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LifeBuilder Church, 511 Wild Cherry Lane, Breaux Bridge, LA (2026)

05/16/2026

More progress on the LifeBuilder Church facelift. Come Fellowship with us this Sunday (10 am) and let God give us all the facelift that only He Can.

05/02/2026

Bro Jim’s Blog

“Progress is Messy”

Progress is always messy. Whether we are remodeling a home or church, which I am currently doing for my mother and here at LifeBuilder Church, or the reconstruction of roads and highways we have to traverse everyday, the experience can only be described as messy. I am reminded of the time when the stretch of Highway 1 that passed directly in front of the church I pastored in Marksville was under major reconstruction and our driveways were impacted, making access difficult, and made mess that would follow us for months on end.
Just think about your own progress in this world. I have never been in the room to actually witness the birth of a child, and I am not sure I would ever like to be. I know enough to know that it is quite messy, and that's if it's a natural birth. I most definitely would faint at the mess of a c-section. No sooner do we clean that mess that we are faced with dirty diapers, burping and vomiting. It should start to get better but then comes solid food that seems to get everywhere but in the mouth. Next comes walking, only making it possible to extend the mess to more places with toys and broken things in our wake. We are all aware that once school commences and then into puberty that the messes change but only get bigger and more serious. As we progress through adulthood there are no shortages of messes scattering across the landscape of our lives.
So when we think of spiritual progress in our lives should we expect any difference? Scripture tells us that "we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works..." (Eph. 2:10). Truly we are a work in progress. As such we can expect to see a great deal of mess as God clears out the old to bring in the new. There has to be some digging, some ripping, some major inconveniences, and a host of unexpected messes. Some projects, and especially many of those backed by our government, can take far longer than expected, produce more mess than anticipated, and cost a great deal more than planned, yielding a result that is often far less than dreamed. But should your God be given the contract to the progression of your life you will be able to boldly say, "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus" (Phil. 1:6). So when you find yourself inconvenienced, overwhelmed, and just completely fed up with the mess surrounding the progress of your life, remember who is in charge of the work. Keep your eye on the perfected, completed work that God is producing in you. Dress the Mess with the Bless of the Mess!

04/17/2026

LifeBuilder Church getting a much needed face-lift. Thanks to all those who have been helping.

04/03/2026

BRO Jim’s BLOG

“Are You All Cracked Up?”

I was asked earlier this week what we were doing for Easter. I said we were going to church of course and then said we would probably go visit family. She went on to ask if we were going to be knocking eggs. "Oh, pacqueing", I responded. Little did I know at the time that this mostly southern Louisiana tradition is also known as "egg tapping", "egg fight", "egg picking" and even "egg jarping." My wife and I grew up with this tradition, and must admit have been involved in many of the cheating shenanigans like using marble eggs or special hard paint coatings. But it wasn't until we moved to Avoyelles Parish that we realized how big of an event it is there.
I was surprised when I read the following on Wikipedia, the internet encyclopedia. "In many places in Louisiana, egg-tapping is a serious competition event. Marksville claims to be the first to make it into an official event in 1956 (Cottonport would soon follow). In the past some cheaters used guinea hen eggs, which are smaller and have harder shells. Nowadays guinea egg knocking is a separate contest (during this contest there is more intensity in the air, those eggs cost more and the suspense of waiting for one egg to crack brings the excitement up). Preparation for this contest has turned into a serious science. People now know which breeds of chicken lay harder eggs and at what time. The chickens must be fed with calcium-rich food and have plenty of exercise. Proper boiling of the contest eggs is also a serious issue. Some rules are well-known, such eggs must be boiled tip down, so that the air pocket is on the butt end. There is also the rule that the champion must break and eat their eggs to prove they are not fake." I'm told that the general method for finding the hardest eggs is to lightly tap them on your front teeth, the harder ones will have a high pitched ping. Old-timers believed that boiling the eggs in coffee grounds made them stronger. I may have to try that one.
The whole idea around "pacqueing" or "egg knocking" is to avoid having your egg crack. The process puts our egg through a great deal of knocking, and unless the champion, will end up all cracked up. Easter is a reminder to us all of just how "cracked up" our lives are. Man has been so knocked about by sin, so beat up by the evil of this world, and so broken by the pressures of life's temptations that Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, had to offer Himself as a living sacrifice to provide a new covering (atonement) . "You were dead in your trespasses and sins...But God...even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ" (Eph. 2:1-5). It matters not what breed your egg comes from, or how delicately you boil it, or how beautifully you decorate it, the knock of sin shatters every egg, every life, but the cross and resurrection of Christ offers a new life, a new shell, for all who will. The egg of Easter has always stood for new life, new birth, and the dawn of spring. The Masters of Ceremonies at the Egg Knocking Contest will say, "If your eggs are cracked please step down." Jesus, on the other hand, says, "If your eggs are cracked, please step up. I have a new, stronger, resurrected one just for YOU!"

