Children’s Ministry Mission for 2013 “It should be your care, therefore, and mine, to elevate the minds of our children and exalt their courage; to accelerate and animate their industry and activity; to excite in them an habitual contempt of meanness, abhorrence of injustice and inhumanity, and an ambition to excel in every capacity, faculty, […]
FORGIVE what is done. REPENT what you must. LEARN all you can. DO all the Good you can! TRUST GOD with the future. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 Resolved… […]
“Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a father who prepared a wonderful Christmas for His family complete with the best food, wine, presents, singing and games. He placed invitations in the mail and in the newspaper, sent notices across the internet and sent his messengers to share the news of […]
“I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” Mark 10:15 Christmas is Innocence. Well it’s Christmas Eve, or at least it was, and I’m writing last minute thoughts on the day now spent preparing for the day that now is. I’m thinking through […]
“For right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13 (Message) Christmas is Love I don’t suspect too many people are surprised by this one, but I do think we’ve taken […]
“Addiction” might be the best word to explain the lostness that so deeply permeates society. Our addiction make us cling to what the world proclaims as the keys to self-fulfillment: accumulation of wealth and power; attainment of status and admiration; lavish consumption of food and drink, and sexual gratification without distinguishing between lust and love. […]
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.” Luke 15:20 Christmas is prodigal. At some point in the Advent season we simply have to silence the the cynic and just […]
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27 Christmas is peace. There is a sense in which I find this difficult to believe. Have you been shopping lately? Have […]
I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me. Proverbs 8:17 Christmas is worship. I love what the Magi said in Matthew 2, “For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.” More importantly, I love what they didn’t say. Nothing about asking. Nothing about receiving. Nothing about […]
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.” Matthew 1:22-23 Christmas is Immanuel Do you remember what it was like when you were little and afraid of the […]
“When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was […]
“the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Colossians 1:26-27 Christmas is Anticipation. Have you ever tried to keep a secret, perhaps a […]
All mankind will fear; they will proclaim the works of God and ponder what he has done. Psalm 64:9 Christmas is Ponder While it is important, even critical, to slow down during Christmas, it should be used to gain understanding of the why and wherefore of everything that is happening. It should be a time when we […]
“When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.” Matthew 2:3 Christmas is disturbing. One of the great challenges that come with having power and control is of course maintaining it. It seem like we all know that deep down inside us all there is a frightened child hiding behind […]
“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.” Luke 2:8-9 Christmas is pause. We’ve all heard that expression ‘You can’t see the forest for the trees’. […]
Christmas is Rejoicing. And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” Luke 1:46-47 Think Cheering. Think Celebration. Think Party. Well that’s what Tony Campolo imagines Christmas will be like in his book The Kingdom of God is a Party!. Not a formal dinner party but a spontaneous, expression […]
“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.” Psalm 143:8 I love the fact that God did not send the Magi on some wild goose chase. Look at Matthew 2:2, […]
Remember that Christ says, “When I come, it will surprise you like a thief! But God will bless you, if you are awake and ready.” Revelations 16:15 Christmas is Surprise. Let me explain. The word appears in Luke’s account of that first Christmas. “And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them…” Surprise! Didn’t […]
“This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.” Ephesians 3:6 Christmas is Family. On that first night two very important people were present for the birth of the Messiah. Mary, His mother, and Joseph, the man […]
“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Luke 6:38 Christmas is Giving. Most Christmas cards have it all wrong. The Magi probably weren’t there that first […]
“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her. Luke 1:38 Christmas is humility. I know. Probably not your first choice of descriptions for the holiday season. But it was certainly God’s starting point. We need to remember that our Lord was not […]
Christmas. How have we managed to make it so difficult? We have turned the most amazing time of the year into a maze of commercial enterprise, contradictory influences, and confused priorities. The season of celebration has become the most stressful time of the year for so many. Over the next couple of weeks I want […]
“I must keep alive in myself the desire for my true country, which I shall not find till after death; I must never let it get snowed under or turned aside; I must make it the main object of life to press on to that other country and to help others to do the same.” C.S. […]
Charles Rich III, [1966 – 2012] The events of the last several days have rocked our world and changed our lives. No one here will ever be the same nor should we pretend that we ever can. Life has a strange way of reminding us what deep down in side we know to be […]
Crisis! 1. A crucial or decisive point or situation; a turning point. An emotionally stressful or traumatic change in a person’s life. A crisis constitutes any circumstance or situation which cannot be resolved by customary problem-solving abilities. It require a new way of thinking, being and doing. It changes the world as you knew it […]
O God, I beg two favors from you; Let me have them before I die. First, help me never to tell a lie. Second, give me neither poverty nor riches! Give me just enough to satisfy my needs. For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, “Where is the LORD?” And if […]
“The atheist can’t find God for the same reason that a thief can’t find a policeman.” Unknown “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” Matthew 7:7 There is an old story about unrealistic expectations that goes something like this. During a […]
