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December 3

Wednesday, December 3rd, 2025

“STILL THE ONE!”

That is my sermon theme for 2026. I will try to have every sermon follow that guide-that Jesus is still the ONE! 

My first sermon for 2026 will focus on why Jesus deserves to be “The One.” I will be using John 1:1-15 and Hebrews 1:1-14. Peter said, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God.” (Jn. 6:68-69) The passage from John 1:1-2 is the focus of my thoughts today. “In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God.”

For years people have tried to picture or draw pictures of Jesus. I remember when He was pictured as a blue-eyed blonde. As if. Middle Eastern blue-eyed blonde? Yeah, right. Then there are those who have pictured Him as this passively contented man, staring dreamily into the eyes of sheep He is holding. Again. Yeah right. But you know, the picture of Jesus we are given in the Bible has NOTHING to do with physical presence, except what Isaiah says, “He had no form or majesty that we should look at him.” In other words, His physical looks did not draw people to Him. There was something much deeper. It was Jesus, the Man, who drew the attention. 

Let’s consider that for a moment. Read again John 1:1-2. This Jesus was not created. The child in the manger was the very same person who created the heavens and put the stars in the sky. Ironic, isn’t it? He created the star that led the wise men to find Him and to worship Him. It is puzzling for sure: He was with God and yet, He was God.  I’ll not go into detail about the Greek words and tenses used. I barely understand it myself and I took 3 years of Greek (‘course that was over 50 years ago). I’m a little rusty these days. 🙂 

The Christ we celebrate this and every Christmas has no starting point in time. He always was. He is God now. He will be God forever.  I don’t understand it all. What I do understand is that I am called to worship Him. Join me this season won’t you? 

{All Scripture from the NLT}

 

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December 2

Tuesday, December 2nd, 2025

You are going to hear it…I guarantee it! It has become a staple of every Christmas season since I-don’t-know-when.  No, it is not anything about that fruitcake you will get. 🙂 And no, it is not about watching Enter Sandman by Metallica being played with Christmas lights displayed on houses (although that is quite impressive). So, what is it?

“Jesus is the Reason for the Season.” 

Yes, I know the sentiment behind the saying.  That phrase first gained popularity in the 1970s as a Christian response to the growing commercialization and secularization of Christmas. The sentiment behind it has been around a whole lot longer.  Some research I did shows the saying first appeared on a billboard in the 1950s, but it really caught on in the ’70s. The saying itself is right up there with “Keep Christ in Christmas.”

But is it true? 

I am going to be a bit cantankerous here but the answer is No.  I know. I know. Someone somewhere just gasped at my calloused response to a “biblical saying.” No matter how much we want it to be true it is not. I realize the sentiment behind it and I recognize the effort of those who simply wanted the focus of Christmas to be on Christ (and so do I), but the saying is not biblical. In 1980 Christian singer, David Meece, released a song called “We are the Reason.” The lyrics went like this: “We are the reason He gave His life/We are the reason He suffered and died/To a world that was lost, He gave all He could give/To show us the reason to live.” THOSE lyrics got it right! He came that we might have life.  I am aware that you may thinking that I’m grasping at straws. Perhaps. But perhaps not. The Bible is very clear that we are all sinners incapable of saving ourselves. We needed a sinless Savior who would willingly offer His life in our place. We were the reason Jesus came and died. It is that coming we celebrate every Christmas, but we must never forget the WHY behind it all. 

Instead of saying, “Jesus is the Reason for the Season” perhaps it is more accurate and biblical to say, “We are the reason for the season; He is the meaning behind the season.” 

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December 1

Monday, December 1st, 2025

All year long the church I pastor has been using Everyday Gospel Devotional by Paul David Tripp as a daily guide and of course, devotional. Each week I have been preaching on the Scripture we read from the previous week. That means that I have read each devotional twice. Once to read ahead and prepare my sermons, and the second time to read each day along with the others. It has been quite the undertaking from my standpoint of reading and preparing and presenting the Scripture each week. Usually large blocks of Scripture have to be covered. It has also been quite an undertaking for those who have stayed with it throughout the year. There is a certain amount of discipline required to stick with a devotional program that requires reading a devotion but also the related Scriptures. Often those daily Scripture readings were 2-3-4 (sometimes more) chapters in length. 

