About Tom Hall

I am serving Beulah Baptist Church in Sunbury, NC as pastor. I am married to my wife, Laura, for 42 years. We have two children and five grandchildren.

Posts by Tom Hall:

Sermon Connection

Sermon-ConnectionsThe Best Defense…

Encouragement

“If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. “But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that BY THE MOUTH OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES EVERY FACT MAY BE CONFIRMED. “If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Matthew 18:15-17 (NASB)

Most people cringe when they think of this passage. I think it is because we see it in a negative light of confrontation. In our society today, we have the idea that all confrontation is bad. However without it, there would be no standard. Following a standard gives people direction on how to live together in society. It is a crucial part of society, even a small one such as the family unit. I see this passage leaning more towards encouragement. Encouragement because verse 15 concludes with the reason to use this with someone: “if he listens to you, you have won your brother”. Encouragement makes all the difference in this life and just maybe in the life to come.

Fred Craddock tells a story “about vacationing with his wife one summer in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. One night they found a quiet little restaurant, where they looked forward to a private meal. While they were waiting for their food, they noticed a distinguished looking, white-haired man moving from table to table, visiting with the guests. Craddock leaned over and whispered to his wife, “I hope he doesn’t come over here.” He didn’t want anyone intruding on their privacy. But sure enough, the man did come over to their table. “Where you folks from?” he asked in a friendly voice.

“Oklahoma,” Craddock answered.

“Splendid state, I hear, although I’ve never been there,” the stranger said. “What do you do for a living?”

“I teach homiletics at the graduate seminary of Phillips University,” Craddock replied.

“Oh, so you teach preachers how to preach, do you? Well, I’ve got a story to tell you.” And with that, the gentleman pulled up a chair and sat down at the table with Craddock and his wife.

Dr. Craddock said he groaned inwardly and thought to himself, “Oh, no! Here comes another preacher story! It seems like everybody has at least one.”

The man stuck out his hand. “I’m Ben Hooper,” he said. “I was born not far from here across the mountains. My mother wasn’t married when I was born, so I had a pretty hard time. When I started to school, my classmates had a name for me, and it wasn’t a very nice name. I used to go off by myself at recess and lunch time because the things they said to me cut me so deep. What was worse was going to town on Saturday afternoons and feeling like every eye was burning a hole through me, wondering just who my father was.

“When I was about 12 years old, a new preacher came to our church. I would always go in late and slip out early. But one day the preacher said the benediction so fast I got caught and had to walk out with the crowd. I could feel every eye in the church on me. Just about the time I got to the door I felt a big hand on my shoulder. I looked up and the preacher was looking right at me. ‘Who are you, son? Whose boy are you?’ he asked. I felt this big weight coming down on me. It was like a big black cloud. Even the preacher was putting me down. But as he looked down at me, studying my face, he began to smile a big smile of recognition. ‘Wait a minute!’ he said. ‘I know who you are. I see the family resemblance now. You are a child of God.’ With that he slapped me across the rump and said, ‘Boy, you’ve got a great inheritance. Go and claim it.’

The old man looked across the table at Fred Craddock and said, “Those were the most important words anybody ever said to me, and I’ve never forgotten them.” With that, he smiled shook hands with Craddock and his wife, and moved on to another table to greet old friends.

And as he walked away, Craddock – a native Tennessean himself – remembered from his studies of Tennessee history that on two occasions the people of Tennessee had elected to the office of governor men who had been born out of wedlock. One of them was a man named Ben Hooper.”

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord,

Help me to be an encouragement to someone today. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sermon Connection

Sermon-ConnectionsThe Best Defense…

“If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. “But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that BY THE MOUTH OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES EVERY FACT MAY BE CONFIRMED. “If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Matthew 18:15-17 (NASB)

“The best defense is a good offense” was the favorite saying of heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey. I have heard it used in many situations both in and out of sports. I think it is especially true when it comes to being a father. Fathers are needed for so much more than procreation and money. Fathers teach their children how to deal with the one thing that touches all our lives: interpersonal relationships.

