The Pastor's Perspective

My Great Grandpa Roy Stonewall Johnson with his perpetual motion machine      My great-grandfather, Roy Stonewall Johnson, a man of many talents— served in both the Army and the Navy, and a serious tinkerer. He had a dream, a wild one at that: to build a perpetual motion machine. You know, the kind that runs forever without needing any extra juice. A machine that could power your car without gas, light your home without bills. Sounds like a sci-fi dream, right?      Humans have been chasing this dream since the Middle Ages. So my great-grandfather was not alone in his desire to make such a machine. Imagine, a device that defies the need for external energy! The possibilities are mind-boggling. But, as my great-grandfather likely discovered, there's a tiny, or rather, a huge problem: the laws of thermodynamics.      Those pesky laws, the first and second, tell us that in a closed system, energy inevitably dissipates. Kinetic energy, the energy...

       "Imagine you're on a road trip, and suddenly, the weather turns. What started as a gentle drizzle escalates into a torrential downpour. Visibility plummets, the wind howls, and you're gripping the steering wheel, knuckles white. Your kids who were once talking, playing and at times fighting, are now quite. You've driven in rain before, but this feels different, overwhelming. That feeling of being tossed about, of being at the mercy of forces beyond your control? That’s a taste of what the disciples experienced on the Sea of Galilee one day. It’s also a feeling many of us know well, when life’s unexpected storms hit, and we find ourselves wondering if we’ll make it through. We’re all familiar with the feeling of fear and anxiety when life throws us a curve ball." "Let's dive into Mark 4:35-41. On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as...

          Imagine a world turned upside down. A leader, Jesus Christ, revered and followed, is brutally executed in the most brutal of ways. Hope seems extinguished. Fear grips those who were closest, his disciples, their dreams shattered. This isn't a fictional drama; it's a historical moment that forever altered the course of humanity.      Think about it: what if everything you believed, everything you placed your trust in, rested on a single, pivotal event? That's the core of the Christian faith, a belief system that has resonated through centuries. It's the idea that Jesus Christ, declared dead, defied the very laws of nature and returned to life—his resurrection.       Now, picture those closest to him, his disciples. They were terrified. They were convinced their own lives were in danger. They were broken and in great despair. They certainly weren't expecting a resurrection, even though Jesus had told them it would...

          Imagine you're standing in a courtroom. You've been accused of a crime, a serious one. The evidence is stacked against you, and you know you're guilty. The judge is about to pronounce your sentence – a life of imprisonment, a debt you can never repay. Suddenly, the courtroom doors burst open, and someone steps forward. It's not your lawyer; it's someone you've never met. He walks to the judge and says, "I'll take his place. I'll pay the penalty."      That's a glimpse, a shadow if you will, of what God did for you and me. It's at the very heart of John 3:16, a verse so familiar, profound, yet so many people fail to fully understand it.    "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."     In a lot of ways this one verse is like a contract or an official agreement. A contract where we see the Cost, Conditions, and the Claim 1....

            Have you ever been in a conversation where you realized the other person wasn't truly listening? Their mind was elsewhere, distracted by their thoughts or the screen in front of them. A common sight it seems like these days, and one that I am guilty of as well.      To be honest t his happens to my wife frequently. She can be sharing something important, but I might be reading an article, watching a video, or simply lost in my thoughts. Although I may respond with a nod or a murmur, I’m not genuinely listening. The real test comes when she asks me a question about what she just said. This causes me to franticly try to come up with an answer, instead of admit I wasn't really listening in the first place. Usually, my attempt to piece together an answer from the fragments I caught fails miserably. The result isn't always pretty.       This scenario isn't intentional or constant, but sometimes my mind is jus...

Dr. Alex Ramsey, fresh out of residency and brimming with idealistic fervor, found himself adrift. He'd aced medical school, pictured himself in a cutting-edge research lab, perhaps even on the front lines of global health. Instead, he was in Oakwood, a town where the most exciting medical case was usually a sprained ankle at the Friday night football game. He’d taken over the small, underfunded free clinic, a place where patients often paid with stories and gratitude, not cash.      One sweltering afternoon, his father, a retired carpenter with hands gnarled by years of honest labor, visited. Seeing the weariness in Alex's eyes, he asked, "How are things going, son?"      "Dad, I feel like I'm spinning my wheels," Alex confessed, running a hand through his already disheveled hair. "I'm not making a difference. I'm not...progressing."      His father, a man of few words but deep understanding, simply nodded. "Come with me today....

            Have you ever felt like you were too far gone, too broken, or too lost to be saved? Have you ever found yourself in what you believed to be a hopeless situation. Jonah probably felt that way when he found himself in the digestive track  of a great fish, swallowed by the consequences of his own disobedience and rebellion. Yet, his story is a profound testament to the boundless mercy and relentless grace of God.  And the LORD spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land. Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.” So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, three days' journey in breadth. (Jonah 2:10-3:3)       We see from this  passage three transformative truths about our Creator: God Saves, God Restores, and God...

    Have you ever heard the old saying, "the pen is mightier than the sword"? Well, in this case, it was the words that saved a life!      On October 14, 1912, President Theodore Roosevelt was on the campaign trail, seeking re-election. That same day, an angry bartender fired a shot at him, hitting him in the chest. Most would have expected the president to fall, but what happened next was nothing short of miraculous.      Despite being shot, President Roosevelt insisted on delivering his scheduled speech. He spoke for 90 minutes to a captivated crowd before heading to the hospital. How did he manage to survive such an ordeal, you might ask?      It turns out that the president, known to be long winded, had placed his 50-page speech in his coat pocket. The thick stack of papers significantly slowed the bullet, preventing it from causing serious harm. Instead of a fatal injury, Roosevelt only suffered a cracked rib.  ...

  Jonah's Faithful Prayer in the Belly of the Whale      In the depths of the sea, enveloped in darkness, Jonah found himself in the most unlikely of prayer closets—the belly of a whale.  Jonah 2:1-2 tells us, "From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God. He said: 'In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me. From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help, and you listened to my cry.'"  I don't know about you, but that is not the place I would have picked to commune with God.      Despite his dire circumstances, Jonah exhibited unwavering faith that God would hear and answer his prayers. His situation seemed hopeless, but Jonah’s faith was not anchored in his surroundings; it was anchored in God’s faithfulness. Faith Beyond the Tangible      Jonah’s story teaches us a profound truth: God’s answers to our prayers are not bound by the moment we receive them. Instead, they are secured the mome...

       Sometimes, life can feel like a courtroom drama where we are constantly trying to prove our worth and identity.       This reminds me of the story of a man in India who was accused of stealing a lamb. Both the accuser and the accused claimed ownership, and with witnesses on both sides, it seemed impossible to discern the truth. However, the judge knew the nature of shepherds and their sheep. He devised a clever plan: each man would call the lamb to see to whom it would respond. The true owner’s unique call, a simple "cluck," immediately brought the lamb to him, proving his rightful claim. This story parallels the illustration Jesus used in John 10:1-5, where He says: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his o...

          Do you ever find yourself questioning the authenticity of someone's words? We've all been there, wondering if the promises made to us hold any real weight. This age-old phrase, "Actions speak louder than words," reminds us that true intentions are best revealed through what we do rather than what we say.      A remarkable story from 1994 perfectly illustrates this idea. Russel Herman, a man who passed away at the age of 67, left behind a will with grand declarations. He pledged $2 billion to the city of East St. Louis, another half-billion for the national forest system, and a staggering $6 trillion to the federal government to help pay off the national debt. But there was a catch – when Russel passed away, his only asset was a 1983 Oldsmobile.      While we might assume Russel had noble intentions, his lack of tangible assets meant his promises were empty. This story serves as a powerful lesson: nice words mean l...