Romans 8:29 tells us that “those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son.” We tend to get stuck on foreknowledge and predestination, but what I’ve been thinking about is being conformed to the image of Jesus. Ultimately it is God who...
Groups for men and women to help grow in faith
Faith-growing groups for men and women will begin again in September. Women The weekly women's Bible study begins Tuesday, September 14. The group meets Tuesdays at noon in Showker Hall, and a Zoom option is available. This year, the women will be studying the two...
You can have hope. Really.
We have reasons for hope. It is easy to forget that when we look at what happened in Afghanistan and Haiti this last week. But when I look to Scripture and history, I can find reasons for hope. A text that renewed my hope this last week was Lamentations 3:21-26. This...
3 ways you can help welcome JMU students back to Harrisonburg
Students from James Madison University are returning to Harrisonburg, and we're ready to welcome them. First Pres has two upcoming opportunities to do just that. JMU Freshman Move-in On Saturday, Aug. 21, we will partner with campus ministries CRU and RUF to help...
We’re back: join us for faith-building this fall
Starting Sunday, August 29, you'll be seeing some of your favorite faith-building opportunities return to First Pres as we get back together to study the Bible, grow in our walk with Jesus and build community. On that day, children's Sunday school, youth discipleship...
Worship is the cornerstone of our connection
“WE will sing unto the Lord, because He has dealt bountifully with US.” Wow. This last year has been quite a marathon of experiences. In June, we celebrated a full year of being back in worship together physically every Sunday. Over the last few weeks, we have slowly...
Singing, even when the words don’t feel true
Sometimes when it’s my turn to clean the dishes, I pop in my headphones and turn on a worship station on Pandora. That’s what I was doing a few weeks ago when a Getty song came on, one with lyrics that are all about how my worth is not found in anything but Jesus. I...
Where are we going?
My son and I have driven to the baseball park a lot during the past few months, he as a Little League player and me as an assistant coach for his team (go Giants!). Most times, we play on the same field each game, but one night, we were assigned a field on the other...
Where does technology fit in with our faith?
This sabbatical has been a huge blessing on so many levels one of which is the opportunity it has afforded me to think deeply. One of the things I’ve been thinking more deeply about is the proper place for virtual or digital technology in the Church and life of faith...
D-Now Retreat Shows Teens Their ‘Living Hope’
Several dozen of our youth and their mentors gathered for D-Now, our annual in-town retreat last weekend. They spent the weekend in worship, discipleship, fellowship and service . The theme for the weekend was the first chapter of 1 Peter, where Peter describes how...