The Pursuit of Happiness (Luke 6: 20-31) Many people if asked where the phrase “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” is found would say in the Constitution of the United States, and they would be wrong. It’s in the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration, written in 1776, states: “We hold these Truths to [...]
By the Grace of God (Ephesians 1: 1-14) There but for the grace of God, go I. You have no doubt heard someone say it at one time or another in response to them seeing someone in hopeless distress, or maybe you’ve even said it yourself. As a kid, I think the first time [...]
Model Behavior (2 Timothy 3: 10-4: 5) As I’ve mentioned before, one of my assignments when I was a Houston Police Officer was the Vice Division in a plain-clothes undercover capacity. I had numerous outfits I would wear like hospital scrubs or car dealership uniforms. I could go from dressing up in a suit [...]
(2 Timothy 2: 1-15) As an attorney the two areas of the law I enjoyed the most, regardless of which side I was on, defense or prosecution, was jury trials and appellate work. Most, if not all, jurors think that when they return a verdict of guilty in a criminal case that is the [...]
The Civil Servant (2 Timothy 1: 1-14) We’ve all had that experience one time or another in our lifetimes when we’ve gone to the courthouse, the post office, the Department of Motor Vehicles, or any other government office and were unlucky enough to be served by someone who was either having a bad day [...]
Living the Good Life (1 Timothy 6: 3-19) After I graduated from the Houston Police Academy in 1977 Teresa and I bought us a little 800 square foot house twenty miles from downtown. Two bedrooms, one bathroom, no central heating or air conditioning, and no garage to park my used VW Bug in. [...]
Lost and Found (Luke 15: 1-10) Back when I was a criminal defense attorney practicing in Tyler, Texas, I took court appointments as a way to guarantee a regular cash flow. I would get appointed by judges to represent indigent people who had been arrested and charged with a crime and who were currently [...]
Low Sodium Christianity (Luke 14: 25-34) Recently I had my annual Medicare checkup which went as well as expected in spite of not taking care of myself as I should and carrying more than a few extra pounds. Surprisingly, everything checked out okay with all of the vital signs and I’m really not taking [...]
Diane Johnson, Lay Speaker SERMON: PRIDE AND PREJUDICE I am starting today with a quote from Jane Austen’s book, “Pride and Prejudice:” “Pride,” observed Mary, who piqued herself upon the solidity of her reflections, “is a very common failing, I believe. By all that I have ever read, I am convinced that it is very [...]
Do as I Say, Not as I Do (Luke 13: 10-17) Smith County, Texas, was known as the “wettest dry county in Texas” which came as quite a surprise to me when I moved there in November of 2002 to start work as an Assistant District Attorney. It’s not that I’m a big drinker, [...]