Choices

Acts 5:27-32

“27 When they had brought them, they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, 28 saying, “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this man’s blood on us.” 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than any human authority. 30 The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. 31 God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.”

The authorities on the council, Sadducees and Pharisees, thought they knew every aspect of God and viewed the Disciples as heretics, but the Disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit of the God the Sadducees and Pharisees supposedly knew and worshiped. The authorities who thought they had God figured out, refused to acknowledge that God was moving in a new direction.

The Disciples were confronted with a choice; stop preaching the gospel in Jesus’ name or face imprisonment or worse. They chose to obey God rather than an oppressive human authority who chose not to understand the gospel of Christ even though the Disciples offered it freely.

Each day Christians are confronted with similar choices.  Do we choose to believe the gospel of Christ or the gospel of materialism, anger and hate?  Do we choose to obey the God of love or the god of the world?

The choice is ours.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Shadow of Peter

Acts 5: 12-15, 17-18

“12 The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade. 13 No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. 14 Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. 15 As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed.17 Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. 18 They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail.”

Crowds gathered so that the shadow of Peter might fall on them.  And the High priest and the Sadducees were jealous.  So jealous that they arrested the apostles and put them in jail.  

Jealousy is a kind of envy that is directed toward another person or persons when they are getting the things, the attention, the admiration, and the affection that you wish you had.  The Apostle Paul wrote in Galatians 5:19 that “ the works of the flesh are plain: immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy,”

When we are jealous of others we are not being led by the Spirit of God, we are being led by the world.  The world tells us to put ourselves first, to expect to receive the love and attention of others, to expect to receive the material things.  And when someone else receives these things, we do not rejoice.  We are not happy.  We are jealous.

When we are led by the Spirit we are led by love and we rejoice in the spiritual successes of others.  

The shadow of Peter healed many who were sick.

And the people rejoiced and believed.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Spirit Filled Life

Acts 4: 32-35

“32 Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common. 33 With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. 34 There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. 35 They laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.”

Early Christians were filled with the Holy Spirit and the Spirit instilled an intense sense of responsibility for one another.  They had a very real desire to share their resources with each other and to share the message of the gospel with the world.

This desire to give and care for one another arose not from the law, but from the Holy Spirit.

If we allow the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us in the Christian life, we will always be led to grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness…

and never to hate, anger or retribution.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

They Moved Forward

Acts 1:21-26 

“21 So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness with us to his resurrection.” 23 So they proposed two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also known as Justus, and Matthias. 24 Then they prayed and said, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which one of these two you have chosen 25 to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.” 26 And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias; and he was added to the eleven apostles.”

While waiting in the upper room as Jesus instructed them, The Disciples decided to select a person among them to replace Judas.  The criteria for this selection was that the person had to have been present during all of Christ’s ministry, from His baptism to His resurrection and ascension.  Two candidates emerged, Joseph and Matthias. 

The Disciples realized, since Jesus had selected each of the original disciples,  God should also select the disciple to replace Judas.  So they prayed for God to show them which of the two He had chosen, and then they cast lots.  The outcome, they reasoned, would be God’s decision.

The Disciples saw the need for a decision, they prayed to God to show them the way, they were willing to listen to God, they took action based on their prayer...

and they moved forward.  

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

We Prayed Together

Acts 1: 12-14

12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away. 13 When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying, Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. 14 All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.

The Disciples returned to Jerusalem after Jesus’ ascension, to the upper room where they had shared their last meal, where Jesus had broken the bread and shared the cup, where Jesus had washed their feet.

There, they waited but they did not know what they waited for.  They could have done any number of things while they waited, but scripture tells us they devoted themselves to prayer and that they prayed together.

There has been a lot of waiting in our lives.  I hope when people look back hundreds of years from now at what we did, I hope they find that we devoted ourselves to prayer.

