Cliche'

Dear Christian friends, please allow me to encourage you to choose your words wisely. More often than not our gospel cliches and platitudes are simply a little tune to entertain our own ego. I will be the first to admit guilt. It seems that Christians spend so little time with non-Christians that when faced with circumstances to encourage or inspire or console we just start firing Jesus jargon in large quantities. I assure you it is not received well. We can do better. A couple alternatives. 1. Be Quiet. It is not necessary to comment on every situation. 2. Share Scripture. The scripture is alive and powerful. When the opportunity arises simply share some truth from the Bible. (Allow Jesus to help you with timing also) I PROMISE YOU that a grieving family member standing beside a casket of a loved one does not want to hear Revelation 21 or Jeremiah 29:11, or 2 Corinthians 5:8. There will be a time to share these great truths but allow the Spirit of God to orchestrate the delivery time. Whoever guards his/her mouth keeps his/her soul from troubles." Proverbs 21:23

Positional Christianity & The Cheese Touch

There is a scene in the movie Diary of a Wimpy Kid where a dropped piece of cheese becomes the source of what all the children called the "cheese touch." Basically if you touched the cheese you would be eternally infected with the dreaded cheese touch. Cheese in the fridge is a treasure. Melted cheese on bread is a treat. Cheese on the asphalt of the playground is a tragedy. The simple location of the cheesy delight determines its classification. It is either desirable or deplorable. My observation of Christians over the past 40+ years bares a strikingly similarity to the poor cheese. The Christian in the pew is precious and protected. He is holding down his or her spot. Perhaps singing a bit or at least a person that can be counted in the congregation. The Christian can also be a teacher. Someone with a weekly duty to instruct others about whatever is in the book he was assigned. More could be listed but the place they are most treasured is “in the building.” In the building makes everything good. However should you try and classify yourself a Christian and be outside the good graces of “the building” you could be headed to a life of dread and doom. Just like in the “cheese touch” scenario one will be pointed out for their mistake. They will never quite measure up to the ideal person that is in the pew. They are discolored and damaged and if you touch them or talk to them you will be equally as disgusting. I wish this were not the case. It would be nice if the church (small c) operated like the hospital Jesus intended. Even more interesting is when the Christian is out in the wild. Out of “position.” When he is mingling with other sinners. How well they blend in. In the work place it is very rare to observe the salt and light outside the safety of the worship center. More often we see the lamp stand hiding under the proverbial bushel. There is however power in numbers. Perhaps if there are a few parishioners standing around they will clutter together and increase their illumination but only in the corner they are standing in. It is again very rare for the huddle to band together in force and rescue one that is hurt or broken. I’ve seen them discuss the outcast disregard the wounded, and despise the former member of the pew. This topic positional christianity occurred to me at a meeting in the spring of 2022. I am writing this with some authority because I have been on both sides of this topic. I have been inside the huddle and on the outside of it. During the meeting I observed “church folk” piled up in a wad while hurting, needy people were wandering all around them. I watched careful. I knew if these same people were “inside the building” on any given Sunday the huddle would be surrounding them. They would be inquiring their name their contact information and finding out a bit more about them. The plea for their soul would go out and tears would be shed on their behalf. Hard to believe we were not much more than a mile from the church building, but the attitudes and concerns of the churched were infinitely different. What is your position? How will you serve? Jesus said, “love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus sets a very high standard. I’m not throwing off on Him or His Church. There are a few great pastors, there are many faithful saints and I care for them deeply. These people serve the poor and powerless 24/7 My concern however is for you and me. If we are positional Christians we should hang our head in shame. LOVE PEOPLE! CARE FOR PEOPLE! I’m so thankful that when I was a disgusting “piece of cheese” that Jesus reached down and rescued me. The disgusting embarrassing human I am and the King of Everything touched me and made me whole. Think on that….

What is the Church to me?

