The Pastor’s Heart 8/16/2019

The baseball bounced at least a foot in front of the plate.  Not even close.  And the umpire quickly made the call: “Strike!”  The batter couldn’t believe it.  His little league coach suddenly got quite vocal (to put it mildly).  Parents shook their heads in disbelief, with some following the coach’s example of berating the…

The Pastor’s Heart 7/19/2019

I’ve never been known for having a “green thumb.”  I can cut grass, edge, and knock weeds down, but my wife is the one with the gardening talent.  However, I can tell when a plant needs water, and a couple of mornings ago I noticed that the plants by the front doors of the church were…

The Pastor’s Heart 6/28/2019

It begins like this: “When in the Course of human events….” Those are the opening words of the Declaration of Independence, dated July 4, 1776. As I took some time this morning to read the Declaration, I kept coming back to that first line and that phrase “the course of human events.”  The colonies faced…

The Pastor’s Heart 6/7/2019

Well, another Vacation Bible School is in the books.  The scenery is disassembled, the posters are down, the classrooms are back to normal arrangements, and our normal service schedule resumes this Sunday.  It’s over.  But is it?  Is it really over?  I don’t think so.  You see, this past Sunday through Thursday our VBS volunteers invested their time and energy…

The Pastor’s Heart 5/24/2019

Monday is Memorial Day.  A time to look back.  A time to remember.  A time to honor those who have given what Abraham Lincoln called “the last full measure of devotion.”  At this time of year, I enjoy researching and reading accounts of American patriots and their words expressing their thoughts on freedom and this…

The Pastor’s Heart 5/10/2019

Mother’s Day is this weekend, and I have a problem.  No, I have the cards bought and the gifts figured out.  Meals taken care of?  Yes; well, at least as best I can right now.  Mother’s Day message for Sunday morning?  Done.  And printed.  All is ready to go, except for one thing: this note. …

The Pastor’s Heart 4/26/2019

Right there in my driveway.  You couldn’t miss it.  Unmistakable.  Undeniable.  Zaxby’s.  My daughter, who works as a marketing director for a Zaxby’s licensee group, was home last weekend, and she came directly from a trip to a meeting representing her group in Charleston, SC.  The meeting required that she drive the group’s small catering van…

The Pastor’s Heart 4/19/2019

It was a common phrase, used often as a greeting.  They’d heard it many, many times before, probably their whole lives.  But this time… well, it meant something.  There was nothing common about it on that night, because there was nothing common about their situation.  Some felt the cause was lost.  Others felt uncertainty about…