By Don Westerberg-- Recently my mind has been reflecting on the idea of loss. Some of this has been prompted by the fact that my wife and I have lost dear friends to the pandemic over the past year. In addition, after 34 years as an educator in the same local high school, my position at that...
By Janet Nordlund-- This Sunday we get to be all together as a whole Jesus faith family in “one room” – a room that is big enough for 100 of us to gather in our auditorium and be joined by the rest of us gathering virtually from home!! We value people of all ages and...
By Sara Bettinger-- It was one of those days at the grocery store where there were only two check out lanes open, and I was standing in one of the lines on a “6 feet apart” sticker that snaked down the cereal aisle. I was already taking deep breaths, planning how I would race to my...
By Dick Middlebrooks-- "Martha , Martha , you are worried and bothered about so many things…” (Luke 10:41) I really appreciated Pastor Wayne’s message two weeks ago, Simple Discipleship, where he challenged us to live out the Great Commission in a more purposeful way. We...
By Marcus Davis-- Years ago, I joined some friends on a Saturday afternoon in midsummer to float down a river on tubes and rafts. The weather was warm, and the cool water felt refreshing as we floated down twists and turns in what was generally calm, but moving, water. At one point in the...
By Laurel Nordlund-- I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one. Ezekiel 22:30 NIV This verse almost takes my breath away. Can it be that once again this nation...
By Caris Power-- In 2019 BC (Before COVID), I landed the role of “Silly Girl #2” in a local musical production of Beauty and the Beast. This was my first on-stage acting role I had held since my glorious elementary school years. I had a handful of lines and was also part of the...
By Jack Won-- As I reflect on the year 2020 and ponder what 2021 might bring, I thought of fear, anxiety, stress, frustration, fatigue, lack of "normalcy." I thought of our nation going through unparalleled social and political divide and unrest. The Holy Spirit impressed upon me these three...
By Joyce Wachsmuth-- Doug and I were given these two ornaments for Christmas, one with Santa Claus wearing a mask and the other with us using masks with hand sanitizer and toilet paper next to us! We chuckled when we received them, because it did represent 2020! As I sit down this morning...
By Greg Lunsford-- Remember 2020? That was a wild ride. There is something about taking last year's calendar off the wall and replacing it with the new year’s calendar. Taking down the old calendar typically is a reminder of the appointments, dinner with friends and family...