And that we prayed together.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Offering the World Christ

Acts 1: 10-11

“10 While he {Christ} was going {ascending} and they {Disciples} were gazing up toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. 11 They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

Watching Christ ascending into the heavens, we can only imagine what the disciples were thinking.   Scripture says they stood staring upward until men in white robes (angels?) woke them from their reverie and assured them of Christ’s return.

It is often easier to gaze heavenward than it is to face the realities of the world.   But it is in the facing of the world that we allow the Holy Spirit to work within us and give the world the example of Christ.

It is good to gaze up toward heaven, but after we gaze, we are to offer the world our vision.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

A Divided Kingdom

1 Kings 11: 30-35

30 and Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing and tore it into twelve pieces. 31 Then he said to Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘See, I am going to tear the kingdom out of Solomon’s hand and give you ten tribes. 32 But for the sake of my servant David and the city of Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, he will have one tribe. 33 I will do this because they have forsaken me and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Molek the god of the Ammonites, and have not walked in obedience to me, nor done what is right in my eyes, nor kept my decrees and laws as David, Solomon’s father, did. 34 But I will not take the whole kingdom out of Solomon’s hand; I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of David my servant, whom I chose and who obeyed my commands and decrees. 35 I will take the kingdom from his son’s hands and give you ten tribes.”

For the sake of David, God did not remove the kingdom from Solomon’s hands.  He removed it from Solomon’s son’s hands.  Solomon’s son would suffer for his father’s sins.  

God took the undivided kingdom from the hands of Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, and gave the majority of the kingdom to Jeroboam, a former servant of Solomon.

We think of our sins as being very local and not affecting anyone but ourselves.  We never think that our sins may harm our children.  But, our examples, bad and good, can have far reaching consequences for those around us.

For Christians, Christ is our example, our model for how we should live our lives and relate to others.  If we live as Christ lived, those around us will be lifted up and not torn down.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Solomon's Heart

1 Kings 11:1-6

“1 King Solomon loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women, 2 from the nations concerning which the Lord had said to the Israelites, “You shall not enter into marriage with them, neither shall they with you; for they will surely incline your heart to follow their gods”; Solomon clung to these in love. 3 Among his wives were seven hundred princesses and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. 4 For when Solomon was old, his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his heart was not true to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David. 5 For Solomon followed Astarte the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6 So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not completely follow the Lord, as his father David had done.”

Solomon’s heart was turned away from God.  The blame for this is placed on his many foreign wives.  Surely Solomon, wisest of all Israelites, would never turn away from God on his own will.   

But, as Christians, we know better.  If the love of God is truly in our hearts, no person, no thing, no force on this earth can ever turn our hearts away from God.  Solomon was a willing participant in these things.

The Apostle Paul wrote,“Neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:39)

God gives us His love, and the desire and the will to remain in this love.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Temple (Part 4)

1 Kings 8:14,  20-21, 25-26

“14 Then the king {Solomon} turned around and blessed all the assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel stood. He said...20 Now the Lord has upheld the promise that he made, for I have risen in the place of my father, David; I sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised,  and have built the house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.  21 There I have provided a place for the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he made with our ancestors when he brought them out of the land of Egypt… 25 Therefore, O Lord, God of Israel,  keep for your servant, my father David, that which you promised him, saying, there shall never fail you a successor before me to sit on the throne of Israel, if only your children look to their way, to walk before me as you have walked before me.  26 Therefore, O God of Israel, let your word be confirmed, which you promised to your servant, my father David.”

Solomon’s words are full of pride and arrogance; full of the word I- I have risen.., I sit on the throne.., I built the house.., I provided a place for the ark.   He pointed to his father, David, and actually reminded God of His promise to him, as if God had forgotten.  

In these words we see the seeds of Solomon’s spiritual downfall.

When we begin to believe that God’s accomplishments are our own and they were accomplished by our strength, power, and wisdom, then, spiritually, we are treading on thin ice.

“For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever.”

