“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine-grower.” ~John 15:1-6

 A few weeks ago as Kathleen and I were on vacation we spent a lovely afternoon with our twins and their spouses at a winery in Guerneville.

As we enjoyed a lovely Spring afternoon, there were a couple of workers pruning the grapevines.

It’s a common sight in the wine country this time of year…

…yet what I only just learned was that the April 2021 pruning was done with the Fall 2022 harvest in mind.

As this pruning is regularly done over and over, there’s nothing arbitrary about it.

Overlapping that with the above Bible verse: this is done intentionally with a forward looking view as part of a long term investment where God is in control as the vine grower.

Now…the power of God is love…

…love made known in Jesus’ resurrection.

Which makes this love uncontainable and inescapable.

For us to be forward looking insists the church is not to escape the realities of the world…

…anymore than the church can draw a circle around love by deciding who’s in and who’s out.

For us to remain faithful in love can require regular pruning…

…which may mean we need to think long and hard about traditionally held perspectives.

Or how we react when those are challenged.

Our work crew gathers ‘virtually’ Sundays at 10AM. Send us your email (prinevillepc@gmail.com) and we’ll send the invite.

Together We Serve,

Pastor Mike

Please note: We have resumed optional in-person worship. Following COVID19 guidelines by national, state, and local agencies:

·         For fully vaccinated people masking is optional during worship

·         Otherwise masking is required during worship.

 

“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” ~Hebrews 10:24-25

It’s easy to forget that there’s so much more to history than the lived experiences each of us personally knows. We can pick pretty much any subject and quickly realize that just because some thing is the way it is right now does not mean it’s always been that way, nor will it stay this way forever.

And something this pandemic has done is to change the way we now “do worship.” Where once we had only physically joined together in worshipping on Sundays, and then moved to virtual in response to the pandemic; we’re now doing more of both.

This may also change the way we define ‘community.’

As the saying goes: “necessity is the mother of invention;” and this dates back to Aesop’s Fables from the mid-6th century BCE – long before Jesus walked the earth and the Christian church got its start.

Starting before then even we see changes in the way people gathered for worship. In the Old Testament we find the tabernacle; worship “on the go” for God’s people during their desert wanderings. That led to the temple; for a time the belief was that was where God dwelled. Furthermore there were synagogues for smaller gatherings, and lacking the number of people needed for a synagogue, people gathered outdoors.

Moving into the New Testament, the early Christian church also met in catacombs and upper rooms, and the first Christian church building didn’t come until the last half of the 3^rd century.

The important thing to keep in mind is that throughout these different times, God’s people kept figuring out new ways to be in community.

Which is continuing as the COVID vaccines are more widely used thereby allowing faith communities to think about how to safely return to indoor worship - yet - virtual worshipping is expected to continue.

While this allows us a greater reach (evangelism), how do we foster strong community bonds (ecclesia) with this emerging hybrid of virtual worship added to the in-person worship?

I don’t know what the future holds – but I’m excited to see what comes from it.

Together We Serve,                                                                                                                  Pastor Mike

 “Then God spoke all these words: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery;” (Exodus 20:1-2).

So even if you haven’t been around church a lot, you may recognize the above from the introduction to the 10 commandments.

Generally we think about the commandments coming as part God’s people having left t Egypt and in the wilderness or desert on their long journey to the Promised Land.

 And even if you have been around church a while – you may not know when they were issued.

Right around 100 days in or so; 3^rd morning after the 3^rd new moon after they left their dismal future filled with oppression and hardship.

It’s easy to imagine their first steps were filled with so much excitement…

“…we have been saved from…”

Which shifts as God shows them what God has saved them for.

And honestly sprinkled throughout those in-between steps are God’s people feeling their freedom has taken a back seat to God’s foolishness…

…as that apparent foolishness made them grumble…and gripe…and belly-ache…and complain.

As we make our way through Lent; through the wilderness with its very honest distractions…

...we give God our thanks for what we have been saved from…

…yet are we foolish enough to ask: what has God saved us for?

