The Pastoral Grind

  (Originally written for The Baldwin Bulletin: Pastor's Column December 21, 2022) Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him”…And he sent them to Bethlehem…After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.   (Matthew 2:1-2, 8-11) As we draw near to Christmas, many of us look forward to hearing the account of Jesus’ birth again. There’s the usual cast—Mary and Joseph, the baby Jesus, the shepherds,

(Originally written for The Baldwin Bulletin: Pastor's Column November 9, 2022) Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, rev

  (Originally written for The Baldwin Bulletin: Pastor's Column September 28, 2022) “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” (Exodus 20:8-11) A non-pastor friend and I were talking last week about the Bible’s concept of Sabbath and Sunday observance. He pointed out the following idea: If we live an average lifespan—77 years according to the National Center for Health Statistics (2020), we’ll have lived 674,200 hours. If our time with God and his people is 1 hour a week, then over the course of our lifetime, we’ll have spent 4,004 hou

(Originally written for The Baldwin Bulletin: Pastor's Column August 17, 2022) For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God…Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose wh

Photo Cred: CRCNA/crcna.org/synod (Originally written for The Baldwin Bulletin: Pastor's Column June 22, 2022) And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peacef

I originally wrote this for the congregation I serve in, but I know there are others who are interested in a summary and reflection of what took place at the CRC Synod 2022. Here are my thoughts... As I sit back in the parsonage on Saturday morning following Thursday’s adjourning of Synod 2022, I’m able to begin processing what took place over the last week. It is settling in that this meeting has finally happened and is finished! The last week has been tiring in every way possible. While I met more great brothers and sisters in the faith from across our denomination and had wonderful and encouraging conversations, there was great stress. Given the weighty matters, strong beliefs, impacts on people, local congregations, classes, and the denomination’s future, it was expected to be stressful, but reality was still greater. While I don’t like being away from our congregation for about three weeks, trust me when I say I’m glad I’m taking off for vacation, too. First, thank you! Thank you

(Originally written for The Baldwin Bulletin: Pastor's Column May 4, 2022) And the LORD said to Moses, “Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them…I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people. Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them, in order that I may make a great nation of you”…[But] the LORD relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people. (Exodus 32:7-14) The LORD passed before [Moses] and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and fourth generation.” (Ex

(Originally written for The Baldwin Bulletin: Pastor's Column March 16, 2022)  Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man…that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed. He will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. (Romans 2:1-8) Y

(Originally written for The Baldwin Bulletin: Pastor's Column January 26, 2022) …Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for the LORD has given you the city. And the city and all that is within it shall be devoted to the LORD for destruction…But you, keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest when you have devoted them you take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel a thing of destruction and bring trouble upon it. But all silver and gold, and every vessel of bronze and iron, are holy to the LORD; they shall go into the treasury of the LORD”…Then they devoted all in the city to destruction, both men and women, young and old, oxen, sheep, and donkeys, with the edge of the sword. (Joshua 6:16-21) The women of Baldwin CRC’s Dorcas Society, a Bible study and serving group named after the woman who was “full of good works and acts of charity” in Acts 9:36-43, are currently studying the book of Joshua. One of them shared at our recent annual meeting how it’