Some of you will remember.

When I was a kid we had a tablet with a wax back and a clear sheet of plastic. It had a plastic stylus that you would use to draw all sorts of masterpieces of art. If you messed up, you simply pulled the plastic away from the wax and the board was now clean for a new attempt.

There are times in all of our lives when we are ready for a new start and, as long as we are not attempting to run away from legitimate responsibilities or necessary commitments, such a new start can be both vital and refreshing. I find myself at such a time in my own life.

For the past 28 years I have had the privilege of preaching at a small but thriving church in Happy, Texas. It is odd, because I never planned (nor even dreamed) of being a preacher. But God has ways of redirecting our lives if we have a heart to serve. And, while my heart was perhaps a bit too reluctant at times, I hope that He has developed within me a heart to serve. My wife and I have been privileged to live in the town of Happy, and we have no desire to leave. Further, I have loved serving in the capacity of a preacher and youth minister, and my wife has supported me in such a way as to have helped me succeed in both of these areas of service.

Having said that, I have felt for a number of years that it is time for a new direction. I felt the same way some 28 years ago when I left the profession of real estate appraisal and packed up the family to move from Wyoming to Texas. I loved the people and my job in Wyoming, but it was time for a change, at least it felt that way, and I have never regretted that decision. I believe that I will have no regrets for this decision for, I am convinced, the direction I am taking will provide fruitful and productive in my service to the Lord.

In short, it is time for a change:

                                                   Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.  (Psalms 51:10, ESV)

So, I would like to tell you about my plan for a fresh direction. I am telling you this for two reasons: First, I hope that this plan will lead in a direction that will help many people. Second, because I need you and am hoping that you can help. Here, then, is my plan for the foreseeable future:

I have been writing daily articles for the commonsensechristian.com website for over thirteen years now. Due to overloading my own schedule, I have had to take a break from that commitment in recent years. Now that I have stepped down from full-time preaching, I am ready to start again. My wife and I have also developed a 30 Day Bible Challenge which many of you have likely taken. It is a simple program designed to read the Word of God, and then to study it so that you can find for yourself what the Bible says and not have to rely on other people to tell you what God expects of you. So, the first part of my plan is to write daily articles again, and to start back up a program of encouraging Bible literacy, an aspect of Christian life that for far too many has been lacking of late.

The next part of my plan is to put out a podcast and/or videos for a Youtube channel on a weekly basis. The purpose of this podcast will be to provide practical tips for navigating a difficult and sometimes wicked world. There are confusing things going on in this world that need more than a casual thought if we are going to handle them correctly for God. If you are like me, the everyday challenges are enough to distract you from your true purpose here on earth. We are here to serve God and go to heaven! We must not allow ourselves to be so impacted by the things going on in our world at the present time that we forget our primary purpose in life.

This is where I would like to ask for your help. First, I would greatly appreciate your prayers. I want very much to take this venture in the right direction. I am old enough (63 years of age) to no longer have the young man's pride of desiring to be perceived of being right, even if I am wrong. Service to God has no room for such an immature point of view, so I do sincerely request you to be praying that I not go in any direction other than one which will be pleasing to God.

Second, if you find the daily articles helpful, I would ask that you share them with any that you think might also be helped. Obviously, the writings of men have little value, but the Holy Scriptures have the words of life. If you gain something from the Biblical concepts stressed in these articles (and podcasts when I get the technology figured out) then I would humbly ask that you consider passing them along. Liking, sharing, and commenting on articles will help the website to grow, if indeed it needs to.

That's pretty much all. I am "ripping back the plastic sheet of my magic erase board" and starting on what I hope can be a work that is beneficial as well as a worthy endeavor for a servant of The Most High.

The wicked strut freely about when what is vile is honored among men.        Psalms 12:8, NIV

Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight         II Peter 2:12, NIV

And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper.

Romans 1:28, NAS

In a town just 15 minutes from where I live, there have been sad things happening. In the past year this town hosted a "pride day" in one of their parks. They invited grown men to dress up as women and perform for the crowds. Many brought their children to this event so that they could get in on the fun. In recent days folks at their college, a fine university of which I myself am a proud alumni, decided they would hold a "drag" event for "charity". To his credit, the president of the university said that it could not take place.

And the wrath of Hell has fallen upon this man.

He has been called every name in the book, I won't go into the list, but the overall theme is that he is hateful. The side of those who want to invite grown men to dress in women's clothing and perform whatever acts they might deem appropriate for the cause of charity, is absolutely convinced that this man is hateful. He is hateful because men should be allowed to do whatever they want to do... and he won't let them. He is hateful because this event was to raise money for those who were suicidal... and he wouldn't let them. He is hateful for daring to not lend the university's prestige to this event of homosexuals living out their fantasies in public.

But, understand this. It is not hateful to stand for what is right.

