“Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven'” (Matthew 19:14 ESV).

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” The teacher asked her first graders.

“I want to be a police officer!” Shouted a little boy down front, while frantically waving his hand for the teacher’s attention.

“Next time, wait until I call on you Johnny.” The teacher admonished. “But wanting to be a police officer is a good thing. I bet you would be great at it!”

Johnny smiled and nodded his head at the teacher’s approval. He was happy that she liked his career choice.

Good teachers and parents want to affirm their children’s aspirations. They don’t want to “hinder” their dreams.

Yet, we often “hinder” our child’s spiritual receptivity. Whether intentional or not, we can be a hindrance to our children coming to Christ.

Here are just a few ways that we can “hinder” our children in coming to Jesus:

• Having an attitude that children are beneath your “adult” talk of faith.
• Your own lack of belief or poor example.
• Any false teaching that casts doubt on God’s Word
• The weight and priority that you give to following God.
• The kind of example you give of a father (Earthly fathers affect a child’s view of their Heavenly Father).
• (In the church) A lack of committed teachers and volunteers for children’s ministry.
• (In the church) Not enough space and resources given to children’s ministry.

The truth is that children are more receptive to believing in God than adults. Growing older and being more exposed to worldly things does not increase their spiritual receptivity. It lowers it.

Children are the most open to the gospel of all people.

How do you think you are doing at “letting the little children come” to Jesus? How do you think our church is doing?

Do you see any hindrances?

“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:3-6 NIV).

We’re proud of our Guatemala Mission Team. We sent 13 of our very best WCCers to work, serve and teach in a Church school in Guatemala City. They’ve been there all week. They will finish up their 10-day trip and return to the States this Saturday.

I’ve loved reading their daily blog posts and seeing the photos of our team. I can’t help but be moved spiritually and emotionally as I read about their experiences with the children and school teachers.

I’ve also been moved hearing how close this team has grown to one another. There is something powerful about being “partners in the gospel.” There is a joy and a oneness that the Holy Spirit causes to bubble up inside when we work together for the sake of the gospel.

Before our Guatemala Team left, we commissioned them. In my commissioning prayer, I prayed that they would get so “messed-up” for Jesus on this trip that they would come home and get us “messed up” too.

“Messed-up?” You ask.

Yes, I’m praying that God so messes up their comfort zones, their worldviews, and their hearts, that they bring their messed up selves back home and can’t go back to their normal lives. I’m praying that they are ruined for this world and only have eyes for the Kingdom of God.

Looking at the faces they’ve been posting… I think my prayers are already being answered.

“Do good things for the city where I sent you as captives. Pray to the Lord for the city where you are living, because if good things happen in the city, good things will happen to you also” (Jeremiah 29:7 NCV).

We had church at the ballpark last night. I’ve agreed to be the team chaplain for our local baseball team, the Wilson Tobs. The Tobs play in the Coastal Plain League, a NCAA sanctioned collegiate summer baseball league. They have college players from all over the U.S. spending their summer with us in Wilson.

Last night, I had the honor of throwing out the first pitch. Catcher, Heath Holliday (#5 talking to me in the photo above) made me look good, saying, “Good pitch Pastor. That one definitely caught the inside corner!” Heath is from Oklahoma City, OK.

Around 100 WCCers showed up in the sweltering heat (+90 degrees) to support the team. Our worship band, led by my son Stephen, offered an hour of worship music as people entered the stadium before game time. I preached a short sermon on the Lord’s Prayer from home plate to those gathered in the stands. Our own Talia Jernigan sang the National Anthem. And after the game, Bobby Pittman led a WCC crew that provided a postgame meal of chicken pastry for both teams.

“Have you ever had chicken pastry?” I asked my new friend Heath from Oklahoma.

“No sir. I can’t say that I have.” He answered.

“Oh, you’ll love it.” I said, while patting him on the shoulder.

Some might wonder why we would take our church to the ballpark on a Wednesday night, but we love taking our church to the city. Sure, it was hard work and terribly hot and we’re not sure if we made an impact or not. But we do know that we did our best to “do good for our city.”

We are praying to the Lord for our city. We want people to come to Christ in Wilson. When we see all of these young baseball players from all over the U.S. coming to our city, we sense an even more strategic call to share the gospel with them. They could carry the good news to their home towns too.