Is Violence Senseless? Once again I’ve been jolted back to reality by the horrific news coming out of Colorado. What started out for many as a simple night at the movies with friends, family or sweethearts turned into a nightmare when evil came out of the shadows and reminded us that we are not […]
A BRIEF HISTORY What follows is an attempt to give the reader a flavor of the sumptuous meal that is offered by the United Methodist Church for those willing to sit at the Table of Fellowship. I’m offering this in response to the many confused looks I’ve received from visitors and members alike who enjoy […]
For the next three weeks we are going to talk John Wesley’s Three Simple Rules for developing a life as an intentional Christian. But first we must consider the context of Wesley’s passion and how his rules relate to our own time and circumstances. It all begins at a time of great political, economic and […]
In case you were one of those rare individuals that avoided or had not heard abut the storm we had two week ago, it was one for the record books. A storm blew threw our area on Friday evening June 29th and knocked out power to the whole area, the better part of West Virginia […]
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” Mark 12:29-31 (NIV) With the development of the Internet comes all kinds of fun tools to become more intentional about healthy living. That means stretching our perspective, our muscles, our compassion […]
“To make the improving of our own character our central aim is hardly the highest kind of goodness. True goodness forgets itself and goes out to do the right thing for no other reason than that it is right.” Lesslie Newbigin Though we are rooted in the here and now, we are always looking […]
“The fishermen know that the sea is dangerous and the storm terrible, but they have never found these dangers sufficient reason for remaining ashore” Vincent van Gogh A wealthy family used to take a month’s vacation every summer to the coast of Maine. The mother had an ritual at the beach she practiced each year […]
I think everyone should have an “I believe” statement. It’s a place to collect your values, your priorities and your goals. Every cause produces and effect, every effect is looking for its cause. Be more of a cause in your life than an effect. I have found that most people are happy just being an effect […]
During the season of Lent we will be taking an indepth look at the each of the four Gospels and considering how each Gospel was written, why some stories were included and not others and why the wording is different in each. In the process we will discover that each of the writers […]
During the season of Lent we will be taking an indepth look at the each of the four Gospels and considering how each Gospel was written, why some stories were included and not others and why the wording is different in each. In the process we will discover that each of the writers has a […]
In their book A Faith of Their Own: Stability and Change in the Religiosity of America’s Adolescents (Oxford University Press, 2011), the authors follow up with 2,530 young people, age 16 to 21, surveyed about their faith and religious practices at two points in time. The authors identified five types of religious identity among these […]
This is one of the best descriptions of Christian Discipleship I’ve ever read! Be Inspired! Discipleship—being willing to move on every level, leaving the old life behind, following Jesus wherever he may lead, sitting at his feet so to speak, taking in not only what he says but who he is on the deepest level […]
I had to take my car into the garage last week for a tune-up. It was running very rough and wouldn’t even idle when in gear, which meant I had to put it in neutral every time I came to a stoplight or traffic slowed down. What a pain! I think it was actually misfiring […]
Suppose there was a king….a good king…who ruled over his land with both justice and mercy. Everyone knew him to be a good-hearted king, but he was strong on people who didn’t respect each other. His view of the law was that it was to protect everyone from everyone, and to reflect well on […]
During the season of Lent we will be taking an indepth look at the each of the four Gospels and considering how each Gospel was written, why some stories were included and not others and why the wording is different in each. In the process we will discover that each of the writers has a […]
We all deal with craziness from time to time and usually believe everyone sees the world as we do. But the Bible is clear that some people are just fools and more conversation is pointless. I share this post in the hope it will as helpful for you as it was for me. ~ steve […]
Almost all of us guys get up every day and go to work. Work involves people, and we deal with all kinds of attitudes. Some, we’d just rather not have to deal with at all if we didn’t have to. But others are a joy to be around. And I’m not just talking […]
I know that there are hundreds of different ways to describe the church as it exists today, some good, some not so good. This ambiguity leaves many confused and struggling to create a definition all their own, often with disastrous consequences. I though I would give several definitions a try. See which one describes you best and then take a stab […]
What would you like to improve Spiritually about your life this year? Wisdom Gratitude Joyfulness Reverence Wonder Peace Unless we think and consider such questions, the future will always be a surprise and an annoying inconvenience. I suppose there will be some that would rather not consider these things, but then maybe we’re becoming Apatheist […]
The Great Story of God This is a transcript of the service used on December 24, 2011. It is a closer look at the characters, circumstances and context that combine to make each piece part of the Greater Story of Christmas. No one character had all the pieces of the puzzle at the time, but […]
New Birth – A Living Hope Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 1 Peter 1:3 Hope for the Future “For I know the plans I have for you,” […]
Everyone has rules or principles they live by, unfortunately most people don’t give them much of a thought. As a result we are often swept away the winds of changing attitudes, fashion and expectations. We all feel pressure to conform and become something different. But unless we know who we are, or who we want […]
All people long for God. Period. Some may say the exact opposite, but our desires, actions and values suggest something completely different. We all long to connect with something greater than ourselves, we long for the heart of God. There is simply no better way to connect with God than to learn who God is […]
