6-20-2026

Good Morning!

     Matthew 16:6; “Jesus said to them, “Watch and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”

        It is often called “herd mentality” or “mob mentality.”  It is a social and psychological phenomenon which describes when a group of people begins to act in a fashion that may be different than how they would act individually.  We see it most often on the school yard.  All of a sudden, a group of kids decide to pick on one child.  The group just gangs up and is merciless to one child.  Many have experienced this at one time or another.  It may have been on either side of the interaction.  You may have been the victim or you may have been one of the perpetrators.  This event seems to grow beyond any sense of logic or reason.

    Some scientists think that when a group begins to act in this fashion, that one of the first things to go away is personal responsibility.  People tend to see their personal beliefs and actions to be overruled and controlled by the mob.  We simply go along with the crowd and as someone begins to escalate the problem, many seem to just go along even escalating the event as it occurs.  Many scientists feel that each person can deny personal culpability; it frees the individual from personal guilt.

    When Jesus was speaking of the “leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees,” he was speaking specifically of their false teachings.  It also can speak to the way that sin, once it begins to grow, can easily consume those who are either not paying attention or are easily swayed.  So, if we are in a group and gossip begins; it becomes easy for us to join in, add to the lies and falsehoods, and perpetuate the pain.  Be sure to always remember that sin causes pain to all those involved.  Sin is something that can and does grow easily if we let it.  It can grow until it crowds out all of our faithful actions. 

    Jesus warns us against this.  He warns us that sin, left unchecked, grows and grows until it destroys all around it.   Sin, when viewed as harmless or “not that big of a deal” grows until it reaches the point where many are harmed.  This is why Jesus continually encourages us to be watchful; to be alert to what is going on around us, what is being said, on what is happening.  Sin can start so small and mushroom so large before we even have time to think.  Sin is stronger and faster than we are; our only hope is to avoid it.  The only way to avoid it is to cling to Christ through the faith that he gives us.

    We are never stronger than sin.  We should never think we can play with it or toy with it.  Sin is only destructive and painful.  Our only chance of avoiding the leaven of sin is to cling to the cross of Christ.

Father, lead me to cling to your wondrous grace.  Lead me to hold onto the cross of Christ.  Keep me from the enticement of sin.  Be with those who are being tempted and are weakening.  Give them the strength to stand up to the struggles of sin.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret        

6-19-2026

Good Morning!

     Luke 10: 2; “And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

    Are you one of those people who look in awe as someone does something that you just don’t see yourself doing?  Are you amazed when someone becomes a missionary, moves halfway around the world, lives in some remote part of the world in order to witness about Jesus?  Do you marvel when someone quits their job and suddenly becomes a mission person like a nurse or teacher or carpenter?  They leave a good paying job, the security they know and go to where their skills are desperately needed but definitely in a poor paying, somewhat unsafe place.

   It doesn’t even have to be this grand.  Maybe you see someone serving on a district or regional board for the church.  They have to get up and speak before large crowds and place their faith and their ideas out there where they can be attacked.  It might just be to serve as an elder in your church and you think “there is no way I could do that!” 

    We often hear that we need to “get out of our comfort zone.”  We need to “expand our horizons.”  In some ways this is true but in some ways; not so much.  It is true in that we need to live our life as a witness for Christ.  If we always shrink away, we need to strive to let our light shine.  Yet if you are one of those people who struggle doing that, then start small.  You don’t have to give up your job and move to a place you can’t pronounce.  You can start at home and at your place of work.  You can start with your children and grandchildren or your brothers and sisters or your spouse.  Then you can move to your co-workers and friends.

   The great thing is that you don’t have to be an elegant speaker; you simply need to let the love of Christ shine through.  It can be with a kind word first thing in the morning; it can be an extra dose of patience.  It can be stopping to help open a door or a simple smile.  Showing God’s love by simple acts of kindness can go a long way.  It can lead to someone asking you why you are so kind and happy.  Here is a chance to witness.  It doesn’t have to be a long theological statement.  It can simply be that with Jesus in my heart I am content with my life.  If they want a deeper answer, send them to your pastor.