We are on the home stretch starting today. One month until the end of 2025. (Today’s Scripture reading today, for example, was Galatians 1-3). I ran into a conundrum though. As I prepared ahead of time, I realized that my normal fare of preaching on the birth of Christ during December would not happen. Like I mentioned to someone recently, “How can I preach on the birth of Christ while finishing up Revelation?” 🙂  I know this Sunday I will be using Philippians 2:5-11 during my message. It speaks of Christ being willing to give up all He had to come to earth to be born as a human. Well, that is one Scripture that fits the Christmas theme. But there isn’t a whole lot of any others. I mean, I have already preached on Isaiah 7:14: “A virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means God with us).”  Or Isaiah 9:6 where it says, “He will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.”  (That was back in July!). Christmas in July works! 🙂 

So, what about now? December? One that I suspect many of you cannot participate in is scheduled for Sunday night, December 21st. I am calling it “A Christmas Night of Worship.” The church will be gathering for a special time of worship that will include Christmas songs (old and new); special music by two of our ladies; a short meditation, communion, and a closing candlelight time of praise and prayer. 

The other is here. Each day I will be writing a Christmas devotional that is designed for my heart to focus on the Christmas story. Then I would like to share my heart with yours. I’d like to ask you to join me and invite others to do so as well. Friends. Colleagues. Family. Trust me when I say it is not to inflate my blog readers. IT IS TO FOCUS ON THE TRUE MEANING OF THE CHRISTMAS SEASON: THE BIRTH OF CHRIST.  I hope you will join me. 

{All Scripture from the NLT}

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November 26

Wednesday, November 26th, 2025

To put your mind in tune with the true spirit of Thanksgiving, I thought I would share this with you. I have no clue where it comes from:

HOW TO OBSERVE THANKSGIVING

Count your blessings instead of your crosses; 

Count your gains instead of your losses.

Count your joys instead of your woes;

Count your friends instead of your foes.

Count your smiles instead of your tears;

Count your courage instead of your fears.

Count your full years instead of your lean;

Count your kind deeds instead of your mean.

Count your health instead of your wealth;

Count on God instead of yourself. 

 

Take to heart the words to the old hymn:

Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God has done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your many blessings, see what God has done.

May your Thanksgiving be a day of meaning and may you recover the true blessings of being thankful. I will see you, Lord willing, on Monday. Have a grateful and fantastic Thanksgiving (and don’t eat too much). 🙂

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November 25

Tuesday, November 25th, 2025

Spoiler Alert! Continuation of previous post.

In yesterday’s post I gave three suggestions for making Thanksgiving more than a meal. I should have also added “making it more than just watching 100 hours of football.”  Yeah, I know. Sl-i-i-ight exaggeration there but still on the money. I must be an oddball though. I have NO desire to sit in front of a TV screen watching 22 men who desperately need rest being watched by thousands of people who desperately need exercise. (I heard that somewhere before). 🙂  Oh yeah…back from my rabbit trail. Three suggestions:

First, open your eyes to all you have to be thankful for.  I was given a quote by someone years ago that I recently found: 

Your best day is never so good that you don’t need God’s grace; your worst day is never so bad that you are beyond God’s grace. (Jerry Bridges)

Second, be thankful in the good and bad times.  Life is hard, without a doubt, and comes at us from all sides. That which happens to us can either tear us down or build us up. 

Third (and I said I would comment on this one further today): accept the gifts that seem imperfect. I suggested yesterday that we should thank God for our full stomach; there are those with empty ones. Thank God for your lumpy bed; there are those who wish they had one. Thank God for your warm house; there are those who wish they had one to come home to. Thank God for the clothes on your back (even though they are not designer); there are those who wish they had your hand-me-downs. Thank God for your family; there are those who wish they had one.  And, of course, be thankful for the freedom to worship as we please in this country; there are those who have none. 

Near the end of the movie, It’s a Wonderful Life, Clarence tells George, “See George, you really did have a wonderful life.”  Perhaps that is something we can tell ourselves this Thanksgiving: “I really do have a wonderful life.” 

Okay. Quiz time: What movie do you think I plan to watch this Thursday while riding my bike??  🙂 

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November 24

Monday, November 24th, 2025

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that the Thanksgiving holiday is this week. In the spirit of that holiday, I read the following story/joke and thought I would share it with you:

Perhaps you have heard the story of how Mother Teresa died and went to heaven. One day God asked her if she was hungry. She replied, “I could eat.” So God opened a can of tuna, reached for a chunk of rye bread, and they shared a meal together. While eating she looked down into hell and saw the people devouring huge steaks, lobster, shrimp, chicken and pastries. Curious but deeply trusting, Mother Teresa said nothing. The next day it was the same scenario all over again. Meanwhile, she saw the big throng eating caviar, lamb, truffles and chocolate. Still she said nothing. The following day the same ritual happened only this time she couldn’t contain herself any longer. “God, I’m grateful to be in heaven with you, but those in the other place eat like emperors and kings, but here in heaven all I get is this tuna and rye bread. I just don’t understand.” God sighed and said, “Let’s be honest. For just two people does it pay to cook?” 🙂

When I first read that I didn’t know what to think, but then I began to think about Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is more than just making a meal. I’m not even talking about the holiday itself, although that can be the catalyst for what needs to happen.

First, open your eyes to all you have to be thankful for. Thank God for your full stomach; there are  those with empty ones. Thank God for your lumpy bed; there are those who wish they had one. Thank God for your warm house; there are  those who wish they had one to go home to. Thank God for the clothes on your back; there are those who wish they had your hand-me-downs. Thank God for your family; there are those with none. Thank God for the freedom of worship; there are those who hide in fear. 

Second, be thankful in the good and the bad times. Life is hard and comes at us from all sides. Some go through a year with nary a scratch, while others are battered and bruised. I lost my best friend two months ago after an 18 month battle with a glioblastoma. But I know where he is and I look forward to the reunion. Sad? Sure. But grateful I met him in 2017. My life is richer. But Job was right when he said that “Rain falls on the just and the unjust.” No one is exempt. 

Third, accept the gifts that seem imperfect. (More on that tomorrow). 

Set your heart right by being thankful. You don’t need a special day for that. 

 

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November 20

Thursday, November 20th, 2025

A quote attributed to Edgar Allan Poe goes like this: “Believe only half of what you see, and nothing that you hear.”  

That quote reminds us that not everything we see is believable and much of what we hear needs to be discarded.  I parted from Poe slightly because there are some things we hear that are true. What we need when we hear things is DISCERNMENT. 

If you look up “discernment” you will find it means “the ability to judge well.”  To the follower of Christ it carries a deeper meaning: “to see with a critical eye what is true and what is false.” Discernment is what the apostle John is speaking about when he says, “Test the spirits to see if they are from God.” (I John 4:1).  Let me put it in my simpler terms: not everything said to be from God is from God. Paul warned the Ephesian elders in Acts 20 that many are false teachers who are vicious wolves that want to come in and deceive the flock (v.20).

I recently listened to a podcast by Alisa Childers where she spoke about truth and the lies of a very popular podcaster (and no, it is not Joe Rogan). This person’s podcast is filled with conspiracy theories, lies, innuendos, and even unbiblical ideas (a certain dead person appeared to this person in a dream, for example). It is gossip and hate and accusations that need to be “unfollowed.”  If the legacy media were spouting off these lies (which they do) we would simply denounce them and walk away. But for some reason all discernment of this person and the lies has gone out the window.  You might be wondering, “Who in the world is this person?” I refuse to use this person’s name because it would give a platform and notoriety that is not deserved (at least acceptance of this person). 

I’m much more concerned about the lack of discernment many so-called followers of Christ exhibit, and this case, many of them women. This podcaster has got a cult-like following and it saddens me that so many are “Christian” women. Listen to what Proverbs says:

“There are six things the Lord hates-no, seven things he detests: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that kill the innocent, a heart that plots evil…a false witness who pours out lies…” (6:16-19) 

“The mouth of the godly person gives wise advice, but the tongue that deceives will be cut off. The lips of the godly speak helpful words, but the mouth of the wicked speaks perverse words.” (10:31-32) 

“Truthful words stand the test of time, but lies are soon exposed.” 12:19) 

“The tongue of the wise makes knowledge appealing, but the mouth of a fool belches out foolishness.” (15:2) 

There are more. I encourage you to read Proverbs for yourself and highlight what you find concerning speech. In the meantime, practice discernment. 

(All Scripture from the New Living Translation) 

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November 19

Wednesday, November 19th, 2025

Touch a life. Change a life. 

I have to admit that has somewhat been my philosophy that I never wrote down. Until now.  I’m writing it because of something that happened yesterday. A little bit of background will help. I have been visiting the mother (I’ll call her Jane) of a lady in the church who began coming sometime in 2024.  Jane had a stroke, spent some time in the hospital and was released to a rehab hospital where they did wonders with her! But her time there ended and they found a nursing home that did rehab. I have tried to visit at least once or twice a week just to stay in touch. She also likes me to pray for and with her. 

Last Saturday was my first chance to visit Jane in her new digs and when I got there they were preparing for lunch. Sitting at her table was a man (I’ll call him James) not much older than me-very lucid, very intelligent, and very talkative. I missed one. He was also very caring. As I sat to talk with Jane, I also struck up a conversation with James. It seems like James didn’t like it that Jane often sat alone eating, so he left his seat and came to sit with Jane at her table. James had an artificial knee (like me) that got infected. One month later it still has not cleared up. (I’ll not tell you anymore of that since it is a privacy issue). I had a really interesting conversation with James about hunting (which I know nothing about), his family, and the cabin they use to stay at while hunting in the Upper Peninsula. He was missing being with them. I listened and we also chatted back and forth, as well as with Jane. Before I left I prayed for Jane at her request and I asked James if I may pray for him as well. He acted surprised but said, “Yes.” 