Tomorrow I’m returning to the ball field to hold a short devotion with the team before another home game. I’m praying that these young men will be open to spiritual things and that God will speak through me. I think it might be easier now that they’ve seen us having church in a ballpark.

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband” (Ephesians 5:31-33 ESV).

Paul says that there is a “profound mystery” surrounding the “one flesh” concept of a husband and wife in marriage and the way it illustrates the relationship between Christ and His church.

This past Saturday, June 2, Robin and I celebrated our 33rd anniversary. We have held fast to one another and have learned this mystery of which Paul speaks. We know this oneness.

We often finish one another’s sentences. We can sit quietly for hours, me reading, her stitching and then suddenly we both start talking at the same time… about the same thing. Weird? Maybe. Mysterious? Absolutely. I cannot imagine life without her.

Now, don’t misunderstand. We may be one, but we’re not the same. She’s a morning person. I’m a night owl. She’s sweet. I’m spicy. She’s a push over with the kids and grandkids. I’m a disciplinarian. She normally likes to play it safe. I tend to be a risk taker.

In most ways we are complete opposites, yet God has made us one. The Word says that when we commit to faithfully cling to one another, and continue to love and respect one another, that we in some way experience the mystery of this oneness.

For Paul the word “mystery” is not a puzzle for us to solve. It is more like a “secret” that must be revealed. What is this secret that marriage is supposed to reveal? It is that Christ wants us to be one with Him as He is one with the Father, that He wants to be our head while we become His body and that He wants to love us as His bride. That’s the mystery of marriage.

But for me there is one other…  And that’s the mystery of why my normally cautious wife decided to take a leap of faith 33 years ago and marry me!

May God be glorified as Robin and I give Him thanks for this mysterious oneness that we now have with Him and with one another.

“Eli’s sons were wicked men; they had no regard for the Lord” (1 Samuel 2:12 NIV).

Eli was the High Priest of Israel. He was also a judge in the days before they had a king. Born into the line of Aaron, by all accounts he was a good priest and judge. Yet, as a father, he was a complete failure. His two sons were raised up to serve in the Tabernacle. They were PKs – “Preacher’s Kids,” but they had “no regard for the Lord.”

How can a parent have such strong faith and be good at their work, yet still be terrible at raising kids?

I’m sure parents ask themselves this same question today. They ask, “Didn’t I keep a roof over your heads and food in your stomachs? Did you ever lack for clothes or shoes? Didn’t I make sure you got a good education? And didn’t I take you to church every Sunday?”

The truth is that a parent can do everything right and their children can still go wrong. Even God the Father has seen His share of rebellious kids.

But there are certain warning signs that our parenting is falling short. These are the signs of a family in crisis that Eli overlooked:

• Worldy preoccupation
• Passive avoidance
• Personal resignation

Success at work does not equal success at home. Come to WCC this Sunday as we launch our new sermon series entitled: “Family Feud” and learn how to respond to these warning signs.

“You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Timothy 2:1-2 NIV).

My son, Jonathan David Combs graduated from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary today with a Masters of Divinity degree. I am very proud of him. Southeastern is my alma mater and I was especially pleased that he got to study under a couple of my former professors.

I owe a great deal to Dr. Wayne McDill, Emeritus Professor of Preaching. He taught me the value of “text-based” preaching. I still remember being in his class and hearing him say, “Gentlemen, you’ve got to discover what the text says and then let the text speak for itself!”

I still strive to do that today. I don’t want to add or subtract to the meaning of God’s Word. Rather than bringing my thoughts and opinions to the Word, I want it to shape my thinking and preaching.

When Jonathan started at SEBTS I told him to make sure to take Dr. McDill for preaching. I’m glad he was able to get at least one class with him before he retired.

Today, after graduation, I was so happy to get a chance to talk to Dr. McDill and to let him know how much I appreciated him. When I told him that I was teaching lay preachers how to study and preach using his method, he encouraged me to email him for a new tool he has developed to train young preachers.

I also got a chance to talk to Dr. Daniel Akin, President of Southeastern. However, when I attended seminary, he was still a professor. He is only a year older than me and I used to just call him “Dr. Danny.” I took Christology from him. He was always one of my favorite professors. I still use his study notes (he gave out huge amounts of structured notes).

Our family enjoyed a beautiful day on the campus in Wake Forest, North Carolina as we stood and watched Jonathan graduate. We’re all very proud of him.

Now, you then, my son, be strong, and go and teach others.