Amen.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Temple (Part 3)

1 Kings 8:6

“Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, in the inner sanctuary  of the house,  in the most holy place, underneath the wings of the cherubim.”

Just as David brought the ark of the Lord into Jerusalem, Solomon brought the ark into the temple with much ceremony.

The priests placed the ark in the most sacred place in the temple, the “Holy of Holies”. The Holy of Holies was covered by a veil or curtain and no one had access except the High Priest, who was allowed to enter only once a year.

The veil represented the sins that separate us from God.  The priest entered the Holy of Holies to make sacrifices and to seek atonement for the sins of the people.

Christ came to tear the veil, to give us direct access to God through His sacrifice on the cross.  Because of Christ, we have access every second of every day through the acts of prayer, worship, scripture study, service, and fellowship.  

Through these things, God speaks to us through the Holy Spirit that dwells in all believers.

“51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom…” (Matthew 27:51)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Temple (Part 2)

1 Kings 6:37

“ In the fourth year [of Solomon’s reign] the foundation was laid...38 In the eleventh year [of Solomon’s reign]...the house was finished in all its parts, and according to all its specifications.   He was seven years in building it.”

1 Kings 7:1

“Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished his entire house.”

Solomon spent seven years building “God’s house”, the temple, and thirteen years building the royal palace, the place where he would live.  How much more invested was Solomon in the trappings of power than in the things of God?

If we, as Christians, invest twice as much of our energy in the things of the world than in the things of God, then our spiritual lives will suffer. 

Matthew, the gospel writer, said it best, “ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also”. (Matthew 6:21)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Temple (Part 1)

1 Kings 6:1, 11-13

“1 In the four hundred eightieth year after the Israelites came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, he began to build the house of the Lord...  11 The word of the Lord came to Solomon: 12 “As for this temple you are building, if you follow my decrees, observe my laws and keep all my commands and obey them, I will fulfill through you the promise I gave to David your father. 13 And I will live among the Israelites and will not abandon my people Israel.”

If you read the description of the Temple in 1Kings 6, you will read that it was large and ornate.  No detail was left out, no cost was spared.  Solomon built God a luxurious house.  

But this is not where God wanted to live.  God wanted to live in the heart of Solomon and the hearts of all who believed in Him.  Rather than fine things, God desired faith and obedience above all else.  Only if Solomon and the Israelites were faithful and obedient would God live among them.

God does not want a large, ornate church, large columns, polished floors, large entrance ways or well kept grounds.  

God wants our hearts; the true temple of God.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

God’s Wisdom

1 Kings 3:24-28

“24 So the king said, “Bring me a sword,” and they brought a sword before the king. 25 The king said, “Divide the living boy in two; then give half to the one, and half to the other.” 26 But the woman whose son was alive said to the king—because compassion for her son burned within her—“Please, my lord, give her the living boy; certainly do not kill him!” The other said, “It shall be neither mine nor yours; divide it.” 27 Then the king responded: “Give the first woman the living boy; do not kill him. She is his mother.” 28 All Israel heard of the judgment that the king had rendered; and they stood in awe of the king, because they perceived that the wisdom of God was in him, to execute justice.”

Solomon began to display God’s wisdom in his earthly judgments and everyone was in awe.  Solomon’s wisdom was to be the key to his success as the ruler of Israel.  

Wisdom, God’s wisdom, according to Proverbs, is the basis of human happiness.  “Happy is the man who finds wisdom and the man who gets understanding.”(Proverbs 3:13).  We can have vast knowledge of science, mathematics,  literature, music, etc.,  and still not be happy, unless we have God’s wisdom to accompany this knowledge.

Christian’s can receive God’s wisdom and understanding through the power of the Holy Spirit, if we live a life of prayer, worship, study, service, sacrifice and fellowship.

It is through these things that we will find God’s spirit, God’s wisdom, and true happiness.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Desire to Change

1 Kings: 3:9-14

“9 Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?” 10 It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. 11 God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, 12 I now do according to your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind; no one like you has been before you and no one like you shall arise after you. 13 I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor all your life; no other king shall compare with you. 14 If you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your life.”

