This past Sunday morning I walked into the downstairs bathroom and for a second thought I might run into John. On a sunny day like that, he would have been singing “O, what a beautiful morning…” Instantly, I missed the joy that he brought to my Sunday morning routine.  He was a sweet, kind, and brilliant man - and on Sunday I realized that he won’t be serenading me in the bathroom anymore.

We have lost a lot of family and friends lately - and that is always hard.  We come together to grieve.  We also come together so that we can support our church family and remind each other of the hope of the resurrection.  During this time of Easter - the Resurrection of Christ - we have been reminded very often of the sting that death still has on our lives.

But - we are to live as a resurrection people.  We are called to live lives of hope, even when hope seems hard to find.  The amazing thing is that our church is also surrounded by new life in the midst of this loss.  We see many new visitors, people finding a home in our congregation who have had trouble finding homes in other congregations.  We have heard God’s call to the work of hospitality.  And this work, has been producing fruits.

We have had visitors week after week and new branches are sprouting and blooming.  This is our work.  In the midst of loss, growth happens.  In the midst of worry and fear, God is still working.  God works in new ways, and unexpected ways, and joy unfolds in the cracks and crevices of the world.  We find beauty and hope in those places where many don’t expect God - but God shows up.

The Spirit makes beautiful things when we water the seeds with patience and love.  Then we get to see the resurrection happening all around.  Let us mourn and rejoice as we stand on the other side of God’s resurrection, working to make the known the love of God to all.

God’s peace to you!


- Bob Brown, Pastor

During this Lent season our theme has been Living Ink. The idea is that we are God’s living ink - and together we are writing the story of God.  We aren’t just telling the story of God - we are the living ink that is writing God’s story on Earth.  We are partners with God and co-creators with God.  It is an amazing thing.  God invites us in.  

It is a joy and a privilege to be invited into God’s family - but the irony of it is that God loved the whole world so much that God invites that whole world into the family.  In some ways, we are all God’s children already.   The Earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it.  So we are here, God’s children working together with God to make sure all God’s children know their Father’s love..

This month has been quite a busy one - whether it was our business meeting, or jumping through hoops with Ed Mackel to try and get him in a place where he can flourish, or finishing up our last few soup suppers, or visiting people in the hospital - there is always a place where God is moving.

It was great to be at our most recent Conference meeting on March 5th.  We were able to begin to create a vision for what our conference will begin to look like in the midst of so much transition.  It gives us opportunities to be part of conference events like last weekend’s Junior High Retreat - where young people are able to join with others and share their experiences of church and God together.

I am truly looking forward to our first annual church retreat - I hope this gives us a place to start dreaming about the future of Stahl and what we are up to next.

It is a joy to be a part of this congregation in all these ways that God is using us to write the Story.

Let us be part of God’s unfolding Story…


- Bob Brown, Pastor

The daily task of every Christian is discernment.  Every day we seek to know God better, every day we seek to do what God would have us do.  We work together so that we can know God better.  Our Advent theme talked about the Liberation of God - and I think that is a place we could also stand to learn about God.  I thought it was very powerful to think of the ways that God liberates us - and others.

The tough part about the liberation of God is that it often looks like self examination. Being liberated from financial struggles, or sickness or a bad job is something that we can all easily celebrate. But what does it take for us to be liberated from something like anger?  Jesus talks to this in the sermon on the mount:

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.  (Matthew 7:3-5)

Sometimes, we hold onto things that cause us pain, because it gets us something.  Prejudices and resentments allow us to think we are better than someone else - but in reality that way of thinking holds us captive - it blocks our vision and causes us pain.  

The hard work that Jesus calls us to in this passage is actually the work of our own liberation - as uncomfortable as it is.  When we humble ourselves, and stop and think about our own lives - and discern God’s will for us, we are freed. We are liberated when we get the plank out of our own eye. Even though we often dread self examination - it frees us.

Don’t get me wrong, getting the plank out will be uncomfortable - and it will actually hurt - but this work will ultimately make room for us to better see God.  It will free us from a burden of anger and judgement and allow us to be better followers of Jesus.  

Please continue to think about God’s liberation, and the amazing ways it is trying to break through in our own lives.  Let us pray and work to be more willing to look at the planks in our own eyes - so that we can better follow Jesus every day.  

- Bob Brown, Pastor

I hope that Jesus is shining through in our conversations about evangelism.  I am so excited to see what is possible when we let go of our baggage and start telling people about Jesus.  I have had an amazing experience talking and sharing and processing what evangelism is for our congregation.

In many ways it has been sad to see all the things that stand in the way of us sharing the Good News - but most of it is church doctrine that doesn’t match our experience of God’s work in the world and in many ways doesn’t match the story of Jesus that we read in the Bible.

There is a great deal of change happening to both our conference and our denomination, and as we figure out what it means to tell people about Jesus, we also need to understand who we are as part of a larger church.  I am so grateful to be part of a congregation where relationship is valuable. The church really does need to be connected to other churches - we need relationship.  That is why we as individuals come together as a church, and that is why this church joins together to be part of conference and that conference joins as part of a denomination.

We shape and teach and mold each other.  We watch for the Spirit of God that closes doors and opens windows.  We watch together, and we share with each other the often unexpected Good News.  Sometimes we are the ones surprising others, and sometimes watch while others break new ground for the Kingdom of God here on Earth.

I pray that my work on this inclusive Bible study will be a blessing to the broader church - and that it can encourage other Christians to work together - across different interpretations of the Bible - across different beliefs - so that we can be partners for the Gospel - so that we can have eyes that see the Holy Spirit working even where we don’t expect it, and mouths to proclaim the goodness and grace of Christ.

Let us proclaim that Good News of Jesus Christ, Son of God - May it bring joy and peace!


- Bob Brown, Pastor