Children learn by watching us. Two of the things they will see will impact them for a lifetime. They see how we relate to others, especially in our family unit, and how we relate to God. It is no coincidence that the way we relate to God determines in large part how we relate to others. When fathers understand this and take the offensive because it can make all the difference in their children.

Ed Sasnett tells the story of… “Victor Hugo, who is famous for his novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame, also so wrote a story called “Ninety-Three.” It tells of a ship caught in a dangerous storm on the high seas. At the height of the storm, the frightened sailors heard a terrible crashing noise below the deck. They knew at once that this new noise came from a cannon, a part of the ship’s cargo, which had broken loose. It was moving back and forth with the swaying of the ship, crashing into the side of the ship with terrible impact. Knowing that it could cause the ship to sink, two brave sailors volunteered to make the dangerous attempt to retie the loose cannon. They knew the danger of a shipwreck from the cannon was greater than the fury of the storm.

That is like human life. Storms of life may blow about us, but it is not these exterior storms that pose the greatest danger. It is the terrible corruption that can exist within us which can overwhelm us. The furious storm outside may be overwhelming but what is going on inside can pose the greater threat to our lives. Our only hope lies in conquering that wild enemy.

We cannot cure the storm that rages within us. It takes the power of God’s love, as revealed in Christ Jesus. It is only as the character of Christ is formed within that we have any hope of stilling the raging tempest that can harm our souls and shipwreck our lives.”

When we teach our children how to navigate these interpersonal relationships, we help them avoid many of the conflicts that shipwreck lives. Fathers are crucial for teaching both in word and deed the importance of following Christ.

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord,

I thank You for loving me and seeing in me the worth and potential you placed in my life. Please help me to respect others and see their worth and potential as well. Give me a forgiving attitude that I might extend it to others because You have so graciously extended it to me. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Announcement

fathersday_11832

Father’s Day Celebration

June 15th

Worship with us on this special day!

Sermon Connection

Sermon-ConnectionsIf I Only Knew…

Faith for the Journey

Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6 (NASB)

I recently read a story entitled “Jason’s Praying Pencils” written by Hugh Chapman. Faith is a necessary part of life. Faith in our creator gives us the courage to face insurmountable odds and experience life with a joy that defies logic. I hope you enjoy this as much as I do.

“I was an hour-and-a-half into my new teaching career when I saw him at the other end of the hallway. He was the reason I almost didn’t take the job; before long, he became the reason I stayed.

Though I had never met Jason Banning before, I knew his situation. He was a 13-year-old special needs seventh-grader who had been confined to a wheelchair virtually all his life.

As Izard County (Arkansas) Consolidated School’s newest special education teacher, I was hired to teach Jason and attend to his personal needs. He had medicines that needed to be administered and diapers that needed to be changed twice a day; odd tasks for a man who had made a habit of fleeing his own kids at medicine and diaper-changing time.

My educational certification is in business, but there had been no positions available in that area. Special education was the only job open. It wouldn’t be easy: I would have to go back to school during summers and evenings to be certified in special ed. But because my own kids were in the school system, I wanted very much to be involved.

So I stood at my end of the hall, watching Jason being pushed toward me by his friend Delbert. I whispered a quiet prayer. “God, please help me with this.” I expected an angry child, resentful of the life he had been dealt.

More than a student

As I watched him, I had to admit that he had every right to be angry. Jason had spinal bifida, a congenital defect of the vertebrae. He had already undergone a dozen surgeries and his family anticipated more. He was being cared for, full time, by elderly grandparents.

His prognosis was poor. I remember seeing Jason at the school’s sixth grade graduation. His grandmother had invited the entire family and had ordered balloons and flowers for the event. She wanted the celebration to be special for Jason, because, as she later explained, it might be the only graduation he would ever see.

Yet if Jason was bitter, I saw no sign of it that day. Wheeling up to me in the school hallway, Jason realized who I was. Holding out both arms in greeting, he said, “Welcome, friend. It’s good to see you.”

Though it took us a while to adjust to each other and our new surroundings, we eventually settled in. During our conversations, Jason often shared his heart. He told me he had attended church for as long as he could remember, and a couple of years before he had given his life to Jesus. Someday he hoped to become a preacher.

