Enjoying the Journey
Posts Tagged ‘finishing’
GUEST POST: “Finish Strong”
Kurt Copeland has been a faithful youth pastor at the Franklin Road Baptist Church in Murfreesboro, Tennessee for many years. God has used he and his wife to make a difference in the lives of countless young people. His faithfulness is an example to me and his friendship an encouragement. You will enjoy these thoughts from his heart. It has been my goal since the day I started preaching to reach teenagers for Christ. Now, nearly twenty-seven years later, that goal has only gotten stronger. How can we effectively reach teenagers for Christ in today’s society? I have heard it said, “It’s not how you start the race, but how you finish that really makes the difference.” I do agree…
Read MoreLincoln’s Letter: April 7, 1865
In just a few days Lincoln would “belong to the ages.” His life, like the Civil War, was soon to end. The final stages of battle were underway. Lincoln has always been my favorite president. On my desk are two volumes of Lincoln’s letters and speeches from 1832-1865. From time to time I enjoy seeing what Lincoln wrote or spoke on a particular day. On the closing pages I have found an amazing entry. They are words written only eight days before his race was finished. In it is more than a message for his favorite general. Here we find a message for us all… Head Quarters Armies of the United States City-Point, Lieut Gen. Grant. …
Read More6 Things to Do in the Last 6 Days of the Year
The final week of the year is perhaps the strangest week of the year. It is like living in limbo. One year seems all but gone and the next is not yet here. Many will wait until January 1 to begin their resolutions. But wise men know “better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof” (Eccl. 7:8). Do you remember the intensity and intent with which you began this year for the Lord? Do not simply regret that it waned. Refuse to wait, and waste another day, to regain it! Finish well. End as you desired when you started. A new day begins best when the previous day ended right. And so it is with a new…
Read MoreWhen It Is Time to Go
Recently I wrote a post on the discipline and joys of staying where God put you. Like the Psalmist David we sometimes feel like we would like a change of scenery and circumstance. He wrote in Psalm 55, “Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest. Lo, then would I wander far off, and remain in the wilderness. Selah. I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest.” We have all been there. There are days when the word escape sounds beautiful. The problem is that leaving does not always bring the peace that our pragmatic hearts promise. There is a rest in the middle of the storm.…
Read MoreFinishing Well
Earlier today our students at Crown College completed their final exams and departed for Christmas break. There is something terribly exciting about the successful conclusion to another semester of college. (Teachers feel this way too!) Miraculously, everyone seems to have a good day on the last day of school. It is one thing to finish and quite another to finish well. The Apostle Paul knew what it was to finish well when he wrote, “I have finished my course” (2 Timothy 4:7). In still another place he testified that his aim was to “finish my course with joy” (Acts 20:24). Not simply to endure. Not to manage to collapse across the finish line. To finish strong! Through the years I…
Read More
