30 Mar 2026
The death of Jesus on the cross will always be the greatest sacrifice of all time. He willingly lay down His life for our redemption. May this act of love always motivate us to ĺove others. May it also increase our love and respect for God. Matthew 26:10-13.
The Last Word
Who has the final say in our lives? Two brothers were playing in the back yard on a beautiful Sunday morning. All of a sudden their dog, Matt, bounded into the bushes and came out shaking a black and white lop-eared rabbit. The two brothers were aghast because the rabbit belonged to their neighbor, Mrs. Clausen. How could they tell their neighbor their dog had killed her pet rabbit? They decided to take their problem to their father since he always seemed to know just what to do. His suggestion, however, wasn’t very wise. He told the boys to hose the little fellow off real well so he would look nice and clean. Then they should dry him off with a towel and stick him back in the cage. Mrs. Clausen was at church while all this took place. When she returned home, they thought she would discover her pet rabbit, but would determine that it died a natural death. The boys did as their father had advised, then hid in the bushes to get a good vantage point to observe Mrs. Clausen when she discovered her dead rabbit. Sure enough, when she came home from church, Mrs. Clausen came out of the back door and headed for the rabbit cage. All of a sudden, the boys heard the worst screaming anyone has ever heard. Mrs. Clausen went on and on crying, shrieking, yelling, and asking God all kinds of questions. It was then that the mother and father of the boys came outside and approached their neighbor in her back yard, pleading with her to stop and tell them what had happened. When they finally calmed Mrs. Clausen down a little, they asked her once again what was wrong. In between sniffs and sobs she finally got it out: “I buried that rabbit three days ago.” We do the best we can to mask the reality of death, but to no avail. Death is not our friend, no matter what the circumstances. The Word of God makes plain that physical death is the last enemy of God to be destroyed (1 Corinthians 15:20-26) and will be completed defeated when Jesus returns. In the meantime, however, we must live with death staring us in the face. This does not mean that we should be afraid of death. Jesus’ resurrection has sealed the fate of death. Death will be swallowed up in victory and so its most powerful sting has been removed through the victory of Jesus who insures that our lives will not be lived in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:54-55) Since Jesus holds the keys of Death and Hades (Revelation 1:18) and I belong to Him, then death will not have the last say in my life. So the question we must all ask is this: “Do I belong to Him?” About the author: Joe Bagby has been preaching for thirty years. He and his wife Paula were missionaries to Thailand in the 80’s for eight years where they adopted twin girls, Hope and Joy. Joe receive his masters degree in Congregational Ministry from Abilene Christian University with a BS in Education from University of North Texas. He is now serving as Pulpit Minister for the 4th and Elm Church of Christ in Sweetwater, Texas.
Compliment Guys
Now aren’t you nice!? Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If you speak, you should do so as one who speaks the very words of God (1 Peter 4:10-11). They were tired of it. Tired of people being grumpy, depressed, and worried. Tired of always worrying about the current economic climate. So Cameron Brown and Brett Westcott decided to do something to bring a little light and joy to their corner of the world – which happens to be Purdue University. They became The Compliment Guys. That’s what everyone calls them, anyway. Every Wednesday afternoon from 12:30 to 2:30, Cameron and Brett set up their “Free Compliments” sign near a main walkway outside the chemistry building. Rain, snow, sleet, cold – whatever the weather, The Compliment Guys are “In.” For those two hours on Wednesday, they live up to their name. Every person who walks by gets a compliment. To a guy in Purdue sweats they say, “Love your school spirit.” To a woman carrying a trendy black bag: “Very nice purse.” “It’s very large.” To the student who ran past them in knee-high leather boots: “I like your hustle.” “I like your boots, too.” The guys try to be very personal and specific in their compliments, too. “I like your red coat,” Westcott says to a woman listening to her iPod. She turned and laughed, which prompted Brown to say, “Very nice smile.” Three women leaving biology lab purposely walked by them. “I like your curly hair. Great smile. I like your glasses,” the guys said, pointing to each of the women. One Wednesday, they told a professor to enjoy his coffee, thanked the groundskeepers for their hard work and encouraged someone eating an apple to “stay nutritious.” While most people react positively, the guys sometimes get ignored, or get nasty looks, or the occasional obscene gesture. They get accused of being there only to pick up girls. (They both have girlfriends.) Some think it’s a psychology experiment. But Brett Westcott says their reasons for being The Compliment Guys are pretty straightforward, if not too sophisticated: “Just overall, making people’s day is really satisfying. Not enough people do nice things anymore.” I don’t know about you, but I think The Compliment Guys might be on to something. We’re a culture that doesn’t take seriously the power of words. Strange, when you think about how many words we speak, process, e-mail, and text every day. Everywhere we look, there are words: on signs, on screens, on forms and petitions, in documents and books, on labels and menus, billboards and bumper stickers. Everywhere we go, people are speaking: cell phones clamped to ears as they walk, Bluetooths (Blueteeth?) clipped to ears while they drive, in meetings and at coffee shops, in schools and churches and offices