http://www.capitolcommissionlouisiana.org/

Capitol Commission Louisiana, 701 Rue Marseille, Mandeville, LA (2026)

03/25/2026

AS DUMB AS PULLING A DOG BY THE EARS

This practical proverb may be just the wisdom you need today. “Whoever meddles in a quarrel not his own is like one who takes a passing dog by the ears.” Proverbs 26:17 paints a humorous word picture to remind the reader to mind their own business. Unless there is a compelling reason, it's usually unwise to get involved in someone else's dispute. If you do, chances are you will get bitten by both parties.

In ancient Israel, dogs were untamed scavengers and were often aggressive. They were not pets. Don’t be thinking Lassie, Benji, Beethoven or Scooby-Doo. No sensible person would grab a wild dog by the ears. If you pull a dog by the ears, you probably will get bit.

In the same way, a wise person is cautious not to intrude or meddle into conflicts, quarrels, strife and disputes that don’t involve them.

Bottom line: Don’t stick your nose where it doesn’t belong. That includes comments on social media! Whoops … I know I’m meddling now and not preaching.

08/17/2024

During the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln responded to a question of whether God favored the Union cause, "Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side," said the President. "My great concern is to be on God's side, for God is always right."

WISDOM FOR A DIVIDED NATION.

08/16/2024

KEEP GOING SISTERS OF THE FAITH. DO NOT SHRINK BACK.

Remarkable. I got stopped in my tracks reading Acts 16:14-15. An upper-class businesswoman in a luxury textile firm helped found, fund, host and influence the establishment of the first Christian Church in Europe. This was revolutionary and countercultural for the times. Lydia, indeed, left her mark on the Jesus movement in Philippi and it should compel all of us, especially sisters in the faith, to do the same.

Lydia was a city girl from Thyatira (modern day Turkey), a region known for producing the purple dye that colored so much of the luxury clothing for nobles, elites, and the wealthy. Think Gucci, my friends. Somewhere along the line she moved to Philippi, a port city majoring in imports and exports. We do not know if she was divorced, widowed, single or what but in this patriarchal society she had learned to navigate the culture well. She was strong and wealthy with a business and big house to prove it. I just wonder if a perk of her craft allowed her to be the best dressed woman in town. I am sure her favorite color was purple.

Acts 16:14-15 says, “One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. ‘If you consider me a believer in the Lord,’ she said, ‘come and stay at my house.’ And she persuaded us.” Paul and three of his preacher friends accepted the invite. In 16:40 we find Paul and Silas and the new brothers and sisters of faith meeting at her house. As part of the worldwide movement of God, Lydia was undone by the marvelous grace of God and caught a Kingdom vision for her life. She would never be the same. She was one more in a long line of woman flocking to the liberating power and person of Jesus.

This Scripture makes me think about the incredible contribution daughters of the King are unleashing today. I could share the names of hundreds of servant women who are making a difference. Keep going sisters of the faith. Do not shrink back. Prize life. Build Character. Pray great prayers. Unleash your strengths. Honor Jesus in this your generation.

08/11/2024

The Olympics’ Most Iconic Photo Has a Christian Message

Every four years, photographers wonder who is going to get THE SHOT…. Meaning who will get the iconic photograph of the Olympic Games. The raised index finger of surfer Gabriel Medina is perhaps the most celebrated picture of the 2024 Olympic Games.

Christianity Today Magazine reports, on July 29, the Brazilian Gabriel Medina, “in round three of the shortboard surfing competition, emerged from a tube exuberant, with both palms open, suggesting that the judges should offer him a 10 for his performance. (Two of the five judges agreed; his final score was 9.9). Medina then pivoted left, toward the surf, and jumped off his board, raising his right hand and pointing his index finger upward. This was the image that Agence France-Presse photographer Jérôme Brouillet captured.

Brazilian evangelicals recognized the sign immediately. “It's like he’s saying, ‘It's not me you should be looking at, it’s God. This moment of glory is not mine, but his,’” said João Guilherme Züge, a resident historian of religion at Museu Paranaense, in Curitiba.” The raised finger, pointing to the sky, has been the trademark of Brazilian evangelical athletes for more than 40 years”.

Gabriel Medina “uploaded Brouillet’s photo accompanied by the text from Philippians 4:13: “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”
Evangelical Brazilian athletes have been creative in their expressions of faith during this year’s Olympics. Skateboarder bronze medalist Rayssa Leal and silver medalist Caio Bonfim used sign language to refer to Jesus.

