Pastor Tom's Community

  Mercy and Truth, 13th Century Psalter   I will not start with a comment or commentary. Today, we let the scripture and songs speak and soak in. Pray them. Psalm 85:1-2 Prayer for the Restoration of God’s FavorTo the leader. Of the Korahites. A Psalm. Lord, you were favorable to your land;you restored the…

God has appointed times and places for working out His purposes.

  Woodcut in 1493 Nuremberg Chronicle depicting the fall of Babylon. Let us begin today by meditating upon the psalm of the day.  Psalm 19:1 – The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Nature is God’s troubadour announcing His glory to humanity. The activity of God in creation is…

Collected Thoughts from Old Social Media Postings from Today in Years Past (in no particular order)

  It is the first Monday of Advent, the second day of the season. We begin our scripture journey this morning with a corporate cry for mercy. The people of God are pouring out their souls to God for Jersusalem. They have experienced seige and oppression, violence and destruction. In all of this, they sense…

Sunday, November 29, 2020: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19  Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth.  Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh stir up thy strength, and come and save us.  Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine; and…

Public Domain – Augustinian Concept of Hell – Herrad of Landsberg  I have studied the problem of evil since I learned to think philosophically, psychologically, and theologically. I have all the easy answers in a short file. I have the really tough ones in the question box. We can dismiss it all with the word…

  Frank País was a Cuban revolutionary and committed Christian. He might have become president instead of Castro. Both wanted to end the evil dictatorship that existed in Cuba in the 1950s, propped up by American Mafia money and some U.S. government support. Pais, if he had lived, would have helped write a different sort…

  Photo by Loic Leray on Unsplash There are always two roads to life. There are at least two – either/or, this/that,  0/1, left/right.  They have many expressions and characteristics but let us focus on one dimension of choice: Playing it safe or risking everything for a cause greater than ourselves. Most people agree that…

We rewrite the meaning of Thanksgiving every year. There is something for everyone because we have all received much. There is also a case for mourning, lament repentance, thanks.