   There is a lot of harvesting to do.  There are many souls who need to hear of God’s grace.  Any way that they can hear the message is important and those souls that are next door to you need it as much as someone half a world away.  God calls us to witness to everyone.  It doesn’t have to be fancy; just honest.  After that, let the Holy Spirit take over.

Father, give me the courage to be your voice.  Give me the courage to be your hands and your arms.  Let your love flow through me to those who need it the most.  Keep me alert to the times and places when I can do the most good.  In the precious name of Jesus, we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret

6-18-2026

Good Morning!

     Matthew 9:6; “But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he then said to the paralytic— “Rise, pick up your bed and go home.”

     The man was a paralytic.  We don’t know exactly what this meant but he was apparently bedridden.  His life would have been extremely difficult.  There were no drugs to help with spasms.  There was no health care system for looking after him.  He was left to rely on the kindness of his family and friends.  We don’t know if he was paralyzed from birth or if his condition was the result of an accident or an assault. 

    His life would have been one of meager existence.  It would have been difficult to call it living.  He may have gone for days without eating or being bathed.  He was probably covered with sores.  He would have been very easy to overlook.  He would have been someone who would have been considered a drag on society, less than just about anyone.  What could he do?  What did he have to offer?  Yet Jesus stopped what he was doing, took a decided effort to heal this man both physically and spiritually.

    There are many lessons for us in this story but the one we want to look at is the value of the man.  What was the value of this man?  He wasn’t producing anything for society.  He couldn’t even take care of himself let alone his family.  He simply existed and was a drain on society.  Yet Jesus stopped and healed him.  Jesus also healed a woman who bled; he raised the only son of a widow.  He healed the lepers; he healed the people who were demon possessed.  He healed people who had value.  They had value because of who they were; they were God’s creation.  They had value because of the value of the one who created them, who redeemed them and who keeps them in faith.  Their value came from God.

   Our value comes from God.  It is not what you produce.  It is not because of what you have or say.  Our value comes from God and exists because of God.  All people, all humans have value because of the creator, redeemer, and sanctifier; the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Triune God gives us value and He gives value to all human life.  Because God gives human life value, he chose to save it and not destroy it and we should do the same.

   We have value because of God’s grace.  He chose to redeem you.  He chose to love you and to redeem you from the scourge of the law and from his holy, righteous wrath.  Our value is not dependent upon what we do.  Our actions also do not devalue us either.  God’s love is pure and true and for us.  Our love for all of our brothers and sisters should also be pure and true based upon God’s value of them and not ours.  We love, not because of what others can do for us but because God first loved us and them.

Father, in you do we have all value.  Your love fulfills all the worth that we have.  Teach us to treasure all those around us.  Lead us to be the agents of your love, especially to those that the world sees as worthless.  All your children have value for all are loved by you.  In the precious name of Jesus, our Risen Savior, we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret     

6-17-2026

Good Morning!

     Hebrews 11:8; “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.”

    One of my favorite movies is “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.”  In it there is a part where Indiana Jones has to cross this huge chasm.  He is told that he must take a leap of faith to make it across.  During the scene, we can see the fear and the angst on Indiana’s face as he takes the step.  He ends up stepping onto a walkway that is unseen.  Yet I think that his expression reveals much to us about a leap of faith.

    In our verse, we read how Abraham left his home, his father and his family, his friends and the familiar surroundings of his home and left.  He took his wife, a nephew, and his possessions.  He went in the direction that God led him but Abraham wasn’t sure where he was going.  He only knew that God knew where Abraham was going and that was enough for Abraham because Abraham had faith.

    I am not sure what kind of reaction most husbands would get if they told their wives that they were packing up and moving but He didn’t know where.  I am not sure how most men would react to the call that Abraham received.  Events that truly require faith can be difficult.  When our life is going the way, we want it to go, healthy, wealthy, and wise, it can be easy to say that “I have faith.”  But what happens when life goes the other way? 

