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August 5

Wednesday, August 5th, 2026

I had hand surgery yesterday. They have been dealing with a trigger finger of my left index finger for close to 2 years with shots, trying to get it to cooperate. It hasn’t. Surgery was scheduled for yesterday. But there is a twist. I was to meet the surgeon on Monday, July 27th. That morning I woke with my left ring finger in locked position. It eventually let up and you can’t tell, but after talking to the surgeon I was given a choice of doing the shot regimen again or having surgery. I told him, “You are already working on my hand. Let’s get them both done.” The total procedure is done under local anesthetic (I’m awake and talking the whole time while he works behind a sheet place between me and my hand) and one finger takes 5 minutes. Needless to say, typing may be an issue. 🙂  Recovery is supposed to take 5 weeks. At least I’m not allowed to ride my bike or lift weights (upper body) for that long. The stitches come out in 2 weeks. My fingers will be in splints so I’m not sure how much typing I will be able to do. I have been working frantically to finish my sermons and have one left in this current series called “Break Those Chains.” (It, by the way, is called The Elephant in the Room. It is a sermon on suicide.) Please pray for a quick and complete recovery. Thanks. 

For today, I thought I would share another quote from Out of the Blue by Greg Murtha. 

The best argument for Christianity is Christians: their joy, their certainty, their completeness. The strongest argument against Christianity is also Christians-when they are somber and joyless, when they are self-righteous and smug in complacent consecration, when they are narrow and repressive, then Christianity dies a thousand deaths. Sheldon Vanauken (quoted on p. xv)

Greg says that without cancer he would have remained that somber, self-righteous, smug, narrow-minded Christian who turns people off. Yeah…don’t want to do that either. I’m eternally grateful that God’s grace has ramrodded my life. It took me from a legalistic, pompous fool pretending to be religious and having all the answers, to (hopefully) one who is grace-filled and loves people genuinely for who they are not what they can give me. I don’t want to be one who misses the joy of following Jesus and doing His will willingly for any amount of money in the world. 

Join me will you? 

I wrote and scheduled the above yesterday

{Update: the surgery went well. But typing is a challenge. There is no splint, but my hand is wrapped in this big bulk of gauze and wrap. I’m supposed to put ice on it but I’m not sure how that is to be done. I slept in my recliner last night to keep it elevated. Not sure I will do that tonight. 🙂  Some good news: the doctor said if it heals well I can start using it and riding in 3 weeks, not five. YAY!! Continued prayers would be appreciated}

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August 4

Tuesday, August 4th, 2026

I began rereading (for the 3rd time) Out of the Blue by Greg Murtha. Greg was a 46 year old man, a long-distance runner, an entrepreneur, and a very self-motivated man. After an 11 mile run, in which he felt at the top of his game, he knew something wasn’t right. The words, “Mr. Murtha, you have cancer” rocked and changed his world. Even more, Aggressive Stage 3 colon cancer (later upgraded to Stage 4). Given the state of Janna’s fiance’, Mike, and his Stage 4 pancreatic cancer which has spread to his liver and abdominal wall, I felt it appropriate to read it again. My plan is to share some thoughts from the book (and some of my own) over the next few posts. 

Several quotes have stood out to me in the Introduction and 1st chapter. Here’s one:

Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn our, and proclaiming, “WOW!” (p.xviii)

The other is by writer, Bob Goff, the author of Love Does and Everybody Always (2 excellent book I have read):

God’s more interested in our hearts than our plans.” (pp.7-8)

Greg says, “The worst diagnosis is the best thing that ever happened to me because it changed my heart.” (p.8) 

I can remember reading a book (several times) by the late Tim Hansel, entitled You Gotta Keep Dancin’. Tim was an avid outdoorsman when a freak accident mountain climbing changed his life forever. He landed upside down in a crevasse and when he came down from the mountain he felt smaller. The physical damage to his body played itself out in numerous ways as he got older but Tim refused to allow it to stop him. “Dancin’ is a wonderful and encouraging book where Tim encourages us to choose joy in the midst of life’s hurts. He closed his book with this quote:

There is no box made by God nor us but that the sides can be flattened out and the top blown off to make a dance floor on which to celebrate life. Kenneth Caraway (quoted on p. 143)

No life is “charmed.” We all face trials, difficulties, set backs, and challenges. My prayer is that whatever comes my way will be met with faith and trust in the ONE who knows all and controls all. I want to be used up when I breathe my last breath, knowing I gave it all for the glory of God. 

