Listening

Are there voices, sounds and words that never make it to the heart? In the spring of the year millions of little helicopter seeds fall from the thousands of maple tree that dot our yards and line the sides of our streets. Add these to the countless other seeds that are naturally sown by the other plants and weeds of God's creation. One begins to see the abundance God creates as all these seeds pile up along the curb. But why, why so many? Why does God create so many seeds? He does it in order to insure that some will eventually, germinate, grow, mature and bear fruit for future generations. Some of these seeds will feeds birds and other creatures. And others will die and provide bits of organic matter to replenish the soil. But what about the words of the Bible? What about the words spoken in Bible Class or the millions of words written in "blogs" and news papers that are never read, never heard and never reach a listening ear. Have they been written in vain? Has the word of encouragement, the word of instruction, or the word of guidance failed in its purpose because there was no ear, no heart that was engaged to hear it, see it or understand it?
I hope your eyes and ears are open to hear the voice of God as He teaches through His Word, as He calls to us in worship and as He feeds us through His Sacrament.
May you have joy in the journey.
Blessings & Peace,
Pastor John

Marriage

One of the most important units of a community is the family. The heart and core of the family is the marriage. The way parents relate to one another teaches the children many lessons about relationships. They learn to be safe communicating their hurts, their joys and their questions. Trust is an important ingredient in building and growing quality relationships. Often because of our insecurities, our fears, we fail to hear a what was truly communicated by the other person. When husbands and wives learn how these fears and insecurities affect their communication with one another they can more easily show their children how to avoid the same pitfalls as they deal with their peers. May God bless you marriage and your communication.
Blessings & Peace,
Pastor John

Memorial Day

As celebrate our freedom this weekend, it would be wise to remember who paid the greatest price so that we could enjoy them.  The early settlers who came to this country, the indians who suffered so much because they were seen as less than human, the patriots whose wisdom and love for those who came after them, and the people whose ideals moved them to create a system of government that would endure.  We are blessed by those who have gone before us.  What are we going to leave for our children and grandchildren?

Blessings & Peace,

Pastor John