Sermons

Salt and Light

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Most of my life, I’ve been interested in nautical things. I’m not exactly sure why. Maybe it’s because I grew up on the beautiful Lake Michigan shoreline. Maybe it’s because I received a gift from my Aunt Shay of a carved captain figure that I always liked. Maybe it’s because my mom used to read me the classic story of Scuppers the Sailor Dog.

Some of the nautical stuff I’ve collected includes ships, sailors, and lighthouses. And of all the lighthouses, one of the most spectacular is the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in North Carolina.

First constructed in 1802, Cape Hatteras now stands 198 feet tall with its distinctive black and white spiral design. It is the tallest brick lighthouse in the United States.

Dawson Carr in his book on the Cape Hatteras lighthouse poetically describes why this building was necessary. He says the Diamond Shoals of the Atlantic seaboard “waited there like a spider whose web ensnares the unwary who dare to pass too closely.” Only a lighthouse could help ships “stay safely away from this ship cemetery” (p. 32).

There’s no telling how many lives have been saved by the Cape Hatteras lighthouse over the last two hundred years.

I think of that lighthouse when I hear Jesus’ words in Matthew 5. “You are the light of the world…A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others.”

Just as a lighthouse prevents ships from coming too close to shore and running aground on dangerous shoals, so we are called to be salt and light, living distinctively from the world around us. That’s what Paul has in mind as he comes to the final chapter of his letter to the Colossians.

Several months ago, I preached on this passage at Calvary Church. Together, we learned…

  • How to develop the habit and mindset of prayer
  • How we can pray for one another
  • Trusting God when he closes a door
  • What to do when you’re surrounded by darkness
  • A challenge not to waste the precious time God has given us

The message has now been uploaded to my podcast and you can listen using this link:

Thanks for listening. For a complete list of sermons, please visit my sermon hub page.

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Christian Living

Seven Financial Tips for Young Adults

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I recently came across a great article by financial advisor David Bahnsen called, “A Letter to Graduates and All Young Adults.” He has some wise counsel for young adults and really all adults. Along those lines, I thought I’d share seven financial tips that I’d love to see my own kids follow and everyone else too…

1. Build an emergency fund of $1000. Dave Ramsey recommends this as baby step 1. This will be especially important once you’re out of the house.
2. Create a budget and reconcile your bank statements Every. Single. Month.
3. Never put anything on credit card you can’t pay off in full at the end of the month. Credit card interest rates are super high!
4. Don’t go into debt on items that depreciate (lose resale value). Really, the only “smart debt” is a 20-30 year mortgage on a home because it will hold its value and you’re going to pay rent anyway.
5. Buying a house is going to be even harder for your generation that it was for us. It will take diligent planning and you need to start saving as soon as possible and making wise financial decisions
6. Don’t invest in crypto. It’s too much of a gamble. For that matter, don’t gamble at all. It’s way too dangerous and addicting.
7. Start a retirement investment account in your early twenties at the very latest to allow time for compounding interest.

David Bahnsen is right when he says, “The most valuable asset you have is your own character.” David is one of my favorite financial advisors and is interviewed on the podcast The World and Everything In It every Monday. You can find his full letter with more wisdom at the link below…

https://thebahnsengroup.com/dividend-cafe/a-letter-to-graduates-again-and-all-young-adults-june-6-2025/

What other financial advice would you add to the list?

Sermons

Walking Worthy From “9-to-5”

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I once worked with a supervisor who was highly driven, but could sometimes be insulting. Sometimes they were harsh or short tempered. They kind of made you feel like the proverbial parent you could never quite live up to. They tended to come into meetings telling you what they wanted, but rarely asking for input. They were not hesitant to remind you who was in charge.

This could be demoralizing to other team members, sucking the air out of the room and sometimes even bringing people to tears. Employees still had a responsibility to respect and obey their leaders, but there was just a general lack of grace from the leader. In contrast, God says in Colossians 4:1 that those in authority should lead “justly and fairly,” knowing you also have a Master in heaven.

If you think about it, we spend more time working and supervising others than almost any other human activity. Yet how many of us have developed a theology of work? One helpful passage to look into is Colossians 3:22-4:1. In this section, we learn…

  • How work is one of our greatest acts of devotion toward God
  • Respecting those in authority
  • Staying faithful in the little things
  • Thoughts on slavery in the Bible and our American founding
  • Instructions for those who manage and supervise
  • A great quote by Martin Luther King Jr. on our work

I preached on this passage several months ago at Calvary Church. Here’s the link:

Thanks for listening! You can find more sermons on the Sermon page of this blog. 

Counseling

Train Up a Child

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When Natalie was pregnant with our first child, we drove down to Babies ‘R Us in Van Nuys and started a gift registry. This was a whole new world, and we quickly realized that baby supplies are a multi-billion dollar industry. It was overwhelming. How could there be so many diaper bags and strollers to choose from?

One of the best baby gifts we ever received was a little Fisher Price booster seat to be used at mealtime. It was lightweight, had an adjustable food tray, could be strapped to almost any chair, and took up little space, eliminating the need for a separate high chair. To this day, we still have that booster seat for young families who visit. Who knows — maybe our own grandkids will use it someday?

The kids used to sit in that booster seat for hours. At the dinner table, for TV shows, during church services, at church potlucks. We fed them snacks, we laughed together, sang together, told stories, and played peek-a-boo, all in that little chair. Don’t worry, they weren’t trapped in it all the time. But they spent a lot of time in that chair, a lot of training, a lot of playing, and a lot of life happened right here, in that little seat.

Whether your child is a young toddler still in a booster seat, or already a teenager, one of the most important lessons you can teach them is the idea of spiritual authority. How can this be done in loving, meaningful ways?

I preached on this several months ago at Calvary Church. In this study of Colossians 3:20-21, we learned…

  • What is means to honor your father and mother
  • How to handle temper tantrums
  • Should we discipline our kids? How? When?
  • What does it mean to “provoke our children” to anger?
  • God’s wisdom in the parent-child relationship

Here’s the audio:

Thanks for listening. For a complete list of all my sermons organized by book of the Bible, please visit the sermon hub on my blog.

Journal

Semper Reformanda

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Happy Reformation Day! I wonder, in what areas does the modern church still need reforming? What dangers and blind spots do we face? A few that come to mind…

  • Lack of reverence for the Lord’s Day
  • Self-centered theology in our songs
  • Pragmatism in our church growth
  • Mysticism that supplants the Word of God
  • Ignoring biblical male/female roles
  • Prayerlessness
  • Earthly mindedness
  • Politicizing the pulpit
  • Underemphasizing the Second Coming of Christ

The Reformers used an expression, “semper reformanda,” meaning “always reforming.” We always have room for growth. As Jesus said to the church in Sardis, “Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God” (Revelation 3:2).

Which of these do you think is a major problem? What would you add to the list?

Thoughts on Life and Leadership