from Grace Hills Church
We live in a world where joining organizations is becoming less and less popular. It affects us in churches as we invite people to be members of our congregations. The cultural resistance to joining comes into conflict with appeals to join a local congregation. Recently I had a young friend who was visiting a church that she liked a lot, but was wondering if she needed to join write to me about joining. Here is what I said: Continue reading
One thing most of us want is change. We want to be improving. We want to sin less. We want to grow into the man or woman God has called us (and designed us) to be. As followers of Jesus Christ we want to be people who are being changed into His image. We are told in Romans that God determined that those who are His will be formed into the image of His son. In II Corinthians 3:18 we learn that this brings God glory—our transformation!
The problem is that change can be difficult. It also forces us to admit a need for something else. It is humbling to face a need to be different. Continue reading
Scripture calls us not to be ‘double-minded.” James tells us that when we are we’re unstable in all our ways. (James 1:7-8) At the same time Paul bounces back and forth between conviction and joy in Romans 7:21-24.
These days I find myself caught between two poles. We have agreed to leave where we are and serve in a new place, but we are not there yet. I must confess that sometimes I feel very divided or ‘double-minded.’ On one hand there is the sorrow of contemplating relationships that have been rich and enriching for us. We have the sense that God has indeed inhabited some of our relationships and we and they have benefitted and we have grown as followers of Jesus. That feels good. At the same time, contemplating departure also produces pain. There is the pain of pulling up roots. There is also pain of becoming more distant in what have felt like very close relationships. We grieve for those relationships. As our home becomes filled with boxes and the pieces of our lives get put away, there is a certain instability that creeps in. Sometimes I wonder if this part of our life will disappear just like things that are disappearing into boxes. Because of the great people we have met here and shared life with, we don’t want that to happen. Continue reading
Growing up my brother, sister and I thought our mother had “eyes in the back of her head.” What we meant was simply that she so aware of what we did we could not get away with anything. Our mother had that ability because as her children we had her attention. She turned her attention away from her needs and desires to focus on our needs.
Recently I was in the audience when a person conducted some business for the whole group. In terms of the presentation, it was good. But when she concluded someone near me said, “That wasn’t about our group or our business, that was all about her!” She was so preoccupied with herself and how people perceived her that she missed what the group needed her to do. Her leadership in that group failed. Continue reading
I have had the regular privilege of being a guest on “Life Questions with Pastor Michael” a radio show that a friend of mine, Michael Bannon produces. It is a show where he talks about spiritual questions ordinary folks might have. I that find interesting. I want a faith grounded in real life so I like to try to answer questions real people are asking. A recent question was from a person who asked if it was permissible for a person to be angry with God. It was an interesting discussion.
Michael asked, “Do we have the right to be angry with God?” I was not sure that was the question that helped me get at the root of the issue. I believe that at times we are all angry with God whether we have the right or not. Continue reading
Our dog is a Great Dane. Having him has helped me conclude that he has something to teach me spiritually. After 4 years, I have gotten used to his size. It seems odd when
Our Dog
people encounter him and say, “Wow, that’s a really big dog!” or “Do you have a saddle for him?” (I hear that one a lot!) At 137, he just seems normal to me. As Great Danes go, he’s not very big. I’ll sometimes call him a ‘mini-Great Dane.’
The other day when I was walking him I thought to myself, “If we ever get another dog, I want a really big one.” I have become used to his size. But even though I am used to his size, not everyone else is. As an interim pastor I move around a bit. We have discovered that landlords don’t want big dogs in their houses or apartments. Actually the little 7-pound dogs we’ve had have been much more challenging to train. Although I think he is no danger, others do. I see him as normal; others are startled by his size. Continue reading
Do you prefer Jesus to be radical or comfortable? The Jesus we encounter in the gospels is one who really challenges the status quo. Folks who were a part of the religious establishment had real issues with Jesus. When one considers the entire witness of the scriptures, one must conclude that often encountering God disrupts the status quo. The God present in the scriptures leads us into uncharted territory; He calls us to adventure. One of Jesus’ most consistent commands is not, “Don’t doubt,” but “Fear not.” The implication is that when we really hear God, fear might be a natural response. Continue reading
The old Hymn, “Great is They Faithfulness” begins, “Great is Thy faithfulness, oh God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, 
Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be.”
In Hebrews we read, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Heb 13:8)
God may be the same, but our lives are full of change. We need to learn to find and experience God in new circumstances. Certainly Joseph’s encounters with God were different when he received his dream, when he was in prison and then when he was ruling Egypt. Yet God was the same. The Apostle Peter must have had a very different experience of Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration, stepping out of the boat in a storm and finding the forgiveness of Christ after Jesus’ resurrection. Continue reading
How many times has life been confusing for you? One does not need to live very long to have encountered or known someone who has encountered a confusing time in life. The cool weather this week is certainly a bit of a change, but we are talking here about genuine conundrums—those places in life when it seems we are at our wits end and cannot make sense of the circumstances of our lives. Sometimes we call those places ‘dead ends.’ Continue reading
We are in the season of Advent. What we mostly use it for it to get ready and ‘build’ toward Christmas. However, the original intent of the church leaders was for a time of deep reflection. Much like Lent Advent is a season designed to prepare us by helping to open our ‘spiritual ears’ and help us see life with ‘spiritual eyes.’ The color for liturgical churches is purple. I have heard that in the very early church the vestments were black in color to signify our unworthiness and need for forgiveness. As many black dyes fade, they become purple. Today purple is the color of the Advent season. Purple is also a color that speaks to Jesus’ royalty. In the past century the color blue has been suggested as an alternative to purple espcecially in Lutheran congregations. It is argued that a deep, dark blue is the color that covers us in the dark, cold hours before the sun dawns.
Both Advent and Lent are seasons for fasting and reflecting on our growth (or lack thereof) as followers of Jesus and how we work to bring in His kingdom. Part of the reflection of Advent is whether we are prepared for Jesus’ return or second coming. Jesus told His disciples to “watch, for you do not know the hour” when He will return {Mt 24:42; 25:13; Mk 13:35; Lk 21:36 }. When we turn Advent into just the time when we et the presents purchased and the decorations up, we miss a great opportunity. Continue reading
Russ Ritchel 