Beacon Hill Baptist

06/02/2026

Thoughts and a cup of coffee: Perspectives

Marna and I braved the roads to Seattle last night to hear Joshua’s gospel choir. Now I could regale you with the stories of gauntlets of liberalism or the multiple fiascos that accompanied the presentation. But this would distract you from the reality of the event.
Last night, the gospel was presented on the UW campus. No, it was not a revival service nor was it a tent meeting. It was a group of students singing songs that glorified God. It was a group of people celebrating an amazing God. What made it so incredible is that it was presented very clearly in the heart of a Satanic stronghold.
In that moment, for that hour, God’s light shone strong and boldly. Proving that regardless of the work Satan has taken to shore up his boundaries, God moves as He pleases. In this bastion of darkness, a light shone. In this fortress of deceit, truth was presented. In this citadel of humanism, hope was heard.
I bring this up due to the fact that at times we might feel that we are raging against the wind, accomplishing nothing. Regardless of our efforts and struggles, we gain nothing. These emotions are just that, emotions. The truth is that God is moving and cannot be halted or hindered. He ministers as He chooses and where He pleases. God is and has always been the Lord of all.
So, do not be dismayed; instead, be bold and courageous. The Lord our God does not respect the boundaries placed upon Him by others. He alone is God and will work as he chooses, where He chooses and how He chooses. This is a reason to celebrate.
May your day be filled with the grace of God and the strength of His might!
Blessings.

06/01/2026

https://youtu.be/8ennIhNco7Y?si=wWOZ41VY0Mr9Io7j

Luke 13:4,Job 42:5-6,James 1:2-4,Hebrews 12:2,Romans 8:28

06/01/2026

https://youtu.be/7dmtF9UeKaY?si=XtzUQQwnbGI8dNNk

Hare or Tortoise: It’s about the Focus2 Corinthians. 3:18Romans 6...

05/26/2026

Thoughts and a cup of coffee: Potential problems with proverbs

When life gives you lemons, clearly you make lemonade. When life gives you oranges, you make orange Julius. So, what are you encouraged to do when life gives you turnips? Make buttered turnip puree, or buy potatoes.
We have a large number of sayings that encourage us to make the best of life, to take what we have and strive. And while these sayings are reasonable and offer advice encouraging us to stay focused and not become discouraged, they often lack conviction. They have become slogans.
This same truth has filtered its way into many aspects of the culture, including the church. It too has phrases that once held conviction but now often fail to encourage and build up the hearer. The phrase has changed, nor has it become invalid, but it has become so used that it can feel tired. The person using the phrase recites it from reflex, and the person being encouraged often hears the slogan, not the heart of God as intended.
So, next time you are in a position to encourage a friend, ponder the phrase you intend to use. Consider how it sounds and how it might have become understood. Take a moment and address the person and not the problem.
When life gives you a proverb, become a scholar.
Blessings.

05/19/2026

Thoughts and a cup of coffee: Dealing with life

Part of my job is people. I expect you probably already knew that. With people come opportunities for hearing stories, stories that have bad endings. The problem with bad endings is that they very often result in other bad endings.
Let me see if I can explain. When something bad happens in a person’s life, it can and will affect the rest of their interactions. This event will color everything else until they manage to deal with it. And by dealing with it, I mean placing it in its proper perspective. The worse the event, the more overflow it will have on the rest of their activities and relationships.
The need to deal with each situation in our lives is essential. And we do, but how we do it is very important. The options that come to mind are simple. We can stuff the emotions deep down and pretend they do not exist. We can go off the handle and explode (this is often what happens when we choose the stuff option). We can calmly examine the situation and adjust our perception to the new reality. Or we can pretend that the event never happened and slowly die inside. Generally, what happens is a combination of all of the above.
Dealing with problems is a skill set that is very valuable and required to deal with life in general. Which is why I always find it interesting when people choose to fail at it. They permit one issue to not heal, but use it to contaminate the rest of their life at an increasing rate. Now I do not believe that they do this consciously, but they can hardly miss the connection.
Dealing with pain is required in life. Physical, mental, and emotional pain are a reality of life, regardless of our desires. Learning to deal with them in a positive way kind of makes sense. So, when people don’t choose to, it makes me curious. The truly crazy part is just how common it is.
Job is a great example of dealing with pain, all three types. How do you deal with pain? Something to think about.
Blessings.

