Dear friends, Christian history is filled with wisdom from sisters and brothers throughout out the ages. Their life and witness through their writings continue to inspire me. I was recently reminded of these words from St. Jean Marie Baptiste Vianney (1786-1859), a French...
Dear friends, From a prison cell, God speaks to the prophet Jeremiah. While his city is being defeated by the Babylonians, Jeremiah hears: “Call to me and I will answer you. I’ll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your...
Dear Friends, Recently my 11-year-old daughter encouraged me to begin exercising more regularly which is sage advice for my physical and mental health. As you know, there are countless benefits to movement for your body, mind, and spirit! I also carve out some time each day for...
Dear friends, “Life is a journey, not a guided tour” is something my good friend, Jim Koss, likes to remind me every once in a while. It’s a challenging thing to hear when you think about it. Because when I’m honest, my default is to prefer the guided...
Dear Friends, This upcoming Sunday brings a variety of emotions as we ordain and install a new class of elders to lead our congregation and as we give our gratitude for the faithful leadership of Karl Travis as our pastor. Worship frames our gathering as we give thanks to God for our shared...
Message from the Personnel Committee The Personnel Committee of First Presbyterian Church writes to inform the congregation of some administrative actions that have occurred since Karl has gone on disability for health reasons. A staffing plan was put in place last year to handle extended...
Dear friends, Recently, Annie and I decided to load up our twins in the car and take a little family trip to the Dallas Aquarium. As you can imagine, road trips with 3-year-olds can be tricky. Well, Super-Mom-Annie packed a bag full of toys and crayons, and we were on our way. Midway...
Friends in Christ, Peace and grace to you amidst this season of incarnation. In Jesus, God comes to be with us, experiencing our lives hand in hand, step by step. The church engages in incarnational ministry when its members encourage and care for one another in Christ's name. You have been...
Dear Friends, When I think of Advent, especially in contrast to our cultural Christmas season, I think of quietness, and humility, and peace, and the little things in life. I think of small candles that give light to dark places. I think of gentle snowfall that causes grateful...
Dear friends, In this season of Advent, as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Emmanuel – God with us – holy scripture, poetry, and song help us give voice to the mystery of the Incarnation. This Sunday’s proclamation of the Word at the 11 a.m. service includes...