and bars and restaurants, over dinner with family and over conference calls with the home office. So many words. So little thought. How else to explain the careless ways that husbands and wives, parents and children, students and teachers, friends, colleagues, and fellow church members speak to each other? How else to explain the torrents of profanity yelled out of car windows when a driver feels cheated out of a spot in traffic that he thinks should have been his? How else to explain how we trivialize things like sex or family or even God with too many meaningless, thoughtless, graceless words? How else to explain all the ways in which we use words to hurt, manipulate, belittle, and control? So many words. So little thought. No wonder members of some religious orders take vows of silence. When you discipline yourself not to speak at all, you gain a better understanding of the value of words, in much the same way as a person who’s fasting understands the value of food. Maybe we Christians should give more thought to the vow of silence. I can certainly think of situations that would have worked out much better if I had taken one. Or maybe better, let’s discipline ourselves to use words more carefully. That’s where I think The Compliment Guys have it right. They’re making a choice to use words to “make peoples’ day.” They’re disciplining themselves, at least for two hours on Wednesday afternoons, to speak in ways that are positive, affirming, and encouraging. I suspect, too, that those two hours on Wednesday carry over, at least to some extent, in the ways that they speak when they’re “off duty.” “If you speak,” wrote Peter, “you should do so as one who speaks the very words of God.” I love that it’s Peter, of all people, who wrote that. Peter, the guy who was so well-acquainted with the taste of foot. The guy who swore he’d never desert Jesus, and then swore just as vehemently that he didn’t know him. He learned, somewhere along the line, and by the time he was an elder statesman of the church he had learned how much words mattered. He had begun to regard words, and the opportunity to use them, as gifts from God. He understood that the faithful words of God’s people are one of the many ways in which God’s grace takes form in this world. So he wanted the church to take words seriously. He charged them to give careful thought to what they said, to consider whether or not the words coming from their mouths or pens were suitable vehicles for the grace of God to travel in. “If you say something, make sure it’s something that wouldn’t seem out of place coming from the mouth of God himself.” Well, we can try to do better at least, can’t we? It might not work for you to set up your own “Free Compliment” stand at your own work or school. But then, there are other ways to bless people with your words than firing compliments at
Beautiful Feet
How pretty are your woofing dogs? The only feet I have ever admired are those that belong to babies or very young children. For the most part, I think adult feet are ugly. They have a right to be. Most of us, especially women, abuse them with shoes that don’t fit correctly or have inadequate arch support. Many years ago, my husband worked in a shoe store and he says it always amazed him when some women would shove their feet into shoes that were obviously too small. Not me. You won’t catch me in uncomfortable shoes. Once, my mother bought me a pair of shoes to wear to a cousin’s wedding. For some reason I don’t remember now, I didn’t try them on until the day of the wedding. They were too small and so painful that now, almost 20 years later, the only thing I can remember about the day my cousin said, “I do!” was how much my feet hurt. Ugly feet are hereditary in my family. Once, when all the women on my father’s side were together, we took off our shoes to show those who married into our family what their children’s feet might look like. I could tell by the looks on their faces that they thought we were kidding. However, when we took off our shoes, there was no denying the similarity. “How do they get that way?” they asked. “Genetics,” we all replied in unison. “Admire your children’s feet when they are babies because one day they may look like this,” my aunt advised. I remember my grandmother saying, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” But when it comes to feet, I didn’t believe that anyone could possibly find my feet attractive. I am so self conscious about them that I never wear sandals, flip flops, or open-toed shoes. No sirreee. I want those ugly puppies covered up as much as possible. Last week, I was reading my Bible and I came upon a verse that I didn’t remember. Paul quotes the Old Testament when he says, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news” (Romans 10:15 NLT). My mouth dropped open in amazement. The message was loud and clear. If I am a Christian and I am bringing the good news to others, I have beautiful feet! I slipped my shoes off and looked at the same twisted toes and huge bunions that I’ve looked at for the last several years. They definitely didn’t look beautiful to me, but if God thinks they are beautiful … I know they are. When my brother was a little boy my mother looked at his hands one day and told him he had beautiful hands. “No they’re not,” he argued. “Oh yes they are,” she replied gently. “The things they can do are beautiful.” And that’s the way it is with feet. No matter what they look like, when they help us carry the message that Jesus Christ came to this earth and died for our sins, that He arose victorious from the grave, and that He’s coming back for us one day, then our feet our beautiful indeed. About the author: Teresa is an accomplished author, speaker, mother, and grandmother. Teresa has been married to Bill for a lifetime of family, faith, and love. They are members of Pleasant Hill Church of Christ in Kentucky. They have 5 children and 4 grandchildren. Teresa is also the author of the popular women’s blog called “NanaHood”!