We’re livestreaming 10AM. Send us your email (prinevillepc@gmail.com) and we’ll be glad to have you join the journey.

Together We Serve,
Pastor Mike

 We live-stream our 10AM Sunday worship via YouTube. To join put the date (example: 1.3.2021) into the YouTube search bar followed by "Prineville Presbyterian Church worship." Or email the church (prinevillepc@gmail.com) and we'll send each Sunday's link.  

Nearly a year into this pandemic that’s throttled back our church activities, and I’ve noticed a pattern as people stop by to drop things off, or, to pick something up.

As though they’re drawn by an unseen force…they wander toward the sanctuary…and somewhere around the glass double doors they pause…look around… and say – “I sure do miss this place.”

It’s not the building they miss…rather…it’s the special space the building holds in our lives…

…its particular preciousness.

In our quiet moments through this pandemic I believe this question of “what’s precious” has emerged in everybody’s minds.

Good people who have known a lot of good things, yet now recognize that there are fewer things they hold onto much more tightly.

Yet even at that… there is still something more...and whatever that is...has turned out be very elusive.

Looking to the year ahead, as the lines that organize our lives have been blurred and smudged…

…our traditional paint-by-numbers ways of explaining the Good News of Jesus Christ might not fit so well…

...meaning we might find ourselves having to ‘color outside the lines’ to make the Good News of Jesus Christ effective and real.

Grab your crayons and join us – we livestream Sundays at 10AM using YouTube.

Together We Serve,                                                                                                            Pastor Mike

We live-stream our 10AM Sunday worship via YouTube. To join put the date (example: 1.3.2021) into the YouTube search bar followed by "Prineville Presbyterian Church worship." (You might need to click the 'subscribe' button).   

Over the 3 ½ weeks of Advent leading to Christmas, Prineville Presbyterian Church followed the traditional Advent calendar and also a reverse Advent calendar.

Instead of taking something as traditional Advent calendar would have us do (usually a piece of candy) we asked folks to put aside a food item each day. These were put under the Christmas tree, and will be given to a food pantry in a few days. Also, at least three significant cash contributions were made to the food pantry.

As we start a New Year, this pandemic season has no respect for our changing of the calendar meaning last year’s struggles for many to feed their family will continue as well.

The Bible reminds us that “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

In his thoughts about this Stanley Romaine Hopper wrote: “This may urge us to wisdom in the timing of our enterprises, that we may know when to seize the opportunity, feel for the opening door; or when to conclude that the door will not open, that there is nothing to do but wait and knock elsewhere.”

The time is always right for us to seize the opportunity to offer practical love to our neighbors.

Together We Serve (and seize),                                                                                          Pastor Mike 

We'll be live-streaming our Christmas Eve worship at 5PM via YouTube. 

Subscribe to our YouTube channel, or send us your email 

and we'll send you the link shortly before the worship starts: 

prinevillepc@gmail.com   

“Advent is patience its how God has made us a people of promise, in a world of impatience.”  ~ Stanley Hauerwas

 We started Advent yesterday with a theme of HOPE. Advent is our time of preparation while awaiting the birth of the Christ-child (Christmas).

 My wife and I are awaiting the birth of a grandchild in early June. Our preparation as we wait comes with its own wonderful treasury too.

 What are the unique God-given characteristics, gifts, and abilities they’ll bring into our world? 

It doesn’t take long before our minds wonder and our spirits wander with all kinds of hopes taking shape as part of our waiting.

 While delivering  the first of four Advent themed sermons, I couldn’t help but think of the groceries under the Christmas tree and off to my left that PPC has collected, and the families PPC has adopted for Christmas. 

And while my treasure chest full of lovely ponderings brings us to the riches that await us at the moment of our grandchild’s birth…

…we also have to keep in mind many of us get to do this from a position of stability or security – or dare I say -- privilege?

For these receiving the groceries and adopted families, hope looks a lot different.

