Blog

One of the realities of this COVID season is that we'll each be impacted uniquely. Even as we talk to different people within this church we're seeing it. Some are experiencing significantly reduced hours, others have had their jobs doubled. Lou Gregus, who helps organize our Side-by-Side Ministry dedicated to building bridges between our church and ministry in the community (and beyond), passed along a prayer that helps us remember how others might be faring in this season:

For this installment we look at Isaiah 40 and the way it presents God as both infinite over us and concerned for us. In hard times we need to be confident of both. 

Today we're launching a new mid-week video. One reason is to get information out to you that pertains to life in our church together. But more than that, the point is to take a few minutes and think about things that never change amidst a season that seems to bring changes daily and exponentially.

We will not be holding normal Sunday services on March 15th or 22nd. We'll make a decision in the next ten days or so about the Sundays after that. 

We will, however, be streaming our service. The link will be on the home page. You can watch on your computer or SmartTV. Check with your home group leader to see what the plan is for potentially gathering as a home group for a time of worship. We realize different people will have different levels of comfort meeting in groups of any size. Groups will be making their own decisions on this.

As is evident on all media platforms, the impact of the Coronavirus continues to escalate. The elders are trying to discern the right response. We don't pretend to be experts on these matters, and we understand that you might feel the need to be more (or less) conservative than we are. If so, that's fine. Just make sure you're communicating with all the people you need to if you aren't able to serve in a ministry that expects you. 

This Sunday we begin our series in Deuteronomy, the last book Moses wrote. In some ways it’s not really a book at all but a sermon—or a series of sermons by one of the Bible’s most significant figures. One author said in Deuteronomy Moses is best seen not as a lawgiver but as a pastor. Knowing that his death is imminent “Moses gathers his congregation and delivers his final homily, pleading with the Israelites to remain faithful to Yahweh" (Daniel Block, NIVAC).

On Sanctity of Human Life Sunday Mike Noel unpacked what it means to be a "pro-life Christian." This speaks to the issue of the unborn and advocating for them but also much more. Here is how he defined what he meant:

A pro-life Christian is one who out of their devotion to God seeks to minister to others in all seasons of life especially to those who are in distress and need of care. 

We invited Scott Moonen to reflect on the birth of Christ for this year's Christmas Eve service. Here are his comments in case you weren't able to attend.

There are different kinds of books in the Christian world. There are the worship books, like Knowing God by J.I. Packer; books that set the manifold beauty of the Lord on display and draw your heart to behold and wonder. There are the paradigm shifters, like Desiring God by John Piper; books that make you stop and think and think and think some more. There are the deep books: the systematic theologies, Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion, various commentaries and sermon collections that, like old, wise friends teach and explain and call us ever upward into the limitless glory and unshakable truth of God. And then, there are the Just Do It books. Personal. Practical. Pointed. Oh there is beauty, and there is truth, and there even might be a paradigm shift or two; but for the most part, these books are like physical therapists. They help you to evaluate your weaknesses and point out exercises you can do to grow strong. 

That is, in essence, the point of Mary Kassian’s book The Right Kind of Strong: Surprisingly Simple Habits of a Spiritually Strong Woman. God wants His people, He wants His daughters to be strong, mature, grounded and growing, in faith, in wisdom, in truth, and in godliness. 

Yesterday I paraphrased something I thought C.S. Lewis said. It turns out, he did say it, but much better than my paraphrase. Josh Burnett sent the quote to me, which is from Lewis' classic Mere Christianity. One of his points is that you can't honestly place on Christianity the claim of being man-made. It defies too many conventions for things we put our hands to. Here are Clive Staples' actual words:

Besides being complicated, reality, in my experience, is usually odd. It is not neat, not obvious, not what you expect. For instance, when you have grasped that…