Touching Lives with Dr. James Merritt Audio Podcast

A lady driving from Washington, DC, to Richmond had a flat tire and sat stranded by the roadside praying for help. Two cars passed by—one with a “Smile, God Loves You!” bumper sticker, the other reading “Honk If You Love Jesus!”—but both drivers moved to the far lane without stopping. Then a man in an old pickup with no bumper sticker pulled over, changed her tire, and refused payment, saying he hoped someone would help his wife if...

I once read this in an article in Reader’s Digest: “Primates, like bonobos, mountain gorillas and chimps often follow confrontations with friendly behavior like embracing or kissing…The only species that has so far failed to show outward signs of reconciliation is the domestic cat.”1 Unfortunately, there are more than a few cats in the church today. When Peter asked Jesus how many times he should forgive someone who sins against hi...

I remember visiting Mother Teresa’s Home for the Dying in Calcutta and remember the story of an American tourist who once witnessed her tenderly dressing a leper’s wounds. After a moment, he said, “Sister Teresa, I wouldn’t do what you’re doing for $10 million!” She replied, “My friend, neither would I. Neither would I!” Mother Teresa wasn’t motivated by money but by compassion. She modeled the heart of one of the greatest pictures...

Have you ever noticed that two people can look at the same thing but see completely different things? In the comic strip Peanuts, Lucy and Charlie Brown are cloud gazing when Lucy confidently identifies Mount Rushmore, Michael Jordan dunking a basketball, the state of Hawaii, and the Magic Kingdom. When she asks Charlie Brown what he sees, he says, “Well, I was going to say I saw a horsey and a ducky, but now I’m not gonna say noth...

I remember it like yesterday: Professor Joe Master was the most intimidating instructor I ever encountered during my accounting degree. He’d call on you, and you’d better be ready. At one point, for six weeks, I was sicker than a dog. With temperatures over 102 (and eventually discovering I had pneumonia), I went to class every week, dreading whether Mr. Master would get me up in front of the class to answer a tough question. Then ...

What if God’s will for your life could be summed up in one word? In 1 Thessalonians 4:3, Paul spells it out succinctly: “It is God’s will that you should be sanctified ….” But what does it actually mean to be “sanctified”? In our “Lost in Translation” series, we’re dealing with big biblical words that many of us struggle to understand and apply. Sanctification is one of the most important words in the Bible, yet we don’t hear much ...

Mike used to avoid me at neighborhood parties because he wasn’t interested in spiritual things. But when Mike was diagnosed with esophageal cancer, I visited him and shared the Gospel, and he accepted Christ. Everything about Mike radically changed from that day. If you asked what happened to him, I could tell you in one word: conversion. But what in the world is conversion? It’s a term you had better know and experience because Je...

What if understanding one biblical word could change everything about your relationship with God? In the comic strip Peanuts, Lucy fears a thunderstorm might flood the world, but Linus reassures her by explaining God’s promise to Noah and the rainbow as a guarantee. Lucy says Linus has really reassured her, and Linus says, “Sound theology has a way of doing that.” Indeed, the church desperately needs sound theology today, especiall...

Have you ever wondered why money is such a persistent problem for so many of us? Both national and personal debt are at an all-time high, and most Americans don’t have reserve funds to cover a $400 emergency. Financial experts believe the solution is teaching people how to manage money, but I believe the real problem runs much deeper. After 45 years of working with all kinds of people, I’ve witnessed how both rich and poor can be e...

I'm sure you know the running joke about fishermen exaggerating the size of their catch. But in 1959, Alfred Dean didn’t need to exaggerate when he caught a 2,664-pound great white shark in Australia, the largest fish ever caught in history. The Bible tells us about an even more unbelievable story, but in reverse—the story of a fish that caught a man. Jonah’s encounter with the great fish would make worldwide news today, but here’s...

At the Alamo, legend tells us, Commander William Travis drew a line in the dirt, asking his men to choose their fate—cross the line and face certain death fighting for Texas, or leave and surrender. All but one crossed that line, choosing sacrifice over surrender. Like those brave men, we face crucial choices every day. The average person makes 773,618 decisions over a lifetime and regrets 143,262 of them. While some decisions are ...

According to Harvard Business School, any company that offers a product or service is in the business of solving problems. That’s not just true about companies; it’s true about churches. And we’re facing a massive problem in the church today: We're losing the next generation. Studies project that 35 million youths raised in Christian families will stop following Jesus by 2050, which would be the largest and fastest shift in religio...

In 1993, Nike faced a crisis when teenage boys stopped buying their shoes. The response was to produce the infamous Charles Barkley commercial where he boldly declared, “I am not a role model…. Parents should be role models.” This sparked a fiery debate, with NBA star Karl Malone saying, “We don’t choose to be role models; we are chosen. Our only choice is whether to be a good role model or a bad one.” The truth is, they were both ...

At this moment in the United States, the odds of our children walking with Jesus as adults are equivalent to that of a coin toss. According to the Fuller Youth Institute, 50% of high school students actively involved in their churches walk away from their faith after graduation. These aren’t casual attendees; they were the most committed teenagers who are still choosing to do life apart from Jesus once they leave high school. As Pr...

Introduction:

To this day, I remember the first summer I came home from college. As I walked up to our front door, my father didn’t welcome me with a hug or even a “Good to see you.” Instead, he met me with three blunt words: “Get a haircut,” though my hair barely touched my ears. My father had an unbending belief that a man’s hair should never be too long. For the first time in my life, I stood my ground. I reminded him of my good ...

Russian author Leo Tolstoy once wrote, “My question was the simplest of questions…. ‘What will come of my whole life? Why should I live, why wish for anything, or do anything?’” This question echoes in every human heart: What’s my purpose? Why am I here? While philosophers may debate the greatest question of life, believers in Jesus don’t have to wonder about their purpose. As we continue our “Who We Are” series, we discover the fo...

The great 19th century evangelist, Dwight L. Moody said, “The measure of a man is not how many servants he has, but how many men he serves.” This is the essence of the cross-shaped life we're exploring in our “Who We Are” series. While our culture often measures success by what we accumulate or achieve, Jesus demonstrates a radically different measure of greatness. As He declares, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served,...

Are you who you’re supposed to be, and are you what you’re supposed to be? While “Christian” appears only three times in the entire Bible, “disciple” shows up 269 times. In the first century, being a disciple wasn’t just about learning information; it meant becoming an apprentice who followed someone, watched how they lived, and grew to become like them. In other words, there’s a profound difference between deciding to become a dis...

Everyone worships something. Well-known novelist David Foster Wallace said, “Everyone worships. The only choice we get is what to worship.” Some worship money, fame, or success. Whatever controls your thoughts and behavior is what you worship. Jesus has a life-changing conversation about worship with an unlikely person—a Samaritan woman with a troubled past. In that encounter, Jesus makes a revolutionary declaration: “God is spirit...