Sterling Griggs

Jesus tells the believer in John 8:36 "Therefore if the Son sets you free, you really will be free." When I think about that verse what comes to mind are all of the things that enslave me here on this earth: My financial needs, my personal ambitions, sins that I can't seem to conquer (even though Christ already has), the performance treadmill that I run on to try and please others, etc... Yet I am told by Jesus Christ directly that I am free. Free from the slavery of sin and death. Free to live my life with purpose and hope. Free to give up trying to make it on my own, knowing that I will never succeed. Free to not worry about the future because it's already been taken care of. I like being free.

I just returned this past Saturday June 23 from a week of World Changers in Norfolk, VA, with my youth group. For those of you unfamiliar with World Changers, it is an opportunity provided via the North American Mission Board (NAMB) of the SBC that allows jr. high, high school, and college students to put action to their faith in many inner city and rural communities. The students who participate are divided into work crews and these crews go to the neediest homes in the community where they do everything from roofing to painting to cleaning to putting in new cabinets to building decks and handicap ramps. I have been going on these trips since 1993 and have taken my current youth group since 2001, but nothing was ever like this past week. You see, when you participate in a World Changers trip you usually look to see how God is going to move in the life either of the homeowner you are helping or those in the community that you get to share with. Sure, your life gets impacted, but it...

Check out this article about a woman who died 7 years ago and the police have just now found her remains . You may not find this all that fascinating but consider that this woman was never reported missing by anyone who knew her. And then consider this: She died all alone at home and no one - not her neighbors nor her family members - bothered to check on her to see if she was okay...and they didn't even notice that she had died. It seems that this woman was all alone and didn't have much in the way of relationships with other people. Her neighbors had not seen her for over 7 years but weren't concerned enough to check on her. Finally, after 7 years of not seeing or hearing from her, a family member called police out of concern and that's when they found her skeletal remains. She even had working power in the home - the electric company even forgot about her! It doesn't seem possible that something like that can happen in America today when everyone seems to kn...

I love my children more than almost anything else. There is nothing that I would not do for them and would gladly take a bullet for them if it meant that they would live. My kids are the best kids in the world, hands down. They are smart, fun, and we have a great time playing and spending time together. But sometimes they really, really frustrate me. There are moments when I am in a hurry or have a schedule to meet (I am an agenda-driven person at times) and for some odd reason, my kids don't seem to care a lot about my agenda. As a result, I'm ready to move and they are still sitting around being idle. And there are times when they are trying to move yet aren't really getting anywhere. For instance, my middle child is just learning to buckle her seatbelt all by herself. My oldest child is a pro at this but whenever she attempts to offer assistance to her younger sister, WWIII breaks out. Since their seats are in the back of the van it would greatly benefit me if m...