{Please check back tomorrow for an update…and no, that is not clickbait}

 

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August 3

Monday, August 3rd, 2026

Psalm 115 is an interesting psalm. Its divisions are stark and easy to see. But before I show that, there is a four-word question we all have to ask (and eventually answer): Whom will I trust? Well, let’s take a look at Psalm 115.

Verses 1-3 begins with a “trumpet” of praise: “Not to us, O Lord, not to use, but to your name goes all the glory for your unfailing love and faithfulness.” WOW! We could spend hours in conversation just about this verse alone. But in a strange twist it diverts into a question: “Where is their God?” He answers with a contrasting thought: “Our God is in the heavens, and He does as He wishes.” 

Verses 4-8 he takes the emphasis from the one true God and writes about their god, a god made with human hands. It is so graphic with phrases like, “They have mouths but cannot speak and eyes but cannot see.” It goes on to include all the senses, but then says an idol made with human hands cannot be alive. 

Verses 9-18 is the book-ended conclusion. He goes back to describing the God who is real, the God we can trust. Two totally different types of gods. Theirs made with human hands and incapable of responding in any way, shape, or form versus our God, the Creator of all things, the One worthy of our praise and adoration, the One who is our helper and shield, the One who can be trusted. 

The difference is stark. But it calls for a decision from each one of us, from me: which one will I serve? 

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July 29

Wednesday, July 29th, 2026

Have you ever been honored and so overwhelmed that it left you breathless? I got this text last night from Janna:

“I want to put a bug in your ear, but there is a possibility that we might move up the wedding ceremony, especially with Mike’s health being back-and-forth so much. And we both talked and would want you to do it…But I just wanted you to be aware that we may need you if you’re willing to come to Delaware.” (Ohio)

Well, duh! 🙂 Marry my daughter and her fiance’? Let me think about that for a few minutes. Aaaah YEAH! (That was less than a nanosecond). 

After Janna’s divorce (her ex wanted out), she eventually started dating Mike. {Funny story: When Janna talked about me, Mike asked what I was like. Would I sit and drink a beer with him? She laughed and said, “No. My dad has never had a drink.”} 🙂 They have been together, all told, for 6 years (if my math is right and that is dubious). He asked me about a month ago if he could have my blessing to marry Janna. Jo and I were both there and we wholeheartedly gave a big Yes! They had been talking about it before his cancer diagnosis. Now, of course, that changed everything. The wedding was scheduled for late August and the reception on 9/19. The magistrate was performing the wedding with only their sons and their two best friends in attendance. We were going to the reception in September. Mike’s cancer has changed everything. It has wracked his body so badly that he has been in almost constant pain and in and out of the ER and hospital. (He currently has been in since Monday). He has been unable to take his last two chemo treatments. So they are moving the wedding up to sometime during the 2nd or 3rd week of August, possibly the 14th. Braden will be gone from the 6th to the 11th visiting his dad in South Carolina. 

I’m honored they asked. Mike asked Janna why she didn’t ask me from the beginning. While I have my suspicions, I can’t say for certain. But you know what? IT DOESN’T MATTER. In her first marriage I was her father. In this one I’m her dad, yes, but I’m also their shepherd. 

I have a serious request though. Please, please, please pray for Mike. Storm the gates as they say. Stage 4 pancreatic cancer than has spread to his liver and abdominal wall is, frankly, a death sentence. BUT GOD... I’m praying for his healing-body and soul. Join me please. 

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July 28

Tuesday, July 28th, 2026

“The best laid plans often go down the tubes.”  That’s the “Bill version.” The real version by Robert Burns is “The best laid of mice and men often go awry.” Either one works. 🙂

My plan for today was to share some news with you that will change my world in the future but I have been asked not to do so at this point in time, so I will honor that. Maybe down the road a bit I will be able to do so. 

Meanwhile, Psalm 102:1-2 “spoke” to my heart this morning:   

Lord, hear my prayer! Listen to my plea! Don’t turn away from me in my time of distress. Bend down to listen, and answer me quickly when I call to you. (NLT)

I had a texting session just before bedtime with one of the people from OVCF, a lady who went through a devastating experience a little over a year ago and is still struggling to make sense of it all. I would say these verses describe exactly where she is. I can’t and won’t say I know exactly how she feels because I don’t, but I can say there have been times I have been where she is now. Questioning God’s goodness and wisdom. A cry for help. Silence. Answers needed/wanted. Silence. But in spite of it all, I want to be able to echo the psalmist’s words in verse 12: “But you, O Lord, will sit on your throne forever. Your fame will endure to every generation.” 

