Author Archives: ERCOVADmin

I have always wondered if God had to use persecution to move His people out in mission. Were these new believers getting too comfortable in Jerusalem? Were they sitting back and just waiting for the Lord to return?

Whatever was the divine purpose, God would use this terrible event for good. With the church being scattered, it gave these disciples more opportunity to share the Gospel. Our God is a missional God.

He wants us to always be on the go looking for receptive people. He may use us right where we are at, or He may sovereignly move us out of our comfort zone for His glory.

We can get too comfortable to! We have a wonderful facility and our community life together is a blessing. But if we are not willing to move out into our world with the good news, then we are not fulfilling our God given purpose as a church.

These past two years have isolated people and made it harder for the church to go and be a missional people. People are lonely and the need for healthy relationships is at an all-time high.

This is the time for all of us to be engaging with those outside of our fellowship. We need to be looking for receptive people. It starts with building trusting relationships and listening to the hearts of people.

When possible, God can open the doors for us to share our faith and hope in Jesus. For many without hope in this world, the future seems very uncertain.

The message of the resurrected Christ is our only hope for this life and the life to come. His power and love can overcome the despair and hopelessness in our culture.

Many people (myself included) distrust and are skeptical about our current institutions. Violence and revolution is not the answer. The only answer is the One who is risen and can bring real change to the human condition.

Pastor Fred

Being a “morning” person, I look forward to my solitary times before the world wakes up. I enjoy a cup of coffee, taking an hour walk and sitting in my backyard to cool down. When I am out east of town to do my window business, I like to walk the canyon in San Dimas. Almost every morning I will pick a verse or verses from Scripture to meditate on. These solitary times are a great substitute for loneliness. Being aware of our Father’s presence and the beauty of nature gives life purpose and fills the void of human loneliness. In Mark’s Gospel, we see Jesus getting up early and going to a solitary place to pray. My sense is that he practiced solitude regularly. In this instance, he was faced with a very difficult decision and needed “space” to hear from His heavenly Father. In our current cultural climate, there is an ever growing crisis of loneliness. Even with social media, cable news and the internet, people need solitude from all the “voices” that clamor for our attention. I would encourage all who reading this blog to commit to trading loneliness for solitude. Find some “space” that is yours to be with your Father and listen. Scripture can help and so can being in nature. Take a walk if you are able or simply sit on your porch. The quiet times of morning or late evening are best. Some of my best times is sitting out in the dark and watching the stars. Begin with the Lord’s prayer if you need a start. Meditate on the words and say them slowly. Move into conversation, but also listen! God’s still small voice is very precious! Remember, Jesus said that he would be with us always until the end of the age! God bless you this week.

Pastor Fred

This is one of my favorite scriptures! It is one of my favorite scriptures because I need to do what it says! First, I need to choose joy and my joy is rooted in the Lord. My joy is not in my circumstances, but in the person and work of Christ. I need to let gentleness flow from a joyful heart to all around me. Gentleness is a fruit of the Spirit, so I must lean on God’s Spirit to be gentle. When we perceive that we are not being treated right, it is easy to lash out in harsh words and anger. If we can let the Spirit keep our own emotions in check, then we can let the spirit of gentleness be evident in and through us. Paul exhorts us not to be anxious about anything! That is quite an exhortation! How can we rid ourselves of anxiety? He says that we need to turn our anxious concerns over to God in prayer and petition, and to do it with thanksgiving. What gets you anxious? Whatever it is, name it and take it directly to God. Bring it to the throne of grace and lay it there before Him. The description of God being on a “throne” is a metaphor for His sovereignty and control over the world. Then leave it there with a heart of thanksgiving knowing that you and I have a heavenly Father that will receive our anxious issues. When we exercise faith in prayer, then as we leave the throne of grace, God’s peace will go with us as a guardian of our hearts and minds! I know many are still very anxious about leaving their homes during this lockdown and virus. As our society opens up, if you are anxious, please take it to the Father and let Him help you with your fears. If you are anxious about the social unrest in our country, take it to the Lord and let Him give you peace to guard your hearts and minds. Believe me! I am taking this medicine almost daily! Jesus is still on the throne, and He will fulfill His mission and one day come again to restore all things! In the meantime, let us rejoice, be gentle and have our hearts and minds guarded by His peace! 

Pastor Fred

“Praying the Beatitudes” Here is a prayer that I composed from the Beatitudes of Jesus. Please read and reflect on this prayer as we go through these trying times! 

Dear Heavenly Father, I am blessed that you revealed my utter spiritual poverty, for it drove me to a place of turning to you for help. With this realization, I have now come into the reality of your Kingdom presence. The riches of your grace are now available to me. I am blessed that with the realization of my poverty, I am mournful over my own sins against you and the people that I have sinned against. In my mourning, I have received the comfort of you love and forgiveness. May I always remember that in my grief over my own sinfulness, you forgave my sins and restored me in your comforting love. I am blessed that you created in me a desire to give you the space in my life that is only reserved for you. May I continue to not resist your presence, but may it expand to the point that I will inherit this earth when your Kingdom comes in its fullness. 