    It is at those tough times, those terrible times, those horrific times, which cause us to feel the angst of faith.  When things go the way, they are supposed to go, happy and healthy children, successful job, loving spouse, and everything else we want; we can say “I’ve been blessed and I have faith.”  Yet when God peels away the veneers of stuff that we use to measure happiness or contentment and we are left with only Him to cling to; faith can be both fearful and angst filled.  We look and don’t see the path; we may not even be sure of the direction that we are travelling.

    Yet God tells us to trust in Him.  We can look at all the promises that he has already kept, we can look at the total faithfulness of his actions, we can look to his incredible grace already poured out on us and we can see that we can and should do just that; we should trust in His promises.  Faith can be described as hugging back.  God picks you up and holds you close to his chest so you can hear his heart and feel the warmth of his love.  Faith is hugging back and thus clinging tightly to God and his incredible mercy.  So, we may waver, we may have twinges of fear and angst but we still take that step of faith fully confident that God has placed the walkway beneath our feet to keep us safe I his loving arms.

Gracious Father, strengthen my faith.  Lead me down the path of your righteousness that I may grow in my faith that I may cling even tighter to you.  Be with all those who struggle with life’s challenges at this time.  Give them the courage to take the step of faith that we all need to take.  Guide them gently in their ways.  In the precious name of Jesus our Risen Savior we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret    

6-16-2026

Good Morning!

            Romans 8:1; “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

      One of the saddest conversations that I have ever been part of was with a young lady who was bemoaning her future.  She was a good student who studied intensely and worked hard in class.  She was a musician and a decent athlete.  She also was a very nice young lady.  She had a scholastic scholarship waiting for her at the college she was attending.  Yet she was looking for and waiting for something catastrophic to occur.  She kept telling me that she didn’t deserve the good things that were happening; something bad was bound to happen.

    She had this sense that somehow, she was unworthy of what she had.  She had a lot of explanations as to why she didn’t deserve what she was getting.  “The school was small so it distorted her class ranking;” “her teacher helped her fill out her scholarship papers;” “she just guessed the right answers.”  She lived a life where she felt incredible self-condemnation.  She felt that she was completely unworthy and worried what would happen when the rest of the world “figured that out.”

    Many of us live with this deep seeded fear.  We do not believe that we should have what we have.  We hear a voice that tells us that we are not good as parents, as a spouse, as a child, or worker or co-worker.  We hear the voice tell us what a disappointment we truly are and when everyone else figures this out and the truth comes out; then we know that we are the loser.

   This is why this message from Paul is so wonderful.  There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.  God does not condemn.  If you are hearing the voice that condemns you, that attacks you it is from the devil and the old sinful nature in us.  It is not God telling you that you are worthless or unworthy.

    God sent Jesus to die for you.  He sent his only Son to suffer for you.  He did this so that you would be made worthy.  He did this to give you the peace that comes with the knowledge that you are his redeemed child.  He seeks not to condemn but to give you salvation and to give you hope.  God does not condemn you rather he frees you from sin and from the condemnation of sin.

    This is a great blessing but one that we must remember and we must focus on God’s voice of forgiveness rather than the devil’s voice of attack.  We are free from the slavery of sin and the bondage of the law.  We can live a life that is not filled with condemnation, self or otherwise.  We are free because of his grace.  We are free to live a life of joy and peace which he gives to us.

Father of grace, in you we have hope and in you we have no condemnation.  Give us the courage to stand up to the devil’s lies.  Be with those who are especially tormented by the devil’s attacks.  Give them peace so that they may rest secure in your loving arms.  In the precious name of Jesus, our Risen Savior we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret     

6-15-2026

Good Morning!

   Colossians 3:13; “bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.”

    It is always somewhat humorous to read an article or a study that “supports” the truths of the Bible.  In a study in the “Journal of Behavioral Medicine” people who forgive others, and do so unconditionally, tend to live longer and healthier lives than people who do not.  They listed many different ways that forgiving others is healthy for you.

    When we forgive others, our stress level is lower.  We can sleep better.  We are not in the angry mode which produces a chemical imbalance in our bodies.  It helps your heart.  It strengthens your immune system.  It strengthens your healthy relationships. 

