Big Creek Church

09/06/2026

Congratulations to Della, Milton, and Isaiah on their baptism today!

09/06/2026

09/04/2026

THE TURTLE ON THE FENCE POST
By: Pastor Johnie

Philippians 2:4, “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.” The late Alex Haley, was an American writer known as the author of the 1976 book, Roots: The Saga of an American Family. The book was adapted by ABC as a TV mini-series of the same name and aired in 1977 to a record-breaking 130 million viewers. Haley had on his office wall a unique picture of a turtle sitting atop a fence post. When someone asked him about it, Haley would say, “If you see a turtle on a fence post, you know that he had some help. Anytime I start thinking, ‘Wow, isn’t this marvelous what I’ve done?’ I look at that picture and remember how this turtle, me, got up on that post.” We would all do well to emulate Haley’s perspective. In our Scripture lesson today, Paul the apostle shares a principle that runs counter to much of the thinking in our present world. Many perceive helping another to be successful is to detract from our opportunities for advancement. Yet it is in sowing into the lives of others that ensures a harvest of success that will flow into ours. The Dead Sea is dead, because it has an inflow of water, but no outflow. Paul the apostle wrote in Ephesians 6:7, 8, “With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord . . .” Each of us can look back over our lives and remember specific watershed moments that enabled us to succeed: a patient professor, a benevolent employer, a business associate, a close friend, or even a kind stranger. Life is not a solitary journey. God places not only the right people in our lives for strategic moments but also places us in the lives of others to help them along their path. In the words of Alex Haley, “If you see a turtle on a fence post, you know that he had some help.” I pray that we would be the source of that help. To lift those that God has blessed us to encounter, with each new day.

09/03/2026

THE BRIDGE OF SIGHS
By: Pastor Johnie Akers

Romans 3:24-26: “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; to declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” Venice is a city of waterways. Over one canal there is a bridge called “The Bridge of Sighs.” Constructed in 1600, this bridge leads from a courtroom to a dismal prison where guilty criminals were left to rot and die. Written over the door of the prison are these words taken from Dante’s 14th century literary work, Inferno: “Abandon hope, all ye who enter here.” I can imagine a man being led across this bridge. He has kissed his loved ones good-bye and is looking into the sunlight for the last time. His heart is filled with grief and despair. But when he is halfway across the bridge, suddenly a court attendant rushes up to him and declares, “Stop! I have here an acquittal for you! You are free!” I can also imagine the elation experienced by the once condemned man, now knowing he is free. The word “justification” can better be associated with our word “acquittal.” It is the sovereign act whereby God declares sinners “just” or “innocent,” as though they have never sinned. Justification goes beyond a pardon. It is possible for one to be guilty but then receive a pardon. But the act of justification declares a person to have right standing with God, and their record so expunged by God’s grace, it is as if the stain of sin never existed in that person’s life. This is the acquittal God offers to all of us. Perhaps your life is riddled with guilt over past mistakes you have made. As you make your way across the bridge to what seems to be consignment to a prison of darkness, I offer these words: “Stop! I have here an acquittal for you! You are free!” Forever free to live in the light of His sovereign grace, for this and each new day.

09/02/2026

THE DOUBLE
By: Pastor Johnie Akers

2 Corinthians 5:21, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” Actor Kevin Bacon gave the following account of a conversation with his 6-year-old son after he viewed Footloose for the first time: “‘Hey, Dad, you know that thing in the movie where you swing from the rafters of that building? That’s really cool, how did you do that?’ I said, ‘Well, I didn’t do that part—it was a stunt man.’ ‘What’s a stunt man?’ he asked. ‘That’s someone who dresses like me and does things I can’t do.’ ‘Oh,’ he replied and walked out of the room looking a little confused. Later, he asked, ‘Hey, Dad, you know that thing in the movie where you spin around on that gym bar and land on your feet? How did you do that?’ I said, ‘Well, I didn’t do that. It was a gymnastics double.’ ‘What’s a gymnastics double?’ he asked. ‘That’s a guy who dresses in my clothes and does things I can’t do.’” Bacon said, “There was silence from my son, then he asked in a concerned voice, ‘Dad, what did you do?’ ‘I got all the glory,’ I sheepishly replied.” Our Scripture lesson today echoes the same principle. Jesus donned our human persona. He dressed in our clothes. He lived in our flesh. Then, He did the things you and I could never do. He fulfilled the righteous requirements of God’s law. What did you and I do? We accepted the credit. In the movies, the double who stands in for the starring actor performs their role to such a degree, that when the final version of the film is edited and released, there is no differentiation between the stunt double and the film’s star. The roles are seamless. Thus it is in God’s view. When we place our trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ, God imputes His righteousness to us. The roles are seamless. To see Him is to see us. To see us is to see Him. No longer are we sinners, but we have been “made the righteousness of God in Him.” It is this right standing with God that enables us to be forever accepted in His presence, with this and each new day.