I am blessed that you created in me a hunger and thirst for your righteousness. Your righteousness has been revealed in your Son Jesus and now it is possible for me to be the good person that I now want to be. In my hunger and thirst, I have found a great resource of goodness that fills me to overflowing! May I continue to draw from you by being filled with your Spirit and obeying the words of Jesus. I am blessed with having your eyes of compassion and mercy. Help me to show mercy and compassion in the same way that you have shown compassion and mercy to me. I am blessed that by the work of Christ on the cross and the forgiveness given in my heart, I am able to be pure in my heart as I live out my life in this world. The purity that comes from your sanctifying grace allows me to see you by faith now and one day to see you face to face! I am blessed that I am now reconciled to you and have received your peace. I accept the call to be a peacemaker may not always turn out good in the world of conflict. I am blessed to take on all of the hostility that comes from being a follower of Christ. The cost of losing my life in this world for Christ and his righteousness is worth the glory of your Kingdom! Your prophets were willing to count the cost of representing you in this world. Many have gone before me who have given their life for your Kingdom. I am willing to count the cost of being a disciple of Christ. Help me to keep my eyes on Jesus, who was willing to go all the way for me. May your Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven! Amen. 

Pastor Fred

“Take me out to the ballgame, take me out to the crowd, impose your political views on me and I will stop watching right now! The author of Ecclesiastes says there is a time for everything under heaven. Sports is a time to get away from all the other issues of the day and simply enjoy good wholesome competition. Sadly, sports in America is being inundated with politics. When I tune into a sports station to watch a football or basketball game, I do not need some millionaire sports star imposing his or her political views on the air. A multi-millionaire athlete has as much wisdom as my barber or taxi driver. I watch sports to get away from politics. There is a time for politics and when I want “wisdom” on political views, I do not turn to sports figures for my information. With the lockdown, I thought I would miss watching live sports, but with the current political climate invading the sports world, I have not missed it at all. If fact, if it continues to be a platform for politics, I may just quit watching sports at all! ( I wouldn’t bet on it, but it is how I feel). Folks, politics is very important for our society, but it should not permeate every section of it. The problem with living in a secular dominated culture is that politics replaces higher values like God, faith and religious community. I can have deep disagreements with my fellow Americans over politics, but when I watch or go to a sports event, I don’t care if the person next to me agrees with me or not. I want them to simple enjoy the game with me! If we are rooting for the same team, then it is a plus and if not, it is only a game! For any of you that have little interest in sports, I still want to remind you that this trend is something that should concern you. It is unhealthy as a society to put politics into every arena of our lives. We need healthy outlets! Thank God that He gives us a time for everything under heaven! Sports (and recreation) is a gift for our own good and let us use it for that and that only!

Pastor Fred

When Solomon finished the temple, Yahweh spoke to him at night and assured the king that his prayers were heard. Yahweh chose this as His place of presence among the people. With this re-assurance there were also warnings about living up to their covenant responsibilities. Judgment would come if they failed in their faithfulness to the covenant. Because Yahweh is a faithful, merciful and compassionate God, He also promised forgiveness of their sins and healing of their land. During this time of civic leaders removing constitutional rights from their citizens, people suffering from Covid-19 and the upheaval in our cities, it is time to really pray for our country. The protest over the killing of George Floyd is understandable, but it has given the anarchists and looters an open door to bring destruction in our cities. Civilization is very fragile. Look to the recent past and you can see the ravage destruction of societies in Russia and Germany. Add China and other revolutionary situations and the cost of human lives and freedoms are astronomical. What we can do as God’s people in America is pray! Really pray! Pray for the restrain of evil. God does not want us to live in a spirit of fear. Pray for a deep humility among God’s people and a sincere heart to seek forgiveness. Pray that we can maintain unity in the Spirit and demonstrate that in Christ we are all equal. The only answer for justice and peace is Jesus Christ! 

Pastor Fred

I wonder how many people in America and around the world are experiencing despair, depression, grief, anger and sorrow over the pandemic and “lock down” of society. 