05/18/2026

https://youtu.be/lEVujcDiCqw?si=3froKZlHa38Bg1xl

2 Timothy 2:14-19,Colossians 2:8, 4:5-6Numbers 16:5

05/12/2026

Thoughts and a cup of coffee: Angered by nothing

I had the most frustrating event yesterday. I became upset, angry, even for no true reason. Even looking back, I cannot determine why I became upset. I sought to justify being upset and found nothing that made any sense. Sure, I made up something and tried to make it sound acceptable, but even those failed to survive any actual thought.
So, just what happened? Did something take me off guard and distract me from reality? Perhaps. Was it an accumulation of tiny things previously ignored until they set me off? Maybe. But honestly, I have not found any reason, or accumulated reasons. Strange.
So, all I am left with is a very strange event. So, why bring it up? Because strange things happen. There are times we react, overreact, or even blow a cork without justification. And while I am not going to say it's okay, I am going to say when you have a chance, seek to understand the event. Seek to grasp what happened. Not to justify but to learn. In learning, we grow in our understanding of ourselves and possibly of others.
It is easy to become frustrated with ourselves after such an event, wondering how others see us. Honestly, do not worry about that. People will see you as they do; the amount we are able to control it is minimal. For the most part, their perception of us is built on their concern for us, not on how they witness a certain event. And if they are looking for a reason to be upset with us, anything will do. Apologies when applicable and move forward.
God knows that we are not always aware of ourselves and, in His grace, guides us onward. Let Him.
Blessings.

05/12/2026

https://youtu.be/6F5qkaunlys?si=7ToFFjggPtKtTJDa

Proverbs 1:8-9,2 Timothy 1:5,Proverbs 31,

05/05/2026

Thoughts and a cup of coffee: To ponder or not to ponder

As I sat here this morning thinking, a bunch of slogans and sayings ran through my brain. Each one is just a little dumber than the previous. It hit me that we, as people, like to sound smart regardless of the reality behind it. Yes, I do realize that this information is not new, but it is early, and I have not finished my first cup of coffee. And I recognize that it is my brain that is recalling the phrases. Regardless.
Slogans, repeatable phrases, common quotes, and even some carefully crafted lyrics sound smart until you begin looking at just what they say. Then, if you begin to dissect what they mean, you notice that they are actually very silly. And while I am sure that many actual smart thoughts are rolling around, most fall short of that. So, why do they continue to propagate? My best guess is that we like the way they sound. No, honest. They sound pleasing to our ears.
Thinking has always been work. There is an actual study that shows that when you play chess at a high level, you burn calories at a significant rate. And since thinking is hard work, it can be easy to avoid. As a result, we tend to replace thinking with what catches the ear. What sounds good? What we agree with easily.
One very obvious result of this is found in our vocabulary, which has diminished significantly. During Shakespeare’s day, the active vocabulary was around 21,000 to 30,000 words. Does anyone want to guess what we use today? The active vocabulary of today is around 5000. Thinking and training our brains takes work. Slogans are easier. Letting people tell us what to think is easier.
Ask the hard questions of yourself and others. Encouraging people to think is doing them a massive favor. Oh, and one of the best ways to increase your vocabulary is to read a book. You might even consider reading one that encourages you to ponder.
Blessings.

05/04/2026

https://youtu.be/cfRTd5m_o5Q?si=YFoFc58a_JffufRW

A Life of Devotion - 5-3-26 Service