From the Pastors' Desks

Children can feel like a real problem, can’t they? They are often hungry and remind us to feed them. They’re dangerous to themselves and others, and have to be continually protected and trained. When they’re very small, they can do almost nothing on their own. If you think about it, their bathroom, transportation, and food are taken care of completely by others. Total dependence.

I’ve had a new experience this past month. A first for me. Three men I know, all close to my age, passed away unexpectedly – all within three weeks. They were all believers in Christ. They each left behind heartbroken yet hopeful family and loved ones. Their life in this world is done. And, in some ways, it feels unfinished.

For many of us, 2020 was a year of confinement. One person described it as “living more inside the news than in our own homes.” It was as if we were paralyzed, and month after month, taken places where we didn’t want to go. As we sit around our tables this year, hopefully learning lessons from last, let’s look at what contentment is, why we need it, and how to get it.

Well, the holidays are here again! Thanksgiving Day kicks it all off with the familiar pattern of too much food, catching up with family, and watching the Lions lose another football game. All in all, a good day.

As we seek to grow as a body here at Harvest, one of the opportunities we have been afforded is the small group ministry. Over the five months we’ve been back, Ruthie and I have thoroughly enjoyed being a part of the Connect Bible Studies. These low-key, low-time commitment, 5-week studies provide the occasion to delve into the Word and share a meal with new faces as we get to know each other and experience the riches of God’s grace while experiencing what it is to be a part of Christ’s body—it really has been a highlight.

I think the congregation is making a great investment—and I want to congratulate you for it! The investment I’m talking about is pastoral study breaks; and, at the risk of sounding self-serving, on behalf of my fellow pastors, I want to express how helpful it is that the congregation give their pastors regular study breaks.

“I like Jesus. He was a good teacher. I appreciate the sacrifice he made and that the Father gave his Son for me. But I also like my culture. I follow the seven traditions of the fathers.” This was the tail end of a conversation that I recently had during an Anchored youth outing with a gentleman (I’ll call Mark). Twenty of us went down to Moline to invite people to worship at the new location of our church plant, Living Hope.

I love the Bible because it is truth spoken in love by the Wonderful Counselor. Every day, otherworldly voices—other “counselors”—intrude and compete, beckon and beguile, sound plausible and pleasing. But wonder of wonders, God inserts himself into the conversation. He is not silent. He does not leave us guessing as to who we are and what life is really about. He speaks his mind in Scripture, exposing folly, providing wisdom, restoring peace. “The unfolding of your words gives light” (Psalm 119:130).

My reading diet has not been healthy. Too much meat, not enough dessert. Too much reading for knowledge and not enough reading for the sheer joy of well-crafted sentences and a compelling story. This past month I was able to read two such books (they are hard to find).

We’re a presbyterian church. Central to being presbyterian is our conviction that Christ, who is the head of the church, exercises his rule over his church through ordained elders. Christ has also established the office of deacon in the church. Deacons are to lead the congregation in demonstrating the mercy and compassion of Christ to those inside the church and outside the church.