I’m not saying that to be critical or demeaning. Quite the contrary.

They no more chose the circumstances of their birth any more than I chose mine.

 The grace and peace given us with the Christ-child’s birth sets the stage for our hopes.

 Hope that’s comfortable and easy when all is graceful and peaceful.

Hope that’s desperately important when all is not.

 May Advent teach us to ‘hear’ hopes beyond our own.

 We’re livestreaming via YouTube Sundays at 10AM, and Christmas Eve at 5PM.

Together We Serve,                                                                                                            Pastor Mike

 “After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count…” Revelation 7:9

As John writes the above about his vision of heaven, he had just seen all those people he (and we) would expect to find there.

Yet in John’s vision 'after this' he looks again and from out of nowhere he’s surprised to see all these others too.

In the timeless reach of God’s grace, might John’s surprise also be our surprise as we see people in heaven who we might not have thought would be there?

Trump supporters and Biden supporters as well as those who vote for Jo Jorgenson and Howie Hawkins and Dario Hunter. Those who fervently wear masks and those who are fervently anti vaxxers.

And would they be every bit as surprised to see us there too?

Because as they felt the chill of our judgments it left them wondering how could we ever bask in the warmth of God’s love?

Yet there we all are.

All bound in this radical inclusivity of God we find throughout the Bible where salvation does not belong to any nation or tribe or people or language…

…where all hear the audaciously glorious good news of God’s final word of making all things right.

Join us Sundays at 10 AM as we righteously press on following this election. We're livestreaming on YouTube.

Together We Serve,

Pastor Mike

The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’ The Lord replied, ‘If you had faith the size of a mustard seed…” Luke 17:5-6

Jesus followed this up by putting his followers in the place of boss with a decision to make about a servant coming after a long day; would they pile more on that servant by asking them fix their supper – or – invite them to eat with them?

So maybe that mustard seed question is less about having enough faith, and more about having even just a little bit of faith…

…even just a little bit of enough faith to share a meal with somebody we would otherwise dismiss.

Where we invite them to the table and they return the favor by inviting us into their lives.

And as we talk around the table and share stories what do we come to learn and know and understand about others?

Is our faith in Christ big enough to listen to these stories from people who are not on our ‘A list’ of people we would invite?

To have even that small mustard seed of faith to look at life through the servant’s eyes…

and see somebody looking for some measure of respect…

…some acknowledgment that their existence is something more.

That they matter.

Ponder this: the size of that mustard seed is just about the same thickness as a hand-written dinner invitation.

You’re invited to join us as we meet 10AM Sundays in-person and on-line.

Together We Serve,                                                                                                           

Pastor Mike 

 

“I will pray with the spirit, but I will pray with the mind also; 

I will sing praise with the spirit, but I will sing praise with the mind also.”

 ~1 Corinthians 14:15

 

With social distancing, masks, contact tracing, and very low COVID numbers in our county; PPC recently added the option of in-person worship. This is in addition to our other platforms of YouTube live-stream, recorded live-stream, and FM parking lot broadcast.

As we did, we also took that moment to “praise” as this ‘next normal’ brought us closer to what we used to know as normal in this COVID 19 season and the comforting hope that comes with that.

We also gave praise that over this past five months of virtual worship only we have continued the actual ministry of Jesus Christ by extending hope however we can make it real; the use of our shower, assisting with simple shelter (another amazing God-timing story), investing in a gentleman so he could take and pass a drug test in order to return to work…

We gave praise for our role in echoing themes throughout the Bible where we continually find God’s assurances of better days ahead.  

Reflecting upon the above Corinthians passage, the late Bible scholar William Barclay took a longer look at this connection between hope and praise:

“The great things are essentially the simple things; the noblest language is essentially the simplest language.

In the end only what which satisfies our minds can comfort our hearts…

…and only what our minds can grasp can bring strength to our lives.”

We gather at 10AM for comfort and strength - for us and for all.

Together We Serve,                                                                                                         

Pastor Mike