March 1, 2017 – Today is the first day of Lent, typically known as Ash Wednesday. It is the 40-day period preceding Easter. Lent is not an observance mentioned in the New Testament. However, the observance of Lent developed fairly early in Christian tradition. Some think it is a reference to
First Day Blog
FIRST DAY
First Day – February 2017
GROUNDHOG DAY . . . This blog is supposed to be made public on the first day of each month. Hence, the heading “FIRST DAY.” However, this one got by me, and as I write it is Feb. 2 – Groundhog Day. I probably have a little more interest in
First Day – January 2017
THE BLESSING AND BANE OF ROUTINE …
When I was a young pastor, I asked our Wednesday evening congregants to name a “resolution” for the coming year. A woman stood and announced that she “did not believe in resolutions.” She did not say why, and I decided not to ask, but I did think it might not hurt her to try. Maybe you “believe” in resolutions, maybe you do not.
First Day – November 2016
Dear friends, Just about every day, I pray “The Lord’s Prayer.” That which led me to such was that, over time, I came to realize I suffered from “attention deficit disorder” in prayer. If left on my own, I can wander aimlessly in prayer. Using the prayer Jesus provided to
Life and death … and life. Oct. 1 is our granddaughter’s third birthday. Mona and I are going to the party with a doll house and tricycle in tow. Like every other grandparent, we know we have been bit hard by the “gp bug.” We have pictures to prove it. Several days a week, Mona and Eloise “face time.” I used to say if reincarnation were true, I would want to come back as Mona’s dog. Now,
First Day – August 2016
Dear friends, In recent months, we have been rolling out A NEW NWO. Included in this “new” is a shift in our organizational system, in which we will be “network coordinated.” In simple form, our district will be divided into seven regions, led by teams of pastors. These networks will
First Day – July 2016
Dear friends, This morning, after my “walk-run,” I sat down on a picnic table in the shelter house for some “quiet time.” Part of it was easily reflective – there’s the snack shack, where ice cream was in great demand during The Gathering. There’s the table, where Dr. Jim Diehl
First Day – June 2016
Welcome to the new NWO website. This is just one more piece in our NEW NWO . On the first day of each month I will be writing on this page. With all of my creative juices flowing I thought I would call such, “First Day”. The purpose of