timbslim

What is an offering to the Lord unless it actually costs you dearly? If it isn’t costly, it is possibly only a gift. This is a good time of year to think about what a gift is. We buy tons of gifts for this season that we say is about Jesus. But an offering is something different; it is a sacrifice. I was praying today. I had been writing in my journal. I thought I would sit back and just express myself to the Lord. As I was doing this I realized that I was suddenly able to thoroughly communicate my heart to Him. Words came with ease. They were almost poetic. It was then that I was tempted to begin to write down these things, which were flowing from my open, heart and mind to my Father. This is when I became aware of one of the subtle differences between a gift and an offering. You see, I write a lot. Many times my writings appear on my blogs. Much of my writings also come up in my conversations with others, or in Bible Studies. Today, I was stricken with the reality that ...

There were 49 of us serving the homeless today. It was great. We were able to serve them chili, soup, sandwiches, brownies, cookies, and drinks. We also packed bags with packages of crackers, fruit, and breakfast bars. In addition to this, we sent them away with gifts containing batteries, flashlights, gloves, toboggans, and socks. I was so pleased with how well things went. My best assessment leads me to believe that we served somewhere around 120-140 people. Having so many people helping allowed some to move around and speak with those whom we were serving. I was so happy to see so many engaged in conversations with these wonderful people. I was thrilled to watch as some of you served the food. It was a great day. God filled my heart to see this. I am only sad because Michelle Shults had to be away. I spoke with Michelle afterwards to share the good news. She was with her new granddaughter. It made her very happy to hear of what happened today. She is excited to be at ...

Would you please allow me to rant about something? I have a complaint about our “so called” technological advancement. I have been thinking about this for some time now. However, I have to admit that I heard a fella talking about this just the other day – (Sutton, it was about a month ago). I have been using a cell phone for eleven years. I started using a cell phone back when cell phones were actually rare. My first phone was a bag phone. It was the size of a day planner. Get this: The plan was 30 minutes for $39.99. Can you believe that? Now, I can make two phone calls and that consumes 30 minutes. Phones were only used for urgent things back then. We now have plans for phones that are virtually limitless. We have come a along way; or, have we? I am beginning to wonder. Allow me to illustrate. Let’s say that I need to call I need to call someone. I grab my cell phone. I hit the memory speed dial. The phone rings. The voicemail picks up. At this point, I have to li...

“By Faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous…By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death…Without faith it is impossible to please Him (God)…By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household…By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going…By faith Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise; By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise; for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God….By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life…Therefore there was born even of one man, and him as good as dead at that, as many descendants as th...

Todd, Chad, and I decided to pick up something to eat after we had delivered sleeping bags to the homeless. So, we went to Zaxby’s. We were complaining about the fact that the folks at Zaxby’s were taking forever to get our food. But, it may have kept us from being right in the middle of a pretty dangerous event. My house is in a very safe neighborhood. It is very quiet. My house is nestled up against Monte Sano Mountain. It’s actually one of the safest places I have ever lived. We never really have any excitement. We made up for it tonight. Todd, Chad, and I decided to bring the food to my house. As we were pulling into the subdivision, we noticed that a police car was in front of us. We thought that he had clocked someone speeding. We followed him into the subdivision. He turned onto Hollington Drive, the road that goes to my house. He stopped at a house about fifteen down from mine. I rolled down the window when we passed slowly by the house. A woman was sitting on th...

Picture this: Kids from the Danville-Neal Elementary School are bustling around. School has just let out for the day. It’s Wednesday. The kids are excited because there are only two more day until the weekend. The youngest kids are lined up in their respective color-coordinated waiting areas. They are so cute. They stand in anticipation as they wait for their mom’s or dad’s car to make its way to the front of the line. The teachers are there to accompany the children. It is a nice, beautiful sunny November day. It is today. Parents are teaming around. Cars are moving one-by-one toward the front of the line to pick up its precious cargo. This is normally a pretty uneventful activity. Today would be different. Donnell Brown, my dad, was selected among the likely candidates from my family to go and retrieve emmyniece from school. He jumps in the Passat, all 280 lbs and 6’4” frame of him. Being the real patient person that he is, he decides to just park the car so that he c...

“Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful singing. Know that the Lord Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are Hi people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. For the Lord is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting and His faithfulness to all generations,” (Ps. 100:4). Thanksgiving. What was it? The first Thanksgiving didn’t involving gorging yourself out with food. No, it actually didn’t even involve eating. It was a spiritual recognition of the goodness of God for what He had done. You see He provided the Pilgrims with everything they needed. That is hard for us to imagine in a world where you can have a full meal thrown out a window to you. Thanksgiving to the Pilgrims actually was filled with prayer and fasting. Leave it to the descendants to totally misrepresent the holiday. The first Thank...

I was watching Discovery HD today. It rocks. HD television is absolutely incredible. It makes football better than ever. You feel like you are sitting in the middle of the field. Holly Crap! Each blade of grass is visible. It didn't help the football much on Saturday, though. Alabama still lost. There's a shocker. Back to HD television. On the discovery channel there was a show about the best aquariums. Water and fish are really cool on HD too. These folks were swimming around in an aquarium with sharks. The sharks weren't bothering them. Of course the commentator, as always, had to reassure everyone that sharks aren't naturally aggressive. They always feel the need to make us think that sharks don't attack unprovoked. They seem to ignore the human carnage that consistently appears on the shores as a result of these non-aggressive creatures. I love the way that they try to make us feel better about swimming with the sharks. I love the statistic they use to convince...

Hey Folks, Michelle and I both want to thank you from the bottoms of our hearts. We had our first opportunity to give sleeping bags to the homeless last night. All of your contributions have made this dream a reality. Just a few short weeks ago, Michelle and I were sitting on the bleachers watching Sutton play soccer. We first discussed this desire to give sleeping bags to the homeless. Last night was the realization of that desire. Thank you so much. Your gifts are making this effort take to the road. Last night Ron & Michelle, Todd, Miles and I met to give out the first batch. We went to two tent camps under the overpasses. Miles and I had scouted them out earlier that day. I started getting excited as we met these people. Some of them had tents, others had makeshift coverings. All of them were receptive and appreciative. I found my niche. I love giving without any possible expectation of reciprocation. We gave out thirty-five sleeping bags to people who would hav...

Hey Folks, Michelle and I both want to thank you from the bottoms of our hearts. We had our first opportunity to give sleeping bags to the homeless last night. All of your contributions have made this dream a reality. Just a few short weeks ago, Michelle and I were sitting on the bleachers watching Sutton play soccer. We first discussed this desire to give sleeping bags to the homeless. Last night was the realization of that desire. Thank you so much. Your gifts are making this effort take to the road. Last night Ron & Michelle, Todd, Miles and I met to give out the first batch. We went to two tent camps under the overpasses. Miles and I had scouted them out earlier that day. I started getting excited as we met these people. Some of them had tents, others had makeshift coverings. All of them were receptive and appreciative. I found my niche. I love giving without any possible expectation of reciprocation. We gave out thirty-five sleeping bags to people who would hav...

Late one Friday night, my mom and dad left for Gatlinburg. We had been at the church until 1:00am. We were involved in this program called “The Final Word.” Those were some good days. Each night of the event, we finished late. My mom and dad were supposed to meet the senior adults in Gatlinburg. Go figure, senior adults going to Gatlinburg. That’s a new one. Did you realize that leaves can’t change colors if senior adults don’t make an annual pilgrimage to Gatlinburg? That is one of those things you won’t ever be able to disprove because they will always be going. Anyway, mother and daddy left late that night. My mom and dad used to drive Lincoln Towncars. They are those boats that you see which also operate on land. They float down the road like a recliner on wheels. I believe that is why my dad liked them. He could almost lay down and drive the thing. He drove with a less aggressive fervor than I ever did. One day, my dad and I were in Jasper. This was several years a...

