Pastor Tom's Community

faith

  • Best of Today: Welcome Tables, Barriers, and the Signals We Send

    Some days a theme emerges across several pieces of writing and reflection. Today the theme has been welcome. More specifically, the subtle signals communities, organizations, churches, and businesses send that tell people whether they belong—or whether they should keep their… Continue reading

  • Back to Bethel

    “And Jacob called the name of the place where God spoke with him, Bethel.”— Genesis 35:15 There are moments in life that become spiritual landmarks. Places where something changed.Where clarity appeared.Where we sensed that God was speaking into our lives.… Continue reading

  • Legacy of Faith

    Guercino Abramo ripudia Agar “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” – John 3:8 “For the promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham… Continue reading

  • A God Like Y0u – Micah 7:18-20

    Many are searching for God. Jesus said that those who seek, find (cf. Gospel of Matthew 7:7). But sometimes what we are seeking is not truly God at all. Sometimes we are searching for a projection — a deity shaped… Continue reading

  • Actual Border-Control Issues

    “And the priests and the Levites purified themselves, and purified the people, and the gates, and the wall.”  – Nehemiah 12:30 It is hard to comprehend the importance of rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem without understanding the times in which… Continue reading

  • The Narrow Way Is Not What You Think

    Matthew 7:1–14 In preparing this week’s sermon on Matthew 7, I found myself wrestling with one phrase that has unsettled readers for centuries: “Enter through the narrow gate… for the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads… Continue reading

  • A Prophetic Moment for Shouting

    The time has come for shouting and not holding back. Shout out; do not hold back!    Lift up your voice like a trumpet! – Isaiah 58:1 The prophetic moment has arrived. The Word of God is laser focused on our day… Continue reading

  • Chariots and Horses

    Where Is Your Trust? “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.” – Psalm 20:7 I know that it is not even spring, but some folks have summer on… Continue reading

  • Not Yet — But Pressing On

    A Devotional Reflection on Philippians 3:1–12 “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.”— Philippians 3:12 (KJV) There… Continue reading

  • Got You Covered

    It was a moment of embarrassment, the kind that wakes you up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night when you dreamt it: Lunch was done; conversation paused, the wait person dropped off the check. It was… Continue reading