With a heading as broad as ‘Pastor’s Notes’ you may expect the posts here to be almost anything from my doodles during a phone conversation to the final version of a Sunday morning sermon outline. The common denominator of ‘Pastor Notes” will be the opening up of my heart. The Apostle Paul said he was willing to have imparted to the Thessalonians not the gospel only, but also his own soul (I Thess 2:8). 

11.30.2006

The Lord has richly blessed us all. Rejoice in the Lord and again I say, rejoice. This has been such a blessed Thanksgiving. Charlotte and I left last Monday and drove to Nebraska where we were together with all our children and grandchildren and my siblings and their families who had all come great distances to be with my parents for their 90th birthday celebration.

Then this morning (Sunday, November 26th) I flew back to Austin to be with the flock I love so much. The brethren were well into the service when I arrived and I was overcome as I walked into the sanctuary and heard a full house singing so beautifully in the Spirit to the Lord. A pastor strives to lead the Lord’s people to their God to serve and praise Him. They were involved in doing this very thing so well, and I was deeply touched by their devotion. Thank you Lord for this so great a people I have been blessed to pastor.

This afternoon Brother Sonny Lowrance (our song leader) led several from the church as they followed the Kyle Sisters who sang the opening of the Christmas season at a shopping center here in the city. This was such a festive occasion, and again such a joyful time. Last of all an evening meal with some of the brethren was enjoyed. Blessings abound, thanksgiving swells, and praise issues forth to the Lord for all His tender mercies. Indeed we are so rich in the Lord, may we give thanks to Him for all His goodness towards us through the Lord Jesus Christ. May we all be sure to turn to him in thanksgiving and praise all year through.

“And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him” Colossians 3:17.

By His Grace, Dickie

10.12.2006

So, my note this posting to convey to you the incredible blessing the book Knowing God by J.I. Packer has been to me. They say you can’t judge a book by its cover, but I have come to believe you can judge people by their books. Here is part of who I am. 

This book, first published in 1973, for good reason, has become a classic in its own time. I have gleaned from its ‘pages’ in both printed and audio format. It was the best gift I thought I could possibly give to my children or their spouses for Christmas a few years ago. (Aren’t you glad you do not have me for a Dad or Father-in-law?!) This has been one of the most significant books I have ever read.

Why such an impact? Well, has your mind ever done what my notebook just did, ‘blue out’ and post an error message that it has made a ‘memory dump’ at the loss of any open or currently running programs? If you are like me our twenty-first century American minds are bludgeoned with so much material that it becomes difficult to control the firing of our own synapses. Because of this it is difficult to live by faith.

So how can any of us bolster faith? Faith is strengthened by first realizing that it is not positive thinking or mystical experience. Second, faith will grow as we believe upon Him as He is. When everything around us is driving us ever so close to a mental ‘blue out’ faith must stay itself upon God and think according to divine logic.

How good are we at reasoning ourselves through our doubts and fears or troubles and trials? The answer is dependent upon our knowledge of our Heavenly Father and His truth. “ . . . people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits” (Dan 11:32b). This brings us to the value of Dr. Packer’s book.

Here is truth about our great God logically presented so that we may stay our minds upon Him and be at peace though mentally bludgeoned by this information age There are three sections: 1) Know the Lord, 2) Behold Your God, and 3) If God Be For Us. Each time I have been through it I am brought to know my heavenly Father in a trusting way, because each time I have been through it I am given knowledge of him in a logical way. I need to go through it again. By His Grace, Dickie