Showing results by narrator "David B Smith" in All Categories

A STRUGGLING SINNER COMES INTO GOD’S FAMILY. Can he or she know they can stay? Under what circumstances would our heavenly Father undo His promised protection? Back to the orphanage! Begone! Originally aired as a five-week Voice of Prophecy radio series, "The Perfect Adoption" explores the healing metaphor of adoption as an ideal way of understanding our salvation.

A farmer went out to sow his seed. With these eight words, Jesus gives His church planting instructions still vibrant with meaning in this 21st century of satellite-guided tractors and wind farms. This colorful book by veteran radio scriptwriter David B. Smith shares fifteen fresh slices of truth about how we can relate to the four types of soil: pathway, stony, thorny . . . and sometimes good. Smith, a recently retired math professor from San Bernardino Valley College, is a collector of spicy illustrations: West Wing, Law & Order, Everybody Loves Raymond.

How do we cope when faith threatens to slip away? The most durable of Christian heroes often succumb to the numb specter of doubt. "Are the things I once believed still true?" Pillars like John the Baptist, Mother Teresa, and Billy Graham have confessed that there were times in their walk with God where atheism and an empty universe seemed increasingly probable scenarios. The author refers to a recent media exchange between liberal provocateur Bill Maher and the late Charlie Kirk. Both men confessed that their chosen life philosophy brought unanswerable questions, chasms of logic.

Nattaporn has a new teaching credential in hand, but also an abrupt break-up letter to absorb. She’s embarrassed but grateful by her brother Khemkaeng’s graduation gift: the offer of a gig at Bangkok Christian School. Even though she’s still just a nominal Buddhist, not a Christian like the rest of the teaching staff. Okay. But after a fainting spell on her first day puts her in the hospital, it looks like God’s providence when amateur chaplain Gino Carington pays her a visit.

Is a decade enough time to heal the jagged soul scars of Pattaya Beach? Pranom was just 13 when a greedy uncle forced her into Thailand’s infamous sex trade (And a Happy New You). Now a college graduate secure in the love of her adopted Portland family, she might actually dare to spend a year back at Bangkok Christian School as the new calculus teacher. On one condition: her kid sister Paloma comes along to be the only blond senior in the entire school. Back in Asia, the kids are great. Her new church is great. Auntie Rachel and Uncle Khemkaeng are great.

It’s Bucky’s senior year of high school and his last chance to play baseball. But Coach Brayshaw’s history now. And the new coach doesn’t think devout Jesus-freak Christians like Bucky and Dan have the competitive juices necessary to compete on the varsity level. Bucky wants every opportunity to share his faith before leaving for college. And leading the Panthers to victory would open that door. Especially if his newly discovered fastball becomes a weapon for the home team. Will he get the chance to prove his love for the game and his even greater loyalty to God?

“Litton, look!” Bucky’s words came out almost as a scream. In one of the windows Dan could see a group of terrified kids. “We’ve got to get them out!” “Up on floor five? Are you kidding?” “We’ve got no choice!” Dan sucked in his breath. The fire was edging closer and closer to the outside stairway. In just a few minutes the whole side of the hotel would be engulfed in flames. There was a quick popping sound and a flash as all the lights in the building suddenly blinked off. “What do you think we should . . .” “Come on!” Bucky gave him a push toward the stairs.

Counselors at summer camp? You gotta be kidding! Why would two intelligent guys intentionally surround themselves with 150 little monsters each week? For Dan and Bucky the temptation to reach kids with God’s love and get paid for playing is enough to lure them to beautiful Sierra Pines. But the summer isn’t going to be all fun and games for Bucky. Lisa hasn’t called in ages. Tracy’s determined to break his resolve not to date non-Christians. He’s got just a week to learn how to water ski and become an instructor. And one of his campers has a painful secret that will suck him into a major mess.

I have many dear friends whose youthful experience in the church was fraught with anxiety over “I’ll never be good enough” and the warning that nineteen out of twenty kids are doomed to stay forever out of heaven. Okay, you too? On the cusp of college graduation and my new gig as a teacher in an Adventist school, two rescuing lifeboats floated my way. I began reading stuff by C. S. Lewis and also a pastor named Morris Venden – ironically my mom’s cousin!