Sometimes standing for what is right necessitates taking a stand against what is wrong. It is not mankind who decided that homosexuality is a sin - it was God. But some men will say that "love is love is love" and the Bible commands us to love one another. All it takes is a casual knowledge of the Scriptures to understand the error of this idea. In I Corinthians 6:19, I Timothy 1:10, and the latter part of Romans chapter 1, we read without ambiguity, that homosexuality is sin. Further, like all sin, we read that it will cause those who act in such ways to be lost for all eternity unless they repent from that sin.

It is not a difficult concept to understand, but the people of this world do not accept it. That's okay, rejecting God's will is indeed an option for all men as long as they draw breath, but it is not an option that can be taken without consequences.

And it should be acknowledged by fair-minded men that a person should have the option of not going along with any sin. The children of the god of this world (Satan) will not like it. They will rail against you and call you names, but it does not change for a moment what is right and wrong in God's eyes. In the end, we must understand, it will only be His opinion that matters. He still loves us. He gave His only Son to die for our sins that we might not have to live apart from Him for all eternity. He extends His grace to those who will accept it. But make no mistake about this fact: His grace cannot be used as an excuse to sin (Romans 6).

One final thought. If I have a two year old who is angry because I will not let him play in traffic, such a refusal does not mean that I hate him. In fact, my motivation is the exact opposite of hate. Furthermore, I am not gong to play in traffic with him to make him feel better for his foolish behavior. Again, I will do just the opposite because I love him and I will not put him or me at unnecessary risk just to indulge his immature whims.

To take a stand against destructive behavior is not hateful. And, to the man of courage who currently has the position of President of this college, know that there are many who are praying for you and who sincerely appreciate your loving stand.

What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

Mark 8:36, KJV

Today is December 31, the last day of the year. It has been traditional on this day for men and women everywhere to make resolutions as to what they would like to accomplish. These resolutions are usually of a physical nature. Having just finished the "feasting season" which runs from Thanksgiving up until the time the last of the Christmas goodies are consumed, many will resolve to diet and exercise. Nothing wrong with that, for we all need to be in better shape.

Many will resolve to improve their financial circumstances. From getting out of debt to saving more money to getting a better paying job, all people could stand to be healthier from a financial perspective. Again, there are many benefits from such resolves, and there is nothing wrong with wanting to better yourself financially. Then there are the more noble resolutions. These usually run along the lines of spending more time with family and being more considerate of one's spouse and children. Clearly, such goals are beneficial and important.

The problem with all such resolutions is that they are nearly all made with little thought as to the actual cost or the amount of time and effort they will require. Probably 90% of the people who make resolutions fail in the first week, because they did not really want to do something that would be hard or expensive. The offer that I have for you today is both difficult and costly. It will involve a change of habit and a great deal of thought and effort. But..

for those who will do it, for those who are honest enough to understand that you cannot have quality results without quality effort, I have an offer that cannot be matched. For this resolve involves your eternal soul. We all know that we should be worshipping on Sunday mornings, but where? We may have tried as many churches as Baskin Robbins has flavors of ice cream, only to never find one to our particular taste. We all know that we should pray more, but have usually limited such activity to prayers like, "Lord, if you are out there and can here me, please help". Such a weak prayer is as useless as it is faithless.

We also know that we should read the Bible more often. But we have children who need taken care of, work to be done, and constant interruptions that take up most of our time. With what little time we do have left, we want to relax so we can recharge our batteries for the next round of chaos. And besides, no one can really understand the Bible, otherwise there wouldn't be so many people disagreeing on it's message. And as for going to church, that place is filled with hypocrites. The preacher is usually boring and always asking for money. Besides all that, the people are unfriendly...

I could go on and on (and usually do) but you get the point. When it comes to our immortal souls, we would all like to go to Heaven, but we would prefer to do so on the cheap. "Just a little house in the corner somewhere will be fine", we might say. That shouldn't require too much time. For now, there are ballgames and parades and Hallmark specials that we could be watching.

Can we see it? The road to Hell is paved with good intentions and the promise of little effort. But the narrow road that leads to life is paved with hard, but satisfying work. So here is the offer I have for you: For your most important resolution this year, make a commitment to read the Word of God. And to pray. And to worship.

For the next thirty days we will be posting a schedule that will get you through the entire New Testament. It will take about thirty minutes a day. For the next thirty days, worship with the church every first day of the week. Which church? You can get a clear and accurate description of that church as you are reading the New Testament. Look for it first in the Scriptures, and then go find it. If you can't find it at first, keep looking.

And pray! For the next thirty days make an effort to restore your relationship with God. Pray that God will help you to find His will so that you can serve Him. "But serving is not for me", you might be thinking. Then neither is Heaven! So we must stop the fairy tale notions we may have about what Christianity and religion are, and find out the truth about these vital subjects from the only reliable source available.

All this will take time and effort. Why not take thirty days to give it a try? A wise person once said when you have everything to gain by doing something, but nothing to lose, by all means do it.