Today’s Verse – 2 Corinthians 5:21
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. —2 Corinthians 5:21 Thoughts on Today’s Verse… Righteousness! That’s what we are. We are not just righteous. No, it is much bigger than that. We are God’s righteousness. Before Jesus, and without Jesus, no one is righteous (Romans 3:21-24). Now, however, we find our righteousness in him (Philippians 3:9). We are the testimony of how holy and gracious God truly is because of Jesus (Ephesians 2:1-9). God provided the sacrifice for our sins, and now his righteousness has re-created us in Christ Jesus to do good works for him in our broken world (2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:10). Altogether, this is God’s righteousness, and that’s what he has made us, his righteousness in Jesus! My Prayer… Thank You, Almighty God, for making me righteous by the blood of your Son’s death. May people see a reflection of your holiness, justice, and mercy in me, as I try to share your grace with them. By the authority of Jesus and his sacrifice for my sins, I pray with confidence. Amen. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
The Fourth Quarter
So are you ready for the buzzer to sound? I was raised in a home that loved Jesus, church, family and basketball. My dad was a University of Kentucky fan and if the Cats were playing, the whole family watched – thus the graphic at the top of the article celebrating the “Battle for Kentucky” tonight in this year’s “Sweet Sixteen.” When I grew up I married a “Yankee” who thought basketball was a sissy sport, I made him promise not to say that to my dad. Over the years, my husband realized that he was wrong. Now he loves basketball as much as I do. The years passed and we were blessed with four boys and a daughter. Three of our five children played basketball. We went to little league games, middle school games, high school games, and a zillion tournaments. My back ached from spending so much time on bleachers. At one point in my life, I would lay down at night to go to sleep and I could hear basketballs bouncing and tennis shoes squeaking! Even though I have never played basketball myself (they didn’t have a girl’s team when I was in high school) I have been around the sport so much that I often think in basketball terminology. The other day I was talking to my friend about something and I said something about being in the fourth quarter of life – they still play basketball in quarters in middle school, high school, and pros while colleges play in halves. She looked at me strangely. “What do you mean?” she asked. “Well, we are into our 50s. Assuming we live about as long as our parents… I think it’s safe to say this is the fourth quarter of life.” She thought about it a minute, “We might get an over-time,” she said with a grin. We might, but regardless of how long we live, eventually we reach the fourth quarter. Then it’s not long before “game over” – the buzzer sounds and everyone goes home. When I was younger, I was too busy living life to think much about the fourth quarter! Now that I’m older, I realize that one of the reasons I didn’t want to think about it was I knew I wasn’t ready for the final buzzer. I wasn’t ready to face the coach and give my answer for how I had played the game. Ready or not, this life – your life and my life – will end. Ready or not, we will all answer to God for the life we have lived. No matter how old or young we are, let’s live with commitment so that when the final buzzer sounds, or when the coach takes us out of the game, we are ready to face our final score with confidence! The apostle Paul loved athletic metaphors, too. Notice what he says about finishing with confidence: I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me – the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing (2 Timothy 4:6-8 NIV). About the author: Teresa is an accomplished author, speaker, mother, and grandmother. Teresa has been married to Bill for a lifetime of family, faith, and love. They are members of Pleasant Hill Church of Christ in Kentucky. They have 5 children and 4 grandchildren. Teresa is also the author of the popular women’s blog called “NanaHood”!