Solomon knew his limitations as a ruler and asked God for wisdom.  

Few of us care to dwell on our limitations, but it is through this knowledge that we grow, especially spiritually.  In fact, it may be impossible to grow spiritually if you do not recognize your faults, your sins, and the things you need to change.

All Christians are called to change, to be transformed.  Yet, it is not possible to change without self-awareness.  The good news is that the Holy Spirit can give us this kind of awareness and the power to change.

All we have to provide...is the desire.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Unknown Man

1 Kings 2:10-12

“10 Then David slept with his ancestors, and was buried in the city of David.  11 The time that David reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.  13 So Solomon sat on the throne of the father David, and his kingdom was firmly established.”

Solomon sat on the throne.  David’s kingdom was now his.  The kingdom that David fought for; the kingdom for which David struggled and was willing to shed not only his blood but the blood of many others, for which God called him a “man of blood” and prevented him from building the Temple that he longed to build.

Now Solomon sat on this throne as an untested, unknown man.  The kingdom was his and the people wondered what the future would hold.

Christians, on the other hand, know their king.  We know the one who shed His blood so that we could be members of the kingdom of God.  We know the sacrifice He made, the price He paid.

Christ sits on the throne.  We know what the future holds.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Walking in the Way

1 Kings 2: 1-4

“1 When David’s time to die drew near, he charged his son Solomon, saying: 2 “I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, be courageous, 3 and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his ordinances, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, so that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn. 4 Then the Lord will establish his word that he spoke concerning me: ‘If your heirs take heed to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail you a successor on the throne of Israel.’”

David, near death, charged his son, Solomon, heir to the throne of Israel, to be strong, to be courageous and to keep walking in the ways of God.

The Christian life is a life of death to self in order to live a life by faith; to walk in the ways and teachings of Christ.  

Such a life requires us to be different, to seek to be set apart, and requires the strength of character to go against the grain of society. It also requires the courage to act in love and forgiveness when the world is calling for hate and retribution.

Walking in the way of Christ is difficult.  

But it is the way.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Light of the Morning

2 Samuel 23: 1a, 3-4

“ 1a: Now these are the last words of David:...3 The God of Israel has spoken, the Rock of Israel has said to me: One who rules over people justly, ruling in the fear of God, 4 is like the light of morning, like the sun rising on a cloudless morning, gleaming from the rain on the grassy land.”

I used to walk to the park early in the morning.  Some mornings the air would be fresh and clean and the sky would be cloudless, clear and blue.  The sun would be shining on the dew of the grass of the soccer field, and as I walked I could feel God’s peace.

Many people, including David, have had this same experience.  David said that people  who walk with God, who have within them the spirit of God, carry with them the light of morning.  Have you ever known a person like that, who, when they walk into a room, you can feel that the room is brighter, feels lighter, and more joyous?

Christians are called to be the morning light; the hope of the new day; the blue cloudless sky ….even in the ever darkening world.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Tamarisk Tree

1 Samuel 22: 6-7

“6 Now Saul heard that David and his men had been discovered. And Saul was seated, spear in hand, under the tamarisk tree on the hill at Gibeah, with all his officials standing at his side. 7 He said to them, “Listen, men of Benjamin! Will the son of Jesse give all of you fields and vineyards? Will he make all of you commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds?”

A tamarisk tree in the Middle East grows larger than the tamarisk tree in the United States.  They cannot survive in wilderness areas and normally grow in communities where people who plant them on their property can give them the care and nourishment that they need.  

They are very slow growing trees and need much care to do well.  People who plant tamarisk trees do not plant them for their enjoyment, but for the enjoyment of those who come after them.

Saul, sitting under a tall tamarisk tree, accused his closest commanders of disloyalty.  He thought that they might have thoughts of defecting  to David.  And he thought that their  loyalty could be purchased.  