Dear Friends, As I was pulling out of a parking lot in Decatur I spotted a lady. She was bundled up and pushing a shopping cart. The cart obviously contained everything that she owned. My heart was gripped with a deep pain. I pulled out toward the next stop sign on the frontage road. I passed by this lady. In my heart, I knew that I was supposed to give something. It was one of those times that I just knew. It has been a while since I felt this so strongly. I came to a stop at the sign. I hesitated. I didn’t pull out. I looked in my rearview mirror. She had pushed her buggy up behind my car. She was waiting on me to move. I couldn’t. I said to the Lord, “I can’t afford this.” Then I immediately said to Him, “But, I am going to do this anyway. I have to.” I put my car in park. I got out of the car. I reached in my pocket and pulled out some money. The lady looked startled. As most people who feel inferior, she thought that she was bothering me. She said, “Am I in...

They were Converse. It was a pair of shoes that my dad wore back when I was about five. Evidently it was an older pair of shoes. I say that because he wore them while he was working in the yard. This pair of shoes may have at one time allowed my dad to dunk a basketball or who knows what. My dad was an excellent athlete. For those of you wondering, that’s were I get my athletic prowess. My dad must of have worn all the luck out of these shoes. One day, daddy had bought a brand new Murray riding lawn mower; this would only be the beginning of the grand legacy of my dad buying brand new tractors and lawn mowers. I remember very little about this day. I do remember the guys from the store delivering the lawn mower I believe. I also remember daddy trying it out. He was like a kid in a candy shop. He cut every blade of grass that even dared to pop its head up from the earth. He may have cut the grass twice that day. If you have seen my dad, he’s not a small fella. He’s about...

“By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the Word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible,” (Hebrews 11:3). I spent three days camping in the Grand Canyon. Jason Espey and I hiked every step of the way down and out. It was grueling. I didn’t take a bath for three days. I slept on the ground and ate from a bag of food. I was as close to nature as I have ever been. I even slept with a squirrel. Actually, it camped out on my knee while I was asleep. Never been that close to nature before. When I woke up the squirrel was smoking a cigarette. Jason and I sat and listened to a ranger talk about how the Canyon was formed. He knew his stuff. He talked about all the science. He broke it all down for us. He told us what to look for as we climbed out the next day. He said that there were distinctively different strata of rock. Each of those different strata came from different periods of development. It all made sense. On my way ...

I got up on Sunday at 6:30am. Dave Roesler and Justin Pohly arrived at my house around 7:00am. We loaded up and headed toward Talladega. We grabbed some breakfast at Mickey D’s. We were off to the race. I have to admit; I wasn’t real excited about the race. Dave told me after last year’s race that he wanted me to go to the next race. I agreed to go. Well, the big day came. We were on our way. We stopped to pick up Jimmy and Paul, two of Dave’s relatives. It was shaping up to be a great day. About twenty miles away we could already see the giant advertising signs being pulled by the planes. We took a back road to one of the parking lots. I believe the road was 77. We finally made it to the parking lot. Actually it was more like hundreds of acres of field where everyone parked. Dave drove us to our parking spot. We had about a 1 1/2 mile walk to the track. We had an open-view of the stands. It was huge. It was amazing to see how many people go to races. There were car...

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it men of old gained approval,” (Heb. 11:1&2). The word “faith” has very little meaning. It has been abused. It has been used so often that we forget that real faith is a living and breathing thing. We sing about faith. We talk about faith. We even tell others that they must have faith. However, we don’t experience faith, at least on a long-term basis. Faith to the average church attendee is a door through which we enter into the grace of God. It is the portal through which someone gets the good stuff from God. It usually ends there for most church people. A life of faith is unheard of in the majority of people who call themselves Christians. So what is faith? Even George Michaels wrote a song that says, “I gotta have faith, faith, faith; I gotta have faith.” It is one of the best songs he ever did. If we gotta have it, then what is it? First, what is salvation? Salvation is ...

