Category: Pastor Notes

Pastor Note #136: Cable News Networks Are Evil

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What follows will read like a rant.  I’m sorry about that.  Try not to traffic in rants.  So, let me ask that you take it as a plea—a plea from the heart of a pastor who is concerned for your spiritual well-being. If you watch more than an hour or so of some 24-hour cable … Continue reading Pastor Note #136: Cable News Networks Are Evil

Pastor Note #134/Bible Note #55: Love of Jesus, Love of Neighbor

~ gachorpenning ~ 11 Comments

“Almighty God, you have taught us through your Son that love is the fulfilling of the law.  Grant that we may love you with our whole heart and our neighbor as ourselves; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.[1] Luke 10:25-37 (NIV)25 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he … Continue reading Pastor Note #134/Bible Note #55: Love of Jesus, Love of Neighbor

Pastor Note #132: Anger and Following Jesus

~ gachorpenning ~ 5 Comments

In my youth, which took place in those dark days before the existence of computers and apps on mobile devices, it was very difficult to say definitively how often, if at all, a given phrase appears in the Bible.  These days, of course, it is a matter of a few moments of thumb typing, and … Continue reading Pastor Note #132: Anger and Following Jesus

Pastor Note #131: A Pastoral Response to Someone Struggling in these Divisive Times

~ gachorpenning ~ 4 Comments

Feeling connected and part of a community of believers has become increasingly hard for me, too, over the last several years.  So, I can understand how you feel.  There is a kind of spiritual homelessness that has set in for many of us.  We can feel such a desire to isolate and retreat from community … Continue reading Pastor Note #131: A Pastoral Response to Someone Struggling in these Divisive Times

Pastor Note #130: The Government of Oklahoma Attempts to Usurp the Church

~ gachorpenning ~ 2 Comments

Effective immediately, all Oklahoma schools are required to incorporate the Bible, which includes the Ten Commandments, as an instructional support into the curriculum across specified grade levels, e.g., grades 5 through 12.  This directive is in alignment with the educational standards approved on or about May 2019, with which all districts must comply.[1] The above … Continue reading Pastor Note #130: The Government of Oklahoma Attempts to Usurp the Church

Pastor Note #128: The Resurrection–A Devotional

~ gachorpenning ~ 1 Comment

Introduction:If saving non-material human souls is all that matters, what is the point of the bodily resurrection of Jesus?  If the goal of the Christian faith is to get souls into heaven, then the bodily resurrection of Jesus is irrelevant and unnecessary.  And yet, there can be little doubt that the New Testament writers were … Continue reading Pastor Note #128: The Resurrection–A Devotional

Pastor Note #127: A Devotional on the Lord’s Return

~ gachorpenning ~ 1 Comment

Introduction:Surely, there are few biblical topics that have generated as many books, articles, Bible studies, and sermons as the topic of the return of Christ.  They are often filled with charts and tables and complex speculations that make quantum physic seem simple.  A. W. Tozer writes this, “There have been enough foolish formulas advanced about … Continue reading Pastor Note #127: A Devotional on the Lord’s Return