Category Archives: Balance

The Fine Line Between Hard Work & Idolatry

Posted on May 13, 2017 by russellmckinney

Tonya and I once attended an academic awards ceremony for our son, Royce. He was finishing up his sophomore year of high school and receiving what the school called an “Academic Letter” for having a grade point average of 4.0 … Continue reading →

Posted in Balance, Business, Choices, Commitment, Desires, God's Will, God's Work, Idolatry, Personal, Priorities, Prosperity, Service, Sports, Talents, The Sermon On The Mount, Work | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

God’s Fiddle

Posted on April 3, 2017 by russellmckinney

Bob Jones Sr., who founded Bob Jones University (a Christian university in Greenville, S.C.), used to tell the story of a student from North Carolina named Dorothy. Dorothy came from a family that wanted nothing to do with Jesus Christ … Continue reading →

Posted in Balance, Brokenness, Desires, Discipleship, Disobedience, Dying To Self, God's Name, God's Will, God's Work, Idolatry, Joy, Music, Obedience, Priorities, Sanctification, Service, Submission, Talents | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Thunder Balanced With Love

Posted on December 9, 2016 by russellmckinney

From everything we can surmise about Christ’s chosen 12 apostles, John was the youngest. He was the son of Zebedee and the younger brother of James, who was also one of the 12 (Matthew 4:21). By combining certain passages (Matthew … Continue reading →

Posted in Aging, Anger, Attitude, Balance, Character, Family, God's Love, Greed, Humility, Love, Ministry, Persecution, Preaching, Truth | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Styx, My Son, & Me

Posted on November 17, 2016 by russellmckinney

My oldest son, Ryan, attends Johnson University, a Christian college located about ten minutes outside Knoxville, Tennessee. Johnson is a small, private school that has an on-campus attendance of approximately 1,000. Ryan is a sophomore there, lives in a dorm, … Continue reading →

Posted in Balance, Choices, Christian Liberty, Conscience, Fatherhood, God's Will, Guilt, Inner Peace, Parenting, Personal | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

J.C. Penney & Chick-fil-A

Posted on August 15, 2012 by russellmckinney

For eight-and-a-half years, I pastored a non-denominational church that I started. Some Sundays, as a part of our services, I would describe an everyday situation and ask, “What would Jesus have us do in this situation?” My original plan for … Continue reading →

Posted in Adultery, Balance, Bible Study, Church, Current Events, Discipleship, Doing Good, Evangelism, Faithfulness, God's Word, God's Work, Homosexuality, Hypocrisy, Marriage, Ministry, Personal, Preaching, Scripture, Sex, Sin, The Bible, Truth, Witnessing | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

A Little Too Much Separating

Posted on March 1, 2012 by russellmckinney

My buddy Malcolm Woody once forwarded something to me that someone had forwarded to him. It’s a word about religious groups and denominations. I have no idea who wrote it, but it hits a little too close to home. See … Continue reading →

Posted in Balance, Doctrine, Humor, Separation | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Doing Church Differently

Posted on February 21, 2012 by russellmckinney

The churches of Asia greet you, Aquila and Priscilla greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house. (1 Corinthians 16:19, N.K.J.V.) Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas and the church that … Continue reading →

Posted in Alcohol, Balance, Change, Church, Church Discipline, Giving, God's Work, Ministry, Money, Music, Prayer, Preaching, Service, Spiritual Gifts, Stewardship, Sunday School, Teaching, Worship | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Doing Church Differently

What Does the Bible Teach About Drinking Alcohol? (9)

Posted on November 1, 2011 by russellmckinney

This post will finish up this series. I didn’t plan for the series to run quite this long, but as we’ve seen, this is a complex topic that brings in quite a bit of scripture. People certainly do it a … Continue reading →

Posted in Addiction, Alcohol, Balance, Choices, Christian Liberty, Influence, Personal Holiness, Series: "What Does the Bible Teach About Drinking Alcohol?", Sin, Temptation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

What Does the Bible Teach About Drinking Alcohol? (8)

Posted on October 26, 2011 by russellmckinney

Did you know that the early churches of the New Testament struggled mightily with an issue that we think nothing of today? I mean they got into heated disputes over it. Some Christians would separate themselves from other Christians over … Continue reading →

Posted in Alcohol, Balance, Choices, Christian Liberty, Personal Holiness, Series: "What Does the Bible Teach About Drinking Alcohol?" | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

What Does the Bible Teach About Drinking Alcohol? (7)

Posted on October 25, 2011 by russellmckinney

Thus far in this series, I’ve made the case that the Bible allows for a certain amount of moderate drinking. However, we really need to understand that the alcoholic beverages of Bible times were nowhere near as potent as those … Continue reading →

Posted in Alcohol, Balance, Christian Liberty, Series: "What Does the Bible Teach About Drinking Alcohol?" | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment