Category: pastor’s notes

Pastor’s Notes 9/12/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

“Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.”
—Lord’s Prayer

“How many stars did it get?”

“What do the reviews say about it?”

Purchases don’t get made without doing some research these days. Which is easy to do because I don’t have to dig very deep online to find a review or survey response about a product’s value or worth.

I tend to pay a bit more attention to reviews that explain their rankings more than simply leaving a word like, “terrible” or “great”. Extol the virtues and tell me why this seemed to work so well. Leave a thoughtful testimonial to your experience and I will pay closer attention.

Testimonial.

That is the final instruction that Jesus’ leaves us when teaching us to pray. Not only are we to let God know how we have received blessings, but we must share our experiences of God with others.

These closing to our prayer calls us to recognize that God has been present in our past, is with us now and will guide our thoughts and actions in the days to come. God is good and worthy of my praise.

This is where our testimonial comes into play. Live and speak in ways that explain our experience with God. Don’t keep the goodness of God to ourselves. The more we express who God is and describe or exemplify our relationship with the Holy, the greater chance another person might take to experience God themselves. “I have seen God at work in my life, and I am proud to share my experience with you.”

On Sunday, we will remind ourselves of the ways God has been present with God’s faithful from the Old Testament to today. We will better understand what influenced the closing words to the Lord’s Prayer we pray every Sunday and get a better taste for what it means to be a witness to God’s love in the world… to offer our testimonial.

I look forward to worshipping with you online or in person! Our scripture verses for Sunday will include: Matthew 6:13, Exodus 15:1–2, 6, 13, I Chronicles 29:10-13.

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 9/4/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and do not forget all his benefits—who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the Pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good as long as you live so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. –Psalm 103:1-5

Psalm 103 is a song of thanksgiving, traditionally attributed to David. It is not so much a prayer asking God for something as it is a reminder to the one praying of what God has already done. David begins by speaking to his own soul: “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and do not forget all God’s benefits.”

That phrase, “do not forget,” is important. David knows how easily we can receive God’s goodness without really noticing it. We enjoy the gifts of life, the people who surround us, and the moments of peace. We appreciate the food on our tables, the beauty of creation, and the countless ways we experience God’s presence. But it is easy to take our daily blessings for granted.

Thanksgiving is more than saying “thank you.” It is an intentional practice of remembering where our blessings come from and recognizing that God’s presence has been woven through our lives all along.

This Sunday we will gather around Psalm 103 and consider what it means to cultivate a grateful heart. As we worship, we will also dedicate and bless the new and gently used children’s books our congregation has been collecting for distribution at the Regional Disciples Women’s Retreat.

If you have a children’s book you would like to contribute, please bring it with you Sunday. These books will become gifts of love to children we may never meet, and we will take a moment to bless both the books and those who will receive them.

Together we will consider the goodness of God that surrounds us, often in ways we have simply stopped noticing. I look forward to worshipping with you in the Chapel or on YouTube.

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 8/28/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial but rescue us from the evil one. For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
–Matthew 6:12-15

“Embedded Faith”

“Embedded faith” is a phrase the Tuesday Bible Study group is quite familiar with, because we reference it a great deal. The word embedded is an adjective meaning: fixed firmly and deeply in a surrounding mass; implanted. Faith is defined by Webster as a strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof. So, when we put these words together, we find an embedded faith to be:

“A deeply rooted belief about God.”

Theologian David Hartkopf says embedded faith is simply the assumed components of Christian belief, concepts, and ideas that are taken as truth without thought on the part of the hearer. Often these are ideas and understandings we grew up with or learned along the way and they have taken hold as our core understanding.

You have also heard me talk before about our sources of authority.,

This rationale makes sense when we engage in dialogue about Matthew 6:5-15. What is the “proper” language to use when reciting the Lord’s prayer whether we prefer debts, trespasses or sins. We all have a preference, and it is often an embedded belief we pick up as we grow in faith. “It was how my grandma prayed it.” “The church I grew up in taught me.” “It is the language that makes the most sense to me as an adult and helps me understand with deeper meaning, the words I am confessing before God.”

As we can see in the italicized quote to introduce this message, both debts and trespasses appear in Matthew’s gospel account. If we were to summarize the concept even more, as some Biblical translations have, we can also trust that Jesus was addressing sin. Bottom line, there are many ways to find meaning in the Lord’s prayer and as a community of faith we make room to recite these faithful words as each person chooses (it is the closest the Disciples of Christ come to speaking in tongues)!

Our diversity in faith is truly a gift and Sunday we will focus our attention onto what draws followers of Jesus together through the Lord’s Prayer rather than that which divides us. I look forward to worshipping with you in the Chapel or on YouTube.

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 8/21/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Matthew 6:10

“As it is.”