09/01/2026

REFOCUS
By: Pastor Johnie Akers

2 Kings 6:17, “And Elisha prayed, and said, ‘Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see.’ And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.” A man made an appointment to see his doctor. “Doctor,” he complained, “everywhere I touch seems to hurt lately. Am I getting old or just senile; or worse—maybe I’ve contracted some horrible disease. If I push on my knees, I hurt. If I push on my stomach, I hurt! When I press on my head right here by my temple, that hurts too! When I press on my neck that hurts as well. What’s going on? You’ve got to help me!” The doctor ordered X-rays of the man’s entire body. An hour or so passed and after evaluating the X-rays very carefully, the doctor returned to the treatment room. Stroking his chin, the doctor slowly began, “I think I’ve found the reason why everything you touch hurts.” “Well, tell me! Is it serious?” the man anxiously replied. The doctor pointed to an X-ray of the man’s hand. He said, “Sir, your body is just fine—but your finger is broken.” The man’s focus was obviously in the wrong place. In our text today, the prophet Elisha and his servant are surrounded by an enemy army. Their mission was to arrest the prophet because of his continual insight into their battle plans against Israel. As the enemy army begins to encroach upon the two men, Elisha’s servant becomes fearful as he focuses upon them. Yet Elisha the prophet remains stalwart. The reason was that his focus was elsewhere. Upon asking God to open the eyes of his servant, the servant then sees what Elisha had been seeing all along—surrounding the two men, forming a protective line between them and their adversaries was an angelic army. Our focus determines whether we walk in fear or faith. Today, I pray that the Lord would help you refocus from the issues that would evoke fear in your life, to the greater reality of God’s presence that will enable you to overcome any challenge that you may face and experience the victory that can be yours with each new day.

08/31/2026

MISTAKES WERE MADE, BUT NOT BY ME
By: Pastor Johnie Akers

Proverbs 28:13, “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” In their book, Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me), authors Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson, explore why many people abdicate responsibility when things fall apart, as a result of bad decisions they have made. They cite organizational consultants Warren Bennis and Burt Nanus who suggest that “institutions can be designed to reward admissions of mistakes as part of the organizational culture, rather than, as now, making it uncomfortable for people to own up.” To demonstrate the point, they share a story of Tom Watson, Sr., founder and leader of technology giant IBM for over forty years. Watson became the object of business leadership legend by his purported handling of a promising young executive who lost the company over $10 million in a risky venture. “When Watson called the nervous executive into his office, the young man blurted out, ‘I guess you want my resignation?’ “Watson replied, ‘You can’t be serious. We’ve just spent $10 million educating you!’” Whether it is the culture of an organization, the family unit, or within a church community, the ability of an individual to be transparent, and yet not be condemned is a priceless commodity. Pointing out where another has stumbled takes the focus from us. Yet it serves as an injustice, not only for the object of our judgement, but for us as well by positioning the mirror away from our own reflection. If “they” are bad, we conclude we are good (or at the least, not so bad). In the gospels, Jesus spoke of the tendency we have to remove the speck of dust in someone else’s eye, while ignoring the log in our own eye. Religion is good for making hypocrites out of its converts. We must get to the place where we first are willing to admit that the one who is most in need of grace, is us. Then, we can view others through the same eyes of forgiveness that God has granted us. Enabling us to live as agents of mercy and reconciliation to all who have stumbled, with this and each new day.


Source: Mistakes Were Made, but Not By Me: Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs, Bad Decisions, and Hurtful Acts: Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson: Harcourt, 2007

08/28/2026

PUT THE GARBAGE IN A BAG
By: Pastor Johnie Akers

2 Timothy 2:21 (Amplified Bible), “So whoever cleanses himself [from what is ignoble and unclean, who separates himself from contact with contaminating and corrupting influences] will [then himself] be a vessel set apart and useful for honorable and noble purposes, consecrated and profitable to the Master, fit and ready for any good work.” I had sat some empty boxes by my garbage cans in order for the garbage truck to pick them up during the weekly route. Later that day, I noticed the garbage cans were empty, but the boxes remained. Thinking it was an oversight, I sat the boxes back out the following week by the garbage cans. But once again, the garbage cans were emptied but the boxes remained. A week later I inquired of the sanitation worker about the boxes. He informed me that it was his company’s policy not to pick anything up unless it was in a garbage bag. He said absent of the policy, they do not have the ability to determine what is meant to be thrown away, and what is merely located in the same proximity of their customer’s garbage cans that is actually not trash. Thus, a customer clearly identifies what is to be discarded by placing it in a garbage bag. He said, “We can’t read your mind. If it’s garbage, put it in a bag. Otherwise, we are not allowed to pick it up.” In retrospect, the policy makes sense. There must be a clear distinction of what we intend to rid ourselves of. This is also true in a spiritual sense. I think there are times when we have intentions of discarding certain behavioral, communication, or thought patterns from our lives yet we never fully follow through. We may “sit them by the curb” with the other garbage, but we do not “put them in a bag” clearly releasing them to be picked up for permanent disposal. Today put the garbage in a bag. As we rid our lives of contaminating behaviors and influences, we must be definitive in clearly identifying those corrupting elements, then fully release them to the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit, so we may continually be transformed into a consecrated vessel for His glory, with each new day.