PASTOR’S COLUMN 50 “Then Jesus led them to Bethany, and lifting His hands to heaven He blessed them. 51 While He was blessing them, He left them and was taken to heaven. 52 So they worshiped Him and then returned to Jerusalem filled with great joy. 53 And they spent all of their time in the Temple praising God.” Luke 24:50-53, NLT "Left But Not Alone!” As the sun was setting and the 40-day post Resurrection days began to fade into history, the Scriptures tell us Jesus “l

PASTOR’S COLUMN 4 “ …God says: ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’ 5 But you say it is alright for people to say to their parents, ‘Sorry I can’t help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have given to you.’ 6 In this way you say they don’t need to honor their parents. And so you cancel the word of God for the sake of your tradition.” Matthew 15:4-6, NLT

PASTOR’S COLUMN 24 “Then they began to argue among themselves about who would be the greatest among them. 25 Jesus told them, “In this world the kings and great men lord it over their people. yet they are called ‘friends of the people.’ 26 But among you it will be different. Those who are the greatest among you should take the lowest rank, and the leader should be like a servant. 27 Who is more important, the one who sits at the table or the one who serves? The one who

PASTOR’S COLUMN 24 “Then they began to argue among themselves about who would be the greatest among them. 25 Jesus told them, “In this world the kings and great men lord it over their people. yet they are called ‘friends of the people.’ 26 But among you it will be different. Those who are the greatest among you should take the lowest rank, and the leader should be like a servant. 27 Who is more important, the one who sits at the table or the one who serves? The one who s

PASTOR’S COLUMN 44 “Then He said, “When I was with you before, I told you that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and in the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then He opened their minds to understanding the Scripture. 46 And He said, “Yes, it was written long ago that the Messiah would suffer and die and rise from the dead on the third day. 47 It was also written that this message would be proclaimed in the authority of His name to all the

PASTOR’S COLUMN 23 “ And when God counted him as righteous. It wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. It was recorded 24 for our benefit too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in Him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 25 He was handed over to die because of our sins, and He was raised to life to make us right with God.” Romans 4:22-25, NLT ...

PASTOR’S COLUMN​ 11 “Mary was standing outside the tomb crying, and as she wept, she stooped and looked in. 12 She saw two white-robed angels, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying. 13 “Dear woman, why are you crying?” the angels asked her. “Because they have taken away my Lord.” She replied, “and I don’t know where they have put Him.” 14 She turned to leave and saw someone there. It was Jesus, but sh

PASTOR’S COLUMN 3 “Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping His feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance. 4 But Judas Iscariot, the disciple who would soon betray Him, said, 5 “That perfume was worth a year’s wages. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor.” 6 Not that He cared for the poor – he was a thief, and since he was in charge of the disc

PASTOR’S COLUMN 1 “A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum the people heard that He had come home. 2 They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and He preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to Him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. 4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man

PASTOR’S COLUMN 5 “And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. 6 And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you . 7 Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.” Deuteronomy 6:5-7, NLT 3 rd Sunday in Lent – Living the Faith The greatest gift any of us cou

PASTOR’S COLUMN​ 27 “Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray.”Mark 1:37, NLT ​ “1 st Sunday in Lent – Finding Sacred Space” One of the great emphases of Lent is the time-honored tradition in the Christian faith when we, the followers of Jesus Christ, devote forty-six days (inclusive of Sundays) to find a sacred space to have

PASTOR’S COLUMN​ 25 “Certainly there were many needy widows in Elijah’s time, when the heavens were closed for three and a half years, and a severe famine devastated the land. 26 Yet, Elijah was not sent to any of them. He was sent instead to a foreigner – a widow of Zarephath in the land of Sidon. 27 And many in Israel had leprosy in the time of the prophet Elisha, but the only one healed was Naaman, a Syrian.” 28 When they heard this, the people in the synagog