    Probably the greatest physical benefit is the reduction of stress.  Stress, when it occurs over a long-term period, can damage your mental health and can lead to ulcers and other physical problems.  One of the strong ones is the lack of good quality sleep.  Sleep deprivation is a huge damaging condition.  Stress leads to many immune and cardio problems.  Not forgiving leads to stress and stress is not healthy.

    God has shown us, given us, and guaranteed us a better way.  He teaches us that forgiveness is the best way.  He shows us that to forgive is the healthier choice.  It is healthier in that forgiving others gives you peace.  In part because it puts you in charge of how you react to others.  When you forgive you no longer keep score in your head and heart.  You do not have to remember who you are upset with and why.  You are not calculating how to even the score.  You can let the pain of the sin leave you and you can be filled with God’s peace.

    It may be difficult at times, forgiving a spouse or other family member may require more time than the stranger at Walmart.  Yet God encourages to take the time and to make the effort to forgive as we are forgiven.  We may have to go to God in prayer often asking for the strength to forgive; but forgiveness is necessary.   Forgiveness frees us from the slavery of sin.  Slavery to both being the sinner and being the one who retains the sin and thus carries the pain.  Strive to forgive.  Make that your top goal in life; to forgive those sins which are committed against you.  By forgiving, you engender a more peaceful life, a life in which you are more content.  It will make your relationships stronger and help to build community with the people that you deal with on a daily basis.  Strive to forgive as God forgives you.  It will be difficult because God is perfect and we are not but we must daily strive to forgive.

Father of all forgiveness, empower me to forgive.  Strengthen me that I might rise above this world’s temptation to retain sins.  Give me the peace to forgive and the peace that I receive because I forgive.  Be with those who are especially burdened by the struggle to forgive. Give them the wisdom to forgive and to be relieved of the pain that results from holding onto sins.   Lead your Church to show the example of your forgiving grace.  In the precious name of Jesus, our Risen Savior we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret       

6-14-2026

Good Morning!

      Romans 8:26; “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”

    Sometimes there are no words.  Sometimes we experience things that leave us in such a mess that we don’t know what to say.  There are times when we face situations and we just don’t know what to say; what to say to each other, what to say to God.  These events may be sudden like an unexpected death or a sudden change in the health of someone we love or not knowing what tomorrow will bring.  We are left stunned and don’t know what to say.  Sometimes it is just a sudden change in our surroundings.  It might be a divorce or a loss of our home or some major economic event.  What do we say? We aren’t even sure of how the story will end, what do we do when we have no words?

      It can take the form of unexpected arguments or battles that we don’t see coming and don’t know how to respond.  It can be two or three hitting us at the same time.  What do we say?  Perhaps you are a single parent at your wits end.  There has been one too many struggles.  Money runs tight, demands of the children grow, the house needs work, the car needs work, you need rest but there is none in sight and now there is trouble at school.  What do we say?  Where do we go?

    The world and our sinful nature want you to think you are all alone.  That the battles we face can and will destroy us.  We feel that there is nothing to do, we can no longer face the struggle; there is hope.  Even in this wordlessness, we are not alone and we are not without hope.  The greater our weakness, the greater is God’s grace present in our life.  Paul wrote that God’s grace is made great in our weakness.  In our weakness, we can only turn to Christ, look to him and cry.  The greatness of God is that is all we need to do.  From that point on, the Holy Spirit will pray for us, pray with us, and take our pain upon himself for us.

    So, if we feel pain, seek healing, desire peace, or comfort, we do so with God’s Spirit praying on our behalf.  We do so with God’s comforting agent being with us through the whole event.  The God who loves you so much that He sent his Son to die for you will never abandon you.  He will never turn away from you; he will never close his ear or heart to you.  He will take the pain of your sorrow and give you peace.  He will never leave you without hope.  Even when we can speak no words, God will never leave you.  He will always hold you close, like a parent comforts a crying child, God’s grace is upon you.

Heavenly Father, there are times when I can find no words to express my pain or my fear or my sorrow.  Yet I know that I have comfort and hope in you.  Lift me up that I may see the light of your salvation.  Keep me safe and warm in your loving arms.  Be with those who are especially silent at this time.  Give ear to their voice that they may be comforted.  In the precious name of Jesus, our Risen Savior we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret