Grandmama's Cooking and Gods Provision

 Now that we are living in her house I think about Grandmama every time we have a meal. My Grandmama loved to cook, and she was good at it! She cooked in the old school southern style. A lot of what we had was fried, and even the vegetables had meat in them. The breakfasts were bacon, sausage, or country ham with eggs, grits, and homemade biscuits. What it lacked in healthiness it more than made up for in taste. It was certainly comfort food!

Another feature of Grandmama's cooking is that it never ran out. Whether she cooked for just for me, or for our entire extended family, we always had enough. Truthfully, we always had more than enough. Like so many of the "greatest generation' my Grandmama's early life was shaped by the desperate times of the Great Depression. There was practically no wastefulness in her way of life. To look in her refrigerator and see a plastic butter container did not mean there was butter in it. It likely contained the leftovers from the night before. Due to growing up in hard times, my Grandmama was always grateful for every meal, and for every one of God's blessings.

I thought of her cooking and her gratitude this morning when in my daily Bible reading I came across this verse:  Exodus 3:21 And I will give these people such favor with the Egyptians that when you go, you will not go empty-handed. (CSB) Here God is explaining to Moses that not only will God lead the Israelites out of Egypt, but He will provide all they need for the journey. One of my favorite "preacher phrases" is "where God leads He feeds, where God guides He provides". I have found it so true in this new season of ministry. God has provided everything my family needs to make the transition to planting a new church. He has also made great provision for our new church. I am reminded daily of Ephesians 3:20  Now to him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us.(CSB) Today let us all pause for a moment and thank God for His gracious provision.

Big win for the Viking Baseball Team

 There was great excitement in Butler GA last night when a ground ball to second base ended a back and forth 8-7 victory for the Vikings baseball team. Our foe was the back to back defending state champion Lanier County Bulldogs. Both teams showed tremendous heart and determination. It was truly one of the better high school baseball games I have ever watched. I am sure our team learned a lot about their capacity to compete at the highest level what stood out to me was that this team is made up of strong leaders.

The leadership culture for Vikings baseball begins with the coaching staff. Head coach Clae Mathis has done a tremendous job after returning home of building our Viking baseball team into a winning program. There is constantly excitement in the stands, and the belief that we can beat anyone grows with each big win. He has assembled a great staff that care about the students and are making them better in every facet of the game. 

While I am proud of the coaches, last night what stood out was the leadership of the players. Momentum is everything in high school sports, and our young men dealt well with the highs and lows of a back and forth game. A box score would do better to highlight the different individuals that made key plays, but from my place behind the backstop last night, the entire squad never seemed to waver. The belief that they could win that game became a reality. No doubt this victory will propel them toward a great season.

One of the reasons I love sports is that it teaches leadership. Pastor Ronnie Floyd once stated "Leadership is rallying people toward a better future." Even players that do not participate in the game can influence others to do better. Obviously leadership does not pertain only to athletics. We follow leaders in every aspect of life, and are often put in positions where we are called to lead. Many refuse to describe themselves as leaders, but as John Maxwell is found of saying, "leadership is influence." If you have influence over someone you are a leader. Some lead at their job, some lead at their home. Some lead thousands, others dozens, for some its one other person. We will lead best when we see our leadership opportunities as assignments from God, and to further His Kingdom. 

Today let us be inspired by our young Viking baseball team! Let us lead with a confidence that if God calls us to it, He we get us through it! Leaders can change a workplace, a team, a church, and a home. Let us be leaders today!

This Sunday I will preach at sermon at Butler Community Church titled "Leadership Matters". We meet at the old High School Cafeteria at 10:30am. We could love to have you join us in this study!

Cabinet TV's and the Limitations of Technology

 One thing that stand out as we live at Grandmama's house is how my modern television looks out of place. For most of my life Grandmama had one of those large cabinet style tv's. I do not remember ever having to move one, but I have been told they were rarely stolen because they were so heavy! While the cabinet itself was huge, most cabinet televisions had a screen somewhere between 21 and 25 inches. Today a tv with a screen twice that size can be carried by one person. The thought of sitting around that old tv is certainly heartwarming, but the reality is that we are all glad the technology has allowed for bigger screens and lighter sets.

The longer we live the more our hearts seem torn between the new and the nostalgic. The latest technology makes certain tasks easier, but it always seems to make life more complicated. We used to sit around that cabinet tv with the picture slightly out of focus because the antenna on top of the house wasn't quite adjusted right, but our attention was firmly fixed on what we were watching. Now we have 65 inch, 4K quality with surround sound, yet in most homes you will find those around the tv actually looking down at their phone. One expert on technology wondered aloud if in 50 years it will take 3 or more screens to keep people entertained! 

