Pastor’s Ponderings

KINDNESS   In Galatians 5:22, the Apostle Paul provides a list of personal qualities produced in the life of those who follow Jesus Christ. He calls these the “fruit of the spirt.” When we are connected to God through faith in Jesus Christ, these qualities are...

“The fruit of the spirit” is a phrase the Apostle Paul used in Galatians 5:22 to describe the personal qualities produced in the life of those who follow Jesus Christ. When we are connected to God through faith in Jesus Christ, these qualities are planted in our lives...

          The third fruit of the spirit Paul identifies in Galatians 5:22 is PEACE. When we think of peace, we think of the absence of conflict. But peace is more than this. It also means order and a sense of personal security. It means one is...

  Fruit of the Spirit: JOY         The second "fruit of the Spirit" that Paul mentions in Galatians 5, is joy. Take a look around and you can see plenty of people who are grumps and gripers, negative about virtually everything that happens in...

In his letter to the Galatians, the apostle Paul writes, "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness & self-control." (5:22) Fruits are the natural product of healthy growth. When we are connected to Christ,...

It’s been a while since I started the project of describing the scenes in the eight stained-glass windows along the sanctuary aisles. The last window to mention is the one closest to the lectern up front. It shows Jesus standing at the bedside of a child with one hand...

Back in a previous sermon a couple of years back, I shared the story about Kate Bowler, author of Everything Happens for a Reason and Other Lies I’ve Loved. She landed her dream job and had a wonderful family when she was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer and had to...

After months of staying home and limiting our exposure to others, wearing masks and practicing social distancing, we are nearing the end of the covid 19 pandemic. With infections rates going down and vaccinations rates going up, Gov. Larry Hogan has lifted many of the...

This week’s thoughts came as I was cleaning out some old files. Still worth considering today. When you see geese flying in a “V” formation, you might be interested in knowing that science has discovered why they fly that way. Research has revealed that as each bird...

There are lots of changes ahead for this congregation. What I want to talk about particularly this week is the changes that will take place when Pastor Shannon Sullivan leaves this congregation to serve another.  We will be recognizing her and offering appropriate...