John Hatcher's blog

Make a difference ... give a bar of soap

Tue, 01 May 2007 15:07:59 -0400

Does it take American Idol to make us realize have blessed we are as a nation? We found out last week that AIDS is not the big killer in Africa but malaria. And malaria is so very conquerable! Just a mosquito net, some clean water, and a few inexpensive pills and malaria would be history. Right now one child dies every 30 seconds from malaria in Africa. The best preventive is long-lasting insecticide-treated bed net that cost less than $10. It could work for the whole family.

Answering the call

Tue, 24 Apr 2007 16:26:53 -0400

I now have been immersed in the church culture of Fayette County since 1989, that’s 18 years, preaching upwards to 1,000 messages, conducting weddings, funerals, counseling hundreds of families and married couples. It’s been a ride. At times I wanted to get off, badly. But God called me to this enterprise of telling out the Gospel and he won’t let me do anything else.

Carrying the ‘spiritual’ load

Tue, 17 Apr 2007 16:46:29 -0400

I wish I could take back a couple thousand times when I used the word “spiritual” in a positive setting. To me now it is probably one of the most abused words in the language of faith. “Oh, he’s a very spiritual man.” Or, “Our pastor is real spiritual,” or “Our church is spiritual.”

Getting a hold on the Word of God

Tue, 10 Apr 2007 16:48:11 -0400

Many years ago founding pastor Chuck Smith of Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, Calif. accepted my invitation to speak at our Christian school. Before chapel time, he and I had opportunity to exchange war stories. But in those few moments he shared with me a truck-load full of church wisdom in response to my question as to their phenomenal success.

(A not so very) Good Friday

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 16:23:48 -0400

Two days away will be Good Friday. Never have understood why we will ever remember the day as good. Friday of Holy Week was not TGIF but OHIF (Oh Hell, it’s Friday). It was not pretty at all that final Friday of our Lord’s earthly life. It started ugly and ended ugly.

Notable women in our faith

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 15:22:07 -0400

Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Isaac being the critical link. Remember he was the young man his father, Abraham, was about to sacrifice on the mount where present day Jerusalem stands. The angel of the Lord stayed the hand of Abraham and preserved the young man’s life. God did this horrific test to determine if Abraham truly would not let anything come between their relationship, not even his one and only son. Sounds like the passion of Christ, doesn’t it?

Laughter in church is good for the soul

Tue, 20 Mar 2007 16:35:52 -0400

Too often our young people — especially teenagers — correlate matters of faith with some of the most boring subjects in all the land. I see them enter the front doors of the church and immediately dress their countenance with this “doesn’t matter in a hill of beans” look.

A question of loyalty

Tue, 13 Mar 2007 16:47:22 -0400

Beware! Always beware. That’s the counsel some soothsayer gave Julius Caesar in regard to the coming Ides of March. Well, Caesar didn’t watch all sides and didn’t “beware” enough. March 15 — which we observe tomorrow — Julius Caesar was assassinated by Roman Senators Brutus and Cassius (Remember, “Et tu, Brute?”). It was the year 44 BC. That March 15, 44 BC was our Nov. 22, 1963.

Responding to those in need

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 19:12:47 -0500

Dateline Enterprise, Alabama: the most powerful man in the world, President George W. Bush, tours the devastation in the aftermath of a deadly tornado that flattens a high school and takes precious young lives.

Justice or forgiveness?

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 16:53:09 -0500

During the recent state funeral for President Gerald Ford, someone observed that the great outpouring of gratitude and grief reflected a nation atoning for its errors of criticism and cynicism of the former president especially in pardoning Richard Nixon. Even Senator Edward Kennedy who had denigrated Ford for his pardon took to the Senate floor to say Ford was right and he was wrong.

Scratching where it itches

Tue, 20 Feb 2007 17:14:34 -0500

There’s a new word among church circles and the word is “simple.” Church specialists and experts are imploring church leaders to apply the KISS method when it comes to doing church: Keep It Simple Stupid.

Candy counts on Valentine’s Day

Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:37:14 -0500

Happy Valentine’s Day. It’s a day that tells it like no other. Americans will spend $12 billion on Valentine’s Day 2007. Ninety-two percent of the population will participate in one way or the other in making up that $12 billion. Thirty-six million boxes of candy will be bought and given for that one day out of 365.

The Sabbath — Saturday or Sunday?

Tue, 06 Feb 2007 16:46:29 -0500

When you write a letter in response to one of my columns, I sit and think about it more than you think. This past week I received a very sincere letter from someone who reproved me for seeming inaccuracies in columns of the last two weeks concerning the Sabbath.

What to do on the Sabbath

Tue, 30 Jan 2007 16:12:36 -0500

Jesus sought to make things simple. In his day, one of the most complex things was the Sabbath. Religious insiders worked day and night churning out new rules and regulations concerning the Sabbath. The big issue concerned the definition of work because work was prohibited.

Just say ‘no’ to Sunday sales

Tue, 23 Jan 2007 16:08:30 -0500

Americans need rest and we are not getting it. God knew a long time ago that we needed rest more than we need respect. So, he shut down on the seventh day and insisted that his creation do the same. Today, neither rest nor the Sabbath gets respect.