Learning to be Full of Grace and Truth

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30

A smoke ring of love! Today Mandi and I celebrate our 30th anniversary. We have been through a lot together, and (being totally honest) we’ve put each other through a lot. Marriage, I have been learning (kind of like 2020), is not for the faint of heart! I have been told by some that marriage is war; and by others that marriage is a sentence of death. “A man isn’t complete” they say, “until…

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My Father's Cloak

My Father’s Cloak

On January 27, 2020, Jesus brought my Dad Home to be with Him. He was 83. This is an edited version of the memorial service we had for my Dad on February 15th at West Church in Haverhill MA. We felt like we had to edit out the hymns that were sung because the sound did not come through so well on them. So what we have here is All of us who spoke, starting with Pastor Chris Zielger, then Anna…

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I Am Chuck: The Epic Conclusion to the “Lessons from Chuck” Trilogy

I Am Chuck: The Epic Conclusion to the “Lessons from Chuck” Trilogy

Do you ever look around at your life and marvel at where you are? I don’t mean with a sense of pride at your marvelous accomplishments and well-earned success where you look at yourself in the mirror and smile, “Well played my friend, well played!” I mean the other kind of marveling. The kind where you look at where you are in life and wonder that you are not anywhere near where you thought you…

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Want To Stand Out? What makes Christians stand out is not so much the absence of sin, but the presence and practice of forgiveness in…

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If You Really Want It, Give It (Part 2)

If You Really Want It, Give It (Part 2)

For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins (Matthew 6:14-15).

There are people who think Matthew 6:14-15 is one of the scariest passages in the Bible. It seems in this passage God’s forgiveness is conditional. If we will not forgive, God will not forgive us either.…

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If You Really Want It, Give It (Part 1)

If You Really Want It, Give It (Part 1)

Today we are going to look at a short passage from the Sermon on the Mount. This sermon, recorded in Matthew chapters 5-7, is Jesus’ longest recorded sermon. It is a very practical—focusing not on explaining doctrine but on directing practice. Let me give you a quick summary of it so we can get a clear idea of the context of 6:14-15.

Chapter 5 begins with Jesus describing the characteristics of…

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Getting Some Rest

There is something about sitting on my porch looking out at the perennial garden along the back of our house. When it is warm enough to be outside, it is my favorite place to be. I woke up extremely early for me today. I have been (for the most part) sitting out here enjoying the colors, sounds, and smells of nature from my worn but sweet comfy chair with iced coffee and a fine cigar close at…

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Lessons from Mediocre Coffee

Lessons from Mediocre Coffee

There was a time in my life when I was not picky about my coffee. Apparently—for better or worse—that time has passed. I know this because I just made myself a cup of Folgers, and it just is not doing it for me. Have I become a coffee snob? Good grief I hope not! I am not one of those people who is into all the fancy frappachinos or the latest lattes, and I am not quivering with anticipation for…

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Lessons from Losing Power

Lessons from Losing Power

So last Monday evening we had a big thunder storm pass through. I love watching thunder storms from our porch, it is one of my favorite things…so relaxing to me! About half way though the storm, the lights flickered and went out. We still had an hour or so of daylight left, so we all stayed out on the porch. At first, the girls were enjoying it—experiencing the storm, getting candles ready, and…

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Yup…

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Lessons from Clogs

What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Romans 7:24-25, NIV).

I have a confession to make. When it comes to doing home maintenance I seem to be cursed. Aside from changing light bulbs, nothing is as easy as it seems. Case in point. Right now I have a clog in the kitchen sink. You would…

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Lessons from a Day Gone Wrong

Lessons from a Day Gone Wrong

Last Wednesday I had a long hard day at work. One of the things that made it hard was knowing that night I was going to go to a wake that night for a person I knew in my line of work who had passed unexpectedly. I had arranged child care for the girls, but Anna was having a hard time again and asked me to come home directly from work. I did. She was headed towards another breakdown.

Mandi and I…

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More Than A Glass

More Than A Glass

‘Tis very true that all grace and goodness in the hearts of the saints is entirely from God: and they are universally and immediately dependent on him for it. But yet these persons are mistaken, as to the manner of God’s communicating himself and his Holy Spirit, in imparting saving grace to the soul. He gives his Spirit to be united to the faculties of the soul, and to dwell there after the…

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Lessons from Rachel’s Phone

Lessons from Rachel’s Phone

A while back, I got my daughter Rachel a prepaid phone. She’s at the age where we want her to have a way to get in contact with her mom and I when she is over her friend’s house, or when she needs something and we were not at home.

One of the great things about getting the prepaid phone was that if I opened a prepaid line, the phone itself was free. That deal made it easy for us to make it…

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The Things Kids Say…

The Things Kids Say…

Me: Anna come here and wash my feet.

Anna: Um, no. I’m not Jesus.

Hmmm. Kudos on her quick witty retort to my tongue in cheek question. She made me laugh. It’s a good thing I wasn’t drinking any coffee at the time or things might have been messy.

The more I thought about it, the more interesting I thought her response was. She clearly identifies Jesus as being someone who would have said, “Sure,…

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Lessons from Binge Watching Classic X-Files

Lessons from Binge Watching Classic X-Files

I have a confession to make. I have been binge watching The X-Files. Not the new ones, the old ones…or should I say, the “classic ones.” Not that I have anything against the new seasons. In fact, I thought the best way to get all ready to watch the new ones was to start from the beginning. Right now I’m in season 2…

Soooo much has already happened! Both Mulder and Scully (the main characters in…

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Tuesday Thoughts

As we were singing in worship this past Sunday at our church, a noticed that my daughter Anna was sitting down and looking very defeated. I honestly don’t remember the specific song we were singing at the time, but she was not feeling it. It just didn’t seem like the promises and praises it was extoling God for were true, at least not for her.

Have you ever felt that way? Sometimes I get the…

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