What is the church to me? 1. Used to be a magical place that empowered my every movement. 2. Used to be a place I spent time massive volumes of time. 3. Used to be the hub of my very existence 4. Used to be where I loved to go 5. Used to be where I bowed my knees in prayer and raised my hands in worship. What is the church to me now? With tears I admit the church is nothing to me now. The church now is a place were less than 10 people I currently know who are the real deal try and transform culture on the backs of unrepentant unholy church “members” I now recognize the church as a place where I put my faith. I trusted the church more than I trusted Jesus. Not the church’s fault per say. I think they are just doing what they “feel.” Pastors are standing teaching/preaching the Word, but we the people are not accepting and implementing the training. What is the church to me? It is a place that produced deep scars and continues to re open wounds that most likely will never heal. What is the church to me? A meeting place for people that have shared vulgar secrets that are entrusted with me till death yet enjoy the anonymity during worship because their secrets are hidden from their peers. The same folks abuse, shun and betray those with exposed secrets abandoning them and exiling them to shame and defeat. What is the church to me? It is now a place I drive by and remember the good times and good friends I used to have before I became an outcast. What is the church to me? It is where my friends sometimes have funerals. When or if I attend to show my respects, I’m met with whispers and shunned by those I was once loved by. With sadness and regret and shame and anger I admit that the “church” the building and the meeting mean nothing to me. The Church that Jesus died for and sacrificed everything for helps me keep perspective. My anger and sadness toward the church is really not even worth mentioning when I think that Jesus really died and suffered shame and took my sin on his body. And the little feelings that I expressed before are really not even worth mentioning. We did it to Jesus first. So who am I. I do think we could do better at loving one another and being real and putting down our cloak of fake holiness one day a week and admit that we have struggles and we fail.

Daylight and Dark

I love photography. I’m an absolute amateur, but I love it. I have memories of my cousin having a Polaroid Instant camera. My family had a Polaroid 110 and sometimes we purchased a flash cube for those extra special occasions. Following the 7-10 day wait and the poor image quality I remember picking up our freshly developed pictures at the local drug store and racing home to pass the pictures around to our family and friends. Forty years later I sit on the banks of the Tennessee river waiting for the perfect moment to snap a pic of the sunset. Then a few months later in my backyard I was able to capture a picture of the super moon. The moments captured and the pictures instantly uploaded to my phone for my inspection AMAZING! The difference in the past and the present is as different as Daylight and Dark. Life is filled with changes. We are all trying to navigate and be happy. I started this blog in 2006 halfway through a career in full time ministry. Today I’m three months into a new career as funeral staff. I’m still the same Brent. I have some new friends and some new opinions. My perspective has been altered quite a bit, but I still believe in truth and right and wrong. I would love to go back to the “good old days” but that is impossible. I live in a fast paced cruel and crazy world. I’m excited to use this blog as a medium to share my opinions and perspectives. Enjoy, and take lots of pictures.

Michelle Malkin on Parenting.

Michelle Malkin, columnist and television commentator wrote:
As a mother of a 4 year old girl and a 8 month old boy, I am increasingly dismayed by the liberal assault on the decency, the normalization of promiscuity, and the mainstream media's role as shameless collaborators....{excerpt removed}
When conservative women say,'have some self-respect' liberals in the media call us self-righteous. When conservative women say promiscuity is degrading and self-destructive, liberals in the media call us prudes. When liberal women raise their voices, they are praised as "passionate." when conservative women raise their voices, we are condemned as "shrill."
Her comments are concluded with a last bit of advice for parents:
Be "prudes." Be "rude." Be "shrill.". And never feel ashamed for asking out loud, "Have you no shame".

Quote taken from pg. 11 Bringing up Girls, James Dobson.

Awards Day

Yesterday I had the honor of observing my sweet girl receive rewards for highest average in her class in most every subject. I was filled with pride when she was given each award. Following the program Mandy and I walked with Abbey back to her classroom. It was there Abbey received the highest honor of all. Two people shared with Mandy and me about our little girls sweet Christian attitude. Good grades will only take one so far in life. What will separate you from the rest of the scholars is the goodness of Christ Jesus living inside us. If we are good it is because Jesus is good. If we speak a kind word it is because Jesus is kind. If we have compassion on someone it is because Jesus is compassionate. Christ in us is the hope of Glory.

Blessed.

Enjoying a great Saturday with my two awesome children at the playlpark in McDonalds. This is in stark contrast to my previous Saturday assisting tornado victims in Franklin county AL. The events of April 27th have gripped my heart in a powerful way. I cannot describe how blessed I feel sitting here at total ease. Several men and women from my church have gone back today to assist those affected by the tornados. This passed week I have heard unbelievable stories from victims and relatives of victims. I would have a hard time believing them too if i had not seen it with my own eyes. God has blessed me and the rest of the Colley dogs. I hope our compassion will never diminish for all those sweet families that are suffering.

