Dear Friends, A few days ago we had some severe thunderstorms roll through town while I was at the grocery store. As soon as the first rumble of thunder hit, several of the clerks went into action - grabbing buckets and mops and heading for the center of the store. When I got to the cash register, I asked the cashier if there was a problem. He explained that the roof had a leak, so they were simply getting ready to clean up any water that might come in. He finished by say

Dear Friends, Today my Bible reading took me to Matthew 28:19-20, which says, “Go and make disciples of all the nations…teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.” This verse is a very familiar passage to me, but as I read it today, the thing that really jumped out at me is that it’s not simply a suggestion from Jesus - it’s a direct command. That’s important for Christians to understand, because many of us look at these words from Jesus as a comma

Dear Friends, On Mondays our church does a food pantry for folks in the neighborhood. It’s a great way for us to meet a practical need, while at the same time, build relationships with folks who might not otherwise come in to a church building. This past Monday was no exception, and I found myself having a conversation with a woman that I’ve seen around the neighborhood, but haven’t had the chance to talk with. Once she found out that I was the pastor of the church, she as

Dear Friends, Earlier this week I attended a workshop that was designed to help equip pastors with the tools they need to counsel folks through some of the challenges of life. It was an interesting workshop, with lots of good information about how to help folks whose lives have been impacted by the sinful world we live in. To help us understand the scope of the counseling needs that are currently presenting themselves in churches across the country, the instructors spent ti