12/20/19 Merry Christmas! I trust you are getting ready for this week’s celebration of the Lord’s birth. We conclude our Christmas mini-series from Isaiah’s prophecies about the coming Messiah – today is about his glorious coming kingdom! Our study in James will resume January 5. If you’re in town Tuesday, please come to our Christmas Eve Service at […]
12/13/19 Our children worked out a system where they are either with us for Thanksgiving or here at Christmas. After they marry you have to share them with their in-laws. So far its worked out ok – they were all here a few weeks ago, thus all will be away from home for Christmas. In fact, Sue […]
12/6/19 One of our core values at HBC is prayer. Last summer we set aside our teaching during the ABF hour to have what we called “A Concert of Prayer.” It was well-attended. It has concerned me and others that we really don’t have a “corporate prayer time.” Yes, its included in our meetings but nothing that centers […]
11/27/19 I get convicted when my cell phone informs me how much time I’ve been on it during the week – and I don’t think I’m on it that much. But seriously how many hours each week do we watch TV or spend on a favorite hobby? Nothing wrong with these leisurely distractions from our busy lives. And […]
11/21/19 The Washington Post headline, “Surgeon General Says There’s a Loneliness Epidemic.” USA Today, “Young People Report More Loneliness Than the Elderly.” The Boston Globe, “The Biggest Threat Facing Middle-Aged Men Isn’t Smoking or Obesity. It’s Loneliness.” Loneliness is a problem facing our culture. Even with cell phones, email and social media – people lack relationships. Radical individualism is […]
11/15/19 Sue and I commented we thought the Magnify Conference a few weekends ago was one of the best in recent years. Denny Burk did a marvelous job – with a difficult topic. He was informative and yet pastoral. “Speaking the Truth in Love in Sexualized Culture” was a tightrope he walked well. If you were not there, […]
11/8/19 With all the political hype you would think the presidential election is around the corner but in reality its a year away. Our nation is very divided these days. Harsh words, character assassinations, calling into question one’s patriotism – hateful speech seem to characterize the discussion by both political parties. Tragically this can all creep into the […]
11/1/19 What a joy it is to welcome Mike Orth back into the pulpit of HBC. Mike served as one of our elders when I arrived in 2007. He and his wife, Paula, and 4 children were an integral part of our church for many years. Mike will flesh out today some of the truths we’ve been studying […]
10/25/19 Cancer. That word strikes terror into many a heart. It’s a word some of you have heard – or a loved one has been told. In 2018, Mike Orth was told he had multiple myeloma. What led to the diagnosis was that he had a compression fracture in one of his vertebrae. For many years the […]
10/18/19 Are you a doubter? I can be. How often I’ve identified with the desperate father who said to Jesus, “Lord, I believe, help me with my doubts.” Elyse Fitzpatrick helped encourage me through my troubling thoughts and feelings in her excellent book, “Doubt: Trusting God’s Promises.” It’s a 31-day devotional – each chapter (day) consisting of a verse […]