You have nothing to lose over the next thirty days by resolving to do these three simple things: Read the Bible as much as you can, pray as much as you can, and worship with the church every time the doors are open. "But I do have a lot to lose", you may be thinking. "I could lose a whole month!" But let's face reality. You were going to be a month older at the end of the next thirty days anyway. Why not be thirty days wiser as well? Why not be thirty days closer to Heaven, rather than just being thirty days older?

You see, you really have nothing to lose, but everything to gain. Why not do it? The 30 Day Bible Challenge begins tomorrow!

The heavens declare the glory of God

Psalms 19:1, NKJV

It is a brand new day. As I look out my window, a brilliant red sky is lighting up the sky as if to herald the coming of this new day. On days like this it seems that nothing is impossible. We can change what needs to be changed and we can devote ourselves to the things of true importance. It's not the sunrise, though, that I want to tell you about today, but a day that occurred when I was a young man nearly 40 years ago.

It was on that day that my life changed. It was a pretty ordinary day for a young real estate appraiser. As I recall, it was a rather slow time of year and I was looking for something to do. We recently had a guest speaker at the church I attended, and he was a gifted speaker. It wasn't that he had flowery speech or a dramatic oratory style, he just preached the truth in love. At this particular meeting, he encouraged us to begin reading the Bible every day. He indicated that it would change our lives if we did, and I thought I would give it a try.

So on that day, in an empty office, I sat down on a couch and just opened the Bible at random. As it turned out it opened at the book of Zephaniah, and I began to read. I got caught up in the word and read the next short book as well, and then next one and then another. Before I knew it I was reading in the New Testament Gospel of Matthew. After a while, I put up the Bible and went back to work, but something changed within me that day. I realized that though I had been a Christian for nearly ten years, I was like so many others who had just adopted the faith of their parents. If I was honest with myself I would have had to admit that I really wasn't all that serious about God and Christ.

I made a commitment that day to become a daily Bible reader. Not so that I could boast to others that I had done so, for this was not what motivated me. If anything, I kept this new habit to myself, sharing it with no one at the time except my wife. Not long after making that new commitment, I can remember going to bed after a particularly long day, only to have my eyes snap open at the realization that I had not yet read my Bible. I turned on the light and read a verse or two, and then turned it off again and went to sleep. No big deal, perhaps, and I'm sure I didn't get much from my reading that day, but I had begun a new habit that I didn't want to break.

And those simple events in my early years changed my life!

The more I read the more I found the things that God wanted me to know that I didn't. My wife started the practice shortly thereafter, and she found the same. It took a while, but our lives began to change. We stopped going to movies that we knew really weren't all that wholesome, and we turned off our television or switched the channel when something came on that we would not be comfortable with God knowing that we were watching. I put away books with bad language and bad content. We continued to worship with the church, but now we had something worthwhile to add to the Bible classes, for we were slowly gaining a knowledge from the Word, rather than from our own thoughts. We both taught Bible classes, and I started to fill in preaching when it was needed.

Time marched on, like it always does, We had three children, moved 700 miles away and changed professions during that time. But the one thing we never changed was our habit of reading and studying the Word each day. I even became a preacher (much to the amazement of friends from my earlier days) and have done my best to simply encourage people to read the Bible and to do the things that God commands within His Word. 

I know this is not a dramatic, earth-shaking story, but it is my story and I want you to know that my life has changed. I had a fresh start that day, some forty years ago. And though I did not know (nor could I have known) how that simple opening of the Bible would change my life and the lives of my family and friends, it did change it in a remarkable way. I know that I am going to heaven if I will just do the simple and pleasant things that God has for me to do. I am not going to heaven because of my own goodness - I know that. But, because of God's grace and Christ's sacrifice for me on the cross, I have the opportunity to serve Them, and the deal They have offered is eternal life if I will just do my small part.

I have found that small part within the pages of the Bible, and you will too if you will just give it a chance. You may feel as if you are drowning right now with the pressures of life that go hand in hand with this hectic world. You may be "good enough" in your own eyes, but that is not enough, and you can see that it is not enough when you slow down and honestly assess where you are in life. If you are feeling overwhelmed on this day, welcome to the club! But don't wallow in self-pity: Do something about it!

A new day is dawning for those who will meet the challenges that God has in store for them. You can have a fresh start. You can have your own faith - the very faith that God wants you to have. The instructions for these incredible changes are contained within the pages of God's holy Word. Why not open them up and embrace the blessings of this wonderful life that you have been missing out on for the simple fact that you have never started really started your search.

In a few days, we will be starting the 30 Day Challenge to read through the New Testament. It is a simple thing, but it has the power to change the direction of your life and the lives of those you love. I hope you will join us! I pray that you will, for it will give you the fresh start that you need to live the abundant life that God has in store for all those who will serve Him according to His Word. 

It's a brand new day! Why not commit to start a brand new life?