Pastor Tom's Community

We must become weak to be strong. Lots can be said about the tragedy of Philip Seymour Hoffman who was sober for decades and died of addiction related events/behavior. He was neither a bad example nor a role model. He was a great talent and he had many valuable insights when he was at his…

Sermon Notes from Sunday, Feb. 2: Hebrews 3:7-19 contrasts rebellion and rest. Rebellion flows from and results back in a hard heart. Rest is that place of fulfillment, satisfaction, and trust. Resistance to rest is the struggle we all face. I'll be unpacking some of this and we will be partaking of the Lord's Supper at…

The hard and soft sciences are vital to our infrastructure, understanding how things work, and how to sustain our lives. The social sciences inform and instruct us on how to interact and coexist. Philosophy and theology answer or raise questions about our big "WHY" questions and connect us with ultimate truth. However, the arts touch…

 A few of the recent headlines from recent articles in http:/kingsriverlife.com . Joel Pickford – The Next Generation of Light with an Eye on Fresno and Beyond You can stroll through Fresno, veer off to the mountains and cities of Laos, and never leave your chair. As long as local photographer, cinematographer, and author, Joel…

Not everyone reads Facebook. I meet folks there and often, they squeeze thoughts, ideas, and words out of me that I write on the spot. They don't always make it here. So, I picked out a few from the last week and re-posted them. On Saying Goodbye to Pete Let's Sing Together Today! What I…

Come to the table Grace calls gently, firmly, stubbornly. You are not able, Flesh weak, willing, needy, humbly. Look in the stable, A baby wimpers, helpless child of destiny. He comes to lead us Tableward, forward, beyond ourselves. Come  - Tom Sims

I don't know if you realized it or not, but for you old timers and new timers, CompuServe Forums – the original nation-wide/international, live message boards/social networking sites (not to bypass BBS systems and the packets that moved overnight between them) – are still alive and well. That is right. For 25 years, I have…

Yesterday, I spent some time cleaning up and "redesigning" my Blog, "The Dream Factory." I like the new look. It is a bit fresher, cleaner, and more navigable. I noticed that there were quite a few dead widgets and irrelevant feeds. Most are gone now. It will take some monitoring in the next few weeks,…

Here is a digest of some of my posts on Facebook on a variety of subjects over the last week: ——————— "…in all their distress. It was no messenger or angel but his presence that saved them; in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all…

It seems so small to say, “Merry Christmas,” and leave it at that. It is merry. Our hearts are at their best when dancing between the realities of brokenness and giddy joy. We are warmed, we are delighted, carols surround us, lights invite us; we are caught up in the season of hope. We are…