Trey Morgan.net

RSS Feed Homepage

Articles: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

WHY WOULD CHURCHES DO THIS?
2007-09-20 15:18:00
I'm really confused. It makes me angry. And it makes no sense to me whatsoever. A church here in Texas dropped all their mission works from their budget and told their missionaries that they were supporting, "We're sorry, but your support ends at the end of the year" ... WHY WOULD THEY DO THIS? Simple ... because they wanted to build a new auditorium and couldn't afford to do both. Who knows, maybe I've misinterpreted Mark 16:15-16. Maybe what Jesus was really saying was, "Go into all the world and preach the good news, but only if you can afford it and you don't have a building project going on ..."Sorry about the preaching today, but something seems way wrong here to me. I wonder what God thinks about it?
More About: Churches

WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A REAL DAD
2007-09-19 17:20:00
Hey dads, here's one for you... Want to know who holds the record for fathering the most children by one wife? It's a Russian father who has 69 children. Unbelievable? Nope, it's true. This Russian father has 16 sets of twins, 7 sets of triplets and 4 sets of quadruplets. Humble yourselves dads - you're not as prolific as you thought you were!I also read where NFL running back Travis Henry has 9 children by 9 different women. I'm not sure that's anything to be real proud of. The thing we men need to realize is that it takes more than sperm to be a "real" dad. Your manhood should never be measured by the amount of children you have, but what kind of father you are. It takes a man to be a real dad (Ephesians 6:4). Here are a few things "real" dads do:Be there for your kids.Read to your children.Be a good role model. Spend time one-on-one with each child.Treat the mother of your children with respect.Pray together.Play together. Help with your children's home work. Set clear, co...
More About: Real

TAKE A SPIRITUAL RISK
2007-09-18 16:51:00
I love playing games, but not games that last more than about an hour. So when it comes to games like Monopoly and Risk , I'm not a big fan. I just can't sit still that long. But my kids love long games like Risk. They'll invite friends over and play a game of Risk for hours. One thing you'll learn quickly from the game of Risk is the only way you can win at the game is to take risks. Life isn't really any different than the game Risk. God created you to be a risk taker. I'm not talking about parachuting out of a plane or running with the bulls in Spain. But when you were born, it took a risk for you to come into this world. You were encouraged by your parents to take a risk and take your first steps. Later in life some risks you took were things like ...A marriage proposalTaking a new jobInvestmentsBuying a new carIn life you never accomplish anything important without taking a risk. The problem is, as we get older, we are less likely to take risks. The older we get, there is ...
More About: Spiritual

DO YOU HAVE OLDER BROTHER DISEASE?
2007-09-15 14:06:00
Luke 15 tells the story of the Prodigal Son. It's a story about a son who chooses to leave his father, his home and go live a life of sin. It's also an amazing story of grace when the son returns home. The story of the Prodigal Son has been taught, preached and loved for years. The part of the story that we often like to forget is the story of his older brother at the end of the chapter. It's the story where the older brother refuses to celebrate his younger brother's return. We don't like this story because it's the part in the story that many of us play everyday. It's a role that is just as dangerous spiritually as the role of the "lost" or prodigal son. "Older Brother Disease " is a terrible spiritual sickness that can only be cured by repentance, softening your heart to God's word and understanding God's amazing grace. You may have the spiritual disease and not even realize it? How do you know if you have "older brother disease?" Here are some symptoms ... Do you questio...

11 QUESTIONS I WAS ASKED TO ANSWER
2007-09-14 17:47:00
I was recently asked by a reader if I would be willing answer these 11 questions. So, here you go. Here are 11 things you may or may not know about me.... (Be prepared to fall asleep)1. My Favorite Movie: (Uh…there are a few…) Comedy: Christmas VacationAction: Troy Drama: CastawaySeries: Star Wars Fun Movie: Nacho Libre'2. My Favorite Restaurant:In Childress - The Deuce (DUH!) Mexican Food - Abuelo's Of All Time - Fogo De Chao (The most "manly" restaurant ever).Italian - Carino'sSteaks - Outback3. Bands/People/Shows I Have Seen Live In Concert:Huey Lewis and The News (He was awesome)Kenny Rogers (NOT A WORD!!!)The Nutcracker Ballet (If Lea's wearing her little black dress...I'd follow her anywhere ... including to a ballet)Mel Tillis (DON'T EVEN ASK)4. Preachers That Are Currently Mentoring Me Through Podcasts:John DobbsBilly Wilson Patrick Mead Rex Boyles Greg England (Got some sermon CD's from my friend Jel).5. The Coolest Places I've Ever Been: AlaskaBristol Motor Spe...
More About: Questions , Answer

