3 The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions. 2 One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. 3 The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was. 4 Then the Lord called Samuel. Samuel answered, “Here I am.” 5 And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” But … Read more

The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions. One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place.  The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called Samuel. (1 Samuel 3:1-4) Hallelujah!  Sing to the Lord a new song;  sing his praise in the congregation of the faithful. (Psalm 149:1) So. This … Read more

But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They replied, “We are able.” Then Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized you will be baptized, (Mark 10: 38,39) I had one of those ridiculously busy days last week.  It started with needing to write and get things done first thing in the morning, and then progressed from there.  I had … Read more

While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, peace be with you, and they were startled and frightened thinking they saw a ghost.  He then said to them, why are you troubled?  And why do doubts rise in your minds?  Look at my hands and my feet it is I myself, touch me and see a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see, I have. (Luke 24: 36-41) “Here we find the disciples encountering the risen Christ.  The Startling thing is that the risen Christ still carries the wounds … Read more

  “I get by with a little help from my friends” (Paul McCartney) “All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts”  Acts 2: 44-46 “Beyond knowing one another, the smaller church acts and feels like “family”.  (From ‘The Indispensable Guide for Smaller Churches” by David R. Ray). I’ve had a week.  A really hard week.  My mom was taken … Read more

“Little ones to Him belong.  They are weak but He is Strong”  (“Jesus Loves Me, by Anna Bartlett Warner”) Then they came to Capernaum, and when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?”  But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” Then he took a little child and put it among them, and taking it in his … Read more

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean.” (Matthew 23:27). 19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21 who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. 22 The poor … Read more

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. (Acts 2: 42-45) “You bit off more than you can chew” (idiom from the 1870s) “When God closes a door, He opens a window” (Rogers and Hammerstein, from ‘the Sound of Music’) “God helps those who help themselves” (Ben Franklin and Algernon Sidney) “Comme on … Read more

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”( Matthew 6:19-21) “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”( Ephesians 5:15-16) So. Last week in church we did a little “wishing” about things that we wanted for Bethel … Read more

For by grace you have been saved through faith.  And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works so that no one may boast.  (Ephesians 2: 8-9) Then God said “Let us make humanity in our image, in our likeness,”  (Genesis 1: 26a) This week I had a conversation with my Dad about the just finished Paris Olympics.  The Long-Term Care facility where my Dad lives right now has done a whole lot of work to keep Dad and his housemates well aware of the Olympics, even down to hosting a … Read more