Twenty-five years ago, while serving First Baptist Church as our Associate Pastor (and leading us through a pastoral interim), Fran Buhler began a simple practice that he would repeat hundreds of times throughout the decades that followed. He wrote a letter to those who had lost someone in their immediate family during the previous year. […]
Read More »Growing up as a child, and even more so now as an adult, I’ve come to appreciate the importance of preparing your home for guests. Whenever we’re expecting company, there’s a list of tasks to be completed before they arrive, and there’s a standard of behavior to demonstrate while they’re with our family. And for […]
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This Saturday, March 17, we’ll join with countries across the globe to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Beyond the requirement to wear green and kiss certain people based on their heritage, I’m surprised by how little folks know about St. Patrick’s Day, or more importantly, about Patrick himself. Sometime toward the end of the fourth century, […]
Read More »Last Sunday, we saw how seeking the lost is essential to following Jesus. I hope that you’ve been challenged and encouraged to take seriously your ongoing responsibility to tell others about Jesus. To help you apply this to your life, I’d like to offer some practical steps you can take. The first thing you should […]
Read More »We are made to know God and to be with Him. Throughout Scripture — from Genesis to Revelation — God’s favor and blessing are made evident through His presence. God is with His creation in the garden and then with His chosen people in the tabernacle and later the temple. After removing His glory and […]
Read More »This is always such an exciting time of year for our youth. They’ve just completed an amazing weekend of Disciple Now and are now making final preparations for Dessert Theatre. Seasons like this remind me of what a tremendous impact a youth ministry can make in the life of a young person (I know it […]
Read More »Judges chapters 6 through 8 records the story of Gideon and how the Lord called and used him to accomplish His will. I’m always drawn to this familiar story when faced with long odds and dwindling numbers because it reminds me how God often works in such circumstances. When the Lord called Gideon, He said […]
Read More »The days of cultural Christianity in America are coming to an end. There was a time in our nation’s history — even just a few decades ago in many communities — when membership in a local church was expected, as well as beneficial to one’s social standing, and biblical values were given tacit approval in […]
Read More »The New Testament calls for two offices within the local church: pastors and deacons. While our church continues to pray and search for our next pastor, the work of our deacons continues unabated as it has throughout the history of our church. I am especially grateful for the sacrifice and servant leadership of our outgoing […]
Read More »Advent comes from the Latin term for coming or arrival, and the observance of Advent is all about waiting with anticipation and preparing for the Messiah. There are two characters in the Christmas story who wait longer than anyone else — longer than the two mothers with their miraculous pregnancies and even longer than the […]
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