For those of you who read my blogs, you may already know that I took a cool flight with Alan Cockrell not too long ago. It was sweet. You need to check out that blog. All of my blogs for the last four months are at timbslim.blogspot.com About ten years ago, I was working out at Gold’s Gym in Jasper, Alabama. I know it’s hard for most of you to believe that I used to work out. Believe it or not, I got this body naturally without steroids and heavy workouts. It’s a stretch, but it’s true. I am 100% au natural. God just blesses some of us with amazing physiques. Others have to work at it. Anyway, I was working out at Gold’s when I got this phone call. It was Frankie Robinson. Frankie called me at the gym at about 10:30am. I had not eaten breakfast. I had also been working out hard. I was probably going around and talking to people mostly. That is more of what I did at the gym. Sometimes I would chill in the pool or sauna as long as there wasn’t an old fat man in there. ...

Shawn and I grew up together. Shawn was possibly one of the most insane people I ever knew. His insanity was only topped by the fact that he usually didn’t have a clue about what was going on. Often I wondered if he realized that life was real. He kind of lived like he was just making this stuff up as he went along. You probably know someone like this. Shawn didn’t have too many cares. He was a carefree kind of guy. I take pleasure in explaining in much more detail. Shawn, his sister, my sister, and I used to skip school at the drop of a hat; sometimes we dropped our own hats. Sherri, his sister, drove us to school. Sherri had two cars to choose as our school chariot. We either rode in a 1972 Chevy Impala, huuuuuuuuge, or a 1970 something Volkswagen Bug, yellow. We would get in the car, get started to school, and the temptation would strike. All of a sudden the discussion would be, “Who has a test?” “Does anyone have anything important going on?” Next thing you know, the...

For a long time I, and the church system that taught me, have viewed The Great Commission as a form to evangelize. In other words, we have taken this commission and attempted to box it up for resale. It has become a product to convert rather than a lifestyle to influence. We have developed hundreds of cutesy and ingenious ways to push the gospel. We have made countless tracts to hand out. We have come up with mass plans of citywide evangelism. We have developed Continuous Witness Training (CWT), Evangelism Explosion (EE), the FAITH plan of evangelism, and many more. We have become marketers of the gospel. All of these center on growing the church and the kingdom numerically, even the evangelism tools that purport to be about “relationship” evangelism. If you get down to it, they are all about marketing the gospel. We churchaniacs love a good marketing plan. It removes the risk of actually having to journey with someone. We can blast people with the gospel product and walk a...

Barry and I would drive the church van to the Positive Development Center every Sunday night. This was a place where we would pick up adults with mental and physical impairments. We would bring them to our church. It was a good excuse for me to miss Discipleship Training. I was in my early teens. I had already run off five teachers. There was another couple of guys who picked them up on Sunday morning. I have to tell you that these people we picked up were great folks. They also came along with their own forms of entertainment. They provided me with a great deal of comic relief during those years of my life. I’ll tell you about a couple of them. There was this lady, we’ll call her Polly. She had this ritual that she would go through during the worship service. She would sit about in the middle of the right side of the worship center. This was a small church. Polly would stand and with both hands pat her head, pat her shoulders, sit down, and pat her knees. She would repeat...

But if I say, I will not remember Him or speak anymore in His name, Then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire shut up in my bones; and I am weary of holding it in, and I cannot endure it.” (Jer. 20:9) More than ever in my life I find that I need God. It is almost funny how I used to sing songs about needing God or speak messages about our need for Him. It may be so funny that it is almost sickening. To think that I have thought that I have needed God before in my life, not like now. I am waiting on Him. I am asking Him to lead me. The reason I am doing this is because I need His direction. I have none for myself. It is both a great place to be and a difficult place to be. It has been a time of many questions. I was watching a portion of the movie The Village. If you haven’t seen it and want to, you should stop reading this. Go get the movie, watch it, and then read this blog. I hate ruing movies for people. In this movie a group of people withdraw and isolate themselv...