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Hope Archives - B. Thomas Free Bulletin Articles https://beethomas.com/tag/hope/ Simple Solutions, Free Bulletin Articles and Free Website Content Thu, 21 Jul 2016 17:35:58 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.1 I Am Blessed! https://beethomas.com/i-am-blessed/ Thu, 21 Jul 2016 17:07:01 +0000 http://beethomas.com/?p=919 Look at my life and you'd wonder how in the world I could ever feel blessed. It is true, you might have to look at my life through faith googles to do so. But isn't that the way all Christians should look at life every day?

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]]> This free church bulletin article was written by Brian Humek from Irving, TX. You are free to use this in church bulletins, church emails and on church websites. No credit needs to be given. Simply clicking one of the books on our suggested reading list will help more free content to be placed on this site. Donate your own bulletin article here.

chickenBible Passage: Deuteronomy 7:13

I heard a wonderful sermon yesterday morning, an absolute astounding message of hope. Then last night, I received some very bad news that had me down for most of today. However, with the bad news last night and my melancholy mood today, I’m still quite happy for I have been blessed.

I found out today that my son ate chicken basted with paint thinner on Saturday. He has had no ill effects since my wife usually takes the skin off of chicken when he eats it. Praise God for that. I was also blessed today by having a wife who was a model Christian despite our record temperatures, both inside and outside. It was 101 here today outside. It was 90 inside (we refuse to use our air conditioner until June. It costs way too much).

On top of these big blessings, we had a calm evening after I arrived home today. There are times in our life when things just don’t go as smoothly as I would like. After I arrived home, I sat in the car and said a special prayer to God that I would act in a Christ-like manner, and that I would be more gentle and patient tonight. I prayed the same for my wife and son. With this heat, I needed more help than usual. God answered my prayer with a big resounding “YES!”

Although deep inside there’s something that is really bothering me, God has bombarded me with blessings today and this evening. They may have been small ones, but for me, a blessing is a blessing. “Count ‘em all,” I say.

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]]> Hope! https://beethomas.com/hope/ Thu, 21 Jul 2016 16:49:08 +0000 http://beethomas.com/?p=913 In a world where terrorist bombings, stabbings, shootings happen almost weekly, we need hope. In a world where we don't know whether or not we'll keep our job through the end of the month, we need hope. In a world that is fallen and death invades our lives, we need hope. This bulletin article may be of some comfort to you if you're in need of more hope than you have today.

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]]> This free church bulletin article was written by Brian Humek from Irving, TX. You are free to use this in church bulletins, church emails and on church websites. No credit needs to be given. Simply clicking on the Amazon link for the Leave it to Beaver devotional book written by Brian Humek will help more free content to be placed on this site (no purchase necessary).

HopeBible Passage: 1 Thessalonians 4:13

The other day, I was traveling down a lonely highway on the Colorado plains. It may have been lonely for me, but it was extremely lonely for a certain bird. He was fluttering its wings with all its strength. I was perplexed. Why was this bird flapping and fluttering so hard but not moving upward? The little bird was trying to lift something from off the highway. It was a dead and very flat bird, maybe a friend or a family member.

That sight filled me with sadness and it reminded me of a similar sight but instead of birds, the scene featured humans. It occurred at the funeral of an unchurched man. Let’s call the man Billy.

A preacher from a local church was called by the funeral home to do the eulogy because Billy’s family had no church affiliation. In interviewing Billy’s family and friends, the preacher was searching for some good things to say about Billy. Every person the preacher interviewed, when asked to state something memorable about Billy, said that he was fun to be around when he was drunk. Everyone said that, and that’s all they said, even his mom.

A couple days later the funeral took place. After the eulogy, the preacher witnessed a sight he’d never seen. There was hysterical crying from the mother. That isn’t strange. However, while she was crying hysterically, the mother went over to the casket and tried picking Billy up. She wanted to take his body home with her. Through her wailing, she screamed these words, “I want to take him home. I know just the right place to put him. I want to take my Billy home!” People had to grab her and take her away. The utter hopelessness of this woman is tragic. And statistically speaking, this type of hopelessness is found within every other house on your street, and my street too. This should cause a little sadness in each of us.

