Pastor’s Ponderings
Pastors Pondering
This Sunday we begin the season of Advent, really. I know, the church is already decorated, and the holiday music has been playing in the shops and on the radio. But Sunday we begin a new church year and light the first candle in the Advent Wreath and begin our...
Pastors Pondering
Here is a blessing that I came across in my reading. May it speak to us in these turbulent and challenging times. Happy thanksgiving. -Pastor Steve May God bless you. granting you discomfort when confronted with easy answers, half-truth and superficial...
Pastors Pondering
Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds. - Phil 4:6-7 The sense that there will...
Pastors Pondering
Pastor Pondering – Nov 7 Things are busy at Calvary UMC right now. On Monday afternoon, a crew from the organ manufacturer arrived with several vehicles and began unloading the structure and various pieces of the new organ. This is the first of three phases for...
Pastors Pondering
We have seen far too many deaths from gun violence. All of us should be upset, outraged, angry especially as followers of Jesus Christ. As a society, we have been successful at making automobiles safer to drive, water safer to drink, and developed medications that can...
Pastors Pondering
Faith grows as we read and study the Bible. Christian have long held that reading and studying the Bible can bring us into a vital relationship with God. The Bible offers us insights into God’s character and the ways in which God calls us to be in a relationship. The...
Pastors Pondering
I was planning to write about another of the pathways of discipleship that we are looking at this month, but there is much more pressing news that is on our hearts right now. The vicious attack in Israel carried out by Hamas on October 8 resulted in hundreds of...
Pastors Pondering
Calvary United Methodist Church helps people grow in their walk with Christ through practicing and promoting five discipleship pathways. We’ve been looking at these in our worship this month as well as in a series of these “pastor ponderings.” Last week I lifted up...
What does it mean to be a disciple of Jesus Christ? A disciple is a follower or student of a teacher, leader, or philosopher. To be a disciple of Jesus Christ is to set out on the path to follow Jesus and become more and more like him, especially regarding how we...
Pastors Pondering
Mission Sunday coming October 8 Once again, we will have a hands-on mission project in the Parish Hall running on a Sunday morning, 9 AM to noon. On Sunday, October 8, the Parish Hall will be transformed into a Mission Site and we will package 10,000 meals with our...