Beyond Mediocrity Blog

(Image courtesy of http://www.thephpagency.com.) "Lord, please give me opportunities to share the Gospel with others.  Please send people into my life that need to hear Your Truth."  Two nights ago I knelt at the side of my bed and quietly prayed this prayer.  I had prayed the same words many times before, but never was I so convicted after saying them as I was that night.

(Image courtesy of http://www.ourhealingmoments.com.) The recent Supreme Court decision reflecting our culture's downward spiral into evil has generated many statements and comments.  But what is the Christian to do?  How are we to respond to this intolerant view of the truth?  In all the excitement, a Christian - a born-again believer, called to make disciples in a world no matter how dark - should have the same response this Egyptian Christian has toward

(Image courtesy of http://www.boomerinthepew.com.) Since the recent dictatorial ruling of the Supreme Court to enforce same-sex marriages in every state in the United States, many questions jumped to the forefront of my mind - and I'm sure yours, too.  Some of the questions puzzled me for a good bit as I sought out the reasons behind my Biblical answer; however, in the end, I found

(Image courtesy of http://www.examiner.com.) About a month ago I was taught by God that being a leader in my marriage meant to take the initiative.  But take the initiative to do what?  This question has since been answered as God has shown me through His Word and His Spirit in other believers. To be a leader, I need to take the initiative to

(Image courtesy of http://mtecho.aasdcat.com.) How fitting that on Memorial Day weekend, my wife and I rented and watched Unbroken , the true, gut-wrenching story of Louis Zamperini.  Wow.  I was amazed at his story. If you haven't seen the movie yet, be careful reading this article and go watch it for yourself first.  If you have seen it, then you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.... Louis Zamperini, according to the movie, was a

Bucky, the Cernek's newest addition! (Image courtesy of Jordan Cernek, 2015.) My wife and I did something rather foolish a few weeks ago: we went to the animal shelter to look at puppies.  Now, we have a fourteen week old, black lab mix.  Needless to say, he is both cute and a chore. From the moment we first saw this little puppy in his cage at the shelter, we knew

(Image courtesy of https://prophecynewsandviews.files.wordpress.com.) As human beings we want to be justified; we want to feel acquitted.  For instance, how many people justify their decision to eat fatty foods with, "I worked out today"?  I have heard it said many, many times. To be honest, there is no way a human can be totally justified - except for one.