Is anyone reading these words going through a hard time right now? A friend sent me this devotional written over 110 years ago by Charles Spurgeon of London. Let his words comfort your heart today: “Perhaps, weary soul, the Lord is doing this to develop your graces. There are some of your graces that would never be discov…
This Sunday is Day in Our Village in Oak Park. That means that Lake Street will be partially blocked on Sunday morning, making parking more difficult than usual. On the plus side, it means that after church, you can stroll either way on Lake Street and join the multitudes in this village-wide party. There will be street musicians, concerts, sidewal…
For those who haven’t heard, this coming Sunday is “Backwards Sunday” at Calvary. We’re reversing the usual order of worship. That means I’ll be up preaching five minutes after the start of each service. The sermon comes first, followed by music, the offering, the Lord’s Supper, and a time of response. We’re doing it th…
This morning I played golf at Columbus Park with Skip Olson, Vern Henriksen and Fred Most. I hadn’t played in five years and it showed. Let’s put it this way: If they scored golf like they score basketball, I would have won easily. There was one fine moment when we all managed to make par on the second hole. After that, I p…
Had lunch with John Armstrong, president of Act 3. John is the author of The Catholic Mystery, a thoughtful treatment of what evangelicals and Catholics believe in common and the areas where they differ.…
Memorial Day here in Oak Park is clear, sunny and beautiful. A perfect day for bike riding, for grilling out with some friends, and a great day for a parade… . Mark called last night from Portland. He and Nick traveled 2300 miles from Thursday through Sunday. Nick flies back later today and Mark goes to Dallas, Oregon to begin his yout…
WAITING & ENDURING by Ray Pritchard A new friend wrote this week asking for some advice. After long years of study, he finally had graduated with excellent grades, many awards, and a ranking near the top of his class. The future seemed very bright. He had only to pass an exam and then the doors of opportunity would be open …
Sermon Series: Ponder This - 2003Saturday, May 17 Our team arrived in Chicago about 3:30 PM. Alan is flying tonight to his home in Tupelo, Mississippi. After the big celebration at the school in Pignon, we flew in an old 18-seat airplane of Russian origin to Port-au-Prince. The “airport” in Pignon is nothing more than a field or a cow pasture that has …
FORGIVING WITHOUT REPENTANCE by Ray Pritchard After last Sunday’s message, a friend sent the following e-mail: “The sermon was a hard one for me this Sunday. Forgiving someone when they refuse to apologize is where I am struggling. I have been hurt too much. Tough!” My friend is right. Forgiving is hard enough eve…
Sermon Series: Ponder This - 2003Friday, May 9 Tons of last-minute details today. My brother Alan flies in from Tupelo, MS this AM. Tonight I’m speaking at the Allied Force Senior Banquet. Then at 3:45 AM our Haiti team leaves for the airport. Thursday, May 8 48 hours from now our team will be en routeto Haiti. I’m busy checking things off my last-second t…