, and the other man was filling it up. They were making good time, but what they were doing didn’t seem to make sense. So he asked them about it.“We’re planting trees. I’m digging the hole. He’s filling it in. But the guy who puts the tree in is sick today."You can work really hard and yet accomplish nothing. Right? Most of us have done that to some