No Law Against Love

It was one of those friend of a friend encounters.  A Brazilian friend of Robson, our friend and mission partner from Jardim América and Buritis, was in the area and we met for lunch out of respect for our common friend, if for no other reason.  But there were other reasons. 

Gerson is a man in his thirties, I would guess, and God has planted a passion for mission in his heart.  He is now working with Robson in developing a mission strategy for Igreja Presbiteriana in Buritis, and that is what brought him to the United States.  And that is another story.

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Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and the greatest of all the American civil observances. We talked last week about being a people who not only give thanks for, but also thanks to. We have been blessed with abundance. There is a source of the abundance: the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The first in the line of fourth Thursday in November days of Thanksgiving was proclaimed by Abraham Lincoln in 1863, the year of Gettsyburg and Vicksburg, costly victories in a war than would drag on for another eighteen months.

Lincoln understood thanksgiving. For and to:

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 GIVING THANKS FROM A TO Z

Thanksgiving Day is next week, and while we Christians have been admonished to always give thanks for everything (Ephesians 5:20), this best of all the National Holidays allows us to focus on giving thanks.  Earlier in the month I shared my A to Z thanksgiving for Park Presbyterian Church with the Session, and now I share it with you.  You may want to try your own A to Z list.

Park things for which I am thankful:

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Thanksgiving Baskets:  Not Because They Deserve One

If there weren’t already a hundred good reasons to be at Park on Sunday morning (and there are), coming to hear Christa Andersen’s brief moment for mission interpretation would make it worth coming this Sunday. Christa will tell you a story she told the Deacons last Sunday. It’s a Thanksgiving Basket story and it is true and it comes from Park Church just one year ago. 

Christa’s story is more than a feel-good story, but it is that, for sure. We ought to feel good about the way God used our simple gifts a year ago.

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The Morning After

I woke this morning to a deep sadness, even anger. The election results were not good. Jack Walker had lost his bid to become Judge of the Court of Common Pleas by 809 votes.  40,000 Beaver County voters had gone to the polls. There had been much hope and even cautious confidence that Jack would win. Everyone knew that there were obstacles to overcome, none greater than the blind party vote tradition that plagues our area. Yesterday such electoral laziness cost Jack 3,500 votes. Yes, I am angry at this archaic system and angry at those who foolishly use it.

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