HELPING OUT A BUM
2007-09-12 17:51:00
When it comes to people asking me for money, I’ve always battled the “who do I help” and “who do I not help” question. I've literally heard every sob-story and every sad excuse for why someone needs __________ (you can fill in the blank). I’ve finally come to the realization that I'm just going to help everyone I can and let God figure out if they were being honest or not. I figure I'd rather help people that didn’t need it, than miss an opportunity to help someone who did. I’ve also noticed that most of the time helping others really helps me.I’ve never called a homeless person a bum, but I met what many refer to as a “bum” the other night. He walked up to my window at the Sonic drive-in and asked for a few bucks so he could get something to eat. From the looks of him, he was obviously WAY down on his luck. I could clearly smell cigarette smoke and liquor on him. No telling how long it had been since this guy had a bath. I noticed his speech was a little sl...

DROPPING THE F-WORD
2007-09-12 15:27:00
I didn't know him, and he didn't know me, but I hurt his feelings. I didn't mean to hurt his feelings, but I know did. I was just so caught off guard. What happened? A group of guys had just gathered, and this man started to tell a story. He had peppered the story with plenty of curse words, and then to finish it off he dropped a couple of big "f-bombs." They were all words I'd heard before. That wasn't what shocked me. It was when we were introduced, and he learned that I was a minister. He said, "You're a minister? Cool. I have a question about something that we were studying about in Bible class this week." I immediately said, "YOU GO TO CHURCH?" The second I said it, I thought, "Oops, did I just say that out loud?" I didn't mean to say it or say it that loudly, it just came out. I guess I was thinking it, and it just came out of my mouth. I could tell by the look on his face that I'd hurt his feelings. I wasn't trying to, but I was just in shock. He'd just finished a s...
More About: Word , The F Word , Drop

I WILL NEVER FORGET
2007-09-11 15:17:00
I remember it vividly. I was in a paramedic class getting ready to take a test, when someone came in and said, "Somebody just flew a plane into a building in New York City." I will never forget.Where were you when it happened?
More About: Forge

WHY MINISTERS QUIT
2007-09-10 17:03:00
It happened again this past week. Another minister has left the ministry. When I asked him why, his explanation was simply, "I'm just burned out." In an article I read recently by Dan Chun, he tells about Peter Drucker, the late leadership guru, who said, "the four hardest jobs in America (and not necessarily in order, he added) are the president of the United States, a university president, a CEO of a hospital and ... a pastor/minister."Latest statistics from the book, "Pastors At Greater Risk" by H.B London Jr. and Neil Wiseman," say that ministers don't make it to retirement because they are either burned out, fired, have a moral breakdown or just quit. Here are some of the statistics... 80 percent of ministers say they have insufficient time with their spouse and that ministry has a negative effect on their family. 40 percent report a serious conflict with a parishioner once a month. 33 percent say that being in ministry is an outright hazard to their family. 75 percent report...
More About: Ministers , Quit

4 NEW "MUST READ" BLOGS
2007-09-09 21:52:00
If you're a regular reader of my blog, you'll know that from time to time I like to mention new blogs that are really blessing me. Here are four new blogs I've added to my "must check" daily list. They may be worth your stopping by and reading too.Craig Hicks - Craig's blog is both honest and real. Craig will make you laugh at one moment and pull at your heart strings the next. Craig shares his heart like no other blog I've seen. He hides nothing and pulls no punches. I love Craig's blog!Brandon and Katie Price - Brandon and Katie are a young couple doing mission work in Ukraine. I have absolutely fallen in love with this young couple and their desire to do God's work. Their love for God and ability to reach the lost is amazing. Because of their spiritual adventures they write about everyday, their blog has become a regular stop for me.Rex Boyles - Let me just warn you ... if you're not wanting to be challenged or touched then stay far away from Rex's blog. Rex's blog will...
More About: Blogs , Read

