“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” Ecclesiastes 3:1

As we look outside our windows this November morning, the world around us is giving us a visual sermon. The vibrant greens of summer have given way to deep ambers and rusts, and now, the leaves are letting go. There is a crispness in the air—a physical reminder that change is not just coming; it is already here.

Scripture reminds us that life is not a straight, unchanging line. It is cyclical. It moves in seasons. There are seasons of planting and seasons of harvesting; seasons of holding on, and seasons of letting go.

Many times, we resist the changing seasons of our lives. When a season of comfort, a specific role, a relationship, or even a particular pace of life begins to shift, our natural human instinct is to tighten our grip. We experience a crisp edge of anxiety because the unknown feels uncomfortable. But notice the trees: they don’t fight the autumn. They don’t cling desperately to their leaves. They trust the rhythm. They trust the Creator who designed the cycle.

As you journey through this week, look at the transitions in your life through the lens of grace rather than fear. Change is not a disruption of God’s plan; often, it is the plan. A tree must drop its leaves in the autumn, not because it is dying, but because it needs to conserve its energy to survive the winter and bloom beautifully in the spring.  Take time to consider the changes upon you this season and trust God to help you through the transition.

Peace,

Pastor Bill

He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? — Micah 6:8

Let us focus our hearts. Tomorrow is Election Day, and it is no secret that the air around us feels thick with tension, anxiety, and division. It can be incredibly easy to get swept up in the noise of political ads, the worry over outcomes, and the polarization that seems to pull at the fabric of our communities.

But as people of faith, our primary calling remains unchanged regardless of who is on the ballot or what the results may be. God asks three clear things of us: to do justice, to love kindness (or mercy), and to walk humbly. In times of high stakes and strong opinions, humility and kindness are often the first things we throw out the window. Yet, these are exactly the tools God gives us to build bridges and remind the world of His kingdom.

No matter how you vote, remember that the person on the other side of the political aisle is still your neighbor, created in the image of God. We are called to love them, to listen to them, and to extend the same grace to them that the Lord so freely extends to us.

As you enter into this new week, walk with humility, practice kindness in your conversations, and rest in the peace that God is still on the throne.

Pastor Bill

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. ‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul, ‘therefore I will hope in him.'” Lamentations 3:22-24

Every Monday brings with it a subtle choice. We can either carry the weight, the anxieties, and the unfinished business of the previous week into these new days, or we can choose to open our hands and receive what God is pouring out right now.

Scripture reminds us that His mercies are not stale. They aren’t leftovers from last month or last year. They are fresh, tailored, and ready for you this very morning. No matter what wilderness you feel you are walking through, or what obstacles look immovable on your schedule, God’s faithfulness remains the steady ground beneath your feet.

As you step into this week, take a deep breath and let go of the need to control every outcome. Trust that He is already in your tomorrow, providing exactly what you need for today. You are held, you are loved, and you are never walking alone.

Peace,

Pastor Bill

When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. Luke 9:51

This text transitions Jesus’ journey closer to Jerusalem and the cross, yet we can apply it to our daily living.

Did you set your face towards your new week?  Jesus was resolute as he set forward, are you?  Each week, each day brings about challenges and opportunities, routine and unexpected changes. Are you set towards this week?

As you journey through the week, follow Jesus and face your Jerusalem

Peace

Pastor Bill

Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and do not forget all his benefits —who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the Pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
who satisfies you with good as long as you live so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. Psalm 103:1-5

Let us bless the Lord.  Yesterday in my sermon for World Communion Sunday, I discussed the importance of our confession of sin before we hear the sermon and receive the sacrament.  The Lord forgives all our iniquities – the Lord forgives us.  This is so important, this is so crucial to our faith – God is willing to forgive you, to forgive me and all we need to do is be sincere about our repentance. 

As you enter into this new week, know that you are forgiven and set free.

Peace,

Pastor Bill Wisneski

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.  Isaiah 43:19

We are now in the Fall, with the changing temperatures, earlier sunsets and, of course, the beginning of the upcoming holiday season (sorry, I know it’s too early but have you gone into a store lately?). 