03/21/2026

BRO Jim’s BLOG

“Absentees”

I am currently preaching a series on Navigating Emotions and this Sunday we will look at abandonment. Learning from Jesus on how to navigate our God-given emotions, Jesus reveals to His disciples that their Master is leaving. Although Jesus tried to tell them on numerous occasions that He would have to die, these disciples still felt abandoned. After holding their hand for all but three years, even Jesus would become an absentee. Jesus would then have to tell those same disciples that they would abandon Him, either by betrayal, denial, or fleeing out of fear. Abandonment and absenteeism seems to be inescapable in this life we live. But Jesus would teach us that rather than succumb to feelings of abandonment we should live a life of abandon.
Absenteeism roars its little head in numerous areas of life. Children battle with Absentee fathers, and sometimes absentee mothers. We deal with absentee spouses, absentee church-goers, absentee students, and the list goes on and on. Absenteeism traditionally concerned absentee workers from the workplace, but now has extended to most walks of life. Wikipedia defines Absenteeism as “a habitual pattern of absence from a duty or obligation.” Modern scholarship seeks to understand absenteeism as an indicator of psychological, medical, or social adjustment to work. What a copout!! We humans just more and more lack the commitment and the sense of duty and obligation that we once possessed.
Thank goodness we do not serve an Absentee God. There are many in this world, however, that do. Jehovah is the only god that is not made with hands, that is not unresponsive, that is not an absentee god. I think of the time when Elijah, the prophet of God, challenged the prophets of Baal. After the prophets of Baal had spent hours unsuccessfully getting Baal to act and bring fire down, Elijah would say, “You’ll have to shout louder for surely he is a god! Perhaps he is daydreaming, or is relieving himself. Or maybe he is away on a trip, or is asleep and needs to be wakened!” (1 Kings 18:27). Now that was one Absentee god! But Yahweh, Jehovah, El Shaddai, Elohim, Adonai, or whatever other name you might call Him, is clearly no ABSENTEE GOD. In fact, God promises us, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Heb. 13:5). So, the next time you are considering being an unfaithful absentee, remember your faithful God who refuses to ever become an ABSENTEE.

03/13/2026

BRO Jim’s BLOG

“Prisons of Our Own Making”

Over the years I have gone several times into prisons around our state. One thing I have noticed is that many behind bars are not any more imprisoned than those of us on the outside. I have witnessed hundreds of inmates respond to altar calls and find deliverance from a prison of sin. These inmates realized that they were not only in a prison of the state but they were in a prison of their own making. It seems every time I enter a prison I am gripped by the somber reality that so much of humanity is locked behind prison walls of their own making. I believe Nanci McGraw had it right when she said, "I believe that each of us lives in a prison of our own making. We can allow ourselves to become prisoners of our own hearts and emotions - restrained by the chains of unfulfilled goals and dreams that have dissolved. Four walls alone does not a prison make; it can be a place, a condition of life, or even a holding pattern - a place where we merely exist."
When I was a young kid, my friends and I set up this cool fortress. The fortress was actually a large hole in the ground, about 30 feet in diameter and 10 feet or so deep. The hole was in the middle of a field of very tall grass that was tall enough to hide us kids and our hideout from view. We built a few intricate trails that led out from our fortress to different exit points in the open field. To keep others out of our camp we came up with an idea to dig several 2 to 3 foot deep pits and disguise them with a covering of small sticks and grass. We implemented our plan and after much hard work had successfully placed these traps on every trail leading to our fortress. Here's the crazy thing, instead of capturing others in the pits we built, it was us that often fell into them. The only thing our ingenuity and hard work accomplished was to imprison us.
Since that time as a small kid I have made countless pits around my own life that have resulted in the same outcome of imprisoning me. God created me to have a life that is not trapped by worry and fear. He wants me to be able to rejoice with "joy unspeakable and full of glory" (1 Peter 1:8). God has plans to prosper me and not to hurt me, to give me a future and a hope (Jer. 29:11). He tells me that He has made me more than a conqueror (Rom. 8:37), and therefore sin or circumstances do not have the power to imprison me unless I allow it. The only reason you or I are not living free, joyful, or fulfilled lives is largely because of the prison we have made.
I leave you with these words from C. W. Naylor, "A bird entangled in the grass cannot fly. It must first be freed from its entanglement. In like manner we must be loosed from our entanglements to have freedom of life. Our entanglements are often of our own making. We build our own prisons; we shut ourselves up in our own cells. Circumstances can never long imprison us if our spirits are free. Has not someone written, 'Stone walls do not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage'?" Tear down the strongholds in your life so your spirit can soar high and free. Remove the walls and bars of your own making.

