Ephesians 1:7

Watch the message here: https://www.youtube.com/live/V9lkplP5oTo?si=EN7l069k3mY_oyT7 Good morning, church! So nothing really happened this past week, right? No, there’s no pressure on this message today, right? Thankfully, I actually don’t feel pressure, because I know a few things: I know that these remain: Faith, Hope, and Love…but the greatest of these is LOVE. And we’ve been talking about Love this fall, and no matter what you personally feel about elections, or the state of our country, or our world…the more we can understand, respond to, and emulate God’s love for us, the more we can be faithful, and hopeful. I believe that with my whole heart. And I know a couple other things… There is one true king, and that is Christ Jesus our Lord. It says in Matthew 28:18 – And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” Not an earthly king or ruler or government, but Jesus. In Philippians, Paul writes – Therefore God has h...

  “I will sing a NEW song.” I got this forever inked on my forearm a while back, and those that have seen it might think it is a nod to lyrics from my favorite band, U2. To an extent it is, I did exhaustively search through handwritten lyrics to have that line scribbled there in Bono font. The lyrics to U2’s song go: “I waited patiently for the Lord, He inclined and heard my cry, He brought me up out of the pit, out of the mire and clay, I will sing, sing a new song.” While those are great lyrics, to a great song, by a great band, they are really the words written by King David in Psalm 40. Last summer, our church was planning a series entitled, “A Summer of Psalms.” I was asked if I might give one of the messages in that series, and I was excited to oblige. Of course I would speak on Psalm 40, how could I not?  As I prepared to give that message, I could never have fathomed how important and deeply meaningful to me that Psalm 40 would become. A year ago, on July 4, 2023, a ...

Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7XCNYJ0JjQ  This is God’s word from Matthew 9:35-37:   35And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 36When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” Matthew 9:27-38   I am really excited about this Let’s Go series, and I like how Pastor David made the emphasis on “US” going, because I definitely need that community aspect of things that he highlighted.  I’ve got a little secret (those that really know me would probably say it’s more of an open secret), but most times, I’m more of a “let’s go, but first let me procrastinate a bit, an...