By Joe McKeever “I have always wanted to have a neighbor just like you. I’ve always wanted to live in a neighborhood with you….” (from Mister Rogers Neighborhood. Opening theme)  “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18). This verse is quoted in the New Testament in Matthew 5:43 and 19:19; Mark 12:31; Luke 10:27; Romans 13:9, Galatians 5:14 and James 2:8.  Mr. Fred Rogers, who left us in 2003, is back in the news these days. Books and articles, television specials and a couple of movies remind us just how special this good man was. Anyone who reads Mr. Rogers’ words or dwells on his life for even a few minutes comes away thinking more about being a good neighbor. My wife and I saw the movie “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” Thursday of this week.  There were perhaps 25 or 30 others in the theater, most of them seniors.  This was not the Tom Hanks movie on Mr. Rogers which I had expected, but is more of a documentary or biopic, I think they call it.  The Hanks movie will be out soon, we’re told, and is not so much a biography as a story about Rogers’ interview with a magazine writer. A couple of observations about Mr. Rogers from the movie we just saw.  One, the man truly was almost too good to be true.  As a … [Read more...]

By Rick Warren “God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8 NLT). As you strive to build a life based on values that last, it’s important to establish and maintain integrity. The Bible says in Matthew 5:8, “God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God” (NLT).To “see God” means to experience the presence of God. Believers who have a pure heart get to feel the power of God. They get to know the purpose of God for their lives. They get to live in the peace of God. They experience the pardon of God. Do you want to be one of those people? We don’t talk a lot these days about being pure in heart, but we do use the word integrity. To have integrity does not mean you are perfect, because if it did, none of us would have it! So, what does it mean to have integrity? Integrity is wholeness. A lot of people think of their life like a pie, and the different parts of their life are the pieces of the pie. This slice of the pie is my career. This is my work life. This is my spiritual life. Then this is my family life. That one is my social life. Then over here is my secret life — my compulsions, addictions, and the things nobody else knows about. If you segment your life … [Read more...]

By Steve Horn I find myself thinking and praying for multiple friends today who are going through a hard time. One of the difficulties of being a pastor is to help people through difficult seasons of their life. Usually, there is no advice to give or anything to say that will really change the circumstances. At the same time, saying something like, “Just trust God,” seems so hollow and void of real compassion. And yet, is there any better answer to all of our problems than the answer that Christ gives? Jesus said to Paul and He says to us, “My grace is sufficient for you.” I always think of this passage in hard times. I hope it blesses those today who need to hear it again. Therefore, so that I would not exalt myself, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to torment me so I would not exalt myself. 8Concerning this, I pleaded with the Lord three times to take it away from me. 9But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me. 10 So because of Christ, I am pleased in weaknesses, in insults, in catastrophes, in persecutions, and in pressures. For when I am … [Read more...]

By U.S. Sen. John Kennedy Sunday was supposed to be the day that Louisiana’s state sales tax finally regained some semblance of fiscal sanity. After a year of paying sky high taxes. Louisiana families were in line for much-needed relief when sales tax dropped from 5 percent to 4 percent. Instead, they’ll be paying a rate of 4.45 percent. The reason for the ludicrous tax burden isn’t difficult to decipher if you read recent news reports about an audit by the nonpartisan Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s Office. That report uncovered the truth behind Gov. Edwards’ threats to yank TOPS from your kids, evict your grandmother from the nursing home and close your community hospital. The state isn’t strapped for cash because you need to pay even more in taxes. The state is strapped for cash because it can’t competently manage a program that consumes nearly half the state budget. That’s what the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s Office discovered when it peeked behind the curtain at the state Department of Health and Hospitals’ Medicaid program books. Auditors looked for errors in DHH’s paperwork for management of the Medicaid program. The results were far from pretty. The scathing audit found that DHH has been downright sloppy … [Read more...]

By Rick Warren “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32 NIV). We will all be hurt in this life. Many times we’ll be hurt intentionally by what people say about us or what people do to us. In fact, any time we read the word “forgiveness” we instantly call to mind certain heartaches, hurts, and problems from our past. The memories are still fresh because we’ve been hurt very deeply. Because of how deeply we’ve been hurt, it’s hard to consider forgiving the perpetrators. But the Bible gives us one very important reason we need to forgive. We forgive others because God forgave us. The Bible says in Ephesians 4:32, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (NIV). Ponder how much God has forgiven you, and it’ll cause you to be more forgiving of those who have hurt you. The opposite is also true. If you don’t feel forgiven, you’ll have a hard time forgiving others. If you typically have a tough time forgiving others, you may not truly feel forgiven yourself. Think of it like this: God has completely wiped your sin slate clean because of what Jesus Christ did on the cross. All of the … [Read more...]