Pastor Tom's Journal

  I hear people say that it is hard to forgive. They say it is hard to love one’s enemies and pray for them. I do not agree. It is actually quite easy. It can be easy if we are submitting to God’s love. That is where the struggle come – submitting. Once that is accomplished, everything else is a cakewalk. --------------------------------------- Don't despair if you are not a Medium member. Here is a free friend link because we are friends: https://medium.com/@tomsims/submitting-is-the-hard-part-loving-is-easy-21a6ce4b2f5e?sk=bda3ce049fb182700daead55f1fb9640 If you are a member, help me make a penny, also, because we are friends. https://medium.com/@tomsims/submitting-is-the-hard-part-loving-is-easy-21a6ce4b2f5e

Call it poetic justice or slapstick comedy, but it is dead serious with the emphasis on "dead." When we throw too many darts, they boomerang. God is not necessarily singling us out; it is simply the divine law of sowing and reaping. Haman ended up on the gallows he built for Mordecai. It is not a pretty story, but it is life and a good warning to us not to throw stones or to be vindictive.

"Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God." No Rinky-Dink Clause   Colossians 2:16-3:1 I will call this Paul's "No Rinky Dink Clause."  Paul is up against a version of Christian teaching that is seeking synthesis with a form of aestheticism that he is saying robs the believer of their liberty in Christ and puts the emphasis of faith in the wrong place. He counters it with this instruction: Set your hearts on things above. That is where Christ is and Christ is seated at God's right hand. If we adjust our focus, it will solve a lot of our religious problems: Look upward!

Do I need therapy, or do I need to write more? Or do I need both? Or do I need coaching to help me write more? Or all three? You decide, but whatever you do, if you are a writer, start writing and sharing what you write.

A Prayer from the Gut for Equity! Do you indeed decree righteousness, you rulers?  do you judge the peoples with equity? No; you devise evil in your hearts, and your hands deal out violence in the land. A righteous man is praying, and he is not pulling any punches. He is praying from the gut. He is praying from his heart. He is praying with disgust. He is praying to a righteous God. He is praying with a sense that he is aligned with the heart of God. It is a heart of righteousness. It is a heart that desires equity. The psalmist is convinced that God's concerns are for righteousness justice equity and peace. It is to that end he prays. He prays for those things and he prays against wicked rulers. A link for Medium Members. Thank You! - https://medium.com/@tomsims/a-prayer-from-the-gut-break-them-557cded12828 Free Friend Link: https://medium.com/@tomsims/a-prayer-from-the-gut-break-them-557cded12828?sk=c5944c30a5f20a189ffb6421f6d04595

  Post Truth? Or is it just a lack of artistic imagination? Or is it just too ethereal?

Teach Us to Pray. Gospel: Luke 11:1-13 Hosea 1:2-10 Psalm 85 Genesis 18:20-32 Psalm 138 Colossians 2:6-1 Broken by Rebellion Based in Reality -  Around us, within us, and beyond us Bonded in Relationship https://lintr.ee/tomsims Photo by Milada Vigerova on  Unsplash Teach Us to Pray. Gospel: Luke 11:1–13 Hosea 1:2–10 Psalm 85 Genesis 18:20–32 Psalm 138 Colossians 2:6–1  Prayer Broken by Rebellion Based in Reality -  Around us, within us, and beyond us Bonded in Relationship Photo by Jack Sharp on  Unsplash Summary of Message We focused on the theme of prayer, exploring its significance and how it is taught and practiced according to biblical teachings. We began with the disciples’ request to Jesus to teach them how to pray, similar to how John taught his disciples. We highlighted the importance of understanding prayer through various scriptures, including Luke 11:13, Hosea, Psalms, Genesis, and Colossians, emphasizing the relationship between prayer, rebellion...

Earned Income & Nonprofits Download the outline at https://workshopstogo.weebly.com/resources-to-download.html For coaching on this, go to https://calendly.com/coachtomsims

Mordecai, a Defiant Resister There is something in us that wants to be on the winning side. There is another drive that sometimes competes. That is the desire to be rightfully aligned with God. That is, in other words, our conscience, Alignment with God's kingdom and will is a basis for hope that we can have both realized. However, sometimes, we must proceed without hope and with only the conviction that we are taking the stand that is right and righteous. There have always been edicts from systems that have raised issues and choices of conscience. These edicts have been presented as nonnegotiable, and lack of compliance has come with negative consequences. There have always been those who have resisted based upon conscience. Mordecai, the Jew, could not and would not offer worship to a human being. Nor could he pledge his loyalty to an imposter or a pretender. This was a matter of conscience for him. Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor. So, torn between conflicting nonn...

FOR THE HEALING OF THE NATIONS My heart is drawn to Psalm 41. He does not say, "Heal me because I am a good man," here. Nor does he suggest any qualities of his character to make him deserving. Rather he pleads his own sin as the reason he requests healing. Please hear me. Please heal me. Please bless me? Why should I? Because I am a sinner and I have sinned against you. It gives me hope. Heal me of my sickness because my greatest sickness is my sin. It has disabled me. It has humbled me. It torments me. Imagine that, the greatest qualification for healing is the need we have for it. On that basis, I certainly qualify! " The LORD sustains him on his sickbed;in his illness you restore him to full health." "As for me, I said, “O LORD, be gracious to me;heal me, for I have sinned against you!”" -Psalm 41:3-4 ESV