Lent is coming to an end. It was late this year and yet, Easter seems to be coming too soon. But we need it more than ever. Holy Week and Easter remind us that we have a God who knows what it’s like to go from popular to unpopular, to be betrayed and to suffer.…
I had long been in the habit of reading the daily devotionals and I was very impressed by the quality of the devotionals other congregation members wrote. Then about 10 years ago Claudia Larsen asked me if I would like to write a devotional once a month for GCCC. I somewhat reluctantly agreed to do it, since I knew it would be…
Dear Brothers and Sisters, When I see events like the war in Ukraine, I yearn for the militant messiah the crowds hoped for 2000 years ago in that first Palm Sunday. God disappointed the masses with Jesus the Christ, and his message of love. That message which still disappoints as we see the slaughter in the…
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will make your path straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6 Decision Making Am I doing the right thing? Am I making the right decision? The ‘what if’s’ can be unending. We make many decisions each…
This week in our Lent devotional booklet, “Letting Go with All Your Heart, Soul, Strength, and Mind” the theme has been letting go with love. Love is a decision, it’s patient, and it’s open to imperfection. I can have a hard time letting go of how I think others should act or be. When you’re…
But now thus says the Lord, the One who created you, O Jacob, the One who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, First, I want to thank each of you for your faithfulness over our 18 years together. God’s Grace Community Church(GGCC) had a wonderful celebration Saturday night. Thanks goes out to Carolyn Hammock the event coordinator and to everyone who supported the event. Over $83,000 total was raised. The net…
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God— not the result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:8-9 How do you define grace? What does grace mean in your life? How do you apply grace to yourself and others.…
Recently, I had a wonderful long weekend in Lakewood, NJ, helping out my youngest son, Daniel and his wife, Rachel. They had recently welcomed their 2nd child, a beautiful girl, named Bracha (Hebrew for blessing). With a fussy Bracha and her 16-month-old, brother acting a “little out of sorts”, Daniel called me in for Grandma duty. I said, “Amen”…
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Henri Nouwen writes of a priest who told him that he had canceled his subscription to the New York Times because he felt that the endless stories about war, crime, power games and political manipulations only disturbed his mind and heart and prevented him from meditation and prayer. “That is a…