Posts by 70 West Church of Christ

(Note: I wrote this almost a year ago as my dear friend, Craig Wray, had just succumbed to his cancer. As the anniversary date of his death approaches, he has been on my mind quite a bit. I just recorded a video for our Bible investigation in which we attempt to answer the question about how a Christian is to count it joy when he/she goes through trials, such as cancer. Craig exemplified this mindset. I wish you all could…

(Note from Josh…Luke Tatum addresses something here that is quite thought provoking. When we come to worship, we must remember that it is, #1 about God, not me. #2, God is looking on the heart, not the clothes. I am convinced, that with some folks in the church, Jesus, Paul, or Peter would have been asked to go put on a suit and tie before they were allowed in the pulpit. As Luke points out, if you are convicted that…

I remember when I was fourteen years old and I was playing on my Babe Ruth All-Star team. That team was one of the most tenacious teams I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing baseball with. During the All-Star tournaments, we played a total of ten games. Out of those ten games, we managed to win eight of them before being eliminated and finishing third in the state. But out of those eight wins all but one of them were…

As I write this, it is 10:49pm on Saturday, October 5, 2024. Today will be remembered in the College Football world as Upset Saturday as two Top 5 teams were beaten by unranked teams (my #4 Vols being one of those teams). Number 9 Missouri fell to #25 Texas A&M; #22 Louisville fell to unranked SMU; #10 Michigan fell to unranked Washington; #11 USC fell to unranked Minnesota; to round out the weekend, #25 UNLV lost to unranked Syracuse and…

Some time ago, I attended a St. Louis Cardinals game at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals were playing the Pittsburgh Pirates and the game was a good one. Somewhere around the eighth inning it began to rain. After the rain delay, my father, my brother, and I went back to our seats. Sitting near us, were two teenage boys of about fifteen or sixteen. Many people had left when the rain started, so there were some empty seats down in front…

The man Jonah is a mystery. First alluded to in 2 Kings 14:25, all that is recorded of him there is that he prophesied concerning the restoration of the “territory of Israel from the entrance of Hamath to the sea of the Arabah”; he was the son of Amittai and was from Gath Hepher. Nothing else is recorded of him until we get to the book which bears his name. That he was a real, historical person, there can be…

Preachers have a distinctive view of the congregation as he stands before them and delivers the message from God’s word. As he teaches the lesson, he subconsciously assesses the audience, and immediately knows if the attendance for that day is good or is lacking. As human nature would have it, members have the habit of sitting in the same place for each service they attend. If the congregation is small, the preacher has probably memorized each member or family’s designated…

My wife and I have a date every Tuesday for lunch. We usually grab a bite to eat at one of our local establishments. As we left one restaurant, we noticed that if we filled out a survey, we could get a free sandwich. I started wondering whether a person could survive just by filling out surveys. My wife said, “Try it!” I said, “No.” I have filled out a survey on occasion to get free food, but I don’t…

Imagine this: you walk into a fast-food restaurant and order a hamburger, fries, and a coke – the all-American meal! But then, you notice that it seems to take an unusually long time to get your food. Finally, the gal at the counter brings up your order – piles of food on three separate trays! “What’s all of this?” you ask. “Well,” answers the waitress, “it’s one of every item on our menu. Your bill comes to $85.68.” You protest:…

I really had no clue that I was going to die today. I hadn’t scheduled it or set a reminder. It wasn’t something I had even been thinking about. Yet, here I am, dead. I knew eventually it would happen, but not like this. I had wanted to go peacefully in my sleep at some undetermined but appropriate age—at an age when I had all my affairs in order, nothing left undone or unsaid. I wanted to go out with…

I try to do as the Apostle Paul did, to preach the whole counsel of God.” I try to preach that every man ought to love every other man on this Earth; that if there is any answer to the racism we find in the world, it is in the religion of Jesus Christ; that the gospel has the great purpose of drawing all men into one body, that we may all be one in Christ, no matter whether you…

Just a few years ago no member of the church known to me would have contended that humming would be acceptable in Christian worship. Yet, some time ago I received a phone call from a preacher in another state; and during our conversation, he stated that he was disturbed that a well known song director had recently visited in his section of the country, and while there participated in a worship service, during which he sang a solo while the…