By Ryan Kelly –

Over the past six months, we’ve witnessed a powerful return to conservative values and a Christ-centered culture. In the midst of this revival, it’s crucial that we remain vigilant, recognizing that sin can often disguise itself within things that appear wholesome or genuine. Music doesn’t need explicit lyrics to promote lust or drunkenness. A show or message doesn’t need graphic content to stir inappropriate emotions or suggest immoral themes. And it doesn’t take a riot to incite division or cause harm. These may be general statements, but we can all recall examples from pop culture and social media that reflect these subtle influences.

Let your focus remain on personal purity. Dress modestly, guard your words, be mindful of what you watch and listen to, and live in a way that honors our Father in Heaven. This isn’t always easy, but the Lord walks beside us, ready to guide us when we seek His direction. Be the culture. Shape the culture. This is how we carry forward the revival I believe is already unfolding in our nation and around the world. Together, let’s transform this world for Jesus.

By Brad Campbell –

Just a thought to help start your week.

Something I don’t have to tell any of you is the fact that we are currently living in a very weird world.  In a weird world, there are weird people with weird titles doing weird things in their own weird ways and expecting the rest of us weirdos to label them as perfectly healthy and normal.

One day recently, I was roaming the aisles of one of those “dollar” stores that pop up seemingly overnight in any small community that turns its back too quickly to notice.  I was looking for canned dog food, the thick kind with the gravy that my parents’ dog had specifically requested for her daily meals.  I wasn’t familiar with this specific store, so it took me a few minutes to locate the correct aisle and then search for the correct products.  Here, I used that word “correct” very loosely.  

What I hope you can see from my picture is the labeling of the shelf underneath these cans.  I didn’t stage this.  These weren’t just two random cans that some kid had stuck there on his way to the toy section.  An entire case of Campbell’s Chunky soups was very neatly arranged in between several different dog food brands, and the shelf label read “Wet Dog Food.”  An entire case – put here on purpose by someone who obviously wasn’t paying attention.

In this weird world full of us weird folks, we must pay attention.  We must pay attention to those around us.  They are hurting, they are lost, and they need Jesus.  Some are wearing labels that are different from us.  Many of those labels are self-imposed, but many of those labels are ones we have attached because we assume their owners are just another one of those same old same old.  

Someone mistakenly assumed this soup was just some more of the same old dog food that the person was already so disinterested in stocking, that they never paid any attention to the face of the cans.

Don’t make the same mistakes this week.  Pay attention to the faces of those “weirdos” around you.  Remember you are perhaps a “weirdo” to them.  Regardless, we all deserve to be seen.  No one wants to be stacked where they don’t belong simply because we don’t care enough to pay attention to their needs.  “Love your neighbor as yourself” means, in part, that we are to love one another, regardless of their labels and regardless of how those labels came to be.  We must first see the label before we can help move them to the correct place that God has designed for them.  Weird world or not, weird labels or not, none of us is a mistake.  We do, however, make mistakes and then say God made us this way.  That’s a dangerous shelf to live on.  God made you to serve Him.  Do so with the label of one who knows we sometimes sit in the wrong place, but inside we are still the same person God made us to be.

Sitting on that shelf no more made that soup into dog food than the dog food would have been on a soup shelf.  Don’t worry about the labels the world throws upon you.  What matters is what God knows you really are on the inside.

(Perhaps I should make a disclaimer here.  I don’t want some disgruntled Campbell’s Soup employee suing me for this portrayal of their product as dog food.  Not only was I not responsible for the incorrect placement of the product or the shelf label, I am, after all, a proud Campbell myself.  And like my parents’ dog, Lady, I too love my gravy.  LOL.)

Just a thought.

By Ryan Kelly –

There is no greater investment we can make than the one we make in our children. Proverbs 22:6 tells us, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” This powerful verse reminds us that the seeds we plant today in the hearts of our children will bear fruit for generations. When we take time to play with our children, to enter their world with joy and imagination, we show them that they are seen, valued, and loved. Play isn’t just fun, it is a foundation for trust, creativity, and connection. It opens the door for deeper conversations and paves the way for meaningful lessons to take root.