03/07/2026

BRO Jim’s BLOG

“Overgrown Lawns”

Time once again to crank up the lawn mower, tune up the w**d eater, and fill up those gas cans. Here in Louisiana there is not much of anything that is about to deter the growth of grass and w**ds in our yards. I have been told that a cockroach can live nine days after its head is cut off before it will starve to death. It will take a lot more than a few deep freezes to kill off our lawns. Last week I set out to tackle my own yard of overgrown w**ds, clovers, and a host of other species of grass. I decided to tackle my lawn early, for this fool has learned that just the slightest delay and I will be fighting a wildly overgrown mess.
Just take a moment to contemplate the time, expense, and laborious work we put in to cut and manicure our lawns. I cannot help but wonder how many of us apply as much diligence to the fields of our soul. Solomon writes in the Proverbs, "One day I walked by the field of an old lazybones, and then passed the vineyard of a lout; They were overgrown with w**ds, thick with thistles, all the fences broken down. I took a long look and pondered what I saw; the fields preached me a sermon and I listened:" (Pr. 24:30-34, Message). Looking at my field and many others as I drive down streets observing the overgrowth of grass and w**ds, these lawns began to preach to me. What have you and I allowed to grow up in the field of our soul? Have w**ds of bitterness taken over? How about the clovers of complacency, have they been allowed to spread across your field? It doesn't take much for things to become overgrown, in fact it takes nothing more than neglect, a failure to actually do something. Have you neglected your spiritual lawn? Has it been a while since you have allowed the Holy Spirit to pass His blades through, chopping away all the overgrowth?
Sometimes we allow the field of our life to become so overgrown that it becomes too daunting a task. The thickness is such that we can't seem to get a handle on it anymore. The bad grass and w**ds have sucked out the life and destroyed the good growth we once had. We wonder if our spiritual lawn will ever recover and flourish again. Let me encourage you with these words from Ezekiel 36:33-36, “‘Message of God, the Master: On the day I scrub you clean from all your filthy living, I’ll also make your cities livable. The ruins will be rebuilt. The neglected land will be worked again, no longer overgrown with w**ds and thistles, worthless in the eyes of passersby. People will exclaim, “Why, this w**d patch has been turned into a Garden of Eden! ... I, God, rebuild ruins and replant empty waste places. I, God, said so, and I’ll do it." Would you open yourself to God and allow Him to turn your overgrown w**d patched life into a Garden of Eden?

02/20/2026

BRO Jim’s BLOG

“Mr. Spock’s World”

Have you ever thought about what your life, and this world would be like, if there were no emotions to deal with? Perhaps we would be like “Mr. Spock” on Star Trek, as his responses to all situations were purely logical, never emotional. In my early years, and even in my early years as a minister, I displayed very little emotion. I so controlled my emotions that to many I was much like Mr. Spock. Much of that has changed over the journey God would take me through. Today my life is much more flooded with emotions, both inwardly and outwardly. So what would it really be like if we did not have to concern ourselves with those often pesky emotions?
Just imagine no sorrow, grief and tears. Would that not be great? We have all wept and grieved at the casket of a lost loved one. We have experienced the worry and fear of the operation waiting room. In a Mr. Spock World these deeply painful emotions of sadness, worry and grief would be negated. All fears, anger, animosity, guilt, and disappointment would be alleviated as well. Is not Mr. Spock’s World becoming more and more wishful and glamorous?
Oh, but it just crossed my mind, in Spock’s World there would also be no joy, no compassion, no laughter, no moments of great happiness, and above all no love. Suddenly Mr. Spock’s World does not look so appealing. Would you not agree with me that the trade off is not worth it? The world of emotions, with all the good, the bad, and the ugly, is still better than a world without.
Scripture tells us that God has created us in His own image, one that is filled with all these emotions and more. It is not that emotions are good or bad, but it is how we control and deal with them that matters. It is the behavior that forms from those emotions that God, and we ourselves, should be mindful. Solomon in all his wisdom said, “Like a city that is broken into and without walls is a man who has no control over his spirit” (Pr. 25:28).
Emotions are closer to us than air. Feelings are the ever present current within us, they define the inner world and give us continual commentary on the outer world. They are closer to us than our skin, than the air we breathe. So next time you find yourself complaining about those emotions just think of the alternative, Mr. Spock’s World.