Today’s Verse – 1 Timothy 2:5-6
For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men — the testimony given in its proper time. —1 Timothy 2:5-6 Thoughts on Today’s Verse… We do not need to have another human, no matter how mighty, pious, or special, to intercede for us before God. As God’s children, we can go freely, knowing that God himself has provided the perfect mediator and intercessor between himself and us. That mediator is the Son, who is head of the Church, one with God himself, and our High Priest interceding before God on our behalf. His name is the man, Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah, the Son, and our LORD, Savior, and brother, who ransomed us through the cross and who now lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 2:11-14, 4:14-15, 7:25; Acts 3:6). My Prayer… O God, you are my God, and I praise you for making access to you so freely available. I know that if left to my own worthiness, I would have no strength or righteousness with which to approach you. Yet in your grace, you not only provided a ransom for my sin that makes me holy, but you also provided a mediator for my approach to you. Jesus, I thank you for paying the price on earth and now at the Father’s side to intercede and speak for me! Thank you, Jesus, for making this prayer known to the Father, as I pray in your name. Amen. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
How You Can Minister to Christ
How can we minister to Jesus? When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them … (Matthew 9:36) On my first visit to a prison in northern Portugal, in the mid-1970’s, I was taken by the way the inmates welcomed us … There were hugs and big smiles and it seemed like they jumped up and down with joy every time we came. At first, I thought that the warm welcome the inmates gave to my companions and me was because I was the voice of a Bible study radio broadcast, and they wanted to meet the man behind the voice. Later, I found out that once those men were locked up, they were abandoned. Neither their relatives nor their friends came to see them. Let’s face it: who would want to have a convict for a friend, or for a cousin, or even for a brother? During one of my first visits to the French Robertson Unit here in Abilene, one inmate’s first words to me were: “Welcome to the Cemetery of the Living.” Later on, that same man confided to me I was his only visitor in ten years. He had not had a single person come to visit him in an entire decade. Another inmate there – a man from Matanzas, Cuba – gave me his home address in his country. The first chance I had to visit Cuba, I went to see his family. There I learned that they had had no communication with him for the past twenty years. The man’s mother had died, and he was unaware of it. When Paul admonished the Colossians about being supportive, (Colossians 3:13) he did not say that the Christian should bear with his or her brothers and sisters only when the circumstances were right! No, we are told to be supportive all of the time, even when it is uncomfortable or risky to do so. To shoot a wounded comrade would be bizarre behavior for a solider. Yet this is what we do every time we turn our back to a hurting brother. And when we visit the sick and the prisoners, they are not the only ones who receive a blessing. It blesses us just as well. These people are very close to the heart of God. According to Matthew 25:45, as we minister to them, so we are ministering to Jesus Christ himself. What a thought! We can minister to Christ. About the author: Lou Seckler works with Harvest Ministries in Abilene, Texas
I Will Cling to the Old Rugged Cross
Like him, and because of him, we live and die to live again. First Thoughts: If I could turn the calendar back about 21 centuries and relive a week from the life of Jesus, I think this – the most awful and the most wonderful week of his young life – is the one I would choose. In this week, he would be the guest of his Bethany friends, be anointed by Mary and another Mary, make his heroic entry into Jerusalem, teach from the Mount of Olives, share the Last Supper with his apostles, experience betrayal, denial, endure one mock trial after another, then finish his mission on earth on a cross. This week would be endured because of the victory to be celebrated on a single day of the week to follow. On the first day of that week – Sunday, what we call Easter Sunday or Resurrection Sunday – would come the joyous news that He is not here; He is risen; He is risen indeed! Like him, and because of him, we live and die to live again. Remembering and Reliving: It was a quite ordinary church service until… until a college student rose to announce that he and some friends had been asked to help create a mood for communion, the Lord’s Supper. Our part was to sit quietly, with heads bowed and eyes closed, no matter what we might hear or sense. Suddenly, the silence was broken by WHAM! It was the sound of a heavy hammer blow followed by cries of pain. And, from different parts of the room, cries of “Crucify him! Crucify him!” were heard. Muted, but still heard in the background, was the noise of hammer blows and