Prayer in the school

One time my first year, when his 80-year-old grandfather was ill, Jason asked me to pray with him. Not wanting to jeopardize my future, I was reluctant. Tactfully I explained that our government had regulations about teachers and students praying together on school grounds. Jason seemed to understand.

Two hours later, though, when Jason was in band class, God spoke to me—not in an audible voice—but through a feeling of deep remorse that weighed heavily on my heart. It is a sad world indeed, when a public school teacher is so wrapped up in the system that he is afraid to pray with a frightened child, I thought.

I dropped what I was doing and found my friend among the tubas and clarinets. I wheeled him back to the nurses’ station and there, in the quiet of the room, Jason and I prayed for his grandfather. He recovered soon after.

Secret code

Many times after that, Jason and I prayed together. I told Jason I often prayed silently in my classroom, and he suggested a way the two of us could pray silently together. He would lay his pencils (he always had at least two) on his desk in the form of a cross, as a signal to me that he was praying. From wherever I was in the room, I would join him.

Once when I was having a bad day, Jason’s friend Delbert came to class without a pencil. Jason and Delbert knew that I expected my students to be prepared for class, and Jason would often secretly loan paper or pencils to Delbert. I noticed Jason slipping a pencil to Delbert. I was annoyed, but said nothing.

Later, I gave the students an in-class written assignment. Jason wheeled up to my desk with tears welling in his eyes. “I don’t have my pencil,” he said.

“Jason,” I said, irritated, “if you didn’t keep giving your things to Delbert, you’d have a pencil, wouldn’t you?”

Then I noticed a pencil in Jason’s shirt pocket. Annoyed that the disruption had been unnecessary, I pulled out the pencil and held it in front of him. “Jason, here’s a pencil in your pocket!”

A tear rolled down his cheek. “That’s the pencil I write with,” he explained. “It’s the pencil I pray with that I don’t have.”

I choked up, ashamed for jumping all over him. I immediately found him a pencil. From that moment, I made a point to have lots of spare materials on hand.

No longer afraid

As the school years went by, I realized how I had been changing inside. At first, I had thought of Jason as a student, then a friend. Now, he was much more than a friend. Jason was like a son to me.

I had a chance to pray another time with Jason, when he was frightened because of an upcoming hospital stay. “Will you pray with me, Mr. Chapman?” he asked. “It seems to work better when you help.”

I explained that God listens to everyone’s prayers, but that I would be honored to pray with him anyway. Then, I gave him an assignment.

I had noticed Jason’s T-shirt with the opening words from the 23rd Psalm printed on it. “The Lord is my Shepherd …”

 

“Jason, do you know where to find that verse?” I asked. He nodded. “Then for homework, I want you to memorize the words.”

To my surprise, he came back the very next day and recited the entire chapter flawlessly. I smiled, and told him I was proud of him, then we discussed what each line meant. Finally, I told him to recite the verses to himself whenever he felt afraid at the hospital. It worked.

In the fall of 1997, before he went in for a scheduled heart surgery, Jason, now an eleventh grader, and I prayed for the last time. He hugged me as he left that day, and as I returned to the classroom to gather my belongings I glanced at his desk. Two pencils lay in plain view.

Jason died from complications two weeks after the surgery. When I think of him now, one word comes to mind: remarkable. I miss him, but I’ll never forget his courage.

And I know that I will see him again one day—without his wheelchair. In my mind, I see Jason in the distance standing with his friend Jesus—the same friend who answered his many prayers and watched over him as he struggled with life here on earth.

The struggles are over, and the radiant smile and laughing eyes once again draw me. With open arms, Jason says, “Welcome, friend. It’s good to see you!” (Copyright © 1998 by the author or Christianity Today International/Today’s Christian magazine. July/August 1998, Vol. 36, No. 4, Page 77.)

