The Pastor’s Heart 12/11/2015

Now it’s Joseph’s turn.  You know the story.  It’s there in Matthew 1:18-25.  Mary, trusting in the God of the impossible, accepts her role as the mother of the Messiah.  Suddenly, Joseph’s world is turned upside down.  His happy betrothal to Mary takes a shocking and disconcerting turn: she’s expecting, and he doesn’t quite know…

The Pastor’s Heart 12/4/2015

When you think of the Christmas season, what words come to mind?  “Joy”?  “Peace”?  “Good will”?  How about “fear”?  As you read the story of Christ’s birth in Scripture, you can see it. You actually see fear.  That’s why you also see the words “Fear not” throughout the story.  Think about it.  For example, when…

The Pastor’s Heart 11/6/2015

No one likes to be cheated.  Short-changed.  Duped.  Bamboozled.  When someone hoodwinks us like that, we tend to get angry.  We want what is right and fair, what is our just due.  Yet, I read a statement this week that made me sit up and take notice that this happens to many believers who never…

The Pastor’s Heart 10/23/2015

It was one of those statements.  The kind that makes you sit back in your chair and think.  One that is profound in its simplicity.  One of those “I know that, but am I living it?” statements.  And it is most assuredly true.  It was written by the godly 19th century Scottish preacher, Robert Murray…

The Pastor’s Heart 10/9/2015

“I feel like it’s just me and God.”  That’s a statement I’ve heard on several occasions.  Have you ever felt like that?  I think at some point it happens to all of us, usually in moments of trial, change, depression, or loneliness.  This past Wednesday night we began a study in Psalm 73, and I…

The Pastor’s Heart 10/2/2015

It just seemed impossible.  So impossible, in fact, that all she could do was laugh.  God had said she and her husband would have a child, and Sarah was incredulous.  Hebrews 11 clearly says that she was “past age.”  The Scripture is not as kind to her husband, Abraham, because it says that he was…

The Pastor’s Heart 9/25/2015

If you’re old enough, you may remember this.  If not, that’s what YouTube is for.  It’s the early 1970’s ad campaign for Mennen Skin Bracer that featured a slap in the face and the catch phrase, “Thanks; I needed that!”  The ads tried to show that using the product after shaving would wake a man…