An Oracle on Life’s Problems from Psalm 74

Psalm 74 is a Maschil (or Maskil) Psalm, meaning that it was written for learning and instruction. Likely written around 578 B.C., it focuses on the lamenting of the people over the destruction of God’s temple and the great loss at not having access to God’s Word or to have a prophet in the land. That said, the ongoing oppression of the Jewish people during that time would have been immense. Certainly, their identity was in their religion. God gave them their land, and after hundreds of years of failing leadership and warning, the Lord allowed the people to fall under the ownership of the Babylonian Empire. Hence, the remnant begin to seek God’s face once again, knowing that it was their own failure, not God’s, that took them to their present condition.

Being a Psalm of instruction, one can certainly find truths about God and how he or she ought to live in the present day. Here are a few snippets I found in my own study:

Keeping Pace Spiritually in a Physical World

This morning I was drawn to Facebook, finding encouragement in a dear friend who is working out in California, trying to make an impact on lives for God’s glory. Just recently, he was rewarded with several joys as a result of his years of effort – years of hard work, discouragement, and even abandonment because of his non-standard approach. Instantly, I was reminded of Hebrews 12:1-2, which states, …“let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

What a shot to the solar plexus it was, knowing how often I get sidetracked and decide to sit on the sideline, rather than participating in the race. Well, here’s my internal contemplation put into words…

Standing at the Threshold: Finding Provision for Your God-Given Vision

“When God gives a vision, there will be provision for it” – Mark Batterson. “What you order you pay for. What God orders He pays for” – Tom Messer. The statements are true. The Creator leads His own and will always meet needs as they follow His will.

Theater Attendance Continues Despite Recession

Walking out of the Trinity Baptist College Library about a month ago, I noticed an article that caught my interest, so I picked up the paper and read through what was some surprising information… In the article, Maria Puente of USA Today notes that the movie industry is

Getting through the Insurmountable

In his experience of persisting through a difficult challenge in obtaining the rights to a story for a short film he was producing, Eric Kripke said this,

“‘The Lesson here is get it done, no matter what. You can never give up and never quit. If you find an insurmountable obstacle, then you weren’t meant to be making movies in the first place. The whole thing is  about impossibility, so you have to be willing to conquer the impossible in every realm’” (Levy, Frederick, Short Films 101, New York: Berkley Publishing, 2004, pg. 24).

So far on my short journey into the film world,

A Change of Perspective: What’s Really Imortant in Life?

Today was quite a different day. It started with a quick chug of my vitamins on the way out the door to teach my 7 am class at Trinity Baptist College. Then, there was the playing of a short film as an illustration in a high school chapel. Just after that, I was in my wife’s classroom teaching second graders about the 4 major forces involved in flight and how to fold paper airplanes. Now, I sit in the back control room running screens for a funeral.

Life gets so busy that we have a tendency to forget about the one element we need for all the hustle and bustle to exist –

Thoughts on “The Power of ‘Doing’” by Phil Cooke

Phil Cooke posted this short article on his blog today, and I thought to share it. Find it here: http://www.philcooke.com/do_something. I like much of what Cooke says, but I’d up that another notch for the Christian wanting to make an impact on his culture using film and video.

Professionalism vs. Prayer

Okay, this is a strange post to show up from a guy who shoots and edits video, but it is something that has impacted my life, and I want you to be challenged by it, too…
So, I was sitting in a planning meeting with Pastor Jason Cross and Shaun Staley this morning, and our discussion moved from the typical planning meeting to prayer. I was hit smack in the face by stuff I had heard throughout my tenure of ministry but had been failing to put into practice.

Top 10 Things Christian Filmmakers Need to Improve Upon

I just got done listening to Sonlight Pictures’ podcast found here, and they listed their top 10 things that Christian filmmakers need to improve. Here is their list:

Holy Ghost Hokey Pokey Review

Phil Cooke’s website asked the question, “Can Someone Explain This to Me?” (Also, you can see the video here… Holy Ghost Hokey Pokey)

Here’s my response…

I am not one to judge others’ motives,