I HAVE MATURED - I THINK
2007-09-07 17:15:00
I've matured. Believe it or not, I really have matured. You can even ask Lea if I've matured (Okay, maybe it wouldn't be best to ask Lea). But, I really feel that I have matured over the last 20 years in my marriage, as a person and as a Christian. What really excites me is I can see spiritual maturity in my life. One of the ways that I know I've grown and matured is that my dreams have changed. Years ago my dreams centered around me doing something great and being the center of attention. Here are 3 silly examples of my old dreams. BASKETBALL: I remember in about 10th grade dreaming of scoring the winning shot in the championship basketball game. I'd sit in English class, dreaming off in my own little world and play the video over and over in my head. There I was with 3 seconds on the clock and the ball comes to me. I have to shoot or we will lose. So I shoot the ball up over the tallest person on the other team just as the buzzer goes off. Believe it or not, the ball would sw...
More About: Mature

PARENTS ARE ROLE MODELS
2007-09-06 15:56:00
Ran across this video again yesterday. It reminded me that this is still one of the most powerful videos I've ever seen on being a good role model for our children.What are your kids learning from you?
More About: Models , Parents , Role , Parent , Pare

CHURCH WHEN I WAS A KID
2007-09-05 17:02:00
No matter how hard I try, I can't ever remember not going to church. That's probably because I always have. I was raised in a family that never missed. And I do mean never. There was no such thing as, "I'm not going to church tonight because I have too much homework." I didn't know you could even skip church unless you were deathly ill. I'm thankful for how I was raised and the memories I have of church "when I was a kid." A lot of things have changed about "church" since I was little. Here are a few things I remember from long ago...I can remember waking up on Sunday morning to the smell of Mom browning a roast for Sunday dinner. Man, that was the best smell in the world. I can still remember sharing one bathroom with 5 sisters and a brother on Sunday mornings, and still making it to services on time. I remember Gospel Meetings lasting a week. I loved it because I got to see my church friends every night that week, not just on Sundays and Wednesdays. I can remember as a little...
More About: Church

10 TRAITS OF A HEALTY FAMILY
2007-09-04 16:40:00
A HEALTHY FAMILY DISPLAYS AN IRRATIONAL LOVE FOR ONE ANOTHER. It's not just any love, it's irrational and unconditional. It's an "I'd die for you love." It's a love that would go to any length to help one another. A HEALTHY FAMILY COMMUNICATES TO ONE ANOTHER IN A LOVING AND GRACEFUL WAY. The inability to communicate is one of the top reasons for divorce in America. We need to learn to communicate in a way that shows love and grace. No yelling, no name calling and no pouting when you don't get your way. As Steven Covey puts it, "See first to understand and then to be understood."A HEALTHY FAMILY AFFIRMS THE VALUE AND UNIQUENESS OF EACH PERSON IN THE FAMILY. God must have a sense of humor. Why else would He put polar opposites in families. I wrote about this recently in detail (here). Every person in your family is valuable and important. God made them just the way He wanted them. There should be no black sheep or outcasts in families.A HEALTHY FAMILY VOWS TO NEVER ABUSE, SHAME ...
More About: Family , TRAI , Heal

CALL IT LUCK, BUT SPELL IT G-O-D
2007-09-03 16:36:00
I had watched Tay grow up from a small child to a beautiful 18 year old girl. She'd come all the way through the church's youth program and would be leaving for college that year. She was always happy and cheerful, but that night at camp I could tell something was bothering her. She seemed worried for a Christian girl who seemed to have it all together. I finally asked her, "Tay, is everything alright?" She said, "I'm struggling with what I can pray to God about. I'm just not sure God is concerned about the things that are really bothering me right now."I was a little confused, so I asked her to tell me what she meant.I remember she said with big crocodile tears in her eyes, "I'm really struggling with making my car payment and my relationship with my boyfriend. Can I pray about these things to God? They are not really "spiritual" things!"As I listened to her, I remember thinking how much her earthy father loved her and what a great relationship they had together. So I asked he...
More About: Call , Luck , Spell

