Sterling Griggs

“ All the tax collectors and sinners were approaching to listen to Jesus. And the Pharisees and scribes were complaining, ‘This man welcomes sinners and eats with them !’” (Luke 15:1-2) In those two brief verses, the entire ministry of Jesus can be summed up as well as the legacy of the church that has been tasked to follow after Him. While He was on earth, Jesus loved those who were far from God while the religious leaders of His day hated Him for it. Unfortunately, that pattern still holds true today. Years ago, someone coined the phrase “What Would Jesus Do?” (WWJD) and from that spawned countless bracelets, t-shirts, and Wednesday messages from youth pastors. The idea was that if it was good enough for Jesus, then it should be good enough for us, too. And what exactly was good enough for Jesus? Luke 15:1 gives us the answer – He loved those who were far from God. Today’s Christians – myself included – have too often chosen to take this idea of loving those who are far from ...

As I have gotten older I have grown to truly appreciate history. Not that I didn't enjoy history when I was in school, it's just that it didn't click with me as much as it does now. Of particular interest to me is the World War 2 era, probably because my grandfather served on a bomber in the Pacific theater. While he was alive I never heard him speak about  his experiences from the war, and what little I have learned has been from combing through old scrap books that my grandmother made and a small box of memorabilia that I discovered years after his death. Books about the men and women who served during World War 2 absolutely fascinate me. How did we defeat Japan and Germany with little more than nineteen and twenty year old kids serving so selflessly to defend our freedom? Time and again I read of their sacrifice and work ethic and I think, " What in the world is wrong with me ?" Harrowing stories of young marines storming the beaches of remote islands in the...

My goal in life has never been to be rich and famous and so far that goal is well within my grasp. Compared to the billions of people on this planet, my world is relatively small, but I still long to make an impact for someone greater than myself. But there was this one time when the world around me stopped to take notice. At least the guys in one of the basketball gyms at Wake Forest University did anyway. I will be the first one to confess that my skills as a basketball player have never been much to brag about. Pick-up ball games at the church gym with the fellas that I grew up with were pretty much my only experience with the game, and every once in while I would chuck up a deep ball and see it tickle the twine, but that was not the norm. Being a short guy who could only dribble with his left hand, my specialty was playing annoying defense and fouling the opposing players, which I became pretty adept at doing. But my church buddies didn't seem to care all that much - I guess...

Several years ago I became the new youth pastor at a church in Yadkinville, NC. In case you've never heard of Yadkinville or you have no idea how to pronounce it, the "d" is silent and the "i" is more like a hard "u", so it's pronounced "Ya-kun-vull" by those who really know who to speak Yadkin-ese, the local dialect there. Anyhow, the students there were all awesome and a little on the country side, which was cool because it challenged me to be a little less "city" and uptight about certain things. Early on in my time of service there, I realized that I had a group of guys that were gifted at talking junk. You know, the kind where you playfully goad other people verbally to engage in physical challenges, all the while strutting like a peacock and "bowing up" to them. If you don't understand, then you have to accept that it's a guy thing and it's just what we do at times. There was one kid in the group...

In the beginning of time, there was a garden (Genesis 3). In this garden lived a man and a woman, Adam and Eve, both of whom had been designated by God to tend the garden and all that was in it. All the fruits of their labor - which was really not labor at all - were to be enjoyed. All except for the fruit of one tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The moment that they should choose to eat of it was the moment they would begin to die. Life was utopia for Adam and Eve. They dwelt with God and enjoyed the bounty of His generosity. They were as free as two humans could be. There were no needs that they could possible have that God would fail to meet. They were naked but unashamed, for they were free of the stigma of being exposed. Their relationship with God was perfect and pure for nothing existed that had tarnished it. Yet. One day, as Eve was tending the garden on her own, the enemy came to her clothed as a serpent. " Did God actually say, 'You shall not eat...

In the spring of 1989 I plunged head first into the Greek system at Wake Forest University by joining a fraternity. True to what you may have been led to believe on TV or in books, many fraternities indeed ARE as crazy as you think, and my fraternity was on that list. Not all the fun that we had was destructive and evil - I have some really great memories and still keep up with some pretty awesome guys - but for the most part debauchery was the primary goal. Now as a kid raised in a conservative Southern Baptist church, hedonism and Sunday school don't mix together too well. I knew all too well the lessons from the Bible and the truth that lay behind them, yet they were not enough to keep me from wanting to run to the dark side for a time and enjoy all of it's guilty pleasures. Was I properly taught the Scriptures? If I were truly saved, would I have gone down this wayward path? What went wrong? You see, the Bible teaching that I received growing up was first rate and I wo...