Medina, after losing in the semifinals to Australian Jack Robinson, shared a black-and-white photo of himself captioned, “Josué 1”—referring to the chapter of the Bible in which Joshua admonishes the Israelites to be “strong and courageous” no less than four times—accompanied by the song “Ousado Amor,” a Portuguese version of Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love.” On August 7, he uploaded a picture of himself outside the Louvre recreating his iconic photo, once again holding up his index finger.

Glory to God. Thank you athletes for being strong and courageous.

08/06/2024

Scottie Scheffler Gets Emotional After Winning the Gold

Any question over what Olympic gold means to Scottie Scheffler was answered as tears flowed from his eyes while on the medal stand as the Star Spangled Banner played in Paris yesterday. Scheffler celebrated the emotional win with his wife and their infant son Bennett. Bennett was wearing a onesie and an American flag bonnet. The victory came after Scottie shot a 62 to come from behind to win Team USA’s 15th gold medal so far.

It has been a crazy few months for Scottie Scheffler. He is the undisputed #1 golfer in the world and has won 7 times this season. He was, as it turned out, unfairly arrested for a traffic violation at the PGA Championship and the Shefflers recently added a little baby boy to the family.

Through it all, Scottie stands firm in his faith. In May he said, “I’m a faithful guy. I believe in a creator. I believe in Jesus ... I feel like I’ve been given a platform to compete and show my talent. It’s not anything that I did. Golf is something I do. It’s a tremendously huge part of my life, but it doesn’t define me as a person.”

After the Masters he said,
"My buddies told me this morning my victory was secure on the cross. And that's a pretty special feeling to know that I'm secure for forever and it doesn't matter if I win this tournament or lose this tournament. My identity is secure for forever."
What does Scheffler mean? One person explained it this way,
“He is speaking about how he believes his standing before God is unchangeable now because Jesus died in his place on the cross. Jesus performed in his place and Scheffler believes he will enjoy life forever with God because of it. The Bible describes the new identity Christians have as been formerly slaves, but now “dearly loved children.” Scottie Scheffler knows he is loved regardless of his golfing performance, and this enhances his ability to deal with pressure. This freedom and security his faith provides seems to allow him to know that all he can do is control what he can, doing the best he can any given week.

This is a wonderful balm for the anxious, performance driven soul.
Scottie Scheffler will not win every week. He’s said himself that “professional golf is an endlessly not satisfying career” with its grind and the variables at play each week.

He will face periods in his golfing career, as he already has, when his form fails, or he picks up injuries and drops down the rankings. It is at those moments, as well as on the morning of potential major victories, that he also needs his friends to remind him his identity is secure forever. What a radical and freeing way to live.”

06/17/2024

DON’T THROW IN THE TOWEL
Perhaps the most memorable image of Hurricane Ike from September 2008 was the famous yellow house, the only house left standing in a neighborhood of Gilchrist, Texas (see picture). This little peaceful and serene seaside community of 200 homes was known for its colorful houses, sidewalks, beautiful landscaping and retirees. After Ike, it looked like a bomb exploded. There was nothing left to suggest there was civilization there except for one lone house that stood strong and defied the wind and the watery wrath of the storm. This was one house out of 200.
The owners were Warren and Pamela Adams. Warren was an electrical designer. He added additional fortifications to retrofit the house when the foundation was initially laid and the house was built in anticipation of the hurricanes of life. He hired an engineering company to oversee the contractors. In the end, it was shocking to see only one house standing, but the backstory of the faithfulness of the builder shines light on the ability to stand.
Such is the story of our lives. Jesus told the famous story of two men who built homes or should I say built their lives. Outwardly, both looked strong but it wasn’t until the storm came that the individual foundations were revealed. The exhortation from this story in the Sermon on the Mount was to build our homes/our lives upon the rock and not sinking sand. Jesus is that Rock.
All our homes/lives will have cracks and scars from the storms, struggles, and seasons of life. Yet, we will stay intact if built on Jesus, our firm foundation. As I like to say, we may shake upon the Rock, but the Rock will never shake under us.
Stay steady today in the storm my friends. God is faithful. He started a good work in you and will finish that work. He is able. He is a rescuer … sustainer … deliverer … keeper. Get to know who God is and who He says you are. Get to know His voice and be careful of the counterfeits of the enemy. Be less impressed with the famous and more impressed with the faithful. Abide in Jesus and don’t be afraid to speak his name and his deeds of faithfulness to you.
Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority before all time and now and forever. Amen. Jude 1:24-25

10/01/2023

This awesome little Mongolia 8 year old joined my class today after having the hole in her heart repaired a couple weeks ago. Samaritan’s Purse has a Children’s Heart Project that flies kids to the U.S. for surgical repair. A few months ago she had no ability to do anything and today she is running around with a huge smile on her face.