02/14/2026

BRO Jim’s BLOG

“To Live is to Love”

Happy Valentines Day, a time when we show those closest to us just how much we love them. I hope that we all are planning on doing something special to show our love for each other. Remember the words of 1 John 3:18 – “Let us not love with words or tongue, but with actions and truth.” Henry Drummond once said, “…to live is to love.” He went on to say, , “You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you really lived, are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love.”
John the Beloved revealed to us that “God is Love” and that we, made in His image, are built for love. Without it we starve and eventually die. Charles Galloway said it well, “The need to love and be loved is the simplest of all human wants. Man needs love like he needs the sun and the rain. He perishes without it. His basic longing is to be the object of love and to be able to give love. No other need is quite so significant to his nature.” Opening ourselves to love and to be loved however is not always easy. Listen to these words of David Watson, “To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to be sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one. Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness, but in that casket, safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken, but it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. The only place you can be safe from all dangers of love is hell.”
So as you and I commemorate the holiday devoted to the virtue of love may we understand that “to live is to love.” May we determine to express that love not only on this special occasion but on every moment and day that our loving Father grants us. I leave you with this poem that we would all do well to allow to saturate our spirit.
Love is the filling from one’s own, Another’s cup,
Love is the daily laying down and taking up;
A choosing of the stony path through each new day,
That other feet may tread with ease a smoother way.
Love is not blind, but looks abroad through other’s eyes;
And asks not, ‘Must I give?’ but ‘May I sacrifice?’
Love hides its grief, that other hearts and lips may sing;
And burdened walks, that other lives may buoyant wing.
Hast thou a love like this? Within thy soul?
Twill crown thy life with bliss when thou dost reach the goal.

02/06/2026

BRO Jim’s BLOG

“Bringing Home the Gold”

It's that time again. The 2026 Winter Olympic Games are under way from Milano Cortina, Italy. Thousands of athletes from almost every nation around the world have descended upon Milano Cortina to display their athletic skills and compete to bring home the Gold. Ever since its origins, history records that the games began as far back as 776 BC, the Olympic Games have always been much more than a grand sporting event. If you have ever watched the opening ceremonies of one of the Olympics you will know exactly what I mean. You cannot help but be awed by the diversity of races, culture, and political ideology all gathered in one place, brought together by a common purpose. The pride of nations is on clear display as each delegation enters waving its nation's flag, but at least for these few days they all come together under one Olympic flag, unity in diversity. Then there's the torch, a central theme at every Olympic Games. On opening night the torch that has been lit several months before, has been carried and relayed to several individuals, has traveled through many towns and countless miles, and is finally brought into the stadium. The torch is passed to one final honored individual who then proceeds to set the cauldron ablaze with a flame that will not be extinguished throughout the games. The flame is symbolic of a fire taken from a source greater than mankind, indistinguishable and eternal, that can and must be passed from one to another.
As I describe the spectacular pomp and circumstance that surrounds the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games, are you not taken to another scene in your mind's eye? Does this not conjure up a picture of what heaven will be like? God will gather His people from all the nations of the world. We will stand on that grand stage beside Asian children, African tribesmen, Russian soldiers. Peoples of every color and ethnic background will be rubbing shoulders with us. If you have a tough time getting along with all races and cultures here, I feel sorry for you, for there will be no separation in heaven. There is something to be said about national and religious pride, but when we cross the Jordan River and enter the Pearly Gates you will leave your national and denominational flag at the door and raise the banner of Jesus, the only flag that will fly there. When God designed and established the temple, which I must add was a picture and type of heaven, He informed them that a golden candlestick was to be placed within it and was to remain lit at all times, 24/7. The flame was never to be extinguished. The fire of God must remain ablaze within us, the torch, until we gather before the cauldron of Heaven.
Every athlete that has flown into Italy this week has done so with one ultimate goal, "Bring Home the Gold." The journey of making it to the Olympics has been great. The whole experience of competing and representing your country on the biggest stage is awe-inspiring. But to bring home the gold, that is the ultimate prize. What is your goal and mine? Are we satisfied enough with just making it to heaven? Do we find ourselves mesmerized by the whole experience? Or are we determined to "Bring Home the Gold” so that we can lay it at the Savior’s feet?

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