Sermon ideas...anyone?

Next week I will be out of the office to work on my sermon calendar for 2009. Does anyone have any ideas for sermon topics? What would you like to hear from the pulpit and what do you feel people need to hear from the pulpit next year?

Why Do You Believe?

Why do you believe in God, Jesus, the Bible, and Christianity? Several years ago I would have answered that question by referring to the apologetic, theological, and historical evidences for the Christian faith - and there is a great amount of evidence to reference. But now, it is the everyday "proof" that convinces me more and more that the way of Christ is true.

Look at what is happening in our country as an example. A major cause of the economic troubles we are experiencing is sheer greed (and I heard a financial expert say this too, so I am not being a Jesus "homer" here). So many of our major financial industries have been taking short cuts in order to make more money, and it is catching up to them. Many of our citizens and families have put themselves at financial risk because their greed prompted them to live outside their means for years. When you see the devastating effects of unbridled greed, you can't help but see why Jesus tells us to be on our guard against all kinds of greed in Luke 12:15, and why Paul lists the greedy among those who won't inherit the kingdom of God in 1 Corinthians 6:10. The way of Christ is proven true by the consequences of ignoring his way.

I also see this in the rubble of people's lives. The pain inflicted on people by divorce, substance abuse, imprisonment, lies, and all kinds of abuse most often is the result of people not walking in the way of Christ.

I recently heard someone say that "as a person ages faith becomes fact." I understand the wisdom of that statement, because the more of life that I see and experience, the more I am convinced that Jesus knows what he's talking about.

I believe in God because I have never been disappointed in my choice to follow him. Right now, that's all the evidence I need.

"I'm a Runner"

I used this in my sermon on Sunday to illustrate how the challenge to those of us running the Christian race is often, "Which direction am I running?"

“I’m a Runner”

My name is Rusty Tugman and I’m a runner.

I run for God and towards God. Sometimes running with God feels effortless for me. I hit that spiritual runner’s high and I am invigorated, refreshed, and inspired. My legs feel strong, my lungs feel powerful, and my spirit feels renewed. I’m a runner.

To be honest, sometimes running is arduous, difficult, and painful. I am running, but it doesn’t feel good, God seems distant, and I can’t see any evidence of a finish line or a reward. But I keep running. I keep running because I remember why I run. I run this Christian race because God made me to run it. I run for God and towards God because I am in love with God. I run because my Savior ran for me. I run because I have a son waiting for me in heaven. I run because I have daughter who needs me to teach her about Christ. I run because I have a wife who deserves a husband whose character is shaped by Christ. I run because I have a congregation of wonderful people who are counting on me to run beside them in this race. And so, I run through the pain. I’m a runner.

However, there have been times in my life when I have run away from God. I have run away from opportunities to share the gospel with someone because I didn’t care enough. I have run away from difficult decisions because I was too worried about what others would think of me. I have run away from God’s will to follow my own sinful desires. I am tempted to run away from the calling of God on my life because I am too selfish, too fearful, too prideful, too arrogant, too calloused, too stubborn, too worldly, and too sinful.

Ironically, it is those characteristics that inspire me again to run towards God. I am too selfish, too fearful, too prideful, too arrogant, too calloused, too stubborn, too worldly, and too sinful to make it on my own.

I’m a runner – sometimes I find myself running to God and sometimes I find myself running away from God. But I’m a runner.

I’m a runner, and everyday I have to ask myself, “Which direction will I run today?”

I Hate Quoting Myself, But...

I was looking through some of my past sermons the other day and here's something I wrote back in 2004 (in a series on Genesis) that might still challenge you today:

The New Testament tells us that God does not want anyone to perish, but he wants everyone to come to repentance. He wants everyone to be saved from sin. Sadly, many choose to "obtain" salvation by trusting more in themselves and other people than God. They create their own path to eternal life and ignore the reality that a person can only be saved from sin by trusting in the work of God.

The life of Abram teaches us that trusting God is a lifetime journey filled with ups and downs, successes and failures. But if we commit to taking that journey with God, he will prove himself faithful over time - time after time. The question for you to ask yourself today is, "Do I trust God?"

A Book Every Family Should Read

I just finished a book that will help every family that I personally know. One of my favorite business/leadership authors, Patrick Lencioni, has written a book for families in which he applies organizational principles to the family. The book is titled "The 3 Big Questions for a Frantic Family: A Leadership Fable about Restoring Sanity to the Most Important Organization in Your Life." Go to amazon.com to read more about it.

The book is written as a story, so it is easy to read (I read it one sitting). The strategies and principles in it will help bring clarity, focus, control and less stress to every family. Mitzi is reading it now, then we will sit down together and implement this plan. I'll let you know later how we're doing.

Seriously, if you feel that your family life is frantic, stressful, and out-of-control, you need to read this book. When you do, I'd love to hear what you think about it. If you're in my Life Group and reading this, what do you think about going through this together as a group?