SEX OFFENDER LOCATOR TOOL
2007-09-02 05:47:00
I read recently on Church Relevance.com that Vision 20/20 has created a free online sex offender locator's tool that lets you search for predators within a specific community. The tool not only shows you the location of each registered sex offender in you community but also allows you to learn more about each sex offender including what offences they have committed and a what they look like. This is a great resource for church security departments who want to be aware of and be able to recognize people who visit their church who have previously been convicted of a crime such as “lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14 years” or “child pornography.” Sadly, did you know that 16% of boys and 20% of girls are sexually molested before their 18th birthday? It is our responsibility to keep the children safe while attending church. Be aware of what threats may be living just a few blocks away.Just out of curiosity ... does your church or place of employment do any background ...
More About: Tool , Offender , Fender , Loca , Offend

A FEW THINGS I'VE LEARNED THIS WEEK
2007-08-31 16:43:00
"Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding..." ~Proverbs 3:13I'm always trying to learn things from everyday events. Little lessons hidden among daily events and activities. Some of the things I learn are beneficial and others are not. But as I see it ... as long as I'm learning, I'm growing. So here are the things I've learned this week.NICENESS IS IMPORTANT: Cooper came in on his second day of kindergarten this week and said, "Dad, I met the meanest teacher in the whole world today on the playground." "Really?" I replied. "Yes, Dad, she was very, very, very mean (note the 3 verys)." "And," he said emphatically, "There was NO niceness in her at all." I smiled and said, "No niceness at all?" He replied, "Nope, no niceness at all, Dad." I couldn't help but think, "It would be terrible to be known as a person with no niceness." LOCK YOUR CAR DOORS: This is yellow squash season. Twice this week someone has secretly left squash in my pickup. Time to lock ...
More About: Week , Things , Learned

BORING CHURCHES?
2007-08-30 17:02:00
One of the most frequent reasons given for someone not attending church is because the services are boring. I think the only place there should be boring churches is in Boring , Oregon where I've found, with the help of Google, that there are actually 25 Boring churches.Here are a few things that I believe may make services boring to some...When we use big words or "churchy" words that some don't understand. When we make anything other than Jesus our focus. We're afraid to use humor.In our sermons we don't make any applications to everyday life. When God's Word isn't served up hot and fresh. When our sermons quote tons of scripture and never tell any stories. When we preach about the Hittites, Perizzites or Jebusites instead of something a little more relevant today.When our services go long. No one really has anything else to do anyway. When we don't use any visual stimulation like overheads, PowerPoint or object lessons.When we feel like it's our goal to only beat people up...
More About: Churches

GOD SEES YOU AND HE SMILES
2007-08-29 14:24:00
Monday was the first day of Kindergarten for our youngest son, Cooper. Cooper did really well on his first day. His momma didn’t.That afternoon when I heard the kids out for recess I looked out my office window and searched for Cooper. When I finally spotted him I couldn't help but smiled. He was so beautiful and I felt so proud that he was my son. I wished so badly that he knew that I was close by and watching him. I thought that might help comfort him as he felt so alone on his first day of school. As I watched him I realized that I loved seeing him play and it made me happy to see him having fun. And then, all of a sudden he looked sad, and my heart broke into a million pieces. As I stood there watching Cooper I couldn't help but think about God watching us, His children. When He looks down and sees you He smiles and He is so proud that you are His child. You are so beautiful to Him. He loves watching you when you are happy and playing. And then, when you are sad, it breaks H...
More About: Smiles , Sees

WHERE IS YOUR CHURCH?
2007-08-28 16:05:00
From my very first post on this blog until now, I've wanted people to rediscover what real church is. We often have such misunderstanding of what church is. How many times have you been asked, "Where is your church?" I often hear that question when people find out I'm a minister. They say, "Oh great, where is your church?" So many of us associate the church with a place and not a group of people. There is actually so much more to church than what takes place for an hour every Sunday. So many think church is something you only do on Sunday. To them doing church consists of attending, singing, praying, assembling, giving, communing and preaching. But church is so much more. Church happens seven days a week, not just Sunday morning, Sunday evening and Wednesday night. Church is not where, but who? In his book "The Monday Morning Church," Jerry Cook tells a story about Richard Halverson that illustrates the difference between "doing church" and "being church" as Christians. "Dr. Richa...