the anguished cries of unbearable pain. Some thought that communion devotional 30 years ago had profaned something sacred. I thought it had made real the raw emotions we usually gloss over with a bit of bread and a sip of wine. For me, it was a communion like no other, and every Sunday I still hear those screams and hammer blows all over again. In 1957, a journalist and author named Jim Bishop created a stir in the religious world with his best-selling The Day Christ Died. More recently, no less a media personality than Bill O’Reilly has included in a series of books one titled Killing Jesus. Countless others, beginning with all four gospel writers, have tried to make the passion of Christ so real that we really do feel like we were “there when they crucified my Lord.” Telling Jesus’ Story: Twenty-one centuries later, we still struggle to tell the story so effectively that our questions are all answered and our emotions so involved that the story just won’t let go. It’s a story that takes place in less than a day – about 22 hours ending shortly before the beginning of Shabbat, the Sabbath. Jesus and the apostles gathered in an upper room for the Passover meal, which we know as The Last Supper. From there they made their way to the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed, was betrayed, and arrested. If you’re keeping score, there were seven trials or hearings in less than 24 hours. Preachers tell the story over and over, trying to capture its essence. Lawyers discuss the legality of the various trials. And doctors describe in all the gory detail what death by crucifixion was like. Whether the Romans invented crucifixion or copied the practice from the Persians, they were interested in swift, public, painful punishment, convinced that it would serve as a deterrent for would-be criminals. Only Luke describes the agony of Christ beginning in the Garden of Gethsemane, where, “being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground” (Luke 22:44). A physician, Luke recorded that medical phenomenon and left us to decide whether the sweat was only similar to blood or a rare condition called hematidrosis, where tiny capillaries in sweat glands burst from stress actually causing a mixture of blood and sweat. The blood of Gethsemane was only a portent of the blood Jesus would shed that same night. It’s tempting to just read about the scourging that took place and pass quickly over a word we don’t use any more. But, it takes on new meaning when we visualize the flagrum or flagellum, a handle with leather thongs and lead balls near the ends. Applied vigorously to the prisoner’s back, the scourge would initially inflict surface cuts, and then deeper ones, until muscle tissue was torn to shreds, and arteries spurted until prisoners would eventually bleed out if the executioners were willing to wait. Because of Jesus: But, they were not paid to wait. And Luke, as if he couldn’t bear the details he was writing, summed them up in a short sentence: “And they crucified him” (Luke 23:33). That sentence doesn’t capture the pain of nails through hands and feet, or the blood streaming down from thorns puncturing Jesus’ scalp, or the excruciating thirst, or the pain in hands and shoulders as his body sags, or the pain in feet and legs as he struggles to rise and exchange one pain for another, or the pain of breathing in, and the greater pain of breathing out. Somehow, he manages to gasp out his words, his sayings from the cross, finally summoning the strength to cry with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” Because of Jesus, “I will cling to the old rugged cross, and exchange it some day for a crown!” Special thanks for the use of images related to Jesus’ ministry from The Lumo Project and Free Bible Images for use on Phil’s blog, “The Jesus Window”! About the author: These Encouraging Words from Phillip Morrison are drawn from more than 60 years of ministry and life as a husband, father, grandfather, editor, and writer. A devoted follower of Jesus, Phillip has
Today’s Verse – Psalm 62:7
My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge. —Psalm 62:7 Thoughts on Today’s Verse… Who we are, what becomes of us in life, and what we accomplish of significance are all in God’s hands. We cannot achieve lasting honor for ourselves without his blessing. We cannot secure our future or our safety without his protection and blessing. The basis of all achievement and glory is dependent upon our willingly placing our lives in his care because he alone is permanent, eternal, and offers us life that is unending, with our future secure. Video Commentary… ToGather Worship Guide | More ToGather Videos My Prayer… O God, you are my Rock, the Fortress of my life. I place myself in your care, willingly and dependently. Please take charge of my future and use me for your glory in that future. In you I take refuge, and on your strength I rely to make my days worthwhile and my life to make a difference in the world for Jesus. I seek you and your Kingdom above all other entanglements, distractions, or goals. In the precious name of Jesus, I pray this. Amen. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.