January 1 of each year brings to our attention that we can have a new beginning. We Christians know that we each have had a new beginning when we accepted Christ into our lives, repented, and began all anew. As far as He is concerned our slates are clean and there is no memory of our sins. What a wonderful word is…
Our mission leads us to be and to share the good news of Jesus Christ!
Our mission leads us to be and to share the good news of Jesus Christ!
Church Blog (Page 40)
The New Year is upon us! Of course, for most Americans, New Years has become another excuse to eat, drink and watch football (and I’m right there with you!). However, for the ancient Hebrews, the New Year was a deeply spiritual occasion. It was at this festival Israel crowned her kings and rededicated themselves to their covenant with God. In the elaborate…
Happy New Year to you all! As I sit here pondering what to write, all of you come to my mind to remind me of how grateful I am to be a part of First Christian Church. Yes, we are all unique, but, we all have compassion, love, hope, forgiveness and faith from the same God. This is what brings me to…
Christmas is a special time when memories are created that last a lifetime, as we celebrate the love God has for us. The true meaning of Christmas can easily get lost as we get busy and excited about all the fun things we do to celebrate Jesus’ birth. In our busyness, we can forget how important His birth was not only to…
Apparently the flu virus is making the rounds and it’s not one for which I (or anyone else) have been inoculated. Unfortunately, the person I sleep with every night has come down with it. As we all know, the flu virus is highly contagious. But then again, so are a lot of other bad things – like negativity, despair, and depression. The…
Sunday I was led to pray that we all listen for God’s voice to prompt us to reach out with His message of hope and peace, and to move when we felt a nudge of prompting by the Spirit. In this season of Advent, new faces will be seen at our worship services, seeking the message of Jesus in Christmas. Think back…
A few weeks ago I saw the movie “Interstellar” starring Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway. It’s a movie in which science is front and center. In fact, the director made sure the science behind black holes and space travel was as accurate as possible. But there was another overarching theme that really stole the show: love. At one point Anne Hathaway’s character,…
Right after my first Christmas in Keokuk, I took a week of vacation and our Administrative Pastor, Cathie Courtois, filled the pulpit. The scripture reading that week was the story of the slaughter of the innocents (Matthew 2:13-23). It’s the story of how King Herod, having heard from the wise men about a newborn king, had all of the baby boys two…
I’m not sure if you ever wonder, but if you do wonder why we sing in church, one answer is that it’s good for us. I don’t see God as one who sits on a throne waiting to be praised, though I do see God as one who deserves to be thanked and praised. I spoke last week, in part, about how…
A word I don’t hear very often anymore is “milquetoast,” which is an adjective that means timid or weak. It entered the American vocabulary because of a 1930’s cartoon character named “Casper Milquetoast.” People may not use the word anymore, but the idea is still out there and is often applied to those who call themselves Christian. I have always believed disciples…