Katrina Saxby wasn’t even planning to trade her on-track academic life at Pacific Union College for a year in northern Thailand. But the call of God was clear and so she said yes. Now she’s got to teach English, start up a high school choir, launch the newsletter, be a substitute preacher when a bus breaks down, dispense dating advice to teenage girls, and fret about the growing reality that one of the Thai teachers might be falling in love with her.

Here in "Of Fleeces and Faith," I have a great time exploring from the fascinating Old Testament story of Gideon and his tiny little band of 300 warriors. He asked for a sign; in fact, he asked for three of them! God said yes, but is that the best way for a follower of heaven to proceed? Always wanting more proof, more proof, more more more?

9/11 tragedies and Auschwitz can’t be overruled without the “butterfly effect” causing even greater havoc. When high school senior Jordan Wickam gets a mysterious bootleg iPod that flips back his calendar exactly seven days, he piles up a greedy fortune betting on horse-racing exactas. Then on the night of the senior prom, he’s abruptly forced to decide: Do I play God?

Every Christmas, millions gather in cathedrals and concert halls for a spectacular tradition: the sing-along to the Messiah. It’s a celebration of one of music’s finest miracles, where a composer drafted the world’s perennially favorite oratorio in just 24 days. Choruses and solos range from stirring to dizzyingly complex, and together, the songs express the full significance of what Christ came to this scarred world to achieve on our behalf.

Our beloved uncle, Morris Venden, regularly claimed in camp meeting sermons: “For sure I believe in ‘Once Saved, Almost Always Saved!’” The parable of the Prodigal Son promises assurance even to the confused and disaffected child. King David was not a lost soul even while committing the twin crimes of adultery and murder. What, then, would a rebel have to do in order to actually depart from God’s eternal kingdom anchored by Amazing Grace?

Can the people of God still hope for an imminent Second Coming of Jesus? Dan and David Smith are cheerful, hope-filled Adventist men with Venden DNA coursing through their souls! Together they posit a larger question: Who cares? When life is decently abundant down here, when a golden retirement looms and vaccines have chased the germs away, do we still urgently want Jesus Christ to come and take us to a faraway destination known mostly for harps and 24/7 prayer meetings?

Most of us who are Christians have an unstated pride in our resumé: it’s actually not bad! We’ve worshiped the Lord for decades and done a lot of good in the world. Okay, sure, we’re thankful for Calvary. But it’s not difficult to imagine hearty applause as we approach the front door of heaven. “You did good! Come right in!”Jesus went to a party where the church’s head elder felt exactly like that. And our Savior told him a quiet story about two men who needed forgiveness.

Trident Nottingham III had an idea that would change the world forever: a shipbrain designed to make interstellar flight less restrictive and reduce the amount of time one spent attempting to meet regulations. What he didn't expect was that the shipbrain would develop a mind of its own.

It amazes me that, even though some of Hollywood's classic films are half a century old, most of the college students I teach have seen the best of the best! Steven Spielberg's wonderfully inventive Back to the Future came out in 1985, but just about everybody has seen Marty McFly rev the DeLorean up to 88 mph and jet his way back to Mill Valley High where his mom and dad need his help in order to fall in love.

“Shultz, stop! You’re gonna kill us!” Jonathan hesitated, punched the accelerator, and hurtled through the red light. Immediately an eerie wail from a patrol car filled the air, sending a thrill of fear through Bucky. Was this his lab partner’s idea of fun? Taking his foot off the gas, Jonathan eased the van to the side of the road. Suddenly there was a squeal of tires, and the vehicle shot forward. “What are you doing?” Bucky demanded. “I’m drivin’, baby.” “You’re crazy, Shultz! It’s only a traffic ticket. Pull over!” Just ahead railroad warning lights began to ding. “There we go!

Volume Six is a tight thriller, with our young Christian hero fighting sinister underworld sports betting mob guys. Can he expose the rigging of a varsity championship basketball game without getting himself killed?