The philosophical concepts of modernism and rationalism taught that science, technology, and innovation would cure the societal ills that religion and tradition never could. The scientific disciplines have certainly brought many helpful innovations, but they have never been able to solve the deepest struggles of the human heart. There is no pill to take that overcomes guilt, no surgery to overcome regret, and though it has been tried, there is no program of study that can eradicate the problem of evil in the human heart. Only the gospel of Jesus Christ can do that. Christ died on the cross to pay the penalty for sin, rose from the grave to claim victory over death, and transforms the lives of all who put their trust in Him. This is not a new solution, rather it was planned "before the foundation of time. I am convinced it is the only hope a person has of living forever with God after they die. I am convinced it is the only hope to see our sin sick culture turn around. The well know hymn states: 

 I love to tell the story!

'Twill be my theme in glory

to tell the old, old story

of Jesus and His love.

Does this mean that God is against learning or progress? It does not. Proverbs 25:2 states "2 It is the glory of God to conceal a matter and the glory of kings to investigate a matter. (CSB)"  There is nothing man can discern that God did not know from the beginning. What we have to guard against is placing our hope in the limited and fallible disciplines of human discovery. Today let us rejoice in human innovation. Let us be thankful for modern medicine to make us well, the internet to keep us informed, and HVAC systems to keep us comfortable. But let us also rejoice in what is old, what is timeless. Let us rejoice in the good news that the eternal, perfect God so loved us that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8)!

Will it snow?

 

It is Thursday, January 15th and my weather app says there is a chance of snow this weekend. If you live north of the Mason-Dixon Line this may not sound like much, but to us southerners it has our full attention. One snowflake is usually enough to cancel school, work, and pretty much any activity that requires leaving our home.  If the prediction holds you can count on all the bread and milk being bought up at the local grocery stores. Snow in the south is a big event!

If you find yourself in the presence of a child they are going to ask you if it is going to snow. The threat of ice, power loss, or any inconvenience will mean nothing to them. They want to play in it, and they want to miss school. When they ask they do not want a guess, approximation, or some percentage from a weather app or a meteorologist. They want a yes or no answer.

I remember asking my Grandmama one time if it was gonna snow. I do not know if there had been a valid prediction or if it was a rumor started on the playground between the game of kickball and playing cops and robbers. Her answer was unsatisfying, but very true: "it will snow if God wants it to".  Her answer to that question sheds light on how the Christian should look toward the future. James 4:13-15 states "13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will travel to such and such a city and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.” 14 Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring—what your life will be! For you are like vapor that appears for a little while, then vanishes. 15 Instead, you should say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that (CSB). Most of the control we feel over our lives is an illusion. We are all one phone call or doctor's visit away from realizing this. There is nothing wrong with planning and preparing for the future, but only God knows the outcome.

So, will it snow this weekend? Only God knows. That is true for all the other questions we have about our lives right now. Let us not let the anxiety of uncertainty rule over us. As the famous saying goes "I do not know what the future holds, but I know who holds the future"!

Living In Grandmama's House

The Kirksey family finds ourselves starting 2026 in a new home. Part of our ministry at FBC Butler coming to an end was the need to move out of the church owned home (sometimes called a parsonage or pastorium). Thankfully for us a home was readily available. It is located on Crossroad School Rd. in Butler, GA and is across the road from parents' home, as well as my aunt and uncle's house. This is the house that both my father and grandfather were raised in. I am sure it has gone by many names. But for me, my sister, and my cousins, we know it best as "Grandmama's house".

One of God's greatest blessing in my life was to grow up in close proximity to family. I could cut through the wooded path to visit my cousins, and I could walk across the road to see my Grandmama. Even my family that lived out of town made regular visits, especially during the holidays.
Grandaddy passed when I was very young, so essentially all my life Grandmama lived as a widow. Her house was a place of fun and refuge for her grandchildren. We loved to pack our little suitcases and spend a Friday night. As I got older I found myself walking over to her house when I had done something wrong at home and was in trouble. I would never bring up to her what was going on, it was just like getting a fresh start. We would talk about the weather, the Atlanta Braves, and sometimes the local town gossip  news :)

Quite often we would talk about the Scripture she read that morning on the front porch. Grandmama loved reading her Bible, and she loved the Lord. Im sure after two Seminary degrees and 20 years in the ministry I have accumulated more Bible knowledge than she had, but I am equally as certain that I have a long way to go to have a faith as strong as as hers.

Grandmama went home to be with Jesus in July of 2016. One of the greatest honors of my ministry was to preach her funeral. No one was more proud than her when I surrendered to preach the gospel. She often said to me "Sonny (she called me that a lot) when I die y'all don't say that you lost me, because you know exactly where I am, I'm in heaven".  That is exactly where I believe she is. Grandmama's passing left her home vacant. It is basically furnished and decorated that way it was when she passed. We use it as a gathering place for holidays and family get togethers. Both my sister and one of my cousins have lived her for a season while their permanent home was being built. Now my family is here during a time of transition. God has placed a burden on my heart to continue to minister in Taylor County, prayerfully seeing a new church start in 2026. My wife is teaching at the local elementary school, and my children have settled into the school and community. We will eventually find a permanent home here. But in the meantime, I am going to pause and enjoy living in Grandmama's house. I find inspiration from remembering her faith, joy in the wonderful memories of time spent here with her and my family and hope that just as she made such an impact on my life, through the grace of God I can impact the lives of others.

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Justin Kirksey