First Thessalonians 4:13 says: “Our brothers, we want you to know the truth about those who have died, so that you will not be sad, as are those who have no hope.” (TEV) Paul goes on to describe that the dead will rise and have life again. That is true hope. I feel compelled to help the world, at least my small part of it, find the hope I have in Christ.

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I wish I could carpet bomb the hopelessness out of my community but it is a difficult and time consuming task. It can only be done one soul at a time, and in our world of instant gratification, that just doesn’t seem fast enough. But we have to start somewhere don’t we?




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]]> Are We Terrible People? https://beethomas.com/are-we-terrible-people/ Thu, 21 Jul 2016 16:38:47 +0000 http://beethomas.com/?p=909 My mouth fell open the day I heard a student in a Christian campus ministry pray, "Dear father God, we are terrible people." I thought that person was incorrect and then had to go to the Bible to prove my point.

The post Are We Terrible People? appeared first on B. Thomas Free Bulletin Articles.

]]> This free church bulletin article was written by Brian Humek from Irving, TX. You are free to use this in church bulletins, church emails and on church websites. No credit needs to be given. Simply clicking one of the books on our suggested reading list will help more free content to be placed on this site. Donate your own bulletin article here.

terrible peopleBible Passage: Romans 5:18-19 Ezekiel 18 Luke 23:50

I’ve been hanging around some folks who think we are terrible people. They say there is no good in us at all. Therefore we need Jesus to save us. I agree with part of their statement. I believe we cannot do enough good to get to heaven on our own and so we need the blood of Christ to cover our sins. If he had not died for our sins, we’d never get to heaven. But saying that we, God’s creation, are just terrible people, goes beyond everything I’ve ever thought about God.

I thought we were made God’s image (Genesis 1:26-27). I thought little children were good when they were born. Why else would Jesus say one has to be like a little child to inherit the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 18:3)? The King of Tyre was told by God that he was not guilty of sin until he had actually sinned (Ezekiel 28:15).The Apostle Paul told the pagan poets in Athens that we are all the “offspring of God” (Acts 17:29). I can’t believe that as his offspring, we are terrible people. Then I love the passage that speaks about the good/righteous man who has a bad kid and that bad kid has a righteous/good kid (Ezekiel 18). The point Ezekiel makes is that we won’t be punished for anyone’s sins but our own.

God promises that we won’t pay for what someone else has done. Look at it this way, if my Dad cheated on his taxes, I wouldn’t go to jail or pay a fine for what he did. God promises that won’t happen. That would be like Adam, the first man in the world, sinning. Because of his sin, we hit the evil jackpot and all of us when we are born, become terrible people. That’s sort of sounds as ridiculous as someone saying my Chicago Cubs are going to win Baseball’s World Series this year, or any year for that matter.

The Bible does say that because Adam sinned, we all have experienced death and sin entered the world (Romans 5:12). Looking further down the page at Romans 5:18-19, the Apostle Paul writes that through one man, all people everywhere were condemned. Let us say we were all sentenced to death because of Adam’s sin. It doesn’t say that we are all terrible people. Then Paul writes that because of one man, Jesus, and his act of righteousness, his dying on the cross, we are found “not guilty” so that we can have eternal life.

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After looking at these verses closely, it becomes so clear. Jesus’ death didn’t bring righteousness to everyone automatically. His death upon a cross brought an opportunity for us to be found “not guilty” and to be given an eternal life. Just like with Adam; his spiritual death (sin) didn’t make everyone a terrible person. Adam’s fall gave us the opportunity to sin and have our lives, the beautiful masterpieces God originally created, covered up with muck and dirt and soot. Therefore, we need a savior like our wonderful Jesus who waits for us to submit to him and become his children. We sin, we pay. Could it be as simple as Ezekiel 18 says it is? Oh, by the way, I was reading the Bible the other day and just happened to come across Luke 23:50 which says Joseph (the man who buried Jesus’ body) was a “good and upright” man. Now did that mean he was “good and upright?” Maybe.

Remember this phrase about how God created us and our eternal need for Jesus, the prhase: “Good, not good enough.”




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]]> The Myth of a Giftless Christmas https://beethomas.com/myth-giftless-christmas/ Thu, 21 Jul 2016 16:29:48 +0000 http://beethomas.com/?p=904 No matter how much pity we want to party with, there's no such thing as a Christmas without gifts. Seriously, I thought we were having a giftless Christmas one time, actually more than one time, but I learned a lesson that no Christmas is really without gifts.

The post The Myth of a Giftless Christmas appeared first on B. Thomas Free Bulletin Articles.

]]> This free church bulletin article was written by Brian Humek from Irving, TX. You are free to use this in church bulletins, church emails and on church websites. No credit needs to be given. Simply clicking one of the books on our suggested reading list will help more free content to be placed on this site. Donate your own bulletin article here.

ChristmasBible Passage: James 4:14

The other day I had to admit to my son that we probably couldn’t get him any gifts this Christmas. We may not even get a tree. But my son knows about the true meaning of why Christmas is celebrated. It’s about the birth of Jesus, even though scholars debate when Jesus was actually born.

Of course, my son wasn’t very happy. The one thing he doesn’t know is that Christmas came early to our house. It’s sort of like a Footprints poem moment. It happened Saturday December 10th at 1:57 a.m. God saved the lives of my son, my wife and myself. I was still awake, listening to Hugh Hewitt interview Rick Warren on KSKY-660AM. As always, the inquisitive nature of Mr. Hewitt made the interview worth my while and kept me up while I worked on my devotional/free sermon illustration website when all of a sudden, I heard a poof.

Not having enough money to use our central heat, we occasionally use a space heater. I looked toward that poof and there was a flame inside the heater. I said a word I never ever never say and I rushed over, huffing and puffing until I blew it out. I then took the space heater outside away from the house.

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Since I was awake, this was really no big deal, but it was and still is unsettling to think what would’ve happened if I had been sound asleep. Our family could have been news fodder for two or three days, “Irving Family Dies in Space Heater Fire,” and then another poof, the mist of our life would vanish.

I have tried to figure out something to do for our son for Christmas. I have not yet told him about how God saved our lives to allow us to live another day. I haven’t told him that he can now become anything he wants and that possibly all of our dreams could still come true. I figure I can tell him how blessed he is, and do so on Christmas morning. But I think that would be better said by others. He may pay more attention to your words than mine.

Please leave a comment for my son about the plans God has for him or about how life or a second chance at life is a wonderful gift. I’d like to get as many comments as possible for him. By the way, his name is Zeke.




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]]> Faith of a Baseball Fan https://beethomas.com/faith-of-a-baseball-fan/ Thu, 21 Jul 2016 16:02:59 +0000 http://beethomas.com/?p=896 Faith is a funny thing. We're called to have it as a Christian, but we sometimes exhibit more by the way we root for certain sports teams. This is especially true with Chicago Cubs fans.

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]]> This free church bulletin article was written by Brian Humek from Irving, TX. You are free to use this in church bulletins, church emails and on church websites. No credit needs to be given. Simply clicking one of the books on our suggested reading list will help more free content to be placed on this site. Donate your own bulletin article here.

cubsBible Passage: Hebrews 11:1

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” -Hebrews 11:1

A Christian Ethics professor moved to Louisville, KY. After settling into his house, a neighbor came over to introduce himself. The professor was working in his garage when the new neighbor came by. After their conversation, the new neighbor said, “I see you’re a man of faith.” Surprised, the professor, said, “Why yes, how did you know?” The new neighbor pointed in the direction of a Chicago Cubs pennant on the wall of the garage, “You’re a Cubs fan, that’s how I knew.”

A side-note to non-baseball fans: The Chicago Cubs are always full of promise but usually end up breaking the hearts of their fans year after year after year after year…. must I go on? Being in a similar situation, living life as a Cubs fan, I too am a man of faith. Every April when baseball season begins, I am sure of what I hope for, that the Cubs will go to the playoffs or better yet, the World Series. In addition, this is something that is often unseen.

