119 results found

Is my work sacred?

January 30, 2015 | Christ, Gary Combs, God, jesus, Lord, sacred, secular, vocation, work

“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ” (Colossians 3:23-24 ESV). We have mistakenly divided our work today as either belonging to the sacred or the secular realm. We tend to identify the

Is reconciliation required?

January 16, 2015 | Christ, fellowship, forgive, forgiveness, Gary Combs, God, harmony, jesus, peace, reconcile, reconciliation, relationships

What do we do when a relationship is fractured by an offense? How do we find forgiveness and reconciliation? And what do we do when we are faced with the problem of the unrepentant offender that will not or has not reconciled to us. We might even question God, saying, “Do I have to forgive them?

The greatest gift exchange

December 18, 2014 | Christ, christmas, exchange, Gary Combs, gift, God, jesus, salvation

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23 NKJV). Do you remember “leisure suits?” My grandmother Combs used to buy a suit for all her grandsons every Christmas. She was a very smart shopper and would have most of her Christmas shopping finished for the following

Why we’re doing “Rockin’ Christmas”

December 12, 2014 | christmas, God, jesus, Rockin Christmas, WCC

“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: ‘Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel’” (which means, God with us)” (Matthew 1:22-23 ESV). Some have been wondering why we’re doing an event that has such a secular feel to it.

Whose birthday is it?

December 5, 2014 | birthday, Christ, christmas, frankincense, Gary Combs, gifts, giving, God, gold, jesus, myrrh

“And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh” (Matthew 2:11 ESV). When I asked the children at a Sunday service, “Who gets gifts on your birthday?” Their answer was a loud, “I

Is your Bible gathering dust?

November 21, 2014 | bible, Christ, Gary Combs, God, God's Word, jesus, study, sword, Word, Word of Truth

“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). Where’s your Bible? Have you picked it up lately? If you find it, does it have an inch of dust and

Visiting the orphan with gospel hope

October 31, 2014 | adoption, Christ, fatherless, Gary Combs, God, gospel, hope, jesus, orphan, widow

“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (James 1:27 ESV). This coming Sunday is “Orphan Sunday.” Our church is joining churches around the country by setting apart the first Sunday in November to focus on

Fish symbols and generosity

October 9, 2014 | Christ, Gary Combs, generosity, giving, God, grace, jesus

“You will be glorifying God through your generous gifts. For your generosity to them will prove that you are obedient to the Good News of Christ” (2 Cor. 9:13 NLT). Some years ago I had a conversation with my son about his job at the car wash… “How did work go today?” I asked. “Fine.” He

Tattoos, tribes and true community

October 3, 2014 | Christ, church, community, family, fellowship, Gary Combs, God, jesus

“And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” Acts 2:42 (ESV) What makes a true community? People use the word community to describe all sorts of social groups. But what constitutes a “true” (real, authentic, fully realized) community? If we are born into the same race or family, does

Bible memorization and business cards

September 19, 2014 | bible, Gary Combs, God, jesus, Lord, memorization, Scripture, Scripture memory, Word

“… he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law …It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these