Posted on Nov 3, 2025 in Christian Living, Faith in Action, General, Pastor's Blog, Spiritual Growth | Tags: Encouragement in Faith, Following Jesus, Spiritual Renewal
I’ve been playing Disc Golf more, recently. It’s been a good way to get out and exercise a little. I have been playing since I was a Young man but I haven’t put in a lot of thought or practice, It’s always been just a “grip it and rip it” kind of thing for me. But recently I have been trying to put more thought and intention into playing. I have been watching videos and reading guides on how to get better, and I have been practicing.
I have seen some improvements already, but one of the things that still needs work is my ‘release’, where the disc comes out of the hand during the throw. This point needs to be fairly consistent for your disc or it’s going to be all over the map when you throw it. Release is a funny thing. you have to hold tight enough to get it to the point you want, but not so tight as to ‘grip-lock’ the disc and overshoot your target point.
Sometimes in our Christian life we have just been gripping and ripping, trying to muscle through our walk with the Lord without putting much intention into our way of following. We have to practice our faith life, to work on things so we are more consistent in our ‘release points’ with the Lord. Holding on too tight to things causes problems. The goal in our Christian life is to have a consistent life trajectory moving closer to the Lord.
How can you be practicing your walk with Jesus for more consistency?
Posted on Oct 1, 2025 in Christian Living, General, Personal Development, Spiritual Growth | Tags: Everyday Faith, New Beginnings, Spiritual Renewal
Fall is here! the weather is cooling, the sun is going down way earlier, people are starting to wear sweaters again, soup is a way more popular meal, and pies will be consumed in abundance. Small changes, buit there are big ones coming. The leaves, the dormancy of this winter’s horizon.
Southern Oregon is gifted with four seasons and the changing of those seasons often signals changes in our being. The shift from summer to fall is a time of schedule change: School starting, sports picking back up, events being more common, and ministries around the church re-engaging. In this changing season, I am hoping and praying that more than the outward things are changing.
God is working in our hearts to bring change in us. As Christ followers, there are seasons of change that we go through in our walk with Him. Times of sorrow, or joy. Times of Struggle or celebration. Time when we feel like we are in the valley and times when we feel like we are on top of the mountain.
Each of these seasons is ripe for growth in our spiritual lives, as we walk with Jesus through these moments. What can we learn from Him? Again, my hope is that as things change in our lives, we are being changed by Jesus to more fully be the people He made us to be.
Posted on Dec 29, 2024 in Faith in Action | Tags: Everyday Faith, Goal Setting, Life Transformation, New Beginnings, Spiritual Renewal, Trusting God
Many people like to come into the new year with some resolutions — often having to do with diet and exercise or some life goal. Many of those resolutions last for a short time but typically they lose the battle to entropy and are dropped by about March! This is why I think that framing our desire for change in a different way can be helpful.
Instead of resolutions, we need to reorient our lives. Most resolutions are things that go along with the way we have been doing life already. A reorientation is a bit more drastic, changing the direction of our lives. This may feel disruptive in the beginning, but if we continue on the same path with new baggage, we are still going to the same destination.
Reorientation, however, gives us a chance to shift not just the things we are carrying, but the destination of our journey. Where do I think we should orient ourselves? Towards Jesus. We should give His light and life the focus of our lives. The direction we want to go is wherever we can grow closer to Him.
