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Our Children are Not Prepared by Public School By Lee Hemen March 2, 2021 I do not know where you live but here in the Evergreen School District in Clark County Washington they do not prepare children for Middle School. My grandson began online schooling for the sixth grade because of COVID-19. When he began I was shocked at how little he knew or understood as he began Middle School. However it soon became apparent that he was not in the minority. Most of the children did not understand what was required of them and I am not talking about being online. Most kids have no problem with being online and most of the worries are from parents or educators who are not connected enough with their kids to know that they know a whole lot more than they do about being connected; my grandson included. What I witnessed was shocking because these kids did not understand basic math, English, reading skills or simply being polite. It truly makes me wonder why we have been spending the huge sums of mone...

In the Wild! – John 20:30-31 By Pastor Lee Hemen July 21, 2019 Life is filled with incredible encounters. As we go through childhood, we are constantly discovering everything about the world around us. When we make friends, discover the beauty of nature, and become more aware of everything around us, we begin to realize the world’s vastness. We also begin to grasp that an entire globe of opportunities awaits each of us! God made us to encounter his love and to enjoy a personal relationship with him that lasts not just for a lifetime, but for eternity. All through his Word, God introduces himself in incredible ways, showing himself to be perfectly faithful, true, compassionate, and merciful. Even though people aren’t perfect, God has a plan to forgive us of our sin and bless us with a relationship with him. As Jesus’ earthly ministry began, he made it clear that his purpose was to make a way for every person to have an opportunity to receive his forgiveness and to enjoy eternal life wit...

God is our helper! – Psalm 70 By Pastor Lee Hemen September 17, 2017 A young man found himself in serious financial trouble. His business had gone bust. He was so desperate that he decided to ask God for help. He began to pray. “God, please help me. I’ve lost my business and if I don’t get some money, I’m going to lose my house as well! Please let me win the lottery!” After doing this several nights in a row and he still did not win he decided to pray one last time, “My God, why have you forsaken me? I’ve lost my business, my house and my car. My children are starving! I don’t often ask you for help and I have always been a good person! Please just let me win the lotto this one time so I can get my life back in order!” Suddenly there was a blinding flash of light as the heavens opened, the young man fell backwards, and he was confronted by the voice of God himself: “Young man, you are going to have to do just one thing first -- buy a ticket!” Now I am not advocating wasting your ...

Parents and children! - Ephesians 6:1-4 By Pastor Lee Hemen March 26, 2017 A child rebelling is as old as well couples having children. Some think that it is worse today than years ago, but it probably isn’t it just may seem that way. However, there has become a shift in how children are disciplined. The issue is not in whether a parent spanks or not but rather in the teaching that there are consequences for one’s actions. Consistency in parenting has degraded in our society and it has infected the school system as well. There are actually folks who think it is harmful to tell a child “no” or to hold them accountable for their behavior. This is simply not true nor is it emotionally healthy for the child to not know their boundaries. When we look into the pages of Scripture we can sometimes be hard pressed to find good examples of parenting yet we do discover some of the best advice for raising healthy, emotionally stable, and spiritually sound children. And here in Ephesians Paul gives...

The selflessness of Christ - Philippians 2:14-18 By Pastor Lee Hemen March 6, 2016 With every weed pulled I grumbled, "Why did I have to do this today? It's Saturday, I want to go play with my friends. This stinks! I hate weeding!" My father overheard me and reminded me that I should willingly give up a part of my Saturday to do the work because my mother needed it done. By weeding I was helping her use her time better and it displayed a selfless act. Of course being eight-years-old I didn't care about being selfless; selfishness is an eight-year-old's creed! Sadly, it seems the eight-year-old credo has infected many adult Christians as well. If we are to truly understand what Jesus did on the cross, we have to understand Jesus himself. Last week we discussed Jesus' humility and his being God. We also talked about how our attitude is to be the same as that of Jesus. Here in the next few verses we discover just how unselfish Jesus was and we come to reali...