Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Colossians 3:15-17

We are called to be peacemakers, we are called to live in Christ’s peace, we are called to peace.  And yet it seems so difficult.  The world is in crisis, there are wars and rumors of wars, there are active battles all around the war (including places other than Ukraine and the Middle East), and there are deep divisions among Americans.  We even see a lack of peace within our churches, our work and our homes.  Quite simply, we seem to lack peace.

How can you be an agent of peace?  How can I be an agent of peace?  It can be so hard, yet we are called to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts.  One of the things I am striving to do over this season of Thanksgiving and as we enter into Advent is to strive for peace.  The first place to do this is within my own heart, for if I am not at peace within, I cannot show peace to others.

I ask for your prayers for me in this, and I will pray for your peace as well.

May you all have a peaceful and grateful Thanksgiving.

Peace (and I mean it),

Pastor Bill

O LORD, do not rebuke me in your anger, or discipline me in your wrath. Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing; O LORD, heal me, for my bones are shaking with terror. My soul also is struck with terror, while you, O LORD — how long? Psalm 6:1-3

Have you had those days?  Times when things just seem so wrong or chaotic that you feel like the psalmist and wonder “how long O Lord”?  I have.  There are times when I pray and pray and feel like God is not listening or willing to answer my prayer. 

The psalms take us through the normal human emotions, including some depressing verses such as these.  This is a great reminder that the scriptures are more than old stories from a land far from us, they speak to us and our condition.  Psalms such as 6 remind us that we all have doubts from time to time and often these times of darkness can often lead us to a greater spiritual awakening.

If you are praying “How long, O Lord”, hold on for God will respond.

Peace,

Pastor Bill

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Psalm 91:1-2

Psalm 91 has often been called the “Soldier’s Prayer” as a WWI Army Commander gave his soldiers a prayer card with this psalm.

It is a helpful passage of scripture for us today as well – serving as a reminder that our trust is to be placed in God for it is God who provides us all we need.

As you travel through this week, spend some time in the shelter of the Most High.  Find comfort and solace within God’s shadow.

Peace,

Pastor Bill

⁶Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. ⁷So he said to the gardener, ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?’ ⁸He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. ⁹If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.'” Luke 13:6-9

In this parable, the gardener asks the landowner for a little more time to tend to the tree.  He was asking for a second chance.  We serve the God of second chances, a God who offers forgiveness and mercy in the midst of a society that often rejects. 

The good news of the gospel is just that – God offers us mercy, God offers us multiple second chances, so go out today with your head lifted up, feel God’s mercy and be at peace.

Pastor Bill