BRISTOL FUN and MANY THANKS
2007-08-27 02:55:00
I've just got to tell you about my weekend. What an amazing trip. It was fast, furious and fun. We left Friday morning at 6:30 from the Dallas-Fort Worth airport, with friends from Childress, Rickey and Angie. We got in to Knoxville airport, rented a car, and drove 100 miles to Bristol . When we got to Bristol, we went to the place where we were staying. It was a little cabin behind the home of the sweetest lady you'll ever meet. Her name was Mary Jane, and she treated us like kings and queens. She fixed food for us to take to the track everyday and then had snacks waiting for us when we got back to the cabin each night. She was a delight, and I wish we could have spent a week with just her. The whole weekend was organized amazingly. They picked us up and dropped us off everyday at the track so we wouldn't have to drive and find a parking place. They brought us cokes and water while we were in our seats watching the race so we didn't have to get up. They even provided scanners an...
More About: Hank

HURRICANES, NEWS AND APOLOGIES
2007-08-23 00:43:00
My friend Theresa and her husband Dennis are working at a children's home in Cozumel, Mexico. Hurricane Dean when right through there 3 day's ago. I emailed her last week and asked her if the hurricane was going to hit where she was and her response was: "Yeah, looks that way right now...it is shifting some to the south but looks like it could be a direct hit. We are getting ready none the less. We have boarded up windows, moved a lot of furniture, and are getting the shelter ready at the church. We will be going to the church building tomorrow which is a hurricane refuge for the city and hang out there with a couple hundred people till it is over. Please be praying for us! WE will get back in touch when it is over and let everyone know how we are doing. I will be getting back into it after the storm."It's been three days and I have yet to hear anything from Theresa. Please keep her and all those in Mexico in your prayers. If you get a chance drop by her blog and let her know you...
More About: News , Hurricanes , Cane , Logies

FOOTBALL IN HEAVEN?
2007-08-22 15:49:00
"Honey, somehow, I thought it would be different up here."
More About: Cartoon , Football , Heaven , Foot

SECURITY BLANKETS
2007-08-21 17:12:00
Linus, from the Peanuts cartoon, had his blue blanket that he couldn't ever give up. For some kids it is a pacifier they can't give up. For Cooper, our five year old, it's his "scratchy-cup."For the past year or so Lea and I have been trying to get Cooper to give up a sippy cup that he calls his "scratchy-cup." We've tried to simply talk him in to giving it up, and when that didn't work, we also tried bribing him (money always works for the other boys). No offer was good enough for Cooper and he continually refused to give up his scratchy-cup. Cooper starts kindergarten next week and we know he can't take his cup with him to school. So it finally happened, dad officially "misplaced" the scratchy-cup. It's been a couple of weeks now and he's doing better, but he still misses his lost scratchy-cup. There have only been a couple of times that he's asked us to help him look for his scratchy-cup at bedtime. Did you or your kids have a security blanket of some kind when they were...
More About: Security , Family

EMPTY CLICHES and CHRISTIANITY
2007-08-20 15:39:00
I love a good cliché. Many of them make me laugh. Here are a few of my favorite clichés:"He's as cool as the other side of the pillow.""I'm feeling as lucky as a man in a women's prison with a fist full of pardons.""I don't like the cut of his jib" (not sure what it means, but it sounds really cool). "She is busier than a one-armed paper hanger."The problem with clichés is that most of them have been so over used that their meanings have become empty. We've said them so often that usually we can start the cliché and someone else can end them for us. Let me show you what I mean: How many of these can you quote the ending to?Close only counts in ... (hand grenades and horseshoes).You can't live with them and you can't live .... (without them).If you've heard one cliché, you've .... (heard them all).If you can't stand the heat, get out of... (the kitchen).When the going gets tough, the tough (go NASCAR racing) ... okay, maybe not.Parents are the masters of clichés. You ...
More About: Christianity , Empty