PASTOR’S COLUMN​ 5 “I am black and beautiful, O daughters of Jerusalem, like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon. 6 Do not gaze at me because I am dark, because the sun has gazed on me. They made me keeper of the vineyards, but my own vineyard I have not kept!” Song of Solomon 1:5-6, NRSV ​ “2nd Sunday – Expressing God’s Gift!” The bias toward physical

PASTOR’S COLUMN​ 35 “As evening came, Jesus said to His disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” 36 So they took Jesus to the boat an started out , leaving the crowds behind (although other boats followed). 37 But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water. 38 Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with His head on a cushion. The disciples woke Him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that w

PASTOR’S COLUMN 31 “What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us , who can ever be against us?... 37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ who loved us.” Romans 8:31;37, NLT “ 4 th Sunday – More Than What Confronts!

PASTOR’S COLUMN 11 “And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. 12 The night is nearly over, the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.” Romans 13:11-12, NIV

PASTOR’S COLUMN​ 4a “Then you will know which way you are to move out from since you have never been this way before… 5 Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.” Joshua 3:4a; 5, NIV “2 nd Sunday – Amazing Things Ahead!” As much as we may assume things are always the same, life is fluid; it is marked by change. Joshua, who was a young boy when the Israelites left their place of slavery in Egyp

PASTOR'S COLUMN 5 "God called the light day and the evening night. And there was evening, and there was morning, the first.” Genesis 1:5, NIV "1st Sunday - "The First Day"

PASTOR’S COLUMN ​ 1 “Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, 2 “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw His star as it rose, and we have come to worship Him.” 10 When they saw the star, they were filled with joy! 11 They entered the house and saw the child with His mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshipped Him. Then they opened their treasure chests

PASTOR’S COLUMN 15 “When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let us see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” 16 They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby lying in the manager. 17 After seeing Him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. 18 And all who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished,

PASTOR’S COLUMN ​ 2 “But you, O Bethlehem Ephratha, are only a small village among the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel, whose origins are in the distant past, will come from you on my behalf.” Micah 5:2, NLT 10 “Do not despise the day of small beginnings. Zechariah 4:10, KJV ”3 rd Sunday in Advent - Purpose!” The divine purposes of God are not delineated, nor determined, by size or quantity. God’s divine purposes will come to fulfillment in the exact man

PASTOR’S COLUMN 1 “In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He existed in the beginning with God. 3 God created everything through Him, and nothing was created except through Him. 4 The Word gave life to everyone that was created, and His life brought light to everyone. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. 14 So the Word became human and made His home among us. He was full of

PASTOR’S COLUMN 2 “The people who walk in darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory.” 6 For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on His shoulders. And He shall be called: Wonderful Ciunselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince

PASTOR’S COLUMN 6 “ Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank Him for all He has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7,NLT ​ ​

PASTOR’S COLUMN 7 “ Don’t be afraid,”​ David said. “I intend to show kindness to you because of my promise to your father, Jonathan. I will give you all the property that once belonged to your father, Jonathan. I will give you all the property that once belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will eat here with me at the king’s table…” And Mephibosheth, who was crippled in both feet, lived in Jerusalem and ate regularly at the king’s table.” Samuel 9:7,13 NLT

PASTOR’S COLUMN 26 “When Seth grew up, he had a son and named him Enosh. At that time people first began to worship the Lord by name.” Genesis 4:26, NLT “When To Say Thanks!” In the Biblical world, evidence of people giving thanks to God was through offerings. Throughout much of the Old Testament we see instances of people expressing their gratitude to God through gifts of food, drinks, and the sacrifice of animals. A major act of expressing thanksgiving to God often is ov

PASTOR’S COLUMN 23 “Who remembers us in our lowly state, For His mercy endures forever.” 24 And rescues us from our enemies, For His mercy endures forever, 25 Who gives food to all flesh, For His mercy endures forever.” Psalm 136:23-25, NKJV “God Remembers and Rescues!” One of the needs we have in life is to be remembered . To be overlooked often causes a person to