The Deer’s Cry by Shaun Davey and Rita Connolly I arise today through the strength of heaven Light of sun, radiance of moon Splendor of fire, speed of lightning Swiftness of wind, depth of the sea Stability of earth, firmness of rock I arise today through God’s strength to pilot me God’s eye to look […]
This rendition of the Letter to Diognetus is in my own words, taken from the Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. I. I haven’t left anything out, and where any important issue comes up, I’ve leaned towards not changing the wording of the Edinburgh translators. Their work, however, is over a century old, so you’ll find this […]
I just returned home from a weekend of spiritual reflection and renewal with some challenging thoughts. We did an exercise where we were asked to draw a picture of OUR spiritual journey. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, put your thousand word journey of spiritual growth in a pictorial representation. My initial thought was […]
A guest post from Toby Kurth, pastor of Christ Church San Francisco: Coming face to face with reality is not a bad thing. We live in a world of facades, where truth can be very difficult. Dealing honestly with reality can be a challenging thing for all of us. That is one of the reasons […]
“I was always a good adventurer. I was never afraid of risks. I always had a good philosophy about risks. The only risk is to waste your life, so that when you die, you say, “Oh, I wish I had done this.” I did everything I wanted to do, and I continue to.” -Francis Ford […]
God wants you to grow up. “God wants us to grow up, to know the whole truth and tell it in love – like Christ in everything.” Eph. 4:15a (Msg) “We are not meant to remain as children…” Eph 4:14a (Ph) Your heavenly Father’s goal is for you is to mature and develop the characteristics […]
A man and his best friend were walking along a road. The man was enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to him that he was dead. He remembered dying, and that his friend walking beside him had been dead for years. He wondered where the road was leading them. After a while, they came […]
The Challenge of Leadership When you’re in leadership it is tempting to think your job is to get the people to the Promised Land. But that’s actually God’s job. Your job is to bear their burdens while they’re in the wilderness. We prefer just the opposite. Let God love the people and we’ll just move […]
My Membership Covenant Today I am stepping across the line. I’m tired of waffling and I’m finished with wavering; I’ve made my choice, the verdict is in and my decision is irrevocable. I’m going God’s way. There’s no turning back now! I will live the rest of my life serving God’s will with God’s people […]
Imagine a young couple going to a 5-star restaurant. It is a restaurant without Styrofoam hamburger shells, chicken nuggets or soda fountains. This is a five star restaurant, the kind that makes a suit and tie for guys and dresses for ladies seem natural and appropriate. The couple enters and are greeted by maître dee who […]
Our church has a large screen in the front of the santuary for visual support of the worship experience. Now I realize that for some the screen is a nuisance and for others a sign of the decline of true worship. But for a new generation, images are more apart of their vocabulary than the […]
THE POWER OF C-H-A-N-G-E Part 1 – Connect I’ve always heard that religion is about reformation. But Christianity is about transformation. Those two things are not the same. The former is about what a person can do to make self-improvements – Ladder People. The latter is about a person totally yielding to the Person of […]
The Story (Extravagant Grace!). The Story of God calls to us every moment of our lives. It whispers to us on the wind, invites us through the laughter of good friends, reaches out to us through the touch of someone we love. We’ve heard it in our favorite music, sensed it at the birth of […]
The Road goes ever on and on Down from the door where it began. Now far ahead the Road has gone, And I must follow, if I can, Pursuing it with eager feet, Until it joins some larger way. (J. R. R. Tolkien) The Sacred Romance calls to us every moment of our lives. It […]
Are you a grateful person? Can you list the 10 things you will miss the most when you die? “Gratitude changes the way we start the day, spend the day, and look back at the day. It defines us as people who value our relationship with God and those He’s placed around us.” – Nancy Leigh […]
I spoke to a man the other day who does market research (focus groups and interviews) with a wide range of people: what they like and don’t like; what they think and feel about various things. He said that overwhelmingly what people want more than anything else is belonging: to fit in and be accepted; […]
Leo Tolstoy once said: “Everyone thinks of changing the world, no one thinks of changing himself.” God wants to do greater things in our community and in our church, but He also wants greater things in our homes, and in our marriages, in our families, in our finances, and in our future. It has to […]
And they lived happily ever after. Stop for just a moment, and let it be true. They lived happily ever after. These may be the most beautiful and haunting words in the entire library of mankind. Why does the end of a great story leave us with a lump in our throats and an ache […]
THE POWER OF C-H-A-N-G-E Part 1 – Connect I’ve always heard that religion is about reformation. But Christianity is about transformation. Those two things are not the same. The former is about what a person can do to make self-improvements – Ladder People. The latter is about a person totally yielding to the Person of […]
THE POWER OF C-H-A-N-G-E Part 1 – Connect Part 2 – Help Others I’ve always heard that religion is about reformation. But Christianity is about transformation. Those two things are not the same. The former is about what a person can do to make self-improvements – Ladder People. The latter is about a person totally […]
Here’s a topic sure to wet your theological appetite: How can you say there is only One way to God? What about other religions? Objections: People say that since there are so many ways to find God, Christianity is only one among many valid options. The other religions of the world have […]
Living with critics is never an easy thing but we all have them. Imagine after a major event you received 100 comments and 98 of them were very positive, what do you think would capture your attention the most? Probably the 2 negative comments. We alway give much more attention to negative critics than to the postive […]