I GOT SPAMMED and OTHER NEWS
2007-08-18 15:55:00
I got spammed yesterday. Fifty-seven times someone posted on the comment sections of my blog a link for "cheap Canadian Viagra." It took me a couple of hours to delete all of them. I had to turn on the "word verification" for comments. I don't know about you, but I hate doing word verification just to leave a comment. I'll leave the word verification turned on for a while and then turn it back off and see if they are gone. We took a quick three day vacation this week. We went to Dallas where we lounged by a pool, relaxed and then caught a Texas Ranger's baseball game. The lowly Rangers were playing the even worse Kansas City Royals. My friend Dane got us some great tickets twenty-three rows up and right behind home plate. In the eighth inning we had an usher that I'd been visiting with, ask if we'd like to go sit on the front row. I told him we'd love to. He moved us down to the the very first row right behind home plate. That was awesome. We also caught a ball during warm ups...
More About: News , Baseball , General

A BLOGGING MINISTRY
2007-08-17 17:18:00
In the beginning I started blogging as a way to voice my thoughts and opinions, but more and more I'm seeing it as ministry that has really blessed me. My stat-tracker at the bottom of this page tells me that I can expect between four and five hundred visitors on this site everyday. Weekends are a little less but some weekdays I may have over 500 hits. That's a lot of people that stop by every day for one reason or another. I got to thinking that there are probably 3 different kinds of visitors to this site (and every other blog for that matter).SEARCHERS: Those that come to this site for the first time from search engines like Google, Yahoo and MSN. They are brought here because of a search they've done. My prayer for them is that when they make a stop by here for the first time they'll find something that catches their attention. They'll read something about God, His church, faith, love, marriage or family and they'll want to know more.LURKERS: I love lurkers. They are the m...
More About: General , Blogging , Ministry

FEEDING FRENZY
2007-08-15 15:04:00
(Pictured: Parker - 15, Cooper - 5, Connor - 11, Taylor - 17)I love my boys. I have four boys. They are 17, 15, 11 and 5 (Yea, really... pray for me. Better yet pray for their mother). I always thought I would have liked to have a little girl and was considering a 5th child, but I read in a magazine somewhere that every 5th child born in this world is Chinese. Knowing I can't speak Chinese, I decided it would probably be best NOT to have a 5th child :) Lately, nothing is more amazing to me than feeding these 4 boys. We've turned into buffet people. The last time we finished a meal at a "sit down and order off the menu" place, 3 of the 4 boys said, "We're still hungry, is there anything else to eat?" I had just dropped $50 on a meal that didn't fill up half the family . Since that day, when we do eat out, we hit the buffets and no one leaves hungry. Places like Furrs, Golden Corral, Ci Ci's Pizza and other buffets have become regular stops when we eat out. But at home it's a d...
More About: Family , Feeding , Frenzy

SATAN IS CLOSE, REAL CLOSE
2007-08-14 15:07:00
While hiking and fishing in Alaska three years ago with my brother Bruce, the evidence that we were in bear country was everywhere. Signs of partially eaten fish, tracks in the dirt and claw marks on trees were pretty much anywhere you looked. Although I never actually saw a bear on the trip, I have no doubt one saw me through the thick Alaskan woods. One afternoon while walking back across an area we had just been, I looked down to see one of my old footprints I had just left, but this time it was mostly covered with a massive sized paw print from a bear. He was out there watching us somewhere. We couldn't see him, but the evidence told us he was there and probably watching us. I remember chills running up the back of my spine as my brother and I picked up the pace. We moved pretty fast through those thick woods and made it back to the car fine, but I was certainly nervous about the whole experience. Bruce and I got to talking later how Satan is like the above bear story. You neve...
More About: Close , Real

WE'RE GOING TO BRISTOL, BABY
2007-08-13 17:32:00
Yee Haw! A few months ago my wife made a comment in passing on my blog about how much she wishes I'd get her tickets to the Saturday night race a Bristol , Tennessee. Yea, right Lea. Like that would ever happen. We'll honey, we're going to Bristol in two weeks for the "Sharpie 500."A friend of mine, who is far better to me then I deserve, read Lea's comment and started working to find tickets. He called me last week and said, "I got you two tickets to Friday night's race and two ticket to Saturday night's race, plus room and board are covered for your trip. You just need to take care of your plane tickets." I think we can handle that. Bristol tickets are the hardest to get in NASCAR. From what I understand, they sellout years in advance. Now you know why I'm pumped. Lea and I love sports. Major League Baseball, NFL football and NASCAR have always been sports we like to watch. But Lea's real love is NASCAR. We've made races at Texas Motor Speedway in Dallas the last 6 years. ...
More About: Baby , General , Going , Goin