1 Thessalonians 5:12-15

At times we can have a love/hate relationship to our church experiences. What should the expectations be? Encouraging groups are awesome! It’s amazing what we can do to support each other. Our...

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

On the last day of 1999 I flew from New York to Vienna. The plane was almost empty, so I stretched out on five seats and just slept the night away! What the news media had projected about Y2K...

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Be encouraged today! The return of Christ could come at any moment. If you are in Christ, you will rise to a destiny that is almost indescribable. It will erase every doubt in your heart that...

Steadfast | 1 Thessalonians 2:13-20

Most people don’t like conflict; face-to-face that is. (Online, anything goes).

Speaking of conflict. If you accept God’s word, then it puts you in direct opposition to the world. Why?...

Steadfast | 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12

What you say and do matters!

Paul probably thought his trip to Thessalonica was a failure, but in reality it was foundational to Christianity spreading into Europe and “everywhere”(1 Thess....

Steadfast | 1 Thessalonians 1:4-10

What does it mean to be “…loved by God…” (1 Thess. 1:4a)? How do we reconcile that with our afflictions? Perhaps being loved by God has far deeper implications than we would have thought....

Steadfast | 1Thessalonians 1:1-3

Have you noticed the temperature of rhetoric rising in our country? People have strong opinions ranging from politics to religion, sexuality and everything in between. Along those lines, if you...

Solitude

Extrovert: “Solitude is punishment.”

Mother of young children: “Solitude would be wonderful.”

Choleric: “I meet God when I am actively doing things.”

Religious person: “I love...

Vision Sunday | Healthy Community

Happy New Year!

Whenever a new year rolls around I get a little reflective.

I try to ask, “What does God really care about…?”

I know God is love, and as a result He cares about caring...

A Love Like This

Merry Christmas!

I’m so excited about the Christmas Eve services coming up!

Please pray about inviting someone to one of them. I’m going to take us back to the origin of Christmas and...

Advent | Joy

Twenty-five years ago, on Christmas Eve, I asked Jen to marry me! I was ready to make a wedding vow based on the value I saw in her. It’s interesting that Leviticus ends with a chapter on...

You Shall Be Mine | Peace

The tree is up. You’re sitting fireside, enjoying the glow of dimmed lights and quiet music. For a moment you get a sense of peace and then your phone “bings”. Peace silently slips away and...

Leviticus |  Hope

What is hope?

“Hope you have a nice Christmas.”

“I hope it all works out for you.”

Hope in the Bible is deeper than that. More like an inner confidence that finds strength in...

Leviticus | Rest and Remember

Happy Thanksgiving! Yeah right!

Yesterday, as a woman walked by me on her way out of a grocery store, she snarled, “Jesus Christ! These PA laws for buying alcohol are ridiculous. How is...

Leviticus | Pride

In our story, two of Aaron’s sons offer unauthorized incense and the Presence of God takes them out (Lev. 10)! What? Is the God of the Old Testament really so different or are we missing...

Leviticus | Priesthood

We are deeply loved by God. However, since Adam and Eve we are independent of God. So the story of Israel being led out into a desert to experience the presence of God becomes our story.

We all...

Leviticus | Confession

Why is confession such a painful topic when it is actually a gift from God? God knows that we need purification and restitution, and that is why He created the sin and guilt offerings. These...

Leviticus | I Belong

You are unique. You are loved. You belong!

God has placed the need to know Him and be known by Him in all of us. The story of Israel, is really our story- every one of ours. This young,...

Leviticus | Presence

Hey CFC!

We are back from our elders’ retreat. It was my favorite one so far…bonding, productive, spiritual…we felt like God was showing us things about ourselves and about how He...

Jonah 4

I thought the story was over. Nineveh was wicked. Jonah ran away. God pursued Jonah. Jonah preached. Nineveh repented. The end. Chapter four catches us off guard. Why is Jonah now “exceedingly...