Was I the only one who was anxious around Valentine’s Day growing up? I distinctly remember worrying about whether my Scooby Doo Valentine’s Cards would be well received and whether I made the list to get something back from my classmates. Valentine’s Day can be awkward and often is filled with unmet and irrational expectations. As this day approaches, my…
January 1, 2018 Dear Church of the Open Door family, Starting this week we will get a barrage of infomercials on weight loss plans, life altering pots and pans, financial debt recovery, and relationship restoration programs. With the New Year, we are offered new opportunities and techniques to tackle the challenges of our lives and each has a cost and…
Dear Church of the Open Door family, This is the time of the year where my kids start giving Nancy and me hints about what type of gift would make their Christmas dreams come true. Each year what’s on their hearts seems to vary. This year, one of my daughters wants her own purple beach-cruiser bicycle. One of my sons…
Dear COD family, As a new lead pastor I’m daily amazed that every single cent of our ministry here at Church of the Open Door is from the sacrificial and loving stewardship of the people in this church family. Not a single dime comes from the government or a grant or some other entity or group; it all comes from you and…
The Apostle John’s declaration at the beginning of John 13 that Jesus “loved his own to the very end” is the perfect opening to this discussion. John describes what supreme love looks like in action.
This series unpacks the unbridled love of our Savior as He launches us into the high calling as disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ.
What we have discovered as we shepherd our people is that one of the most difficult steps in the Christian life is to trust grace in community — to be known, to trust and to allow imperfect Christians to love us with Jesus’ perfect love. For most of us, this is risky and loaded with possibilities of pain and disappointment.
