Happy New Year, my Sweetheart Church! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas. Things were certainly hopping around here! Our five Christmas Eve services welcomed 3,742 people (which includes almost 230 children) who enjoyed the glorious music, candles, and fellowship. When you include those who tuned in to our livestreamed services on YouTube, we worshipped […]
Christmas Eve memories
I’ve lived through quite a few Christmas Eves…more than half of them here at Chapel Hill! I was reflecting upon some of my most memorable of the lot. Yakima, second grade – I was out in our front yard on Park Avenue late Christmas Eve when I was 8 years old. (Yeah…it was safe for […]
Closing out 2023 with a bang!
Last Saturday was amazing! For the first time, we hosted TWO GLOW Christmas performances, one for kids and one for teens and adults. There was a huge push into our community! We even had a banner over Harborview! GLOW is a low-risk, high-fun holiday entry point that, we trust, will encourage not-yet-Christians to consider the […]
Stuck in the middle
As I write this, I am sitting in the middle seat of a middle row about six hours into a 12-hour flight to Seoul, the first leg of my journey with Outreach Director Cara Taylor to Chiang Mai, Thailand. We are going to visit our global outreach partners with Thai Christian Foundation. At this exact […]
How to pray while you shop
One month ago today, a health crisis struck our family. Yet the holiday season still hustles along. Each day, we float in and out of prayer…longing for hurts to heal. For sparks of joy to keep hope burning. For patience with each other and strength to meet our daily responsibilities. For a lifetime’s worth of […]
Will you share with Daddy?
Our daughter Rachel loved goldfish crackers as a small child. (Who doesn’t? I just bought a Costco carton for myself…about a million goldfish in each one, I believe.) One day as she was munching contentedly on her crackers, I thought I’d test the strength of her generosity muscle. “Rachel, will you share with Daddy?” Nothing. “Rachel, can […]
Student Ministries update
A special update on the latest Student Ministries news from Pastor Ellis White: I heard from two high school students this week who were telling me how much they love our High School Ministry right now. I’ve heard from parents how impressed they are with the way their children are growing in both our Middle […]
Thank you, Veterans!
Every year on 11/11 at 11:00 in the morning, my school, The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe, would gather in the main quadrangle for a service to remember those who had fought in the First and Second World Wars. Hundreds of us would gather for a moment of silence, and to hear moving words of […]
Next steps
Thank you, everyone, for your kind and encouraging words to Cyndi and me since my announcement last Sunday of our retirement date. Although this should come as no surprise—I’ve been dropping hints for a while, now!—I realize it raises lots of “what’s next” questions. Let me try and answer a few of them. The next […]
Focus on our future…honor our legacy
At our last Presbytery meeting (the regional gathering of EPC churches), we received training on congregational health. There are several qualities that characterize healthy, growing churches. One was this: healthy churches are focused on the future, not on the past. I understand that. I even agree with it. We can’t live in the past. Our […]