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Unplug to put things in perspective
I was recently in the Sawtooth Mountains of Idaho where I’d joined my brothers for their mule deer hunt. Being in the mountains and being disconnected from the news – family, church, community and the world alike, as we had no cell service – put things in...
Blog Archive
How serving in leadership knit me to the church
by Martha Graham A handful of years ago, I was asked to join Session. Initially, I said “no.” It wasn't the right time, but after two more invitations, I eventually relented and agreed to serve—even though I wasn't quite sure what I was getting into. Frankly, it felt...
Praying for a breakthrough infection
The news cycle may have moved on from the phrase, but I’ve been thinking about and even praying for “breakthrough infections.” No, not for breakthrough infections of Covid, but rather for breakthrough infections of the Gospel. You see, I think far too many people have...
A prayer of lament and grief for Bridgewater
Our community has suffered a great loss after an act of violence took the lives of a Bridgewater College police officer and a security officer. Today, we are praying this prayer as we mourn and lament. We awake today, Lord, wishing it was a bad dream. But the...
Q&A: How GriefShare transformed my life
Teri's grandson had just turned 2 when he died. That was in 2020, during the depths of COVID lockdowns. A few months later, still grieving and isolated because of the pandemic, Teri joined GriefShare, which she had heard would be "a place where I could find support in...
When will everything be normal again?
I’ve been thinking about “normal.” Between Omicron and snow days, among other factors, life hasn’t felt normal lately, and while I think a “new normal” is emerging, I don’t know what it is yet. So I’ve turned to the Bible, which tells us what normal is supposed to be....
Wordle and Jesus: An online word game and sharing Jesus
Raise your hand if you’ve played Wordle. Better yet, hit share and show us your squares. For those who haven’t gotten on board the global word craze, Wordle is an online word game that gives you six chances to guess a five letter word, with hints along the way about...
We’re looking for our next children’s and family ministry director
First Presbyterian Church is looking for the right person to lead our ministries to children and families. Our Director of Children and Family Ministries will lead the vital and strategic Children’s Ministries Team as it strives to fulfill its mission, goals and...
What does ‘success’ look like in following Jesus?
I’ve been thinking a lot about how we define success in the Christian life in general and specifically in ministry. I confess that part of me shies away from defining success and I don’t think I’m alone in this regard. I think I avoid defining success partly because...
Something that won’t look different in that #10yearchallenge
Have you seen the #10yearchallenge, where you post a pic of yourself 10 years ago now, and everybody gets to see how much you've changed (of for the fortunate ones, how little you've changed). That got me thinking about how grateful I am that though my hair gets gray...
Thank you from Kentucky
When a mudslide damaged our sister congregation's church in Stopover, Kentucky, we mobilized to send assistance with a small work team. We later collected funding to further help Shepard Memorial get back on their feet. Now, our friends in Kentucky have sent us a...