Pastor's Pen

Tithing Reframed: Three Principles That Transform Giving from Obligation to RevelationFor many Christians, tithing is experienced as a necessary, but uninspiring, expense. It can feel like a spiritual tax, an HOA fee for church membership, or the price paid for programs, preaching, and pastoral care. When approached this way, tithing becomes transactional, mechanical, and easily resented. But Scri...

Key Lessons from the Transfiguration:The Transfiguration of Jesus (Matthew 17:1-9; Mark 9:2-8; Luke 9:28-36) stands as one of the most breathtaking moments in the Gospels. On a high mountain, Jesus is dramatically changed before Peter, James, and John: His face shines like the sun, His clothes become dazzling white, Moses and Elijah appear to converse with Him about His coming death, and a voice f...

These two books by Philip Yancey form a pastoral theology of pain, disappointment, and faith. I’ll summarize each individually, then give a combined overview, maybe like a cliff notes. Both of these books have helped me to minister and be ministered to. I first discovered Yancey through a missionary who lost his 5 year old son while serving in Africa.  This book made all the difference in the worl...

As we approach the new year, many of us feel a deep calling to draw closer to God, seek His guidance, and intercede powerfully for our lives, families, church, and world. That's why we're inviting our entire church family to join in a 21-day Daniel Fast, beginning on January 1, 2026, and concluding on January 22, 2025—just in time to launch us into our intensive 24-hour weekend prayer retreat star...