Posted by dwhetter |
Jesus can’t be serious, can he? Turn the other cheek? If someone wants your coat, give it to him or her? If you are forced to carry someone’s backpack for a mile, don’t stop there, carry it an extra mile for them? Love your enemies and pray for them? This is ridiculous, after all, when it comes to God’s law, God did say, “Anyone who maims another shall suffer the same injury…
Dear Salem Family,
As Meghan pointed out in her recent letter, last fall our stewardship campaign was entitled “Now is the Time.” It was a call for all of us to get active in the mission to which God has called us here at Salem. As we moved into the Season of Advent, our focus switched to a “Time to Wait,” for in Advent the church focuses on how we can actively wait for Christ…
Posted by dwhetter |
My guess is that most of us have an image of God in our heads. I suspect that our image of God is based a lot on what we have come to expect from God. For some of us, we might think of someone like a judge. You know, a person in a robe, sitting at a desk with a gavel. In the U.S. we might think of God like a Supreme Court Justice. Still others might imagine an old man with a white beard,…
Salem Family,
We went through the season of Advent, a time of waiting. Waiting for the birth of Christ, waiting for the joy. A time of preparation for our Lord. Our stewardship theme has been, “Now is the Time.” After we’ve gone through this season of waiting, now is the time. After the commitment the congregation made at the Annual Meeting, the theme, “Now is the Time”…
Posted by dwhetter |
If you remember, last week we began reading what we call Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. John had been arrested and Jesus had begun his ministry and started to call his disciples. He had begun traveling around Galilee, “teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people” (Matthew 4:23). And as he did this,…
In baptism, we are claimed by our creator through water and word. Our family and congregation make a commitment to bring us up in the faith and teach us the scriptures. In confirmation, we study the scriptures and make our own profession of faith as we affirm our baptism. Unfortunately, I don’t remember the chapter on how to live in an imperfect world while also following a radical, loving, and…
Posted by dwhetter |
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, who abides in which of us. Amen.
Let me set the scene for you. Jesus had recently learned that John had been arrested. Once he had heard this news, he decided to move way from Nazareth to Capernaum, about 60 miles northeast. Capernaum was a seaside village on the north end of the…
Posted by hlewis |
This Sunday will be the last time Tyler Garrison plays guitar in our band. He is pursuing his dream of traveling abroad, and heading to Prague next week to become certified to teach English as a second language. I am so happy for him, and feel incredibly blessed to have worked with him for 3 years at Salem.
Did you know that Salem…
Posted by dwhetter |
I don’t know about you, but last Sunday was not a good day for me. First of all, I never like not having worship on Sunday and when I had to cancel worship because of the forecast, it put me in a bad mood. Then to make matters worse, I had to watch the Chiefs loose that night and get knocked out of the playoffs. The Chiefs had such a promising year going, they went 12-4 in the regular…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
This past Sunday, January 15, was not a very good day for me. Because of the forecast of the impending ice storm and fear of icy streets and dangerous driving conditions the ice might cause, we decided it would be best to cancel worship (along with about 600 other churches in the KC area).
Now, I am sure for some it was a nice excuse to stay…