Are You Making Pearls or Just Getting Irritated? Rev. Tony Cooke There is a great lesson for us in understanding the formation of pearls.  Natural pearls are formed when a grain of sand or another object slips in between one of the two shells of the oyster.  Because of the irritating nature of the sand, […]

Are You “Looking After” or “Looking Up?” Rev. Tony Cooke Perhaps you’ve heard about the little boy who was given an orange by a man. The boy’s mother asked, “What do you say to the nice man?” The little boy thought for a second, handed the orange back, and said, “Peel it.”  There’s a little […]

Living Deliberately By Tony Cooke Every time January rolls around, people begin speculating about what the New Year will bring. One individual said, "My interest is in the future because I am going to spend the rest of my life there." As understandable as that perspective is, Winston Churchill emphasized the importance of maintaining focus […]

Process, Event, and the Little Red Hen By Tony Cooke Many years ago at a church service, I gave an altar call and a handful of people responded; one of these being a boy in his early teens. I had a self-congratulatory thought as though I was somehow responsible for these responses. Reality came quickly […]

Lessons from a Fallen King Rev. Tony Cooke We are going to look at a person in the Bible who never realized his full potential in God. The person I speak of is Saul from the Old Testament. Saul is not one of the more positive role models given to us in the Word of […]

When Labels are Fables Tony Cooke I’m curious. Who has defined reality for you? What is the basis for how you see yourself, the people around you, your circumstances, your destiny, and your world? How much of your sense of reality has been defined by your parents, your education, society, and the media? The world […]

Was Jesus a Jedi? By Tony Cooke Biblical Texts: 1 John 1:5; Acts 17:16-34; John 14:6 Introduction and Overview Very few people in this country are unfamiliar with the term, “Jedi,” but in case you are, let me give you some background. The first Star Wars movie came out in 1977 and was followed by […]

Involuntary Heroes Rev. Tony Cooke John F. Kennedy is a great figure in American history, and is well-known as our thirty-fifth president.  After graduating from Harvard in 1940, he entered the Navy and was put in charge of a U.S. Navy Torpedo Boat, PT-109, in the Pacific.  When he and his crew were on a […]

In Memoriam Barbara Bennett Cooke (1923 – 2011) While sitting at the breakfast table on Monday morning, January 24, Barbara Cooke slipped peacefully into eternity. Like many of her era, she was born in the family home in Boonville, Indiana on September 23, 1923. In her youth, mom was very athletic. She played softball, tennis, […]

The God of the Hills, Plains, and Valleys By Rev. Tony Cooke In the Old Testament, the enemies of God’s people made a serious miscalculation.  Having lost a battle against the Israelites, the advisors to the king of Syria said, “Their gods are gods of the hills. Therefore they were stronger than we; but if […]

Great Missions Quotes "God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supply." – Hudson Taylor   "God isn’t looking for people of great faith, but for individuals ready to follow Him." – Hudson Taylor   "The Great Commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed.” – […]

A Gospel of Irresponsibility? Rev Tony Cooke As I travel, I’m hearing more and more thought that is circulating in the Body of Christ regarding an “understanding” of grace that seems to be facilitating and promoting a sense of irresponsibility in people.  Some applications of this would include: “Because I’m saved by grace, it doesn’t […]