A Superbowl Ad To Remember - Tim Tebow

1/29/2010 05:20:00 PM / Posted by Mike Landry / comments (0)

Tim Tebow is doing it again.  He is a Heisman trophy winner.  He led the University of Florida football team to a couple of national championships.  


He has consistently, unapologetically, and publicly declared his devotion as a Christian to Jesus Christ.  He has practiced what he preaches with his lifestyle on and off the field.  He has earned the right to be heard.  Plus, there are many who want to hear from him.  They want to know more about this excellent "role model" for their kids.


Apparently, the timing is right.  Tim believes now is the perfect time to highlight and celebrate one of his core convictions about life...that is, the right to life.  And CBS is willing to let him do it on their network, during the Super Bowl.  For a price.  Two million dollars.


But now you have pro-abortion advocates screaming that this is not right.  "How dare CBS let a pro-life message be shown!"  Others say that a football game is not the appropriate venue to highlight such a message.  


I believe this is the perfect venue for Tim to celebrate out loud his pro-life conviction.  Most everyone who loves football appreciates what Tim has accomplished in his 4 years at UF.  Those same fans will be watching the SuperBowl because they love football.  The audience is exactly the right one.  They are interested in what Tim thinks.  He's earned the right to be heard.  


Now he wants to positively communicate his gratitude about life and the opportunity he's had to live it to the fullest.  He has said before that he's only alive today because his mother rejected the advice of a doctor during a troubled pregnancy to get an abortion. Is it any wonder that he is pro-life!


Go Tim!  I appreciate your willingness to be one of the few athletes who take seriously their responsibility as a role model in our society.   

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GRACE - God's Riches At Christ's Expense

1/20/2010 10:46:00 AM / Posted by Mike Landry / comments (3)



One of the books I enjoyed reading while on my vacation a couple weeks ago was Soul Keeping by Howard Baker.  My friend, Glen Murray, passed it on to me and I am so glad.  It's packed full of gems concerning the cultivation of a strong spiritual life.  I thought I'd highlight one of the lessons I gleaned about GRACE, or rather, the ENEMIES OF GRACE.  

A relationship with God through Jesus Christ is obtained by GRACE.  The Scripture clearly says that our salvation has nothing to do with our efforts (Eph 2:8-9).  However, it is so common among Christians to begin by GRACE and then follow a "different gospel" of spiritual works and formulas.  By doing so, we end up rejecting the very GRACE that enables a person to enter a relationship with God as well as thrive in that relationship with God.

Baker uses A.W. Tozer's "hyphenated sins of the human spirit" to describe 3 examples of these enemies of grace.  Perhaps you can identify with them personally.

The Three Enemies of Grace

1.  Self-Righteousness - this is the person who "believes he is only 'blessed' as a result of his obedience to God's principles, and receiving more grace for the future will be his reward if he puts out greater efforts to live a godly life."  You can see how subtly this mindset will substitute our works for His grace.

  "He made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."  2 Cor 5:21 HCSB


2.  Self-Defeat - this is the person who is perpetually defeated because he "bears the impossible burden of 'pleasing' God."  We need to never forget that we'll never be good enough to gain access to God on the basis of what we can do.  Pleasing God is always the result of simply turning to Him and drawing upon the ever-present help and power of God that comes through grace.

"Therefore let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us at the proper time."  Heb 4:16


3.  Self-Contempt - this is the person who "feels like a stepchild in God's family" and "is always more conscious of their sin than they are of their Savior." This person is "always resolving to redouble their efforts and try harder to please God.  The treadmill of 'spiritual performance' leads only to tiredness without progress...which leads to more self condemnation."

"Therefore, no condemnation now exists for those in Christ Jesus, because the Spirit's law of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death."  Romans 8:1-2  HCSB


Pray for the Haitians

1/13/2010 03:00:00 PM / Posted by Mike Landry / comments (0)




          A quick note here to request prayer for the Haitians.  A terrible 7.0 earthquake hit the capital city Port-Au-Prince and many have been killed.  Many more are unaccounted for.  


        Disaster relief efforts are underway and we are waiting for more information on how to mobilize those of you who are able to help.  Obviously, emergency funds will be needed and you can donate through our church (designate those funds for disaster relief in Haiti) and we will be sure to get the funds to our Florida Baptist Convention Disaster Relief Agency for immediate distribution.


        For more information clip on this link for a recent story from the Florida Baptist Witness.    AP photo by Jorge Cruz

Bobby Bowden - More Than A Great Football Coach

1/01/2010 10:15:00 AM / Posted by Mike Landry / comments (0)



Today, Bobby Bowden coaches his last football game for Florida State.  
  • 44 years as head coach... 34 years in Tallahassee at FSU.
  • 388 wins.  Second only to Joe Paterno of Penn State University in the number of wins. 
  •  2 National Championships.
Remarkable results as a coach.  I hope he's able to add one more win today.
Today, he finishes an amazingly productive career as an NCAA football coach.  
Kudos to you Coach Bowden!


Don't stop reading yet!  
I believe his greatest legacy will not be left on the football field.  His greatest achievement is how he has impacted eternity.  Let me illustrate with one very personal example.


About seven years ago I invited Coach Bowden to speak in our church services on an Easter Sunday.  He said he considered it the greatest privilege of all to represent and speak for "his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ."  


Before the service began, on that morning, he wanted me to be sure and introduce him to men in the audience who were not christians or who were struggling with their faith.  He wanted to have a personal word with them before speaking.  He thought that it might help them to make sense of what he was about to speak about.


I introduced Coach Bowden to our congregation shortly after the service began and he immediately asked the men to listen closely to what he had to say.  The next 15 minutes were amazing.  He simply told everyone how he had turned his life over to Jesus Christ and how it had radically changed his life.  He pulled no punches and challenged everyone to seriously consider making the same decision he had.  


By the end of the service, 60 men made decisions to give their lives to Jesus Christ.  These men were changed for eternity.  


Now that's what I call a lasting legacy.
Thanks Coach Bowden for making a difference for eternity.

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