Posts

Showing posts from December, 2009

The Traveling Carpenter

The Traveling Carpenter By Pastor Lee Hemen December 27, 2009 AM A weary traveler comes into view, sets his one piece of odd-looking luggage and a carpenter's long metal tool box down, and sits heavily down on a long row of chairs of a nondescript airport waiting area. He sighs big, checks his pockets, finds something to eat in them, and opens up a granola bar and begins to eat it. Looking around he discovers that he isn’t alone and addresses the audience. (He is busily checking all of his pockets for his airplane tickets.) I know I put those airline tickets somewhere in my pockets, but which one? Gosh, Mama is gonna be mad at me if I lost them and then there will be the hassle of going to the ticket counter and getting them reissued… (Finds the tickets folded up in his hat band.) Oh… silly me… there they are! I am getting more absent minded everyday! Now, where did I put that airport map… Oh well… I will look on the wall or ask someone for directions. Airports! They are all the sa

Yacob, the Simple Carpenter

Yacob, the Simple Carpenter 12-13-09 AM By Pastor Lee Hemen (We find an older man, dressed in carpentry clothes, busily working in his shop, and singing to himself.) Yehovah is my shepherd; I shall not be in want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: He guides me in His righteousness… Good morning! Shalom! May the Lord bless you! Welcome to my carpentry shop! My name is Yacob. I do all kinds of carpentry work! What do you need today? Just looking for some good sturdy furniture? I can do that! I am but a simple carpenter. My father was a simple carpenter, his father was a simple carpenter, and… well… you get the idea. (Expansively.) We are all simple carpenters! We have a long history of being carpenters. But I can make almost anything you would need! Do you need a table? A chair? Perhaps you need a cradle? Do you have children? I do. A son. Yoseph. Do they follow in your footsteps? Do they want to do what you do for a

Of Pigs, People, and Demons - Mark 5:1-20

Of Pigs, People, and Demons - Mark 5:1-20 By Pastor Lee Hemen December 6, 2009 AM When we are presented with facts and figures we retain only about 5% of what we are taught. However, when we are given illustrations or parables, like Jesus used, we retain about half of them. If we become emotionally connected to the illustration used, we retain even more of the information given to us. This is why we remember stories like the one we are going to read today. The healing of a man that is totally out of control because of the demons in his life, frightens us, intrigues us, and helps us to indentify with him because we all fight some demonic influences in our lives. Seeing him completely healed gives us hope and a certainty in life. Last week we learned about how Jesus calms the storms of life. In this section we will look at today we will discover that after Jesus calms the storm-blown waves that frightened his disciples, he is faced with the personal storm of an individual whose daily ro