It's a fundamental principle of the universe that names have meaning. Our Bible study in Ruth has now discussed the meanings of the names in chapter one: Naomi ("pleasant") becomes Mara ("bitter"); Elimelek ("My God Is King"); Mahlon ("sickness"); Kilion ("wasting"); Orpah (possibly "fawn" or "neck"); and Ruth ("friend"). We all know "Immanuel" is "God with us." My own name, Christopher, is Greek for "Christ-bearer." Names help us call something what it is; they're marks of i

I like watching things with ministers in them. From Ted Crilly to Adam Smallbone, from Pastor Dave to Reverend Fordwick, I enjoy fictional preachers. One of my favorites, though, is the Rev. Ford from Pollyanna. I just have to feel for him. A little girl shows up and turns all of his sermons upside-down, and he goes from fire and brimstone to "826 happy passages." I think most preachers fall on one of those two sides by default. Many of us are quick to preach hellfire, and ma

Yesterday I finished my sermon series on the Book of Acts. It was something I had wanted to do for a while, and I believe it was what was called for during those weeks. Now, however, we turn our collective gaze to the days and sermons ahead. Let me announce, then, for the first time, what the next sermon series is: There isn't one. Series are great for what they do, and what they do is systematically cover books or topics addressed in Scripture. Since I've been at RSCC, I've

The fourth movement of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 has been popularized in the "Ode to Joy," or, as it appears in countless hymnals (including our own), "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee." Henry van Dyke added the lyrics to Beethoven's tune, and now we all sing, "Joyful, joyful, we adore thee, / God of glory, Lord of love; / Hearts unfold like flow'rs before Thee, / Opening to the sun above." Aside from just being a really catchy tune, the song hits a major theme: our worship of

Tonight wraps up our Wednesday evening series on "Frequently Asked Questions." For the last three months, we've paused our regular Bible study to take a look at some of the questions you all wanted to address, the things that kept coming up in your everyday lives. Just to recap, in thirteen weeks (counting tonight), we will have covered: Homosexuality Islam and Christianity The Lord's Supper (which took three weeks!) Baptism Noah's Flood Evolution/Origins/Genesis Predestinati

Next Sunday (the 25th) will be our last week in the sermon series on the Acts of the Apostles. Acts shows us the practices and teaching of the earliest Christians, and it's critical for us to know how the New Testament Church functioned. Many of their practices are still in use today unchanged, and the others have just been adapted slightly to fit our times and our places. Acts is the last history book in the Bible; there aren't any other books of stories and narratives to te

History tells us that one reason we discovered the earth was round was the way ships disappeared over the horizon. Instead of just shrinking in the distance like they were moving in a straight line, people noticed that first the hull vanished, then the masts slowly sank, and finally the tops of the sails disappeared -- like something moving downhill or over a curve. And when they were sailing into port, the ships appeared in reverse order: the tops of the sails, then the mast

The title of this post is actually a song title as well, and one you may know (whether you realize it or not). It translates from Latin as "Give Us Peace." It's been in use as a prayer for centuries, and it's a simple request each of us can pray daily: "Dona nobis pacem, Domine." Give us peace, Lord. As I write this today, the headlines are swirling in chaos. A shooter opened fire on congressional Republicans at a baseball field. A huge apartment structure in London, U.K. bur

Vacation Bible School begins at 6pm tonight, and let me tell you, the church is transformed. The sanctuary looks like an outdoor observatory. Classrooms are planetariums. Walls are covered in stars, and the fellowship hall looks like it's about to play host to two or three different things at once. MistyJo, Cammie, Pam, and a lot of the rest of you have been hard at work for a month to prepare for this week, and I thank you for everything you've done to make this a great week

As many of you know, I have a black thumb -- the opposite of a green thumb. I have killed every plant I have ever attempted to grow. Right now, in a sort of last-ditch effort to break the pattern, I have a flower box in which I've planted marigolds. So far, I have nine plants up -- a record! But every one of them looks to be on death's doorstep, so don't be surprised if I soon tell you, "I've killed another nine flowers." Having a black thumb can sometimes make it difficult t