We all hit points of plateau in our Christian life—times when we don’t seem to be growing like we wish or when we are struggling to gain momentum in spiritual growth. Are you there? Do you want off the plateau?

I heard someone quote an old preacher who said regarding this text, “I believe in chasing buzzards off. I don’t believe in chasing buzzards.” It seems to me that this text and the thought given by that man of God now in Heaven are especially significant to us today.

If you were a football player, you would think the most precious possession during a game was the football. Should you have the opportunity to receive or intercept a pass, you would run with everything you had toward the goal line, while protecting the ball from the other team.

Music is the accompaniment of life. The music a man chooses as his accompaniment says a lot about his lifestyle and his belief system. The world uses rock music to accompany themselves in their revelry and reflect their philosophy and approach to life.

God has given us the answer that the world needs—the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But what do we do with this treasure? How do we steward the Gospel? How can we get this truth into all the world?

What would you say the “spiritual temperature” of our society is today? Is it predominantly Christian? Are the world’s morals becoming more godly? Should Christians emulate the worldly cultural system we find ourselves in or be different—set apart?

Do you ever feel that you have more responsibilities than time in which to perform them? Actually, I don’t know of anyone who doesn’t feel that way! Thankfully, God has given us a resource to help us make decisions concerning our time. It’s called wisdom!

How many of us have ever heard of Jacob Knapp? In his day, he was one of the best known preachers in America. Often titled “Elder” Knapp because of the Baptist teaching that the senior officer of the local church is the bishop/elder/pastor (see Titus 1:5-9 and 1 Peter 5:1-4), this man has a unique place in the history of Baptist work in this country.