Thank you God for your new mercies every day.
Gina M Streeter

10/21/2022

Loneliness. Uncertain futures. Economic toll. Sn*******ng global problems. Hopelessness. Unprecedented anxiety.

Time to cultivate an intense attachment to God. Praying God's word to "Be still" trains us to live peacefully in the yoke of Jesus. Slow down your antsy body and jitterbugging thoughts for a moment. Use Psalm 46:10 to practice.

1. Breathe in deep and slow as you think or whisper: "Be still and know that I am God".

2. Be still and appreciate God's Word of peace.

3. Relax in God's presence

4. Meditate on each line as you think or say:

Be still and know that I am God

Be still and know that I AM

Be still and know

Be still

Be

5. There are other verses that you may need to meditate upon

If God is for me, who can be against me

He must increase, I must decrease

In Christ there is no Condemnation

Father into your arms I commit _________.

05/04/2022

Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening. (1 Samuel 3:9)

Silence is an act of war against competing voices. Henry Nouwen said, "every time you listen with great attentiveness to the voice that calls you the Beloved, you will discover within yourself a desire to hear that voice longer and more deeply."

01/20/2022

FEAR OF DEATH

I have told Corrie Ten Boom’s story a hundred plus times in hospitals, funeral homes and over the phone as people have wrestled with death and the future.

Corrie Ten Boom is one of my heroes and I will never forget the one time I got to hear her speak. Corrie was sent to the notorious Ravensbruck concentration camp for hiding Jews in her home. During her time there, Corrie lost both her father and sister. She did not lose her grip on God because she learned early in life that God supplies His sufficient grace as needed.

At age six, she witnessed the death of a neighbor’s baby and was confronted with the fragile nature of life. Spooked by this experience, she burst into tears and sobbed to her father, “I need you. You can’t die! You can’t!” Seeking to comfort and counsel his frightened daughter, Corrie’s father sat down beside her and gently said, “Corrie, when you and I go to Amsterdam, when do I give you the ticket?” She sniffled a little, and replied, “Why, just before we get on the train.” “Exactly,” her father responded, “and our wise Father in heaven knows when we are going to need things too. Don’t run ahead of Him, Corrie. When the time comes that some of us will have to die, you will look into your heart and find the strength you need, just in time.”

Corrie Ten Boom learned something that day that would hold true throughout her life. God does not give us grace for the future. Grace cannot be stored. Grace is like the manna that God supplied the Israelites in the wilderness. It has an expiration date on it. One day.

Like Corrie, we do not have to live in fear of what the future holds. As Corrie discovered, God gives us tickets of grace to get us through any given situation. God gives the ticket right when we need it.

11/28/2021

WHY YOU SHOULD KNOW AUGUST LANDMESSER

You have probably seen his picture. It is one of the most iconic black and white pictures in history. Study this famous 1936 picture. Hundreds of arms are extended offering the “Seig Heil”. Except one. A twenty-six year old. This is the story of the man who refused to give the N**i salute to Hi**er.

August Landmesser was not always a dissident. For two years he was a card carrying member of the N**i Party. However, in 1933 he met Irma Eckler and they fell deeply in love and had two children. It was a perfect story but with one big challenge: Eckler was Jewish. They were denied a marriage license. They tried to flee to Denmark but were detained. He was sent to a concentration camp and eventually died in 1944, and she died in the gas chambers in 1942.

The picture was taken on June 13, 1936 with the Fuhrer present. Landmesser crossed his arms, not being willing to salute the man dehumanizing his wife and child.

The picture reminds me of the resistance of the likes of Martin Luther, Martin Luther King, Queen Esther, Rosa Parks and Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Perhaps, we should be preparing ourselves. There are times to stand against the herd. Pay the cost. Resist. Speak up. Tell the bully to cut it out. Confront. Take action. Be a rebel against status quo. Decide now what you will do when courage is required. Convictions matter.

Capitol Commission Louisiana

03/25/2026

08/17/2024

08/16/2024

08/11/2024

08/06/2024

06/17/2024

10/01/2023

10/21/2022

05/04/2022

01/20/2022

11/28/2021

Address

Telephone

Website

Alerts

Contact The Place Of Worship

Shortcuts

Share