I first learned that phrase as a child, while looking over the “want ads” in our local newspaper. The “Giveaway Guide,” was my first stop every time I picked up the Globe Gazette. That is where I would find listings with language like, “Free bicycle. You haul. ‘As is.’”

I realized quickly that few things are truly free, there is always a catch. To work properly that bike could need a new tire tube or a chain fix or a cleaning and tune-up. “As it is” required some care and investment on my part to use and enjoy the bike.

Curious that when Jesus is teaching how to pray, he encourages us to acknowledge God with, “your will be done, on earth ‘as it is’ in heaven.”

“As it is.”

God in heaven, for your will to be done on earth, some care and investment on our part is required. We are the ones who are responsible for the “as it is”. For God’s love to be felt, we must share it. For the needs of God’s people to be met, we must acknowledge those needs.

This is the section of the Lord’s Prayer that requires heavy lifting. This is where we invest our energy. This is where we say, “God your people are hurting, the marginalized are overlooked, the sick need healing.” In essence what we mean then is, and for your love to be known on earth as it is in heaven, your faithful followers need to be invested.

The benefits of our relationship with the Holy are ours in eternity, but as is promised, we need not wait. God’s desire is for love, grace, mercy and blessing to be known in this earthly life and as followers of Jesus, we are the ones to make it so. We are the ones to make God’s will known.

I look forward to worshipping with you in the chapel or on YouTube!

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 8/14/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

‘When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. ‘Pray then in this way: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. –Matthew 6:9

Last Sunday we concluded our series about the Fruit of the Spirit and focused on the gift of self-control.

What do we allow to receive our attention? What controls us? Is it the ‘stuff’ of this earthly walk and the temptations on our humanity or are we able to center ourselves on godly pursuits?

The more realistic question for us to ponder coming out of this series is, how do we return to our center and tap into that space in our core where God dwells? What practices help us regain our focus upon the holy?

The most accessible answer for returning to God is prayer. Over the next four weeks we will listen more intently to Jesus’ model for how to pray from Matthew 6:9-15. The Lord’s prayer is more than a litany we recite every Sunday. It is the template for expression. Prayer lays the groundwork for putting into words what we want God to know.

The first stop along this journey is to “name and proclaim” who God is. There is a lot that can be said by addressing who God is to us and why God is worthy of our attention. “Creator who breathed life into existence.” “Comforter to hold us when we are weak.” “God of yesterday, today and tomorrow.”

Making that first step and welcoming God back into the conversation is saying a mouthful. Simply naming and proclaiming who God is, opens the line of the communication. Getting started can be the hardest part. But once the invitation is extended the Holy Spirit can go to work through us and for us.

I look forward to exploring prayer with you in person or on YouTube.

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 8/7/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. 
–Gal 5:22-23

We made our way through the orchard!

No matter how many times I read a passage of scripture, something new catches my eye. Today, it is “There is no law against such things.” Nothing of human control can deny love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control. As Fred Craddock and Eugene Boring explain it, “acts of Christian love will not violate the law they are so tempted to idolize.”

Strive at this list and not only will we be faithful, but the world around us will be all the better for it!  But incorporating these gifts into daily practices is where the struggle lies. Which leads to how we will interpret our final fruit this Sunday, “self-control.”

Obvious interpretations of self-control would be to preach about lust or gluttony or greed or maintaining our emotions. By leaning  into more of a spiritual discipline focus we indirectly cover those others as well.

Our featured text for Sunday will be a portion of Jesus’ sermon on the mount in Matthew 6:25-34 which begins with, “do not worry about your life…”

Anxiety is real and it is so easy to lose ourselves down a spiral of unhelpful thoughts. Being stuck in a constant loop of worry or negative attention is dangerous.

Centering ourselves around the Spirit or returning our focus to Holy endeavors is the gift of self-control. How can we practice the discipline of prayer in a way that is authentic, meaningful, and attainable? How can we return our attention to our faithful walk, trusting God to already be there with us?

I look forward to worshipping with you in the chapel at 9:30 on Sunday or on YouTube as we center ourselves around God, our Christ, and the Holy Spirit! 

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 7/31/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
–Matthew 11:29

Our “Fruit of the Spirt” for Sunday is one of those words that can’t help but be said with an intonation that defines the word.

“Gentleness.”

Anytime we say gentle or gentleness we tend to do so as though we are instructing a toddler who is petting a bunny or chick for the first time… “Gently.” There is a special care and concern that is generated with gentleness.

But gentleness is also a deceptive little gift of the Spirit. The wrong way to interpret gentleness is to understand it as submissive, weak, passive, or subservient.

In worship on Sunday, we will look at three passages of scripture to better help us understand what Jesus and the Holy Spirit have in mind for gentleness: Matthew 11:28-30, John 10:14-18, John 21:15-17.

Jesus declares himself to be gentle and humble of heart. He also refers to himself as the good shepherd. Two hymns we will sing Sunday, “Gentle Shepherd,” and “Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us,” identify a certain fragility and care needed when dealing with God’s people.

