Welcome!
I welcome your comments regarding our shared ministry at St. Paul.
If you would rather comment privately please, email me at Prshepherd@westriv.com
"Two are better than one," says Ecclesiastes,
"because if one falls down, his friend can help him up."
I deeply desire to bring Christian comfort and the power of prayer to those who are challenged with sickness or circumstances in life. However, in this time of restricted visitation call me and I will attempt to contact them.
Please, assume that if you don’t tell us, we do not know.
Call me at 301-4956 if surgery or hospital stay is imminent or if a visit could be helpful.
Pastor Dennis
from my perspective…
Breaking News, or Headline News, is updated by the hour and minute. The programs are designed to get our attention and to sell advertising. (Big surprise!) On the other hand, the Good News of Jesus Christ was proclaimed and is proclaimed today for an entirely different purpose.
Mark begins his gospel with “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” (Mk 1:1, ESV) It sounds like Mark is reporting, “Breaking news! Pay attention! Something important has happened!”
Matthew begins his gospel, “The book of genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David.” (Mt. 1:1) It sounds like Matthew is introducing a history lesson whereby we might learn something. Don’t get me wrong – I love history because I believe with George Santayana, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
John begins his gospel, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God.” (Jn. 1:1) This is something totally different. John invites us to lay aside our daily concerns and ponder life’s Big Questions concerning God and “The Word of God.”
Each year, we might take a measure of our life on Tax Day, an anniversary, or any number of other milestones. Regardless of the circumstances, we go through a process of reflection, evaluation, and decision-making. We might reflect on the Big Questions of Life, like “Who are we? And “How do I fit in with family and society?” or “What positive difference am I making?”
I will grant that the most common daily question is, “Am I happy.” But I believe the Bible teaches us that happiness results from how we think of ourselves and our relationship with others. Therefore, John invites us to ponder anew our relationship with the One God of the Holy Scriptures, as opposed to mental or emotional gods of pleasure, wealth or self-importance.
In the church year, Lent is the season that encourages us to ponder our relationship with the one and only eternal God and one another or who we desire to become.
Join us as we explore Jesus’ great encounters with religious rulers, a disrespected woman from a disrespected people and His disciples. In John, Jesus, the Word of God, invites people to question who we are in God’s eyes and who He desires us to become to live a fulfilling life. (e.g. John 10:10)
As John informs us, Jesus, the true Word of God, comes into the world to save us from ourselves and the destructive temptations brought on by the evil lies of the great Satan. “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3:17, ESV)
Please join us in our encounter with the Living Word of God, your pastor, Dennis.
Being led away from God's work
by Pastor Dennis on 08/26/13
Restoration, redemption and
rebuilding are never a simple matter. In Nehemiah 6 the adversaries attempt to
pull Nehemiah away from God’s plan of restoration by first attempting to lead
him away from his work; secondly by tempting Nehemiah’s co-workers to stop the
work and lastly by using intimidation to scare Nehemiah resigning his
leadership and retreating into the temple as a priest.
The LORD calls us to follow in His
ways and to live out His will. Holy Scripture reveals how we should love God
and our neighbor. Through that paradigm we mature to see where the LORD is
working and join Him as His hands and feet and voice. This might be called
“Living for Christ”; Living in His example to bring His healing power to a
broken world.
The Adversary and his followers
attempt to lead disciples away from Living for Christ by various methods. All
of which seem small individually but collectively reveal a pattern based in
deceptive, false expectations.
Some have described this as
“spiritual warfare.” Martin Luther deeply desired to follow Christ and found
his thoughts being bent by Satan away from Christ. He battled Satan all night
long. This type of spiritual warfare may be foreign to many Christians who try
to serve the LORD in thought, word and deed.
Have you had times where temptation
to ‘do the right thing’ was difficult? Or times when breaking a destructive
habit was difficult? For Nehemiah the temptation was to give into the words of
his adversaries and walk away from the project. What works of the LORD have you
been tempted to leave because you have encountered opposition?