Worship is Not an Event its a Lifestyle!

Event - an occurrence that is sharply localized at a single point in space and instance of time.
Lifestyle - the habits, attitudes, tastes, moral standards, economic level, etc. that together constitute the mode of living of an individual or group "Worship is not an event; it is a lifestyle" became my philosophy for ministry in early 2002. Long story short, the church I was serving was having difficulties, and my ministry was coming to an end there. Mandy's dad was diagnosed with pancreatitis and spent over 6 months in the hospital. The final straw was when I was diagnosed with testicular cancer. In these dark months, God placed a dear brother in my life. He told me that I would come through this like gold. I remember thinking, how arrogant of him to say that to me. I did not have the ability to see that God was refining my life. I continued to go to church but was miserable Sunday after Sunday. I did not obtain any satisfaction from the services. Even worse, God seemed to be silent. I shared all these things with Bro. Allen. I could not get hold of the circumstances. He replied with a life changing statement, "Worship is not an event; it's a lifestyle." The ax fell. I had been throwing the world's biggest pity party Monday through Saturday, and then I expected to go to "worship" and showers of blessings to fall. In my hour of discouragement, I had completely lost my focus. I'm thankful to say that now I have regained perspective. Now, I wish I could say that I am perfect and I walk in sunshine all week long and heaven comes down every day in my life. I can't say that, but now I live with the perspective that I do not have to wait till Sunday to get it all straightened out. I'm going to walk and talk with Jesus, and Sunday I'm going to celebrate what He has allowed me to experience all week long. Where are you when it comes to worship? Is Sunday the first and last time God crosses your mind? I hope it is simply the first day of seven you offer totally to Jesus. If you allow your happiness to depend on your happenings, you will spend life totally discontented. However, if you will recognize that every second of our existence is a gift and our circumstances are ultimately for our good, worshiping God will be your lifestyle.

My Little Valentine

This is Abbey and me after our Valentines Day Service at UBC.

A Baby Changes Everything

More than six months have passed since we began rehearsals for A Baby Changes Everything. It was a bold challenge for the UBC choir and drama team, but this past weekend has proved it was more than worth it. I thrills me so much to say once again what a blessing it is to serve at such an outstanding church. It was a true miracle to watch this production unfold. The faithful saints at UBC are so well equipt. God has placed the perfect cast of people to accomplish His work and will at Underwood.

How Great Is Our God!

I was born again when I was 12 years old. God called me into full time ministry in my early 20s. Since then the greatest miracle I have witnessed was when my sweet little girl was saved. I had the thrill of baptizing her Oct. 2009. How Great is Our God!

The Hidden Blessing of Bronchitis!

I have bronchitis for the first time since I was just a teenager. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday have been virtually sleepless nights. I was in the midst of a pity party because I missed choir rehearsal, which is a highlight of my week. However, in the midst of the sadness and sorrow, I have had some great inspiration from the Word of God.
I mentioned to several folks at the beginning of this month that I had spent a lot of time thinking about the hymn "Sweet Hour of Prayer" (click on the title to read the story and complete lyrics of this great hymn). I have been so convicted about the amount of time I spend truly seeking God. I have prayed to the Lord that I could become even more disciplined in my time with Him. So due to a little perspective change I now realize the blessing of bronchitis, Jesus has allowed me to get up Super early the last few mornings and spend some more time with Him. I love Jesus. I'm so thankful that He saved me and called me to serve Him in full time ministry.

Whoever Calls on the Name of the Lord Will Be Saved.

In a previous post I talked in detail about the Colley's trip to Ohio. One thing I did not mention was the appointment that my little girl made with Jesus for her Salvation. She told me on Monday that she was going to ask Jesus in her heart on Friday of that week. Her mom and I sat down with her and shared several Bible verses with her and left it at that. She spent the next several weeks asking difficult questions. We were very serious about not persuading her to make a decision. We did not want her to do something and then when she is older question her what she had chosen to do. It was bedtime September 12th and Abbey told me that she wanted to be saved. I told her that it was bedtime and she just need to go to sleep. With a few more comments she talked me into sitting down and telling her again how she could be saved so I sat with her once again and began to read the scriptures to her. I read "whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved, and from her bed she shouted "Jesus"! I was actually shocked. She proclaimed "I'm saved". I continued to read the scriptures to her and made sure that she was aware that sin is why we need a Savior and that she took some ownership in that. She stood by her bed bowed her head and prayed, "Jesus please take all this sin outta me"! I was floored. It is really that simple. Jesus provided Salvation to my sweet little daughter. I am so amazed by Jesus. To God Be The Glory Great Things He Has Done!