There is quite a chasm of understanding between a Savior who welcomes children and blesses them or speaks of rescuing a lost sheep stuck in a thicket with a Jesus who curses the fig tree or turns the tables in the temple.

Gentleness is not docile. When dealing with Peter in John 21, he repeats himself 3 ways, “If you love me, feed my sheep.” There must be something more to the act of serving otherwise why would Jesus repeat himself. Our delivery matters, how we love, is important and the fruit of gentleness will remind us of this on Sunday as we worship in the chapel or on YouTube.

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 7/24/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai, saying, ‘Go at once to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before me.’ But Jonah set out to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid his fare and went on board, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.
–Jonah 1:1-3

The next theme in our series is “Fruit of the Spirit: Faithfulness.” Our question of the day will be: What does faithfulness mean to you? How are you faithful?

If we were to ask the prophet Jonah what it means to be faithful, he would roll his eyes, sigh, and encourage us to read all 4 chapters of his Old Testament book. And as our weekly Bible study group learned, there is more to faith than sitting in the belly of a big fish while reminiscing upon our beliefs and actions.

At the end of the day, Jonah might describe faithfulness as learning to love who and what God loves. And apparently that includes enemies and happenings outside of our personal bubbles.

Jonah would also say faithfulness means accepting that mercy is not just a personal gift. Jonah was all in favor of God’s mercy, for Jonah… But when God showed grace to Nineveh, that was pushing it.

Through sharing all of Jonah’s story Sunday we will better understand faithfulness in deeper ways. Holiness begins with paying attention. Storms reveal more than they punish. God’s grace is always bigger than our boundaries.

I look forward to worshipping with you on YouTube or in the Chapel this Sunday!

Brett

First fruits.

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

Jesus told his disciples to gather around him. Then he said: I tell you that this poor widow has put in more than all the others. Everyone else gave what they didn’t need. But she is very poor and gave everything she had.
–Mark 12:43-44

First fruits.

When the first sheaves of grain ripened or the first grapes appeared on the vine, Israel was instructed to bring the first of the harvest as an offering to God. This wasn’t because God needed their produce. It was because the people needed to remember where every blessing had come from. It was a way of saying, “God, we trust you with what comes next.” It was a gesture about gratitude, belief, and placing God first in every season of life.

So when we skip ahead to Mark 12:41-44 to go with our theme “Fruit of the Spirit: Generosity,” the story is quite compelling. Surrounded by wealthy donors making impressive contributions, Jesus notices a widow who quietly places two small coins into the treasury. Her gift is tiny by every measurable standard, yet Jesus says she has given more than anyone else because her offering came from trust rather than surplus.

The point is not that God desires poverty or self-sacrifice. Rather, Jesus reveals that generosity is measured by love and faith, not by numbers on a ledger. She offers what she can because her life already belongs to God.

As we continue discovering the Fruit of the Spirit, we’ll see that generosity is much bigger than finances. It is generosity with our encouragement, our forgiveness, our patience, our hospitality, our time, our listening, and our compassion. It is choosing abundance over scarcity, believing there is enough grace to share because God has first been generous with us.

I look forward to worshipping with you in person or on YouTube this Sunday.

Brett

Pastor’s Notes 6/19/2026

Posted on by Wende Gonzales

Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. –James 5:7

I have a confession to make: both my patience and my gardening skills are, shall we say, works in progress. In fact, my lack of gardening expertise may be one of the reasons my patience for gardening is even worse. When I put a seed in the ground, I want results. Preferably by tomorrow.

Of course, that isn’t how gardens work. Growth takes time. Seeds need the right conditions. Good soil matters. Water is critical. Sunlight needs to be managed. Even when I have done my part in these areas, much of the work happens beneath the surface where we cannot see it.

Yet there is something deeply rewarding about slowing down long enough to pay attention. To breathe in the surroundings. To notice what is happening around us. A gardener learns to recognize good soil from bad, to adjust to changing conditions, and to respond to what the moment requires rather than forcing things to happen on a predetermined timetable.

This Sunday we will explore Jesus’ Parable of the Sower (Luke 8:4-15) alongside the Fruit of the Spirit of Patience. While patience is often understood as simply waiting, biblical patience is much more than passive endurance. It is the ability to remain present, attentive, and faithful while God is at work in ways we cannot yet see.

When we can pause, even for a moment, before reacting, we become better equipped to respond with wisdom instead of impulse, compassion instead of frustration, and love instead of fear. Patience creates space for us to discern what the situation before us truly needs.

Like the sower scattering seed, we do not always control where our efforts land or how quickly growth appears. But we can cultivate hearts that are open to God’s work and trust that growth often happens long before we can see the results.

I look forward to worshiping with you as together we consider what it means to become good soil for God’s love and to cultivate the patient spirit that bears lasting fruit.

Brett