But there are things in this world that money cannot buy, such as the cool shade of a tamarisk tree, planted on a hill and cared for  by someone 50 years in the past, or the loyalty of  commanders.

David was chosen by God to be King when he was just a youth.  During that time he was nurtured and cared for by God’s Holy Spirit.  And in the near future, Israel would bask in the shade of David’s shadow.

Sometime in our lives, the seed of faith was planted in us. And someone nurtured and cared for that faith and over the years it blossomed in us  and grew. Just as God’s Holy Spirit nurtured and guided David, the Holy Spirit dwells in each believer, leading us in an ever deepening, ever growing  relationship with God.

Christians are God’s tamarisk.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Suffering

1Samuel 20:1

“Then David fled from Naioth at Ramah and went to Jonathan and asked, “What have I done? What is my crime? How have I wronged your father, that he is trying to kill me?”

I once knew a man who devoted his life to the service of God.  He gave selflessly and sacrificially and he loved unconditionally.  Yet he suffered.  And I thought, at the time (and still do), that he did not deserve his suffering.  

David, chosen by God to be the next King of Israel, felt persecuted, unjustly. He had served his King, he had won victories over the King’s enemies, he had brought honor to Israel, yet King Saul was trying to kill him.

Sometimes our sufferings make no sense.  Good and innocent people suffer and die while the not so innocent prosper.

David overcame his suffering and became a great king.  In his reign as king, his sufferings seemed always in the back of his mind.  They shaped and molded his reign. 

Our sufferings make us the people that we are.  They will either make us or break us; strengthen our faith or cause us to question it or lose it.

The man I knew loved until his last breath.

God’s love is like that.  

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Jealousy

1 Samuel 18: 6-12

“6 When the men were returning home after David had killed the Philistine, the women came out from all the towns of Israel to meet King Saul with singing and dancing, with joyful songs and with timbrels and lyres. 7 As they danced, they sang:

“Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.” 8 Saul was very angry; this refrain displeased him greatly. “They have credited David with tens of thousands,” he thought, “but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?” 9 And from that time on Saul kept a close eye on David.10 The next day an evil spirit from God came forcefully on Saul. He was prophesying in his house, while David was playing the lyre, as he usually did. Saul had a spear in his hand 11 and he hurled it, saying to himself, “I’ll pin David to the wall.” But David eluded him twice. 12 Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with David but had departed from Saul.”

Saul became increasingly threatened by David’s success and his popularity.  Instead of coming to terms with these things within himself, he lashed out at David. Instead of  repenting of his sins in order to strengthen his relationship with God, he attempted to kill David.  His solution to his problem was to sin more.

The sins of narcissism and jealousy clearly clouded Saul’s judgment.. In Saul’s mind, it was David’s fault that the Lord’s spirit was not upon him and that by killing David the Lord’s spirit would once again be with him.

How is it that we refuse to see our sins when we see the sins of others so readily?

Christ said, “First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.” (Matthew 7:5)

Fortunately, the Holy Spirit is present in every believer, and will give us the spirit of humility and an awareness of our own sins.  

All we have to do is listen and obey.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Fellowship

1Samuel 18: 1-4

“After David had finished talking with Saul, Jonathan became one in spirit with David, and he loved him as himself. 2 From that day Saul kept David with him and did not let him return home to his family. 3 And Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. 4 Jonathan took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his tunic, and even his sword, his bow and his belt.”

David and Jonathan were close friends who shared good times and helped each other through some tough times. We need close friends in our lives; people that we can count on. 

Fellowship comes from the Greek word koinania, and in the New Testament it often means “sharing,” “close association,” or “mutual participation” and involves the ways believers help one another with their physical, mental, emotional and spiritual needs.

Christian fellowship is essential for our growth as Christians and  in our relationship with God.  Some of the most important things I have learned over the years have been with or because of other Christians.

Our relationship with God is important.  

And God expects us to carry this relationship forward into our relationships with other people.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)