Pastor's Corner

Do you ever feel that your prayer of confession is hollow? As if the phrases: "I'm sorry please forgive me help me not to do this again" fall flat? Your words sounds to you like quoting a well-rehearsed rhyme or song and your heart stays cold. It doesn't seem like you've done business with God. You know that your acceptance by God is not dependent on a certain set of word...

She wanted to know if I was serious. Before I could answer her question, the young woman shared her story with me. She had been sexually abused from the age of twelve by her adopted brother. This occurred over a period of six years. Her parents knew, but shockingly looked the other way. The nightmare ended when she confided in a friend. Eventually the perpetrator was confr...

I remember that weekend clearly. We were expecting our first child and it was time to pick a name. Not one name but two actually since we didn't know if mama was expecting a baby boy or girl. Armed with half a dozen of name books my wife and I went away for two days. We had some good laughs and lots of serious conversation before agreeing on two sets of names. Our sweet b...

The John's Phone claims to be the world's most basic cell phone. It has no camera, internet access or ability to send or receive text messages but it can make and receive calls anywhere in the world. Standby time is more than three weeks. The phone's single ringtone has three volume settings: loud, normal and silent. A nifty address book is built into the back of the devic...

"I will pray for you". Who hasn't said these words to a struggling fellow Christian? Knowing that your name and need is brought before God's throne is medicine for the soul. When someone prays for you, it's like he places his shoulder under the weight that you are carrying (Gal. 6:2). The Bible contains many examples of this kind of intercessory prayer. Epaphras prayed th...

God invites our prayer requests (Phil. 4:6). He loves to be asked and enjoys being the Giver. But do we thank him too, or do we pray much more than we praise? The biblical call is to "continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving" (Col. 4:2). When the ingredient of thanksgiving is added to our pleading, the entire flavor of our prayer changes.We d...

Saying that the Bible is a book about prayer is not an overstatement. Itis more than that, but certainly not less. From the earliest beginning (Gen. 4:26) until the very end (Rev. 19:6-8), God's people call on, commune with, confess to and celebrate their God through their prayers. These prayers are as varied as the stars in the night sky. Some feel as if you're listening...

I challenged you and myself on Sunday morning to resolve to pray 15 minutes every day this week for a harvest of lost souls. Jesus said: "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few, THEREFORE PRAY earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest" (Mat. 9:37,38). But perhaps you're a little intimidated by the thought of praying 15 minutes ...

Most believers recognize the fact that leadership in the local church is not a luxury but indispensable. But there is difference of opinion on who those leaders should be. The biblical answer is rather straightforward: the elders are called to direct and oversee the affairs of the church. But what is precisely their task? And what should their leadership look like? Here a...

The function and role of the deacon can seem very confusing to the average churchgoer. In some churches the pastor is assisted by a board of deacons. They support the pastor but feel little to no spiritual responsibility toward the members of the church. The pastor is the sole spiritual leader, end of discussion. In other churches deacons function as pseudo-elders, providi...