A Different Kind of Silence Zephaniah opens with a striking command: “Be silent before the Lord God, for the day of the Lord is near.” This is not the silence of confusion.This is the silence of reckoning. God is no longer explaining.He is acting. Zephaniah prophesied during the reign of King Josiah, a time when religious reform was underway—but the hearts of the people lagged behind. Outwardly, things looked better.Inwardly, nothing had changed. And God saw it all.

One of the deepest lessons Jean-Pierre de Caussade teaches is that the present moment rarely arrives in the form we expected. We make our plans. We set our order. We know what the day should look like. And then God allows something else.

This week, as we come to the final chapter of Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians, we do so in the shadow of Palm Sunday — the day our Lord entered Jerusalem, welcomed with palm branches, praised as King… and moving steadily toward the cross. That is the setting in which we read 1 Thessalonians 5.

Last week we saw that the Christian life is lived in the present moment—one duty at a time. Not yesterday.Not tomorrow.But now. Yet as soon as we begin to live this way, we run into something deeper—and harder. What about the things we did not choose? The interruptions.The disappointments.The burdens we would gladly remove if we could. Jean-Pierre de Caussade now takes us one step further: Not only must we do the duty of the present moment—we must also receive it.

Last week in James 1, we were reminded that hearing the Word is not enough; we are called to do it. In James 2 and 3, the apostle presses that call into the everyday realities of Christian life, giving us two searching tests of spiritual maturity: how we treat others and how we use our words. Bring your Bibles with you this morning. We will read these chapters together slowly and carefully.

Prayer is the first step to establishing a personal relationship with the Son of God. He loves you and wants to talk. Begin right now.

Welcome to the longest-running conflict in church history: The Hymns vs. Choruses War no smoke, no artillery — just organs, guitars, and very strong opinions about what the angels in heaven probably prefer. But beneath the humor lies a real and pastoral question: What kind of music actually builds up the Body of Christ?

“What think ye of Christ?” — Matthew 22:42 Advent is upon us. Lights are going up, carols are playing, stores are crowded, and everywhere you turn, you hear the word Christmas. But here is a searching question for every believer — a question Jesus Himself once asked: “What think ye of Christ?” (Matthew 22:42) Not What do you think of Christmas? Not What do you think of the season? Not What do you think of religious tradition? But what do you think of Christ? Who is He —

Acts 19 brings Paul to Ephesus, one of the most powerful, wealthy, and spiritually dark cities in the Roman world.A city full of temples, magic, sorcery, and the cult of Artemis/Diana, whose great temple was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Into that darkness the Gospel walks — and the collision is fierce.

We had a Thanksgiving testimony meeting here at Riverside Presbyterian House Mine was on Hebrews 13:8:Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. ---He has kept me well and walked with me for 79 years. ---He has given me a home with you, where I am safe and cared for. .---Tomorrow promises a grandchild on my 80th birthday, long-awaited, looked forward to with Joy. Rejoice evermore, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks. - “In everything give tha

Corinth was a bustling, wealthy, immoral port city — a crossroads of the Roman world. If Athens was the city of ideas, Corinth was the city of indulgence.

Spurgeon once said this scene reveals the darkest truth about the human heart, men will choose chance over Christ, even when Christ is right before their eyes. Sin blinds the heart until trifles seem more valuable than the Savior.

Football used to be a game — boys in a dusty lot tossing a ball, men cheering from bleachers, families gathering around a black-and-white TV on Thanksgiving Day. Now it is a system — enormous, consuming, all-encompassing. Everywhere we turn, football surrounds us: Sunday afternoons, Monday nights, Thursday nights, college Saturdays, bowl games, playoffs, endless analysis, mock drafts, fantasy leagues, betting apps, podcasts, talk shows, highlight reels. A Christian must ask,

Acts 17 gives us one of the clearest pictures of how the early church engaged the world with the Gospel. Paul and his companions enter three very different cities — Thessalonica, Berea, and Athens — and in each one, the response to the Gospel reveals not only the state of the human heart but also the power of Jesus Christ to save.

This chapter reminds us that the Christian life is not without hardship, but that grace is stronger than stones. Paul’s endurance was not natural courage; it was Christ’s life within him. He could stand again because Jesus stood for him.

Persecution was rising again. King Herod Agrippa, (11BC-33AD) eager to please the Jewish leaders, had James the brother of John* (5-100) executed by the sword. Encouraged by public approval, he arrested Peter* (1BC-67AD), intending a public trial after the Passover. But while Peter lay chained between soldiers, the church was praying without ceasing. Read on and see the result. In the dark of night, an angel of the Lord entered the cell, a li

These will cover my early years (1946–1972) in seven-year episodes, walking backward through time to explore how faith, failure, and grace shaped the man God was preparing me to become.

Peter, (1 BC-67AD), praying on the rooftop, fell into a trance and saw a great sheet descending from heaven filled with all kinds of animals, both clean and unclean. A voice said, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” But Peter refused, saying he had never eaten anything common or unclean. The voice replied, “What God has cleansed, do not call common.” This vision occurred three times, preparing Peter for what was about to happen.

I see the glory of God as I look out my window. ---His eternal and invisible Glory is clearly manifest in His creation! ---Those who ignore it imperil their souls and risk the wrath of God. ---Ask the Lord to open your eyes and see it. When you do, you will rejoice with Joy Unspeakable and full of Glory! ****************************

The first time I saw Jesus* on the big screen was in 1952 in Cecil B. DeMille's 1927 epic, King of Kings. I thought it was moving and made me love Him all the more. Of course, I watched it in my church at Easter surrounded by born-again Christians who loved Him and me. In recent years, the television series The Chosen has quickly become a favorite among Christian audiences. Many praise it as a fresh retelling of beloved biblical stories, while others express concerns about i