If you are looking for a place to celebrate Easter, I invite you to join us for one or all of our services over Easter weekend. You will find our people to be friendly and welcoming, our services to be conservative with historic hymns sung and the Bible to be central to all we do, and the sermons to be biblically rich and relevant to our lives. For the past several years we have given particular attention to the death of Christ on the day commonly called "Good Friday," the Friday before Easter Sunday. This year we invite you to join us for this service, which will begin at 7pm on Friday, March ..read more

Matthew 2:1-6, "Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” 3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: 6 ‘But you, Bethlehem ..read more

The apostle Thomas sometimes gets a bad wrap because of his words the day of Christ's resurrection, "Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe" (John 20:25). However, in reflecting upon this, should we fault Thomas for not merely taking the disciples' word regarding the resurrection of Jesus? Thomas was one of The Twelve, hand-picked by Jesus to be a disciple and future evangelist. I believe Christian tradition has Thomas going to foreign lands and spreading the news of Jesus. It would ..read more

Christmas is just around the corner, and if you are like our family, Christmas music has been playing for quite a while. It is difficult to rank favorite Christmas Carol/Hymn texts. However, today begins my countdown of five of mine. Number 5: "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" Written by American author Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), following a string of personal tragedies and in the context of the American Civil War, it is something that fills us with hope and points us to the peace that is found in Jesus Christ, though his name is not mentioned in the text. When it seems to us t ..read more

Parenting is something like a glorious agony. If you have been a parent for any length of time, you can understand what I mean. I have two children, a boy and a girl, twins, age 17. They truly are blessings from the Lord as the psalmist wrote, but it has not been an easy 17 years. There have been many tough conversations, times of discipline, and intense training sessions. But there have also been incredible times of joy - humbling joy - to know that my children are actually listening to what I am saying, and even adopting the same biblical mindset I am seeking to instill in them. It was a jo ..read more

We are three days away from Christmas Day, and one of the most beloved Christmas texts of all time is one by Charles Wesley, first published in 1739. It communicates some great theological ideas in its lines such as, "God and sinners reconciled," "late in time behold him come, offering of the virgin's womb," and "veiled in flesh the Godhead see, hail th'incarnate deity." One of the wonderful things about this hymn is how joyful it is to sing. It lends itself to raise our voices and hearts in worship of Christ, the newborn King. If you haven't sung it yet in your church services this month, no ..read more

John 1:6 John 1:6-14, There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of bl ..read more

Luke 2:8-14, Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with ..read more

Are you a people-pleaser? Do you struggle with living more for the praise and approval of men, more than God? In my devotional reading this morning, in John 12, I read of highly respected religious leaders of Christ's day struggling with this very problem. "Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in [Jesus], but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God." - v42-43 What does it mean to "love the praise of men more than the praise of God?" I would include four aspects to t ..read more

This past Saturday was our sixth New England Foundations Conference. About 135 people from five New England states were in attendance to enjoy great fellowship and teaching from God's Word. Our main guest speakers were Dr. Bruce McAllister and Dr. Marshall Fant, both from GFA Missions. Mrs. Gretchen Fant also did a breakout session for the ladies in attendance. The day was filled with exuberant singing together, mutual encouragement, practical teaching about local church and pastoral ministry, as well as opportunities to meet new people from around New England. One person commented afterwards ..read more