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No matter how many times I’ve struggled through a lousy baseball season full of disappointment, I remain a fan and think they will do better the next year. In the life of a Christian, many times we live by faith, or at least we should. When we consider the struggles we go through, we press on because things will be better, if not here, then in Heaven. The light at the end of a tunnel can’t always be seen, but we know by faith that it is there. Jesus Christ died on the cross so we can all possess that proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. Thank you God for your son Jesus.




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]]> The God of All Comfort https://beethomas.com/the-god-of-all-comfort/ Thu, 21 Jul 2016 15:45:22 +0000 http://beethomas.com/?p=893 The loss of a child is heartwrenching. I would not want to try to seek comfort from such a tragedy in anything human. Humans fails us, but God is the perfect comforter.

The post The God of All Comfort appeared first on B. Thomas Free Bulletin Articles.

]]> This free church bulletin article was written by Brian Humek from Irving, TX. You are free to use this in church bulletins, church emails and on church websites. No credit needs to be given. Simply clicking one of the books on our suggested reading list will help more free content to be placed on this site. Donate your own bulletin article here.

comfortBible Passage: 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

I am on the mailing list of a gentleman named Gailyn Van Rheenen. This morning he sent that list an email. The subject of that email was “unspeakable sorrow.” The email was sent at 3:58 a.m. and concerned his son who had suddenly died a few hours earlier in a traffic accident. He died immediately in the sleeper of an 18 wheeler when his truck ran into the back of another truck with his co-driver driving. I begin to weep any time I read Gailyn Van Rheenen’s words, “We feel unspeakable pain. A father is to die before his son.”

How will Gailyn Van Rheenen and his wife be comforted? I know that because of God, and because of their faith in Him, they will receive comfort. God will use times of solitiude to help this family. God will use helpful words and hugs of humans to comfort this family. And God will use time and distance to help Gailyn Van Rheenen and his wife Becky during this time of unspeakable sorrow.

The Apostle Paul wrote, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort; who comforts us in all our afflictions so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” – 2 Corinthians 1:3-4.

God will help us through terribly difficult times. My hope is that each day, more and more people will come to know our Heavenly Father personally, and then, experience his comfroting love.

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]]> A Movie Quote to Live By? – Flashdance https://beethomas.com/movie-quote-live-flashdance/ Thu, 21 Jul 2016 15:15:41 +0000 http://beethomas.com/?p=886 If you were a teen boy growing up in the early 80s, the last thing you may have associated the movie Flashdance with was a biblical concept, but check this bulletin article out. You will be enlightened and encouraged.

The post A Movie Quote to Live By? – Flashdance appeared first on B. Thomas Free Bulletin Articles.

]]> This free church bulletin article was written by Brian Humek from Irving, TX. You are free to use this in church bulletins, church emails and on church websites. No credit needs to be given. Simply clicking one of the books on our suggested reading list will help more free content to be placed on this site. Donate your own bulletin article here.

flashdance 4Bible Passage: Romans 5:2-5

“When you give up your dream you die.” This quote is from the Nick Hurley character in the movie Flashdance. A lot of people live by movie quotes. If one must do that, I think this quote is as good as they come. I believe having a dream and the idea of hope are quite similar. If my assumption is correct, then Paul wrote about this concept in his letter to the Romans, specifically in chapter 5.

“And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” – Romans 5:2b-5

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A lot of people give up their dreams because of suffering endured while trying to attain them. If one keeps on pursing dreams despite the many problems that come along with them, one will gain endurance or character and then there will be hope. Paul says, this hope “does not disappoint us.” It is almost like a circle. If you have hope, some suffering will come, but then the end result is more hope. Paul is speaking of our entry into Heaven. The letter to the Romans is full of hope for a future with God although we must suffer at times. Although Paul was speaking of Heaven, this is easily translated to everyday life. If our dream is to do something that is within the character of God, something that does not go against any of his teaching, keep on believing and striving despite minor or even major setbacks. Never give up!

I wouldn’t suggest anyone struggling with lust, watch the film Flashdance, but not giving up on your dreams, that, I whole heartedly endorse.




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