As I told the lady last night, it is human nature to want answers. But God is not obligated to give them. As a parent I believed I knew what was best for my girls, and I didn’t owe them an explanation (at least at that moment), for my decision. God is under no obligation to tell me the “why’s” and “wherefore’s”  of what He is doing. I have to trust His goodness and His love for me, just as I wanted my girls to trust me and my love for them. I wasn’t being cruel, even though in their eyes, I was. 

“So Lord, to borrow lyrics from the song in yesterday’s post: ‘Even in the storm, I will praise You. Even in the storm I will trust You.’ I don’t know all, if any answers, but still I will trust You, my Savior, my King.” 

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July 27

Monday, July 27th, 2026

“God is using this…Nothing would be wasted. Everything had a purpose. God’s timing is always perfect.” (Risner-p.237)

That was a quote I read yesterday as I make my way through Vaneetha Risner’s book, Watching for the Morning.  Then I wrote this in my journal: “It’s hard to see that at the time, but it is a truth I’m going to cling to today, tomorrow, and all the way through. My Be Strong and Courageous words will now come home to me.”  Come back here tomorrow to see why I say that.  In the meantime, I am posting a song that has rocked my world. And no, it is not a rock song. 🙂  In fact, after I sent it to Tami she came back and questioned if I was her dad. In the event something happens that the link does not work, the song is called “Still I Will Praise You” by Seek First Worship. I’m wagering (without betting) that it will become a new song on your playlist. The video has the lyrics but if you hit “more” it will give you the information about Seek First Worship and also the lyrics.

 

“Lord, may the song soothe someone’s aching heart. Start with mine. Show me your greatest gift through times like this…Your presence. Give me grace to share with others. Help me to remember you are in control and You have a purpose.” 

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July 23

Thursday, July 23rd, 2026

This is not a “woe-is-poor-me” post, even though it might sound like it. I love…LOVE…my job. I LOVE the church I have been privileged to pastor for 20+ years. I don’t want to be, nor do I desire to be anywhere else. I have one daughter who lives with us (she wants to keep an eye on her aging parents); a soon-to-be-married daughter who lives in Ohio; and a 19 (soon to be 20) year old grandson who will begin his Sophomore year at Ohio State. I am TOTALLY happy living where I do and serving the Lord where He has placed me. 

I just finished reading a book entitled The Ministry of Small Things by Reuben Bredenhof. He wrote about what I consider is my approach to ministry: do the small things. I once pined to be the pastor of a big church and the prestige that came with it. May I say one thing? WHAT A FOOL I WAS! Along with all the headaches that came from being a small town church pastor, I realized those issues would just be magnified. That is why this book so resonated with me. I like doing the small things. I like sending personal notes. At the first of this month, I sent out 135 personal handwritten notes to the families and friends of OVCF to encourage them to BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS. One thing to say: NOT AGAIN! Besides the cost factor, there was the time factor and the hand factor (I think it cramped several times). 🙂 That’s not the first time I did that..but I’m thinking it might be the last. But I digress. It was a small thing and I like to do small things to make people feel loved and wanted. 

But being the pastor of a small church also has its glitches. (Remember, Gail, I am NOT complaining!!) 🙂 Far from it. Being the pastor of a small church in a small town affords many opportunities for shepherding and being involved in peoples’ lives and feeling their hurts. The following is just some of what has come across my desk JUST THIS WEEK. No names will be mentioned and I will be vague on purpose. 

My future son-in-law (yes he asked me, asked her, she said yes, and she got a ring) is struggling with the effects of chemo on his stage 4 pancreatic cancer. My heart aches. 

A young friend who has been fighting cancer for 7 1/2 years…7 1/2 years!!…is struggling and hospice has been called to help his mom. He is not on death’s door, but the struggle is real. His grandfather, one of my best friends, died after a 15 year cancer battle that started in his prostate, just a little over 2 years ago. 

I had a visitor to my office who shared some really hard news that still has me reeling. 

A personal health issue that will have ramifications in the future (and which I will share some day) has me wondering how I will do. 