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord,

Forgive me for the times when I lack faith. Help me to have faith for the journey. I want to praise you no matter what comes my way. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sermon Connection

Sermon-ConnectionsTransformers: Age of Extinction

Extinction

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; … Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (NASB)

Extinction is defined by Dictionary.com is the fact or condition of being extinguished. A casual search of a thesaurus yields many words that evoke deep emotion such as annihilation, extermination, obliteration, ruination, termination, and the list continues. A further search on the internet reveals the countless different organizations focused on the extinction crisis. When there is this much talk about extinction, Hollywood will not be far behind help to fan the flames for profit and entertainment. A movie that will be in the theaters by the end of the month is “Transformers: Age of Extinction”. This looks to shape up as a classic sci-fi battle between good vs. evil set in the future.

The Huffington Post wrote “Scientists Worried About ‘Extinction Crisis,’…” The article quotes Noah Greenwald saying “The fear among scientists… is that by 2050, 30 to 50 percent of all the species on the planet could be headed toward extinction.” I, too, am concerned about extinction.

The extinction of which I am speaking is happening at a possible rate of 146,357 of deaths each day! Now to be completely fair the birth rate for this species is 353,015 births per day. A little quick math reveals that this species is not dying off, but growing. These figures come from World Almanac 2010 and it is referring to humans.

In Psalm 139.14 we read “I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.” While each person is uniquely made in the image of God, we are in danger of extinction in His kingdom. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 6:9 “that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God”. John records Jesus saying “”For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. “For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. “But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.” John 3:16-21 (NASB)

When we die without Christ, the hope of Heaven is extinguished. If we die without Christ, there is no redemption, no forgiveness, and no salvation. If we are concerned about the destruction of mankind, share Christ! Don’t just save the planet, save a Soul!

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord,

You made the Heavens and Earth and all that is in them. Thanks You for Your grand design. It is beautiful. Help me to be a faithful steward by sharing Your love with everyone I meet. I pray others will come to know You as Lord of their life. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sermon Connection

Sermon-ConnectionsHonor Our Heritage

Back to Basics

Restore us to You, O LORD, that we may be restored; Renew our days as of old, Unless You have utterly rejected us And are exceedingly angry with us. Lamentations 5:21-22 (NASB)

The contemporary Christian vocal quartet “4 Him” was together for 16 years. They produced more than 20 number one singles. One that has really spoken to me through the years is “The Basics of Life”. The lyrics read:

“We’ve turned the page, for a new day has dawned. We’ve re-arranged what is right and what’s wrong. Somehow we’ve drifted so far from the truth, that we can’t get back home. Where are the virtues that once gave us light? Where are the morals that governed our lives? Someday we all will awake and look back Just to find what we’ve lost.

We need to get back to the basics of life. A heart that is pure and a love that is blind. A faith that is fervently grounded in Christ; The hope that endures for all times. These are the basics, we need to get back to the basics of life.

The newest rage is to reason it out. Just meditate and you can overcome every doubt. After all man is a God, they say God is no longer alive. But I still believe in the old rugged cross and I still believe there is hope for the lost. And I know the rock of all ages will stand through changes of time.

We’ve let the darkness invade us too long We’ve got to turn the tide Oh and we need the passion that burned long ago To come and open our eyes There’s no room for compromise We need to get back To the basics of life A heart that is pure And a love that is blind.”

When our forefathers settled this land, they knew the importance of knowing God. I do not mean knowing about Him. Many, if not most, knew Him intimately. It is reflected all through their writings. Some of the people you will remember reading about said:

“The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: it connected, in one indissoluble bond, the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity.” – John Quincy Adams

“I have always said and always will say that the studious perusal of the Sacred Volume will make us better citizens.” – Thomas Jefferson

“Whosoever shall introduce into public affairs the principles of primitive Christianity will change the face of the world.” – Benjamin Franklin

“A general dissolution of principles and manners will more surely overthrow the liberties of America than the whole force of the common enemy. While the people are virtuous they cannot be subdued; but when once they lose their virtue they will be ready to surrender their liberties to the first external or internal invader.” – Samuel Adams

Isn’t it time we get back to the basics? What a difference it would make if the people who call themselves Christian would follow God with their whole heart.

