For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 1 Corinthians 15:9-10 Today I would like to take a look at this passage...1 Corinthians 15:9-10. I read it this past week and was reminded of God's grace. It was one of those passages that makes you stop and take another look. When I did I was so moved by Paul's words that I could not help but thank God for his amazing grace and love for me! " For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God . But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me." Why would Paul say this? He was one of the

Last night I was driving home alone from running an errand. I threw on a CD and a song played that brought me into a place of worship. It had been a while since I have taken time to just be alone with God like that. As I pulled into our neighborhood, I whispered to myself..."I've missed that." In those few minutes of being in the presence of God, my cup that I had poured out throughout the week was filled! O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you,as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, when I remember you upon my bed,and meditate on you in the watches of the night; for you have been my he

One of my students has an iphone. So I asked to borrow it for an illustration. As I showed off the phone, I went over its details and the technology of the phone. I buttered it up! After I had my students salivating, I threw them the big fat curve ball..."Who pays for all of this?" All of a sudden I could see the wheels turning in their brains. Sheepishly, some replied, "Mom and dad." My response, "Once you are on your own, will they continue paying for it?" BOOM! The realization sunk in! I then went for the kill! I asked, "How many drive a car?" Hands shot up! Then I let them have it..."Who owns the car? You or your parents?" As quick as the hands shot up, they came down. BOOM! BOOM! The challenge that I had for my students was for them to have a plan! The ATM of Mom and Dad will not always be there, if they wanted to live with the luxury's they grew up with, it was going to take a plan to get where they wanted to be. Solomon write

Integrity. Powerful word. A word that can make or break a person. A word that speaks volumes concerning ones character. When my eldest daughter was about 6 years old we were at the local Michael's craft store. As we walked the isle she noticed a bunch of marbles on the floor that had fallen off the shelf. Thinking that God had blessed her with such luck she asked if she could keep them. After all she had found them. She felt they were hers. My wife and I answered "No", and a lesson in integrity began to take place as we tried to explain to her that the marbles were the stores. Later that night when we got home I noticed that she was playing with the marbles! When we turned our backs, she picked them up anyways and stuck them in her pocket. Instead of giving her consequence right then and there, I got the car keys, took my daughter by the hand and drove off back to the store! Integrity as defined by Webster, "the state of being complete; unified" That means that