Monthly Archives: November 2007

Pretty Good Service Last Night

The Lord blessed us in the meeting last evening. Well, He blessed me anyway! He gave great liberty to preach His Word and I praise Him for that. The response in the altar call was less than it should have been, but that is a matter between the individual and the Lord. My duty is to go to the church house prepared to preach His Word. I did my best to do that, and He honored His Word. What a Savior! What a God! Keep praying for the services. I look forward to what He will do for us today.

Let me just say that there is nothing in the world quite like expositional preaching. The blessings in taking a text, finding the meaning of that text, then applying it to people where they live, is an amazing process. The Word of God is so rich and so powerful. We preachers need to be in the business of preaching the Word. The world does not need our theories. They do not need or intellectual gymnastics. They do not need out clever outlines and our catchy titles. The world needs the Word of God! They need to hear the Bible preached in power and in purity. They need to hear the voice of God. They need to hear “Thus saith the Lord!” That happens when we take His Word and preach His message. That happens when we preach expositional sermons in the power of the Spirit. Far too many preachers are trying to impress other preachers with their outlines. Far too many preachers are trying to make a name for themselves. Our business should be only to preach His Word in His power to people who need to hear from Heaven. My thoughts, opinions and cleverness will die when I do. His Word will stand forever!

Preacher, preach the Bible! Stay away from shallow, easy topical preaching. Dig into the Word of God and serve your people a meal of biblical meat for the glory of God. You will grow in the preparation and the preaching. They will grow in the hearing and application. God will bless it because it allows His voice to be heard in the world today. So, my brothers, let us take a text and preach that text! Let us never use the Word of God as a grab bag of texts that are strung together to form a sermon. Rather, let us take our text and preach all the truth it contains. Let us preach the Word as it was given, how it was given, and for the purpose it was given. Preach the Word!

Have a blessed day!

Alan Carr

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Florida Update

Well, we had a great day in the Lord’s house yesterday. I appreciate the Lord blessing us like He does. He is a great God and I praise Him for it. I’ll never figure out why He would want to meet with folks like us, but He does. Praise His name!

I left after the PM service and drove to Macon, GA and spent the night. I finished the trip to Perry, FL this morning and I arrived here around 2:30 PM. I studied a while and went to church. The service was good, with several making a move in the altar. Pray for the meeting this week. There are several needs that only the Lord can meet.

On the way down, I listened to some lectures by Dr. Steven J. Lawson. He is the Pastor of Christ Fellowship Baptist Church in Mobile, AL. Anyway, he has some lectures on the early church fathers. I listened to a lecture on Ambrose of Milan; a lecture on Jerome and five lectures on Augustine of Hippo. They were very enlightening and challenging. Click this blue text to access his site. You can find them on your own from there. Listen to some of his sermons. They are excellent as well.

God bless!

Alan Carr

Praise the Lord for a good week

We gathered at Calvary on Wednesday evening for our pre-Thanksgiving service. What a time we had! One of our young women had a moral failure a while back and is expecting a child out of wedlock. She confessed her sin to the church and asked for forgiveness. The church folks came around her and affirmed their love for her and their willingness to forgive. Then the saints began to testify about the things they are thankful for. Suffice it to say that the service was a tremendous blessing. God sure does meet with us at Calvary and I praise His holy name!

Yesterday, the family gathered at our house to celebrate Thanksgiving. We had a great meal, as usual. The best part was the opportunity to spend some time with family.  After such a busy fall schedule, just a few hours with no demands is a blessing. After the family left, Joan and I went to our son’s house and painted for several hours. We did the same thing tonight. The house is about ready to move into and that is a good thing because they are getting married three weeks from tomorrow! Yikes!

So, anyway, it’s bedtime right now and I’m heading that way!

Alan Carr

What I am Thankful For

Here on the even of Thanksgiving Day, I want to share a short list of the things for which I am thankful.

  • Grace and all it has brought into my life – Salvation, forgiveness, a new life, eternal life, a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ, the indwelling Spirit, the Word of God, and much more than I can list.
  • My family – I thank God for my wife. She is a true helpmeet to me and I love her. I thank God for my children. I am proud of them and the lives they live. My son-in-law and soon to be daughter-in-law. Joan and I have long prayed for the spouses that our children would marry. He has answered us in a very favorable manner. I am proud to call Chad and Amy family. My Mom and Dad are a blessing to me and I am thankful for their lives. I am thankful for my brother Don. I don’t see him as often as I would like, but I love him.
  • The church I attend – Calvary Baptist Church is filled with some of the most genuine, sincere believers I have ever met. They are the real deal and I praise God for putting us together.
  • The ways God uses my life – God has blessed my life far beyond my wildest hopes and dreams. Everyday is a fulfillment of Ephesians 3:20. I stand amazed at what He does and what He allows me to do.

That is just my short list. What are you thankful for today?

Think about, post it and praise Him for it!

Alan Carr

Hello All!

I am sorry that my old blog bit the dust. I am starting over at this address. Please check the same old link to visit the new site. Guess what? You will have to register again if you want to post. But, so what? You’ve got nothing but time, unlike me. I will updating things around here shortly.  Al righty then!

Alan Carr