Hello again

-
Okay, it's time I started writing again.

For several years I wrote a column for our weekly newspaper. It was well received by our community, and I enjoyed finding a way to gently communicate spiritual truths to a secular audience. Many of those articles found their way into this medium.

When the paper closed a year ago, so did the pressure to write. I've missed it.

I'm not making any resolutions, mind you, but at least, this is a start. "Beginning is half done," they say. We'll see....

Popular posts from this blog

Howdy!

-
Image
I often introduce myself this way: "Hi. I'm Steve, the Preacher at the Buffalo Chip Saloon in Cave Creek." People smile, but it's true. A few years ago, some friends and I decided it was time to have a church that fit right into our western community. So we began to meet at the Buffalo Chip Saloon. We meet outdoors. Some of us dress western-style. A few of us bring dogs. It's as casual and comfortable as sitting on your back porch. We like it that way. Our music is a mix of old and new, often with a bluegrass flavor, always with guitars and harmonica. We pitch it low enough for a guy to sing along without hitching up his pants, and simple enough to join in the first time you visit. We teach from the Bible. We believe that it tells the true story of God's loving rescue plan for the beautiful world he made. (It centers on Jesus, of course.) Oh, and because we meet at the Buffalo Chip Saloon, most people just call us "Church at the Chip." We...
Read more

Maundy Thursday (Luke 22:14-28)

-
Image
Journey with Jesus to the Cross Read Luke 22:14-38 Today is Maundy Thursday, the evening of Jesus' Last Supper with his disciples. It is also the time Jesus gave the command (in Latin, “ maundatum ,” from which we get the word “Maundy”) to “love one another; as I have loved you, you also must love one another.” “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer,” Jesus said. I’ve been chewing on that sentence, which seems to me to suggest two vital truths about what is happening on this auspicious evening. “I have earnestly desired to eat … with you.…” Jesus knows this is his last night, and the one place he wants to be is with his dear friends. They have walked dusty miles with him, shared meals with him, listened to him teach, watched him do miracles, and served others in his name. They are his best friends in all the world, and Jesus “earnestly desires” to be with them tonight. Here is a reminder that community is at the core of the Christian gospel. To see ...
Read more

One Story that Leads to Jesus

-
Image
Introducing  "One Story that Leads to Jesus,"  our year-long trek through the Bible. To join us in this adventure, first download the  YouVersion  App. After you have done so, click this  link . It will take you directly to the appropriate plan.  During the course of the year, we will send reflections on the section of scripture we'll be reading each week. Here is the first installment:   An Epic Adventure Think of the Bible as a four-act play, an epic drama describing God’s love affair with the world he created and the people he made.  Yes, it is ancient. Yes, it is sometimes obscure. Yes, it can be baffling. But it is worth it, for it tells the true story of the world: why we are here; what has gone wrong; what God has done to fix it; and how the story ends.  It is a story of beauty, of brokenness, of rescue and renewal. Act One: Beautiful Creation (Genesis 1-2) In the beautiful opening act of our story, we discover that creation ...
Read more