Teaching our children is more than homework help or correcting mistakes; it is the sacred act of shaping character. Whether we’re reading stories of faith, solving math problems, or encouraging physical activity, every lesson is an opportunity to point our children toward wisdom, strength, and perseverance. As they grow, they learn not just facts and figures, but how to carry themselves with integrity, kindness, and faith. And just as Jesus taught through stories and moments of shared life, we too are called to walk alongside our children, teaching not only with words, but with love, patience, and presence.

Most importantly, we lead by example. Children learn what they live, and when they see us pray, worship, forgive, and grow in our own walk with God, they begin to mirror those same steps. By prioritizing spiritual growth, healthy habits, and lifelong learning, we give our children a model worth following. Our daily choices, even the small ones, speak volumes. So let us be intentional in our time with the next generation, because when we train them in the way they should go, with hearts rooted in Christ, we equip them to stand strong in every season of life.

By Brad Campbell –

Just a thought to help start your week.

I grew up in a Mississippi town that was the county seat.  I have lived for several years now in an Alabama town that is our county seat.  Each county seat differs from other towns or cities in that the county’s court house is located there.  Local governments and organizations also differ in what in particular is housed within their local court house, but one thing is for certain.  It is considered the center for the business of that particular town or county.

The picturesque town of St. Clairsville, Ohio is home to the beautiful court house you see pictured here.  On the Saturday morning when we were in St. Clairsville, there was no business taking place at the court house.  It, like all others under normal circumstances, was closed for the weekend.  But even closed to the public, this court house and so many of our others around this great nation, stands tall in reverence and prominence in its place of distinction.

Perhaps the court house contains court rooms, office spaces, records, maps, and other important people and things.  Whatever the reason you visit your local court house, you’re reminded of the fact that our government is by the people, for the people.  That place is yours.  It is ours.

The church house also stands as a center for the people in the community.  Unfortunately, most are open only on Sundays with very little interaction from the public during the regular work week.  We take pride in our places of worship.  We look forward to being there from one weekend to the next.  But do we recognize its importance on other days of the week?

I do realize that, sadly, in today’s world, it would not always be sensible to leave our church buildings unlocked and unattended around the clock.  Neither are our court houses.  Behind lock and key are places, records, and things of vital importance to our daily lives and our future.

Most vital to our daily lives, and certainly to our future, are the words of the Lord in the Scriptures that are readily available to us at any hour of any day of any week in any town in America.  Do you realize how extraordinarily amazing it is that we have complete access to the Father at any time?!  AND, He has full access to us!

Never locked away, never separated from Him.  I pray that our journeys of the week ahead will take advantage of that accessibility!

Just a thought.

By Brad Campbell –

Just a thought to help start your week.

As I stood in front of my grill, getting several things ready for our July 4th cookout at our house, I noticed a little critter scurrying around beside me.  He scooted along a window sill and stopped for a few short moments on the brick facing near the back door.  

The bright lime green color of his body was shining in the sunshine.  In fact, you might can see that what looks like small white specks on his back.  That is actually the gleam of the sunlight reflecting off of his scales.  I “zoomed in” on my picture and cropped it for you to see some of the details.

This little creature, no more than about 6 or 7 inches long, was brighter than I was in my Independence Day red, white, and blue get-up.  He sparkled in the sunshine.  And look at the tiny scales along his back and especially on his head and face.  The incredible detail in its design is amazing.  Take a look at his foot.  You can actually see the “suckers” on the ends of each toe, those things that allow him to climb walls and hang on with no problem.  The long toes can wrap around smaller objects as well.  

You can get a glimpse of his white underbelly, a stark contrast to the bright green color.  And, with the exception of those of you who are reading this and seeing the picture in the black and white print of the newspaper, you can also see the blue color around his eyes.

This tiny little lizard is beautiful.  The lizards come in many colors.  My parents and I have seen several bright blue ones around their house lately.  Each and every one has been created by God.  So stop for a moment and think about that today.

If God, in His infinite wisdom and creativity, spent that much time working on the beautiful tiny details of even the little lizard, then surely He cares about you.  If He puts that much effort into the colors and intricate parts and even these small creatures, then there is no doubt God cares about every single little detail of your life.  If you are struggling this week wondering if the Lord even cares for you and what you’re experiencing in your life, then just look at the lizard.  The proof is in the details.

Just a thought.

By Brad Campbell –

Just a thought to help start your week.

Life’s highways are full of twists, turns, straight-a-ways, and bridges.  Some of those bridges are quite short and hardly noticeable.  And then there are those bridges, such as ones in southern Louisiana, that are several miles long.  This particular bridge you see here is located in the mountains of Virginia.  What you cannot see is the river that is way down in the bottom of that ravine.

Signage posted in a park near one end of the bridge tells that a Washington Monument and two Statues of Liberty stacked together could fit underneath that bridge, with an extra twenty feet to spare.  For the curious mind, that’s nearly four football fields end to end.  Driving across the bridge with a river that far below was indeed an experience to remember.  That’s why we took advantage of the little park with its hiking trail to get this view of the bridge.

The vast majority of these “thoughts” through the years have been about our week ahead, what we’re facing, the things we might experience, and all the good, bad, and indifferent that come along.  But, I think we might not appreciate what’s ahead of us sometimes if we don’t take a moment to look behind us.  Sometimes we need to stop, take a moment, and focus on the bridge(s) we’ve just crossed.

As we travel across any given bridge, we don’t always concentrate on the strength of it.  We don’t necessarily think about its purpose – to get us safely from one side to the other.  We don’t always focus on the structure of the bridge itself.  But looking back at the massiveness of it, one can’t help but marvel at the ingenuity it took to create such a thing.  There’s the wonder of how the bridge connected the great divide that we never could have crossed on our own had the bridge not been there.  And there’s the great distance between us on the bridge and the rapids of the roaring river below.

The bridge has carried us, even without our acknowledgement, across, through, and beyond what could have been some great difficulties of life.  

As you look back at last week, or the one before, or the one before that, think of the bridges you crossed in order to be where you are today.  And then think of the bridges’ Creator, His ingenuity that kept you, cared for you, and carried you across a great and massive divide – the distance between being on one side trying to do life on your own and being on the other side with Him.  Stop, reflect on life’s bridges, the troubled waters over which they have passed, and the One Who brought you safely across.  For you could not face the bridges ahead without acknowledging the ones you’ve left behind.

Just a thought.

By Brad Campbell –

Just a thought to help start your week.

The road is fairly narrow.  It is just about fifteen miles in distance, but it has many sharp turns.  Winding through Wears Valley, Tennessee, this particular road runs from Townsend north to Pigeon Forge.  Wildlife is abundant in this area of the Great Smoky Mountains.  Alas, so is the car traffic.  But if you can get out of the crowds for a while and just ride, you can encounter the Lord in so many ways and places.

Just off the pavement, in one specific sharp turn of the road sits a small older church building that has been in use about 125 years.  Adjacent to the building, sloping down the hillside, is a very well-kept cemetery, presumably mostly for those church members and their families.  Turn off the highway and head down the hill, and you’ll see something very similar to any other area of that part of the state – pasture land, horses, and an old barn.

The old barn, as you can see here, has seen its better days.  Barns don’t receive the same upkeep and care that a church building normally would.  The barn’s old tin roof is bent and twisted in places.  I would venture to say the rain blows in around the rafters sometimes.  No doubt, hay is stored underneath the barn’s roof, keeping it dry for animals to feed upon later.  The barn has been well used, beaten up by time and weather.  It isn’t sound proof, water proof, or weather proof.  It leaks, creaks, and bends during the hard storms that blow through those mountain valleys.  Yet, it stands strong, has no doubt seen several generations, and is in no immediate danger of decay or demise.

I wonder how many of our older generation think their usefulness is dwindling.  As I’m certainly in the second half of my days on this earth, I, like so many of you, deal with the aches and pains, disappointments and disillusionments, but keep going.  Why?  Because, if the Lord was finished with me, He would pull me out of here.

We may not stand as strong, tall, and proud as we once did, but the main thing is that we continue to stand.  Our facade may have faded, but our framework holds together.  Our busy-ness may have slowed, but our usefulness is everlasting.  Until He calls us Home, we have work to do.  It may be to simply hold on the best we can and keep the hay dry for the younger ones – constantly showing them the Way, the Truth, and the Life as we have experienced it!

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that age and infirmity make you no longer useful to the Lord.  We need prayer warriors around every bend in the road, over the mountains, and down in those valleys.  Hold strong.  Carry on.  He’s not done with you yet!

Just a thought.