But then God’s Word reminds me that God gives me what I need to make it through each day. That is what I’m counting on. Today. That’s all I need. Today. Not tomorrow, especially since tomorrow has enough trouble of its own. Why borrow it, you know? 🙂 Besides, I have no clue what tomorrow will bring. Today is what I need to remember. God gives me strength for today. 

And in spite of it all…I love what I do. I love being a shepherd to “my” people. (Please don’t make a big deal about the “my” I used. I know they are HIS and I am His shepherd. But He did give them to me to watch over).  I’ll keep you posted on God’s answer to my “today.”  And sorry for the long post. You know those preachers…

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July 21

Tuesday, July 21st, 2026

“Keep your eyes where they belong.” 

That’s good advice. Driver education teachers will tell their students to keep their eyes ahead. “Stare at something and your car will head that way.” 

Try cutting grass in a straight line while looking backwards, or even to one side. When riding my bike and trying to stay as close to the end line as possible, I have to keep looking ahead. Not to one side or another. Not at the scenery. 

In 2 Chronicles 20, King Jehoshaphat found himself with three formidable enemy armies approaching him. He was terrified by the news, ordered prayer and fasting, then went to God and stated some now famous words: “We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to You for help.” (v.12). The ESV says, “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on You.”  Reading ahead you will see that his faith and trust was rewarded when God routed the armies without Jehoshaphat’s army lifting a finger. 

Colossians 3:1 tells us to “Set your mind on things above.” Keep looking straight ahead. Don’t get distracted by peripheral issues. Stay focused on Christ. 

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July 20

Monday, July 20th, 2026

Many of us live in the past. Some long for and celebrate what was. Some long for and dismay at what is missed. Two for instances…

At 73 I can look back and think about what was. I used to ride 20-30 miles a day and think nothing of it. If I did a 20-30 mile day now, it would take me several-maybe a week- to recover. 🙂 I think back to my college years when I accumulated quite a bit of hardware from my basketball days. I never displayed them and about 20 years later they found themselves in a dumpster. I became the father of 2 beautiful young ladies who still pop buttons on my shirt. 🙂 In 2007 I became the pastor of the fantastic church family I am still pastoring. Three years ago I celebrated the 50th year of being married to a fantastic woman. 

The other extreme is the person tied to the past-good or bad times- and longing for what was. Grief is often the result. Dismayed by what is missed or missing. 

In that vein, I read the following quote by Pastor John Piper that struck gold this morning:

Occasionally weep deeply over the life you hoped would be. Grieve the losses. Then wash your face. Trust God. And embrace the life you have. (Watching for the Morning-Risner-p.217)

Some things are part of our past-good and bad. We can’t change it. Nor can we bring it back.  I sensed God saying this to me this morning: “Heed Pastor John’s word, Bill. Wash your face then move on. You have so much to live for these days! Celebrate them. Rejoice in them! Go with me. Be strong and courageous.” 

What is He telling you these days?

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July 16

Thursday, July 16th, 2026

I’ve been reading some (okay…a lot) 🙂 on anger, fear, anxiety, jealousy, mental health, suicide, and other related topics because of a sermon series I plan to preach starting in two weeks and going to the end of September. I have chosen to do a topical series instead of going through a book of the Bible. Relevant topics (as you can see). The sermon scheduled for August 2nd is from Psalm 34, especially verses 8-10:

Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in Him! Fear the Lord, you His godly people, for those who fear Him will have all they need. Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry, but those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing.”  (NLT)

As I was reading I Peter 2 as part of my journey through the NT in 2026, I read the following verse: “If you have tasted that the Lord is good.” (v.3-CSB). And as I thought about verses 1-3, I saw a pattern or a path develop. It may just be me but I thought I would share it:

Verse 1- The sin that devastates so many of us. Evil behavior like deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and all unkind speech. 

Verse 2- The desire to change. The CSB (which I am using for my 2026 reading) says, “Like newborn infants, desire the pure milk of the Word, so that you may grow up into your salvation.” We cannot change on our own, nor so we change people. That is God’s business. Only He can do that. 

Verse 3- How that change happens. We desire God’s Word and in the process we taste and see that the Lord is good. (Psalm 34:8) And as the old song said, “The longer I serve Him the sweeter He grows.” 

Do you want to change? “Taste and see” is what both Peter and David say to do.  “God, please give me a hunger for Your presence and Your Word. Change me as I crave both.” 

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