If you've only listened to Christian radio for 15 minutes in your entire life, you have undoubtedly heard the song by Casting Crowns entitle The voice of Truth:   Oh what I would do to have the kind of faith it takes to climb out of this boat I'm in, onto the crashing waves. It is one of an encyclopedic number of songs that laud the faith that it must have taken for Peter to step out of the boat and walk on water toward Jesus when a storm was raging all around him. Sure, when he took his eyes off of Jesus, Peter began to sink but it was Jesus who gripped him by the hand and allowed him to stand in the midst of the storm. ( Matthew 14:22-33 ) Not only is this story recounted in music but I've also heard it preach countless times in sermons. If we could just have enough faith to get out of the boat and trust Jesus, our faith would be stronger and our lives would be richer. So what about the other 11 guys that stayed in the boat? Were they just a bunch of weak dude...

Yesterday I had the privilege of  spending some quality time with a good friend and brother in ministry over good coffee and great conversation. As we normally do when we are together we pontificated until we are almost convinced that we had solved the world's problems. Actually, we shared ministry stories with each other, holding each other accountable for the charge that God has given to us and also grieving and rejoicing beside each other over the highs and lows of ministry. During our conversation, my friend was seeking to make a point when he asked me this question: "If you knew of a man who had been married to his wife for 25 years and had never cheated on her, what word would you use to describe him?" Instantly the word "faithful" came to my mind and that's how I responded. Not denying the truth in my answer, my friend brought up a powerful point to me regarding the example he had just shared - if God ordained marriage to be between one man and one...

" I believe in God ," the man said to me. " I just do things my way. I mean, after all, I'm going to heaven when I die because I got baptized and prayed a prayer. I don't need to do all that religious stuff to prove anything to anybody. Besides, only God can judge me. I'm not that bad of a person. " I've had similar conversations like this with many people over the years and I'm sure you've either heard or even said these kinds of things too. Is that all we need to do, simply believe and then live as we want to? This begs the question: What should happen after you repent of your sin and place your faith in Christ? For many, the feeling that comes when they surrender their lives to Christ is an emotional rush. The weight of the world is lifted off of their shoulders and they are giddy like a little schoolgirl. Freedom, forgiveness, and redemption are incredibly fantastic! But once the "honeymoon" is over, what now? Let me answer...

My wife and I have been married for almost 14 wonderful years, but preparing for the wedding day was anything but flowers and butterflies. Because weddings are primarily for the women - men, your job is to show up and get your vows straight - the months and weeks leading up to the big day were particularly stressful for my wife. Will everything be ready on time? How will my dress and hair look? Am I going to trip over my dress? Have we forgotten anything? In order to alleviate these nerve-wracking moments, we were diligent to hire those whom we believed would be the best people to make our day as special as we hoped it could be. Photographer? Check. Wedding director? Check. Pastor and musicians for the ceremony? Check. Caterer? Well, kind of. My wife had a friend from work that had opened her own catering company and was looking to build her book of business. We decided to give her a chance to present what she was capable of providing and, based upon the pictures and prices she sh...

Have you ever been to a restaurant that was super busy and your server never could quite refill your tea fast enough or get your food out soon enough? First world problems, right? For some people, minor inconveniences like these drive them absolutely crazy, to the point that they will stiff their server on the tip or even chew them out for the poor service. You've seen the guy, the one who keeps looking around for his server, visibly fuming because his food isn't ready, unable to keep his ridiculous comments to himself. Maybe that's you. Having been a waiter before I can totally sympathize with servers. What happens in the kitchen is beyond their control, yet they are the "face" of the restaurant and so they become the proverbial whipping post when service is poor. It is my strongest belief that everyone, before they finish high school or college, should have to wait tables at least once just to gain a little bit of perspective. We could all probably benefit ...

I believe that when big things happen in your life then you need to share it with the world. This post is dedicated to just that. For those of you who know me and the journey my family has been on, then you know that we moved to the coast of North Carolina earlier this year in February. A new and challenging job had opened up for my wife and, while there was nothing on the radar for me, we sensed that this move was exactly what God wanted for us. So, we packed up our home and moved away from friends and family to a place we had grown to love through vacations but had never considered calling home. As we began to establish our lives here, we began to get to know our neighbors in the community and we made it our goal to become active in a local church. Little did I know that the church we became a part of, Generations Church , would in turn become such a big part of us. I got to know the pastor fairly well and he made an investment in me, allowing me the chance to preach and lead wi...

Earlier today I texted someone and within seconds I received a text in response. While trolling Facebook, a message popped up saying that someone had made a comment on a picture that I had just posted. Immediately I responded to their comment and within seconds it appeared on my page. If I ask my kids if they want ice cream, the words are barely out of my mouth before they scream "Yes!" and come running into the kitchen. I don't know that I've ever delayed all that long in filling back up whenever the gas light comes on in my car. But... I've noticed that many people have a love affair with their snooze button on their alarm clocks. When I ask my kids to clean up their rooms or to pick up their things, they move at the speed of molasses running uphill. My car really needs to be washed, but I'm pretty sure I can put it of for another week or month or two. With months in advance to file, it never ceases to amaze me how many people barely meet the deadline f...