Fast forward to yesterday. Jane’s daughter was able to get the man’s name (I failed to) and told me he was to be released tomorrow (Thursday). I wanted to see him again to see how he was doing so I went to visit Jane. She was out like a light, i.e. sawing a big tree!  Rather than wake her, I dropped in to see James. I knocked and after about 5 seconds he remembered me. He is not getting out tomorrow, but does have an appointment about his knee. We visited about 10 minutes and then I said it was time to leave. As I walked out the door he said, “Thank you for visiting me.”

I was glad to do so and hearing that made it worth it. I just hope his wife forgives him (and me) for leaving their conversation to chat with me! 🙂 

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November 18

Tuesday, November 18th, 2025

Each week (with a few exceptions) since COVID, I have written what I have called the Midweek Message. This is week #271. For the record I was against masks (still am) and even social distancing, but we chose to honor our governor’s wish to not meet. So I created the Midweek Message to stay in touch with the OVCF family and friends, as well as other ways. With a few exceptions for holidays and if I was going to be gone, I have kept the people informed on a variety of issues. Educator of the Week (whom we list and pray for, which, BTW includes our homeschool moms). Youth News (various awards, games, accomplishments, etc). Various calendar events involving the church family. Miscellaneous items. Some nonsense at times. And usually a word or two of inspiration from me. In this week’s issue I share something that is important to me. 

The month of October was designated as Pastor Appreciation Month years ago by Focus on the Family. It was designed for churches to recognize their pastors for their service. We have never publicized it or made it a big deal for various reason. I’m uncomfortable with public recognition for something I love to do and know it is a team effort. I read recently of a pastor who was asked, “How Can I Pray For You?” He answered with a list of 10 things. That was a bit much for me, so I gave it my “touch,” and put in into 6 things:

  1. Pray that I would find a daily joy in my relationship with God. (Ps. 42:1; Mt. 5:6)
  2. Pray that I would not settle for a second rate relationship with Jesus, but will continually grow in holiness and godliness. (I Tim. 4:8)
  3. Pray that I would prioritize prayer and my study of the Word. (I Tim. 4:1-2)
  4. Pray for my marriage and that I will love Jo sacrificially and my children (although they are adults) unconditionally. (Eph. 5:25-30)
  5. Pray that I will love the lost and serve OVCF zealously and sacrificially. (Acts 20:28)
  6. Pray that I will preach God’s Word boldly and without compromise. (2 Tim. 4:2-5) 

I then close with this thought: if you pray those items for me and over me, I would be a most happy man and know that I am being the pastor God wants me to be. 

May I ask you to pray those for me? And why not include your own pastor in that prayer (then drop him a note to let him know)?  I guarantee he will think he has died and gone to heaven. 🙂

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November 17

Monday, November 17th, 2025

When dealing with disappointment, I have found there are several ways to deal with it. 

One, you can wallow in it and find yourself going deeper and deeper into a hole that gets harder and harder to dig out of. 

Two, you can tell yourself, “Buck up Bill. You are stronger than this difficulty and will get through it.”  ‘Course the ironic part of that is “If I am so strong I can get through this then why am I struggling so much and needing help?”

Three, you can find a friend to lean on or to spend time with. 

I have related in several posts in the past about the loss of my friend, Dave, in Arizona. After an 18 month battle with a glioblastoma, Dave succumbed to his disease. The celebration of life was this past Saturday, but due to the uncertainty of the airlines, I deferred our tickets to February. I think it was a very wise thing to do even though it hurt to do so. Because I had already arranged for our youth pastor to preach, Jo & I decided to visit the church of friends and spend time with them. What a welcome diversion it was! Ryan and Amanda were our closest friends before they moved to another town about 30-45 minutes away (depending on how fast one drives). It was nice to relax for the occasional Sunday morning break, but it was even better because we were with friends. After church we went to a Wings place and must have stayed at least 2 hours, laughing and talking. Every time we leave an evening with them, I tell Jo the same thing, “I cannot begin to tell you how much I miss them.”  I decided to look up some verses on friendship. Here are just a few:

“A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need.” (Pr. 17:17)  Check. 

“There are ‘friends’ who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother.” (Pr. 18:24) Check. 

“The heartfelt counsel of a friend is as sweet as perfume and incense.” (Pr.  27:9)  Check (although I’m not too sure about the perfume part). 🙂

“Never abandon a friend-either yours or your father’s.” (Pr.27:10a) Check. 

Getting away was in order. If not the one that was originally planned, then the one that was essential in another way. While I missed being at the church where my heart is, I loved being with friends who helped ease the disappointment of what was supposed to be. And I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Thanks Ryan and Amanda (and Aleah and Keegan and Megan. Aleah is their adult daughter whom I love to tease and she gives it right back. Keegan is their son, and Megan is their soon-to-be daughter-in-law, whom I will have the privilege of performing their marriage in March). 

Find a friend. Be a friend. 

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