my dad...

I know Father's Day has past but I really wanted to write a note on this blog about my dad...

My dad has always, always, gone the extra mile to help me out. There were times when I was a teenager (yeah, long ago), when he would drive into town late at night (or early in the morning) to help me get my car started.

Even before I was a teenager (yeah, even longer ago), I remember he would come home from working all day as an electrician, and would take me and play tennis. I remember the place we played at. I remember the tennis racquet I had. I remember some of the points we played to this very day.

To this day, even when I have my own family, my dad helps me/us out. When my weedeater quit working, he traded me mine old broken down one for his that still works today. When I have a question about anything, from car problems to water heaters, he's just a phone call away. I miss not having him be a close driving distance but that makes the phone calls and even emails on rare occasions all the more meaningful.

I guess what I appreciate the most is his wisdom. I know I can bounce off any question to him, from family problems to Bible questions, to "why does God do things that way" questions, and he always has a word of encouragement, a word of experience, an idea of how to look at things in a different way.

Our family when I grew up, never was big on hugs or saying "I love you", or being all touchy-feely. But I never doubted that my dad loved me. He didn't have to say it, I just knew.

Life Matters - Crossing

Life's a Journey

Hey folks,

I hope everyone is having a great week so far. It's only Tuesday but I trust everyone has seen the Lord do something in their lives this week even if it might seem small. He's there and He's in control of the big AND little things of life.

Our Sunday Bible Study class is going to be trying some different things throughout the summer. Besides going through a Bible study in Joshua, we're going to do be discussing some topical, "life" subjects. Everyone is welcome to be involved - starting at 9:30 Sunday mornings. At the very least, you'll get a muffin or donut & coffee...; )

This past Sunday we watched a video about the persecution of Christians in the United States. Yes, you read that right, persecution in the United States. It's hard to imagine such a thing but it's happening and we, as Christians, need to be aware of it. Now I know everyone might not be a political junkie like I am, but we're going to be discussing some real, relevant issues over the next few weeks and I hope it's going to be interesting & meaningful.

We're also going to be going through the book of Joshua looking at the different things Joshua struggled with as the new leader of the Israelites. These are things we all deal with in our daily lives...change, rescue, provision, barriers, consequences. This week we'll look at "change", something we see around us all of the time.

Here's the intro to the Bible study we'll be doing over the next few weeks:

Life is a journey. All along the way we reach points where we have to decide if we're going to step out in faith and let God take our lives to a different place, or if we're going to let fear and insecurity paralyze us and keep us from crossing over. Making a crossing always calls for uncommon courage, faith, and obedience.

As God's leader, Joshua demonstrated unwavering determination in winning the land God had promised to his people, and in getting all the tribes of Israel and their families settled in the new land. During this Bible study, we'll take a look at Joshua and the nearly 2 million Israelites as they cross the Jordan River to a new place--a better place, a place unimaginable based on where they stood before they crossed.

The only way to get to the other side of life's challenges and changes is to step out in faith & cross over--just as Joshua and the Israelites did. Like any crossing, it's going to take strength and courage. Are you ready?

Hope to see you Sunday!

Todd Nincehelser
SHBC