Dear Church Family, The title for my message on Sunday is "The Diagnosis is Terminal." Not very "Christmasy" is it? Or is it? From where do you get your understanding of Christmas? Store fronts, social media, tradition? The Scripture passage in Ephesians 2 reminds us that we desperately need a Savior and that God, in His [...]
Dear Church Family, This Sunday I'm going to tell a parable about a mysterious silver ball that has a string you could pull every time you were in a difficult or uncomfortable position. An accident, difficult time raising children, illness, broken relationships, etc. Pulling the string would enable you to escape the current difficulty [...]
Dear Church Family, As we prepare for the season of Advent, it's good to be reminded that as we celebrate Jesus' first coming as an infant, we need to remember that He's coming back in power and majesty the next time. Most of us are comfortable with Jesus in a manger. He seems rather [...]
Dear Church Family, The pictures attached to this email represents both the generosity of our church members and possibly some amount of misunderstanding. It appears that we have enough cups and plates to last until the rapture. Beth Watson, our new Office Manager, asked me if it would be okay to reorganize the closets in [...]
Dear Church Family, The main point I'm going to try to make this Sunday as we look into Mark 9 is that "Reality is more than we first imagined." Mark introduces us to the transfiguration of Moses and Elijah, demon possession, Jesus' prediction of His death and resurrection and Hell. Crazy stuff [...]
Dear Church Family, So much happens between now and Christmas. The elementary children are parading in front of the Manse as I write with their Halloween Costumes. Voting day is next week. Thanksgiving is around the corner, so I guess it's time for retail establishments to start putting out the Christmas decorations. Do we ever [...]
Dear Church Family, The "RedGreen Show" which aired on public television for years and now is easily found on Youtube focused on middle age men and their struggles. It poked fun at men's idiosyncrasies and hosted one section called The 3 Words that men find the hardest to say, "I Don't Know" I'll admit it, [...]
Dear Church Family, Whether it's sports, business or board games, there is a method that we all follow. We even create a strategy for tackling the challenges of each day. How would you describe yours? In our passage for Sunday, Mark 6, it stood out to me that God has chosen a particular method for getting [...]
🎉 Pastor's Appreciation Day 🎉 Today, we gather to honor and celebrate Pastor Allen here at First Presbyterian Church of Monte Vista! Pastor Allen, your dedication, sermons, and guidance have touched so many lives in our community. Your commitment to spreading love and hope is truly inspiring. Thank you for being a [...]
Dear Church Family, One of my Dad's favorite Christmas gifts was an electronic gadget that had multiple voices on it saying "NO". For some reason he got a little ornery in his old age and "NO" became his favorite word. Now, he didn't even need to speak it. He could just smile, point the device [...]