A week ago last Wednesday as Cyndi and I were on an airplane flying to North Carolina to visit our daughter, the governor of our state of Washington was announcing the first of the restrictions intended to blunt the impact of COVID-19 upon the residents of our state. By the time we had landed in […]
Sleep on This: March 20
Good evening friend: “Selfish ambition.” That’s the phrase Paul uses in Philippians 1:17 to describe his “competitors.” Preachers who were using the opportunity of Paul’s imprisonment to advance their own reputation. With Paul on ice, these jealous rivals snatched the opportunity to steal some of his followers and impugn his reputation. It is really quite […]
Sleep on This: March 19
Good evening, friend: How is your faith this night? How confident are you that God is in control and at work? Yesterday morning, I watched the sun rise in a cloudless sky. This morning the fog obscured all but the next row of houses. Am I any less sure that the sun is out there, […]
Sleep on This: March 18
Good evening, friend. How is your soul? I know this has been a day of continued unrest, but regardless of what you are hearing on the news or social media, God is still on the throne! Jesus is still Lord. The Spirit of the risen Christ is living within you and nothing, nothing, nothing can […]
Sleep on This: March 17
Good evening my Chapel Hill Family: During this season of disruption, I feel the need to connect with you on a more regular basis. The word “pastor” means “shepherd”; my favorite image of the privileged role to which I am called. I am an under-shepherd of Jesus, the Great Shepherd, and you are my assigned […]
Coronavirus Update | March 14, 2020
In accordance with the governor’s mandate to limit large numbers of people meeting together, I want to let you know about changes to our events and programming. Preschool Following the policy of the Peninsula School District, and in accordance with Governor Jay Inslee’s emergency declaration to temporarily close schools in Pierce County, Chapel Hill Preschool will be closed […]
Let’s make it an adventure!
One of the most interesting sites in Rome actually lies UNDER Rome. 90 miles of catacombs were carved in ancient times as burial sites. But these underground cemeteries were transformed into churches when persecuted Christians began to worship in them during the first and second century. It was certainly not as convenient as an above-ground […]
Pastoral response to the coronavirus
UPDATED March 9, 2020 In AD 251, a plague struck the Roman Empire. We now believe it was measles, but then it was a devastating, mysterious illness that seemingly struck at random and ravaged the population. No one knew why or how the disease spread, so fear spread thick. It was recorded that five thousand […]
Leadership factory
It is a great source of pride—I hope a sanctified sort of pride!—for us at Chapel Hill to say that we have raised up 16 young leaders to ordained pastoral ministry. Well, I’m delighted to announce that number is about to go to 19! As of today, I have handed Julie Hawkins, Ryan Palmer, and […]
Something special
I always hope and expect that our weekend services will be special; that there will be a strong sense of the Holy Spirit moving through our music, worship, prayers and spoken word. But last weekend was something REALLY special. And if you missed—dang! I’ll give you a recap. At the end of the sermon in […]