Retired

May 6, 2025

Today was my first Tuesday where I did not head out to Poole Church. I did some chores around the yard, and did some errands in town. I read some books, did the crossword, and I tried to finish my jigsaw puzzle of the Kissing Bridge of West Montrose. I will not bore you everyday with my plans and schedules, but I thought maybe you might want to know. 

During our Anabaptist tour, I reflected on the book of Acts. The book is a travelogue with some of the important events with the early church. The church began in Jerusalem, and then went to all over the known world including Rome. It is one of the longest books in the New Testament, and provides us with a glimpse of the early leaders like Peter, Paul and Jesus’ brother James. After chapter nine, it is mostly about Paul and his interaction with the early churches in Corinth, Philippi and Ephesus among the many cities that he visited, and wrote letters to those communities.

I do not think that Paul intended to write Scripture. He was a good Jewish believer, and so the Law was enough for him. He was a Pharisee, and so was connected to the politics of the synagogue and temple. According to Acts, he often went to a synagogue when he came to a new city. He wrote his letters for encouragement and some admonition. The churches did not always get along with each other. This is why the letters are so good, they are about real issues. And Paul did not announce these letters as Scripture. It took the church over 300 years to announce these letters as God’s word. 

I offer you the trillium flower as a symbol for the church going forward, with God as the perfecter of our faith.

Praying always for Gaza. AMEN.