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Living the Gospel - Galatians 3:26-29; 4:8-20 By Pastor Lee Hemen August 4, 2013 AM As a child and a teen, I was worried about my physical growth. Both my parents were relatively short, especially my mom. I was afraid I would reach her height and no more. Throughout elementary school and middle school, I was one of the smaller boys in class. In high school, I finally experienced a growth spurt. I was elated the day I realized I was taller than my mom was. In my later years growth remains a concern for me, albeit growth of a different kind. I want to continue to grow as a Christian. Spiritual maturity continues to be a goal toward which I want to move. I want to learn more about the Scriptures and to translate them into my daily living. As we learn more about the Gospel and act on what we learn concerning our relationship with Jesus Christ, our salvation, and in living the gospel, we will grow as Christians. That was Paul’s desire for the Galatian believers as well. In livi...

Today's Thoughts - What are you living for? - Mark 15 by Pastor Lee Hemen April 3, 2011 What are you living for? It is a good question to ask. I have often asked others this very question yet in a different way. I ask, "Suppose you were standing before God, in heaven, and he asked you, 'Why should I let you into my heaven?', what would you say?" Yet, this week I have been encouraged by another writer, to consider asking another series of questions: "If you live for many more years, what quality of character will you take into eternity? For what will your life have counted? What lasting spiritual legacy will you leave to those left behind you?" The author of these questions goes on to state that everyone accepts--intellectually if not emotionally--that they eventually will die. What they do with their remaining years is crucial. A legitimate question to ask anyone--and most of all ourselves--is: What are you living for? In light of eternity, ev...

The Cost of Discipleship - Mark 8:34-38 By Pastor Lee Hemen May 30, 2010 AM I remember when I was 10 years old saying I would cut our neighbor’s grass for a couple of dollars, but I had not considered that I would have to rake grass clumps afterwards, edge the lawn, and clean the mower. My father related something that has held me in good stay for the rest of my life after I had complained to him about what was involved. He simply said, “You should have counted the cost.” How do you measure the cost of something? I know that when I began to shop for a certain item that I want, I begin to look at reviews of the product online, I read up about different manufacturers of similar items, and I look at the manufacturer’s reputation, customer service, and quality of goods. That may work fine for say a camera or big screen TV, but what about other things in life. What about when we begin to count the cost of a relationship, a job opportunity, or say being a disciple of Jesus? How ...

Reconciliation – Colossians 1:15-23 By Pastor Lee Hemen March 30, 2008 AM A ceasefire can only occur between two warring factions if there is an understanding and a settlement that resolves outstanding issues that led to the conflict in the first place. I found this out when as a third grader I began to like a little blonde girl with pigtails. Of course I could not let her know that I actually liked her, that would have been gross. Instead, I had to publicly tease her and pull her pigtails so that my guy posse would never find out my true intentions. There is only one problem with this scenario: The female you like, whom you are teasing, will not understand and will want to take revenge on you. It is at this point you have to begin to make appeasement. Which can include a lot of humiliation on your part. Needless to say, we were not soon reconciled. Spiritual reconciliation while being similar in some ways, is handled differently because of God’s mercy through Jesus Christ. Following h...

Freedom – Colossians 2:6-10 March 9, 2008 AM By Pastor Lee Hemen How did you come to Christ? Perhaps a better question would be: How did you receive Jesus? Some will relate their “salvation story” whereby they “accepted Jesus as their Savior and Lord,” while others would say it was a gradual process of coming to a saving knowledge of Jesus. This is fine but this is not what I actually mean. In our Christianity we have reduced faith to an act that we have performed in the past. Faith is more than a past act, it is the daily acknowledgment of who you are, what you need to do, and thereby realizing that you cannot do it on your own, and that you moment by moment must trust completely in Jesus, whom you cannot see, with all that you are! When Jesus said, “Trust in me,” He was not saying we can depend on Him to be nice to us but rather that we are to give up all that we know, think we know, and set our complete faith in Him alone. We are to literally set aside everything we hold near ...