Today’s message was written by my friend Rev. Charlie Landreth

A mother wanted to encourage the progress of her young son at the piano and so she bought two tickets to a Paderewski performance.

When the night arrived, she found their seats near the front of the concert hall and they eyed the large Steinway parked by itself on the stage. Soon the mother found a friend to talk with and she did not notice the boy slip away.

When 8:00 p.m. arrived the house light dimmed, the spotlights came on, the Steinway was bathed in light, and only then did this mother notice that her son was seated at the piano bench, where he began innocently to plunk the keys in a rendition of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. The audience roared, his mother gasped, but before she could retrieve her son, Paderewski himself appeared and moved quickly towards the keyboard. “No, don’t quit, keep playing, he whispered to the boy. And reaching past him with his left hand the Master began improvising a bass part, and then with his right hand, he reached around on the other side of the boy to add a running obbligato. 

The crowd was spell bound and the piece concluded in thunderous applause as the boy announced, “I didn’t know I could do that.”

Sometimes, we do not feel worthy or able. We get discouraged and are tempted to give up, but by some miracle of grace we feel buoyed up and nudged on. God whispers in our ear, “don’t quit, keep playing” and as we continue, we are lovingly enfolded, graciously inspired, and from our feeble efforts, something wonderful can emerge.

Let us pray. Thank you, God, that all things are possible through you. Strengthen me as I face the difficulties and challenges of this day. Use me as a blessing for others. Amen.

Today’s message was written by my friend Rev. Charlie Landreth

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” Proverbs 3: 5-6

My grandmother taught me these verses. I can remember sitting on her lap in her rocking chair – her arms would be extended around me. She would read to me from the Bible. By her words and by her example she provided my first instruction in what it means to trust God.

The instruction my grandmother provided reminds me of the story Henri Nouwen shares about The Flying Rodleighs, German trapeze artists he greatly admired – so much so that he befriended them, attended practice, even traveled with them. (Our Greatest Gift p.66)

“What’s it like?” He asked the leader Rodleigh.

The flyer said, “I must have complete trust in my catcher. The public might think I’m the star – but the real star is Joe, my catcher.”

“How does that work”, Nouwen asked.

“The secret”, Rodleigh said, “is that the flyer does nothing and the catcher does everything.”

“You do nothing?”

Rodleigh responded, “The worst thing the flyer can do is try to catch the catcher … the flyer must trust, that with outstretched arms, that the catcher will be there for him.”

 Nouwen reflects: “the words of Jesus flashed through my mind. ‘Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.”

 In both living and dying we trust the catcher. Don’t be afraid. Remember that you are the beloved child of God. God will be there when you make your long jump. Don’t try to grab the catcher; the catcher will grab you. Trust, Trust, Trust, Trust!

Let us Pray. Come and embrace me Lord. Hold me secure; Hold me strong; Hold me forever in Your everlasting arms. Amen

Today’s message was written by my friend Rev. Charlie Landreth

I share with you a familiar scripture verse about forgiveness:

Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times. 

This means for me that forgiveness is not quantifiable, but a qualitatively different attitude and practice, drawn from the very being of God, whose nature it is to offer grace. “As far as the east is from the west, so far does God remove our transgressions from us”, says the psalmist. 

In the emotionally powerful novel by Mitch Albom, The Five People You Meet In Heaven, The major character, Eddie, is talking to Ruby.

“I hated my father”, Eddie says; “He was hell on me as a kid and worse when I got older”.  

Ruby stepped toward him. “Edward”, she said softly. It was the first time she had called him by name. “Learn this from me. Holding anger is a poison………..it eats you from the inside. We think that hating is a weapon that attacks the person who harms us. But hatred is a curved blade. And the harm we do, we do to ourselves. Forgive, Edward, Forgive”.

The fourth verse of John Calvin’s powerful hymn (I Greet Thee, Who My Sure Redeemer Art) has been running through my mind as a constant refrain this week. Let this be our closing prayer.

“Thou hast the true and perfect gentleness, no darkness hath thou, and no bitterness. O grant us the grace, the grace we find in thee, that we may dwell in perfect unity.” May this be our greater vision. Amen.

Today’s message was written by the founder of Dial Hope, the Rev. Roger Kunkel

Have you heard the story about the bride who was extremely nervous on her wedding day? She confided to the minister that she was not sure she could make it down the long aisle without shaking or crying. So the minister, a seasoned veteran of weddings, gave her a bit of advice: “When you begin your walk,” he said, “just remember this three-point formula: First, look straight down the aisle; second when you get about half-way look straight up at the altar; and third when you get near the front of the church, look straight at your groom. First, the aisle, then the altar, then him. I think this will help relieve your nervousness.” 

The trembling bride agreed to try his advice. And it worked beautifully. She walked with a radiant glow on her face and poise and confidence in her step, with no sign of nervousness. However, there was one small problem. Imagine the surprise of the congregation as they heard her rhythmically repeating three words over and over as she performed her bridal walk: “Aisle, altar, him. Aisle, altar, him.” 

“Aisle, altar, him!” Well, the truth is, most brides don’t have a lot of luck in altering their husbands. But the good news of the Christian faith is that God can alter us! God can change us. God can redeem us. God can turn our lives around. As a matter of fact, the change God can bring in our hearts is so amazing that when Jesus talked about it and described it, he used dramatic language. He talked about “new birth” about “new life,” about “new beginnings,” about being born again.” He said, “Unless you are born again you cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3) Friend of Dial Hope, this is the good news, the TA-DA! for today. Believe it and claim it! 

Let us pray: God of love, How great Thou art! We thank you for the good news that we can grow and change; we can rise to higher plains of personal living; there is hope in the midst of our despair; there is joy in spite of sadness. Now fill us with the radiance of this day so that your love may stream in and through us, bringing light and life to a world that often walks in shadows and death. Through the risen Christ, we pray. Amen.

Today’s message was written by my friend, Guest Pastor, Rev. E. Stanley Ott.

Recently I put a glass under an ice dispenser, the kind you find in refrigerator doors or where you get your soft drinks at a place like McDonalds.

To my surprise ice began to spray everywhere. It went on the floor and onto my feet. I wondered, “What is wrong with this thing?” Instead of pulling the glass out, I kept pushing it in, hoping it would work properly. Soon there was ice and water everywhere. What a mess. 

Finally, I pulled the glass out so I could look to see why ice was going everywhere. That’s when I discovered I had put the glass in, upside down! Instead of the ice going into my glass, it hit the upside-down bottom of the glass and sprayed everywhere.! There was nothing wrong with the ice dispenser, but there was something wrong with me!

There are many times in which we think we are saying the right words or doing the right thing when we actually are messing up! That is when we need humility. Instead of claiming that we always know what we are doing, humility helps us see ourselves as we really are. Humility helps us laugh at ourselves and be willing to learn new things.

Let us pray: Lord, we love to think we are always right in what we say and do, but we know very well that isn’t true. Please give us the “eyes” to see ourselves as we really are, to laugh at ourselves and laugh with you, the God who loves us. Amen.”