Staff Blog
Practicing the Presence
Many of you have probably at least heard of “The Practice of the Presence of God” by Brother Lawrence. Brother Lawrence was a Carmelite monk who lived in the early 1600’s. He spent 30 years as a kitchen helper and cook for his order, but became widely known, even by his local cardinal, for the…
Things I Want
June 7, 2016 What I’ve been reminded of, lately: I want to be more bothered by my selfishness than my unhappiness. I want to be more joyous over another’s good fortune than my own. I want my occasional bouts with emptiness to drive a greater hunger for what only God can fill. I want to…
Back from the Middle East
Carol and I recently had a chance to visit an unnamed country in the Middle East. If I’m honest, there was a little fear about going to a country that has always seemed quite hostile to me toward Christians and the cause of Christ. Though it is not illegal to visit there, it is certainly…
Getting to Know Kids Church Teacher Mindy Gatchell
How long have you been a teacher? What ages/subjects have you taught? I’ve taught 22 years and ages kindergarten, 2nd, 3rd, 6th (Math), and Middle and High School English. What’s the most rewarding part of being a teacher? Investing in the lives of whole families, not only the kids. It’s great to help parents in…
Fear, vs. Humble Myself as a Little Child
Matthew 18:2 He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3 And he said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” This…
Just Finished Year Two of Northstar
I got to be a part of the first group to go through our new church program called NorthStar and I have to say, I loved it! If you are a member of our church, I highly recommend that you consider going through this training the next time it comes around. I will admit, you…
Let’s Talk About Angels..
Let’s talk about Angels… There are some common misunderstandings about angels that I used to hold. The Bible gives us the real truth about angels. Let’s explore together: What does the Bible tell us about angels, what can we teach our kids about angels that will help them form truths about angels? The Bible tells…
Bible Study Book Report
Recently, Seth and I were talking about different ways to study your Bible and how to retain the information you studied for a longer period of time. It made me remember writing book reports back in elementary school. To this day I can still remember the majority of the books I read and wrote a book…
Christmas at Easter
I find myself in the atypical position of going through hundreds of Christmas songs right during passion week this year, and it’s kind of a strange sensation. It’s been pretty enjoyable, really. In celebration of the church’s 30th anniversary, we are preparing, for the largest Christmas program our church has even attempted, and I am…