“Then the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many peoples like dew from the LORD, like showers on the grass, which delay not for a man nor wait for the children of man.” (Mic. 5:7) After the book of Micah envisions the coming King, Micah goes on in 5:7 to paint a visionary picture of the remnant…
“This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” (1John 1:5) Last Sunday we spend some time meditating on 1 John together. The focus of the message was on the light that God shines on our lives. In the light of God, we see…
Dear church family, For the next little while, and it is impossible to be very precise about these things, we are going to be moving through the book of Nehemiah. Nehemiah is much more than a book about leadership, wall rebuilding, and returning exiles, although it certainly includes those things. Some of the key themes of Nehemiah are as follows:…
“Preach one Christ, by Christ, to the praise of Christ.” –William Perkins Jesus described his ministry as one of service, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45) For Jesus, serving meant, healing the sick, washing the feet of his disciples, feeding the multitudes,…
“Life is an excellency added to being.” –Thomas Goodwin If you could ask God for anything at all, what would it be? David asked God for a long life and the Lord answered his request: O Lord, in your strength the king rejoices, and in your salvation how greatly he exults! 2 You have given him his heart’s desire and have not withheld the…
“The best mirror is an old friend.” –George Herbert Amid increasing anxiety and approaching suffering, Jesus called his disciples by a new name, “friend.” (Luke 22:41-45; John 13:21; 15:12-15) The word signaled intimacy, sacrifice, and an understanding that the secret counsels of God would not be hidden from them. (Exodus 33:11; Job 29:4; John 15:15-16) The Puritans understood the power…
“Godly friends are walking sermons.” –Richard Sibbes Do you desire to be strengthened in your Christian walk? Do you want to grow in your ability to discern the attacks of our prowling enemy? Do you need an additional aid in the process of sanctification? Then find, maintain, and cultivate a Christian friendship. God uses our believing friends to strengthen us.…
Dear church family, I cannot begin to tell you what a joy and source of comfort it is to me to have leaders in our dear congregation who are equipped, ready, and willing to preach on Sunday morning. Our church family is blessed to have Charles and Jim in the preaching “rotation” as it were. The benefits of a team…
Dear church family, I am doing a lot of reading on prayer. A lot. Mucho reading. That’s Spanish for, you guessed it, a lot of reading. I am reading recent books on prayer, like Tim Keller’s Prayer(2016). I am reading old books on prayer, like Thomas Goodwin’s The Return of Prayers(mid-1600s). I am reading Victorian books on prayer (too many to list).…