Pastor's Blog (Page 5)
Whose Kingdom?
As a kid I loved watching Mutual of Omaha’s weekly episodes of Wild Kingdom. I never tired of Mel Perkins’ travels to the far corners of the world and the drama of the animal kingdom in their natural habitat. And I can still hear in my mind the insurance company’s advertising jingle: Mutual of Omaha is people You can count on when the going’s tough. Recently…
Emancipation
November 3rd is Emancipation Day for me. It’s the day I sold my towing company and was delivered from the bondage of owning it and running it. The stresses were profound. I had horrific, near-daily headaches. (And who knows the extent of damage from the constant use of pain-killers!) All those years “the sleep fled from my eyes,” to quote Jacob who referenced his own…
A “Yes” Face
During his days as president, Thomas Jefferson and a group of companions were traveling across the country on horseback. They came to a river which had left its banks because of a recent downpour. The swollen river had washed the bridge away. Each rider was forced to ford the river on horseback, fighting for his life against the rapid currents. The very real possibility…
I wasn’t really expecting the Weather Channel to warn me about hate. But there it was plain as day. Extreme Hate Warnings this week! And with a map to show where the worst of it would be concentrated! How helpful of them! Jesus, of course, had already warned us that since the world hated Him we’d be hated by all men on account of Him. That the world hates what…
boldly proclaiming
As we have been working our way through the book of Acts, we came recently with the Apostle Paul to the city of Athens. Athens, you may remember, was home to the great philosopher and teacher Socrates. Are you aware that Socrates was sentenced to death by a jury of 500 fellow citizens of Athens? And do you know the charge against him? Socrates was found guilty of refusing…
Thessalonica
Our journey through the book of Acts is bringing to life places like Derbe, Philippi, and Berea, where Paul and his missionary colleagues have boldly proclaimed the news of forgiveness and eternal life through Jesus Christ. But they’ve paid a price, too! They’ve been beaten, thrown in prison, and run out of town on a rail. For this Sunday’s worship…