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord,

Thank You for this marvelous opportunity to live life! Help me to live it as You intended. Give me the courage to stand for the right and the strength to flee from the wrong. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sermon Connection

Sermon-ConnectionsHonor Our Heritage

Higher Learning

Restore us to You, O LORD, that we may be restored; Renew our days as of old, Unless You have utterly rejected us And are exceedingly angry with us. Lamentations 5:21-22 (NASB)

I have had the privilege of continuing my education after completing high school in many different ways. I had the privilege of an apprentice school in the shipyard. Later as a member of our armed forces, I learned electronics. I am tremendously grateful for these opportunities. However, the one I cherish the most is my college experience at Campbell University. When God called me into the Gospel Ministry, I was encouraged to prepare and college was the way to accomplish it. I am forever grateful for the opportunity to continue learning.

Learning is part of our heritage. It comes in different shapes and sizes tailor made for each of us. It is part of our common experience as people created in the image of God. With the education experience in mind, what do Harvard, Yale, and Princeton all have in common? Yes, they are “Ivy League” schools, but that is not it. They were all established at the same time. No. Harvard is the oldest established in 1636; Yale was established in 1701 and Princeton in 1746. All of these schools are very expensive. Yes, but that is not it either.

These schools were each birthed in an era when our founding fathers believed the Bible when the Psalmist said “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord” (Psalm 33:12). Harvard’s founding purpose was “every student’s main aim is to know God and Jesus Christ, and to recognize that Christ is the foundation of all learning.” Yale said “God is the source of all wisdom” and they required all their students to attend daily public prayer services both morning and evening. Princeton boldly proclaimed “Cursed is all learning contrary to the cause of Christ.” Sadly, all of these schools have drifted far from their beginnings.

When Thomas Jefferson was president, he served as the head of the school board in Washington, DC. It is interesting that in the beginning of his first term he wrote the letter to the Danbury Baptist Association where he used the phrase for the very first time, “a wall of separation between church and state”. Yet Jefferson insisted that two books be used in the schools: the Bible and Watts Hymnal because it was rich in Bible teaching. This is a completely different understanding than what the courts are using today.

The United States of America was birthed out of a deeply held conviction for God’s Holy Bible. It is evident that our fore fathers believed that all learning and most certainly any formal education must begin with an understanding of the Bible. On what deeply held conviction do we educate our children today? When we look for a school of higher education, what are the qualities for which we look? The Bible says in Proverbs 1:7 (NASB) “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Sadly, most of us look for the wisdom of men rather than the wisdom of God.

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord,

The country I love so much is playing the fool. We are playing the Fool! We have banned Your instruction in the schools and are no longer allowed to publically ask for Your guidance in the public arena. Forgive us! I pray that we repent before it is too late. Give me the bold courage to live Your teachings unashamedly so that others will come to know You as Lord. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sermon Connection

Sermon-ConnectionsHonor Our Heritage

What’s Your Motto?

Restore us to You, O LORD, that we may be restored; Renew our days as of old Lamentations 5:21 (NASB)

In the business world today, we are taught to clarify our purpose. In order to do this, we must write a statement that is clear, concise, and memorable. These statement are born out of purpose. Many organizations go about it differently, but most would agree that a well-run organization is one who understands their purpose. Let me suggest five specific organizations whose mottos and core values are the best in the world!

Our armed forces have as their core values or mottos the following:

  • US Army
    • This We’ll Defend
  • US Air Force
    • Integrity First
    • Service Before Self
    • Excellence in All We Do
  • US Coast Guard
    • “Semper Paratus” (Always Ready)
  • US Marine Corp
    • “Semper Fidelis” (Always Faithful)
  • US Navy
    • “Honor, Courage, Commitment”

The men and women that serve in our military are held to standards that exemplify the best our country has to offer. As they live up to these mottos and core values, they indeed are the best. They put their life on the line in countries all over the globe defending freedom so that we who remain behind can live, work, play, and worship… FREE. Thank you for your service to our country!

If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, you have been given freedom. We would all do well if we stopped to take time to reflect on our purpose in Christ and then live like we mean it!

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord,

Thank You for the men and women that serve so faithfully in protection our country. The disciplines under which they train help them to be ready at a moment’s notice. Help us as soldiers of the Cross to be ready to defend the faith. However, help us to do more than that. Help us to LIVE the faith each and every day! In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sermon Connection

Sermon-ConnectionsWhat’s a Christian To Do?