Sometimes it seems like we travel the year doing the same things over and over, but each seasonal change gives us an opportunity to do something different.

During this seasonal change, let’s be on the lookout for the new things God is doing in our midst, for God is doing new things all the time.  We should also look for all the new things God is calling us to do – different ministries, different ways of doing things, and different attitudes towards the changes all around us.

As you journey through this week, look to God’s new things and embrace them.

Peace,

Pastor Bill

I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees their fruit.  Leviticus 26:4

The hymns and songs were selected weeks ago.  The sermon theme was also planned in advance, I would preach on grace. 

Sunday morning I woke to the sound of rain falling from the sky, and looked out into a dismal day – yet the rain is certainly a blessing as the ground table is low and the final crops of the summer are about to be harvested.

But then it happened:  those songs and hymns picked out weeks ago fit.  We opened with “Morning Has Broken” with the lyrics Sweet the rain’s new fall, sunlit from heaven like the first dew fall on the first grass. Praise for the sweetness of the wet garden, sprung in completeness where his feet pass.

Then we sang “Grace Like Rain” proclaiming “hallelujah grace like rain falls down on me and hallelujah and all my stains are washed away”

I work hard to make sure the liturgy, songs, hymns and sermon all match the them, and yet even with all my planning only God can amplify it.  God provided us with a dual blessing yesterday, the rain for our crops and the rain for our souls.

Look for God’s blessings in your life today,

Peace,

Pastor Bill

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” — Matthew 5:9

Twenty-five years ago, the world fractured before our eyes. For many of us, the memories of September 11, 2001, are still etched in sharp relief—the clear blue sky, the sudden shock, and the heavy cloud of grief that settled over our nation. For others in our church family, it is a historical milestone, a defining moment that shaped the anxious world they grew up in.

A quarter of a century has passed, yet we still live among the fractures. We see division in our communities, unrest in our world, and a persistent undercurrent of anxiety that whispers that we are never truly safe.

But as a people of faith, we do not anchor our souls in the stability of the world. We anchor them in the unshakeable kingdom of God.

Remembering “well” does not mean harboring bitterness or nursing old wounds. It means looking directly at the broken pieces of our history and choosing, by the grace of God, to be agents of healing. Jesus did not call us to be passive observers of peace, but active peacemakers. In a world that often demands vengeance, Christ calls us to step into the fractures with the audacity of hope.

Today, we honor those who were lost. We pray for the families who still carry a quiet, empty chair at their dinner tables. And we recommit ourselves to driving away vengeful impulses, stepping into our neighborhoods as instruments of reconciliation, comfort, and love. The light shines in the darkness, and 25 years later, the darkness has still not overcome it.

Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Romans 12:10

In a world that constantly tells us to prioritize our own desires, protect our own interests, and seek our own recognition, this scripture calls us to a radically different way of living. It invites us into a deep, family-like commitment where we deliberately outdo one another in showing respect and care.  This also reminds us of the “imago dei”, the Image of God found in each of us.  When we recognize God’s image in another, we treat them better, we honor them.

Through this week, let us practice Paul’s words by listening to others, serving quietly, speaking kindly and seeing God in each other.

Peace,

Pastor Bill

⁹ Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. ¹⁷ Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. Romans 12:9 & 17

It is an easy trap to fall into; it is an easy way to live.  If someone hurts you, you hurt them back.  If someone causes you pain, you cause them pain.  To do anything less shows you are weak.  Or at least that is the perception.

But this is not God’s way.  Paul tells us to hate evil and cling to the good, and to not repay evil for evil.  This is difficult yet think about it.

How many acts of violence happen as “reciprocal”?  When you get into the cycle, year after year, nobody truly knows when the first incursion happened.  Look at world history and how certain ethnic groups continue to battle each other, look at family fights and again, does anyone truly know the beginning of the feud?

If we were to cling to what is good, if we were to do right we can change the world – and it starts with each of us, seeking the good.

As we journey through this week, let us do this very thing, seek the good, be sincere, and live God’s word.

Peace,

Pastor Bill