In considering what I might write about for this week’s Messenger, I let my mind float over the ABC congregation, thinking about various families and individuals, asking about each, “What are they experiencing right now that brings them anxiety or concern?” I came up with answers like health issues, financial challenges and big decisions they […]
So we have decided to see the BIG ONE as our friend, sent to us by God, rather than fearing it as a terrible wave that will overwhelm and destroy us. With his help, we intend to ride it, as a surfer would. My boyhood fear of the big wave that had the power to […]
During our first family vacation to the Jersey shore, when I was about seven, I discovered waves. Watching them fascinated me, but after a little while I ventured in. Having those little foamy wavelets gently wash over my feet and ankles was a surprisingly good feeling, so I ventured in a little farther. There I […]
What an accomplishment! It’s been a long, hard journey, but as you flip that tassel from one side of your cap to the other, you realize that you’ve really accomplished something in life and nobody can take it away from you. However, it will soon begin to sink in that graduation is not a starting […]
Maybe I was naive and protected, but it was not until I had been in the ministry for a few years that I first heard the term “love child.” A member of an extended family was trying to explain to me why one of the cousins was treated differently from the others, appearing to be […]
Coming from the East Coast to Southern California as a student in 1958, one of the most shocking things was to hear mockingbirds singing at night. In my home town, birds had the decency to go to sleep at night, as other civilized creatures do. Now, sixty years later, I’m still not used to the […]
“Remember that you are secure in Christ. Turn away from your sin. Not because it is required for your salvation—for nobody but Christ can merit heaven based on his own works—but rather, out of gratitude for the gift of salvation that your God has given you. Always remember that it is God who is keeping […]
People’s eyes were glued to their TVs, mesmerized by the images of flames pouring through the roof of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. TV commentators were mostly speechless. One came out with an involuntary “Oh God!” when the 300-foot high spire fell to the ground. One of the most beautiful buildings in the world was […]
I thought about the cross on which Jesus died. It has become the major symbol of the Christian faith, embraced by two billion people in many lands and a wide array of denominations, topping off church steeples, worn on necklaces, clutched by dying martyrs. I wondered about its backstory. Maybe because of my interest in […]
Over the past two decades, there’s one thing you could always count on when you came to Altadena Baptist Church — Jean Bouchebel would greet you with a warm handshake and a big smile. If he knew you well enough, the handshake might be replaced by kisses on both cheeks, and he’d likely exclaim, “Habibi!” […]