Pursued by the Atoning Love

With what shall I come to the LORD And bow myself before the God on high? Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings, With yearling calves? Does the LORD take delight in thousands of rams, In ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I present my firstborn for my rebellious acts, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God? Micah 6:6-8 (NASB)

I have run from God many times. My intention was never to do that, but I was focused on what I wanted. I could wrap it up in great motives. For example, I am doing this for my family, or something like, If am successful, it will allow me to help others in the future. I could go on but you get the point.

Most of us start out on a path that makes perfect sense, at least in the beginning. At some point, if we are not careful, what we start out doing with such great motives becomes all about us. That’s when we run away from God and straight into danger. As James Hewitt says “… many people run from God’s provision of atonement on the cross, fearing what He might do to them. But His plans are for good not evil–to rescue us from the hidden sins that endanger our lives.”

James shares a story entitled “Pursued by the Atoning Love” that got my attention:

“One evening a woman was driving home when she noticed a huge truck behind her that was driving uncomfortably close. She stepped on the gas to gain some distance from the truck, but when she sped up the truck did too. The faster she drove, the faster the truck followed.

Now scared, she exited the freeway, but the truck stayed with her. The woman then turned up a main street, hoping to lose her pursuer in traffic. The truck ran a red light and continued the chase.

Reaching the point of panic, the woman whipped her car into a service station and bolted out of her auto screaming for help. The truck driver sprang from his truck and ran toward her car. Yanking the back door open, the driver pulled out a man hidden in the backseat.

The woman was running from the wrong person. From his high vantage point, the truck driver had spotted a would-be rapist in the woman’s car. The chase was not his effort to harm her but to save her even at the cost of his own safety.”

There are times in my life when I resemble the woman in this story. I run from the very person trying to help me. Micah helps me to stop and ask the question “What does God require?” Ironically it is to be the kind of person I want to be and with whom I would want to be associated. He requires I do justice and I want to be around someone who is just. He requires me to love kindness and I like being with kind people. He requires me to walk humbly and I want to be humble. These things are never for my harm, always for my good. It is what He requires for each of us.

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord,

My sins are great! I know that they always separate me from You. Please help me to surrender my ways to Your will. Thank You for loving me and providing for me an opportunity to experience You. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sermon Connection

Sermon-ConnectionsMarvelous, Infinite, Matchless Grace

The Cost of Grace

May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience, with joy giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the saints’ inheritance in the light. Colossians 1:11-12 (HCSB)

Mary Lewis shares this true story. Two guys in a church, Paul and William decided that they really wanted to become godly men. So they started meeting with one another to pray and encourage one another; they even set goals for themselves and their behavior, and then were accountable to the other one.

Paul decided he wanted to break his habit of using profanity. He decided he was going to put five dollars in the offering for every time he swore during the week. In order to stay accountable, he would tell William how many times he’d failed.

The first week cost Paul $100.

Now, Paul must’ve been doing ok financially, because that didn’t stop his swearing. In fact, while he improved somewhat over the next couple weeks, he really wasn’t having the success he wanted and was losing a lot of hard-earned cash. After the fourth week, William told Paul he had decided that the deal needed to be changed for the coming week, but he wasn’t going to tell Paul how it would change. He just said, “Trust me. It will cost you both less and more.”

When they met the following Sunday before worship, Paul admitted he’d failed again. William put a hand on his shoulder and said, “Paul, I told you this was going to cost you both less and more. It’s called grace.” William took out his checkbook, and made out a check to the church, leaving the amount blank. He gave the check to Paul and said, “Your sin still costs, but for you it’s free. Just fill in the numbers. And next week there will be more grace.”

William’s grace cost him $55 the first week; the second only cost him $20. There was no third week. Paul couldn’t bear to see what his sin was costing his friend, so he quit sinning.

Grace is never cheap. The cost is priceless and the result of grace can best be expressed in the words of the old slave trader John Newton:

I am not what I ought to be. I am not what I want to be.

I am not what I hope to be. But still, I am not what I used to be.

And by the grace of God, I am what I am.

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord,

Thank You for the tremendous price You paid for me! I cherish the forgiveness of my sin through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen

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