I am proud to say that I have spent the last twenty years being YOUR pastor! On September 10th, I celebrated the 20th anniversary of my ordination. When I look back, there have been many wonderful moments: Sunday worship, weddings, baptisms, celebrations of birthdays and anniversaries, ordinary moments spent together. There have also been challenging moments, especially when our dear church members have passed on to be with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Thinking about o

...

The last several years, I have set aside several weeks to preach about prayer. Why? Clearly, prayer was important to Jesus. Prayer was His lifeline and His connection to the Heavenly Father. Prayer makes us more like Jesus. Prayer shows us the heart of God. I believe prayer should be woven into our everyday lives as Christians.  I am committed to improve my own prayer life. I am also committed to helping others improve their prayer lives as well.

I read an article from the

...

I read a wonderful story on the justbetweenus.org website.

There was a couple who used to go to England to shop in the beautiful stores. They both liked antiques and pottery and especially teacups. This was their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. One day in this beautiful shop they saw a beautiful teacup. They said, "May we see that? We've never seen one quite so beautiful."

As the lady handed it to them, suddenly the teacup spoke. "You don't understand," it said. "I haven't

...

What do you do to take a break? We all have times we are empty and tired. We need to be honest, with God and ourselves. Our fast-paced culture tells us to go, go, go. God gives us another message: slow down, rest, recover.

Shelly Esser in her article A Time To Recover, says this, "..The realization hit me...you can't just keep going on to the next thing. Sooner or later there will be some kind of fallout. When I finally opened my hands to release my exhaustion, I found I wa

...

This month, I'd like to again share with you an article I found on the website bradwhitt.com.

God makes it very clear in His Word that we need rest. We need times of silence and quiet. All of us need vacations, time away from home. On the other hand, God makes it clear that we are to take time to worship Him. Honestly, it bothers me when worship attendance is so much lower during the summer. I want to encourage you to take time for vacations but I'd also like to challenge y

...

Recently I googled "the gift of Easter", thinking I would get some good ideas and Scripture readings about why Easter is so important to us as Christians. Instead, what I got was a ton of ads and articles about what to buy people for Easter!

While I like Easter eggs and chocolate and flowers, that's not what Easter is all about. Easter Sunday is a perfect time to reflect on the true meaning of this season and the incredible gift we've been given in Jesus Christ. While we ma

...

The season of Lent is here! Many of us are in the habit of using Lent as a time to 'sacrifice' something. You give up chocolate or coffee or TV. Good ideas.

I challenge you again this year to say one prayer for the church and her members each of the 40 days of Lent - 40 Days, 40 Prayers. Keep track of each prayer. List the people or concerns you lift up to God. They can be an individual or family, a project, an event, a church program or goal. It can be a prayer for healing

...

Phil Vischer (creator of Veggie Tales) wrote an article titled What The Dentist Taught Me About Life.

Phil starts by telling all about how he was a fearful child, who above all feared the dentist. He goes on to say, "As I grew older, though, I learned something important. A trip to the dentist might hurt, but it would do no harm. I was slowly learning the difference between hurt and harm. Between discomfort and damage. A shot from the doctor might be uncomfortable, but it w

...

Christian Valentine's Day Ideas that Don't Cost a Penny!

* Write a Love Letter with Scripture: Personalize a love letter for your spouse, friend, or loved one using Bible verses like 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7.

* Create a Prayer Card: Write a heartfelt prayer for the person and give it to them as a keepsake.

* Make a Gratitude Jar: Write down reasons you're thankful for the person and encourage them to do the same.

* Do a "Love Walk: with God: Go for a walk with your loved one and

...

At this time of year, when it's cold and dreary, we are thinking about spring! I start longing for flowers in my front containers and green grass growing in the yard. What a pleasure it is to see living things grow and bloom and mature. I've found living things are growing or they are dying. They don't just stay the same.

Love is the same way. Joni Eareckson Tada in her wonderful devotion Diamonds in the Dust says this, "Love must grow. It can't stand still and it certainly

...

It's natural for us to think, "new year, new resolutions"! We want 2026 to be different. We make a list of all the areas we want to change: our health, our finances, our work life, our spiritual life. While we need change, God stays the same!  Kimberly Cotton, on the Just Between Us website, asks this question, "What would happen if God created His own resolution list for you?"

Kimberly suggests five resolutions God gives us. As I don't have space for them all, I'd like to

...

Barbara Rogers shares these Christmas Fruit of the Spirit Prayers:

LOVE

Lord, I pray that Christ dwells in ________'s heart through faith. May they be rooted and grounded in the love of Christ (Eph. 3:17)

JOY

Lord God, please restore _____ to the joy of Your salvation and give them a spirit of obedience to Your Word (Psalm 51:12)

PEACE

Give _____ the desire to seek and pursue peace and depart from any form of evil (Psalm 34:14)

PATIENCE

Thank You, Lord for Your patience toward ___

...

This time of year is always busy! Thanksgiving and then the Christmas season! Our culture tells us it's all about GETTING presents, shopping, GIVING gifts. But as Christians, we view the world quite differently. We've received the best Christmas gift of all - the gift of Jesus Christ!

While many of us both give and receive gifts during the Christmas season, God gave us a gift we will never be able to repay. In exchange for our sins, God offered us eternal salvation by sendi

...

Recently I was asked to share a devotion at our Presbytery COM committee meeting. The theme of the year is Peace. The verse chosen for that day was Psalm 34:14: Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

I found a wonderful article on the website Hopereflected.com. I'd like to share portions of that devotion, along with my own thoughts.

"The word pursue is a verb, and to pursue something means to actively chase after it, to follow it, or to seek it out. "Seek p

...

The mission of Operation Christmas Child is to demonstrate God's love in a tangible way to children in need around the world.

Since 1993, more than 232 million children in more than 170 countries and territories have received an Operation Christmas Child shoebox. The project delivers not only the joy of what, for many kids, is their first gift ever, but also gives them a tangible expression of God's love.

How can you help? By picking up a shoebox, filling it with a variety o

...