I know I am! I can’t help but think of the amount of suffering that millions and millions of people are experiencing and will experience in the coming months and years ahead. As a parent and grand-parent, I am greatly concerned about what the world will be like for them in the future. The words of the Apostle Paul give me some solace because he also reveals his struggles with hardships. The Bible is very transparent about the struggles of its saints. Even Jesus is portrayed as having deep struggles as he faced the hardships before him. What kept Jesus and Paul going was their deep conviction that God had called them to His redemptive purpose. They also relied on God’s Spirit to give them strength to endure suffering. I know that this current situation that we are in is causing me to turn closer to God. I love my country and our way of life. I love my freedom and I want my progeny to have a quality of life that I have been blessed to have. I do not want a “Big Brother” state and a society that is stripped of religious freedom. I know that I cannot control what will happen in the future, but I know that God has called me to preach the Gospel and to serve His Kingdom. I am constantly reminded of Jesus’ call to be his disciple. The cost of discipleship is that we remain faithful to our calling no matter what is going on around us. Paul was able to continue despite his despair because God gave him the power to endure! God can give us the power to endure! May His grace and mercy be with you in this time of tribulation!

Pastor Fred

Almost fifty years ago Francis A. Schaeffer gave a series of lectures that are compiled in a book called, Death in the City. In his lectures he addresses the reality of a post-Christian culture and the consequences of turning away from the God who exists and is there. Sadly, fifty years later his words are even more true as it relates to our culture. He references Lamentations 1:16 to point out that the result of rejecting God is loneliness. Without God there is truly no significant being that can bring the comfort and love that is needed to truly exist. When people reject God they have to fill the void with something. In our culture we see people seeking to fill this void with just about everything! The problem is that we were created for the purpose of having a fulfilling relationship with our Creator. Only He can truly fill this void! With the isolation that many people are dealing with today, it is really incumbent on the church to proclaim the ever present life of God in Christ. God is using this time to call people to turn to Him. Please pray for the church and her leaders! Pray that we will witness to the only One who can fill the void of loneliness in a god-less culture. God bless you and have a great week. 

Pastor Fred

As we come into Mother’s day this weekend, I want to reflect on the commandment to honor our mothers. It has been over fifteen years since my mother passed away. She passed on the same day that Pope John Paul II passed away. She was 82 years old when she passed and went to the Lord. I had a wonderful mother! She was a “domestic engineer” and always provided a loving home for me. I have very fond memories of her and I thank God for her being there for me. She was a wonderful grandmother to my children and they missed her very much when she passed. She was a member of three churches that I was a pastor and it was a blessing to me to have her be part of the ministry. I was not raised with the teaching of “honoring” my parents and it saddens me to think back of the many times I failed in this commandment. One of my regrets in life that I did not spend enough quality time with her in the latter years of her life. I have worked through this to some degree, but it still hurts! I hope that if your mother is still alive, that you will honor her and spend quality time with her. I know how this may be difficult emotionally for some of you, but it really is important. For some of you that have lost your mother, I can only encourage you to thank God for her and try to remember the good things and let go of the bad things if they exist in your mind. It is interesting that God did not say to “love” our parents, but He says to “honor” them. Some parents, sadly enough, have made it extremely hard to love. Remember, God wants us to honor them. Simple things like a phone call or letter can go a long way in honoring our mothers. I know of one customer (her son was in my 3^rd grade class) who has not heard from her son in many years. I don’t know why he disowned his mother, but I know she has not done anything worth not honoring with a call or letter. We need to remember that Jesus had a mother. With all the veneration of Mary, she still was human and I am sure there were times she was trying to her son! He, as the son of man, had to learn obedience just like us. He had to learn how to honor his mother. I am thankful that I am married to a woman who is honored by her children! She is a wonderful mother and grandmother. Mothers are able to provide what we fathers and fathers cannot provide for our children. Take this moment to thank God for your mother. Whether she is living on this earth or if she has passed on, please pray and thank God for her. God bless you and all mothers!

Pastor Fred

How are you reacting to all the folks wearing masks? Do you find it rather depressing not to see other people’s faces? I am still not sure why people drive around by themselves with masks on. I understand the reason to wear masks when being close to people in stores or other close places. I guess it may be easier just to keep it on all the time. I confess that when I am on my walks early in the morning that wearing a mask does not seem rational. I stay far away from people also walking and I find it very uncomfortable so I choose not to wear one. What I do know that it is inhumane not to show our faces to one another. God gave us a face so that we can disclose ourselves to one another. One of the simple pleasures in life is sharing a smile with one another. It is no wonder that there are numerous places in Scripture where God’s face is described as reflecting His favor with His people. Now we know that God is spirit and does not have a literal face. What the idea of face reflects is His favorable character directed to people. With the resurrection and glorification of Christ, we do look forward to seeing him face to face! When we see him face to face, we will be looking fully into the “face” of our Father! I am looking forward to the day of seeing many of you face to face! I want to see your smile and bright countenance. Right now we have to endure this sad time in history. One of the sad things as it relates to masks is that it breeds a spirit of fear. We cannot show a smile and I see fear in people’s eyes as I go into stores or even walking around. I hope that once this is over, that we can go back to showing our faces and live as full human beings. Hang in there and may God’s face shine on you! 

Pastor Fred