What is 1973?

Today Abbey was writing some notes while we were driving to school. Specifically she was writing down our birth dates. First hers then Bryant's next was my turn and I told her it was 08-06-73 and you should have seen the puzzled look she gave me. I tried to explain 1973, confusion mounted even more and she asked what is 1973? I love making memories with my daughter.
When we started throwing around dates I began to think of a couple other defining dates in my life. I remembered Saturday September 5th 1992. It was a overcast afternoon and two nervous teenagers were preparing to go on a date. She looked great in those green jeans. I will never forget my first date with my wife. Mandy and I have been married 13 years, but we knew it was going to be something special 17 years ago sitting in Pizza Hut.
I also remember Tuesday September 11th 2001. I was scheduled to sing at an association senior adult picnic. That morning I remember turning the TV on and seeing a stunned Fox news channel cast. I watched with our nation as the second plane hit the World Trade Center. I will never forget the day our country was attacked so viciously.
I'm going to wrap this up by chasing a rabbit. I'm a lot nervous about the current state of our country. I truly believe that the political system is out of control. I would love to see a leader that would take a STAND and not bow to the pressures of the political game. I growing confident that this will not happen prior to the Rapture of the Lord's Church. Dear friends it has been said for centuries that Jesus will return, I promise you it is the truth. Trust Christ Today receive His Salvation.
Jesus is the only way to inherit Heaven.

How To Have Great Worship Experience, Every Week

I work with a lot of wonderful musicians. Some weeks the music is really good. Some weeks the music is really great! Some weeks are better at one service than the other.
However... it's possible to have fantastic worship EVERY Sunday. Here are just a few ideas for you to help you make your time of worship a great time with God.

1. Remember that you are at church for God. It's not really all about you (don't mean to hurt your feelings). If your focus is on Him and not on hoping to hear your favorite song then true worship can happen.

2. Don't rely on the worship pastor or the band or the choir to get you all revved up or feeling good. Feelings are great, but in reality, worship is telling God how great He is and how much you love Him.

3. Worship with your mind as well as your heart. So many of the songs we sing have really terrific texts. We sometimes sing songs so many times that we just sing along and don't even think about the words. But the words are really the point. They tell of God's greatness, they encourage us, they teach us, they inspire us...

4. Come to worship expecting it to be wonderful. In most things in life you get out of them what you bring to them.

5. Pray before you come. (don't make me tell you everything. figure this part out yourself)

6. Worship during the week. It's good practice and your heart will be more in tune with God.

7. Some thinking about others more than yourself. (Ooops. There we go again with the "it's not all about you part.") Be happy to sing some old song knowing it speaks to the hearts of so many others. Be happy to sing that new song you don't know because it speaks to the hearts of so many others. (Get the idea?)

Created By: Lyndel Littlejohn-worship leader at Hildale Baptist Church Clarksville, TN

My Boy!

I'm so blessed.

My Girl!

I'm so amazed at how God has blessed me.

Beth Moore Simulcast

What a night of worship at the Beth Moore Simulcast. Underwood Baptist Church graciously hosted this event. It is wildly successful. God is alive and active in God's church here. It is such a great place to be. There will be tickets available at the door tomorrow. Come and worship with this awesome group of ladies..

"Seven"

My Little Girl seven years old.
I remember well the Sunday afternoon. Mandy stayed home from church trying to continue her doctor instructed bed rest. I was in a meeting at FBC Savannah, TN, and the phone rang. Mandy told me there had been an "event" I rushed home and we rushed to the hospital. It was not time, the delivery date was weeks away. Still the doc. told us that it was happening, and less than 50 min after we arrived at the hospital Abbey Nell Colley was born. One week later we came home with this four pound girl wearing doll clothes from toys'r us. I could hold her in the palm of my hand. Now she is seven and I can harldy hold her 65lbs. at all. She is a treasure to me. God's precious gift.

B4 Haircut/ First Day of School

B4 Haircut

B4 Haircut

First Day of School

Walking up to School.