Simply Christ

Greetings in Christ’s name - This week I’ve been led to focus on a well known verse from I Corinthians 13.

“And now we see that life is all about Faith , Hope and Love, but the greatest of these is love.”

This verse reminds me of Jesus who demonstrated the truth of it perfectly. It also shows me the kind of person that Jesus is seeking to change me into.

So this week, I’m going to focus on looking at people differently. God hasn’t brought other people into my life just to help me enjoy life and to do things with. He’s brought them into my life so that I can love and help them as Christ loves them.

This certainly is “Mission Impossible” for me on my own, which is why the apostle Paul mentions faith and hope coming before love. For only as Christ love fills my heart. Will I be able to come anywhere close to loving others with all their faults and foibles as He does…🙏🙏

This has all the elements of being a very interesting week. 😳

Blessings - Pastor Pete

Glad to have you stopping by on this the 26th week of our verse-a-week journey with Christ in 2026. It’s hard to believe that we’re almost halfway through the year 🙏

As I look back, I can see how Christ has used the various Bible verses that I’ve been thinking about to change me.

I’ve found that with Jesus nothing stays or remains as it first appears. Christ in some amazing way always seems to breathe new possibilities, new hopes, new joys, and new insights into things!!

It’s been quite the ride.

So I’m ending the first half of the year with a verse from first Peter chapter 2.

“Live as those who are free, not using my freedom as a cover-up for selfishness, but living as someone who is seeking to trust and serve God.”

This helps me understand that selfishness is the thing I have to watch out for. With that comes only complaining, frustration, fear, and failure.

But if I can weave Christ and others into, around and through my story then my life becomes one with his life. And let’s face it His story is the only one that really matters and it’s the only one with endless breathtaking sequels.

Let the ride continue.

Blessings - Pastor Pete

Morning fellow followers of Jesus Christ -

It's so exciting to take some truth about Jesus Christ and the life that he offers with me through the week. It keeps my thinking focused, my prayers grounded, and my actions purposeful.

I'm glad that so many of you are following my lead in this. You don't need to use the verse that I'm using, any verse from the Bible involving Jesus will do. The key is to bring what you're learning about Jesus through the verse that you've picked out into all of your thoughts and actions throughout the week.

So this week my verse comes from 1 John 5 where the Apostle John says:

“And this is the victory that overcomes the world - even our faith in Christ.”

This reminds me that just as a football player has to keep their faith and focus on the coach and the plays he’s calling, so I need to keep my faith and focus on Christ and the “plays” he wants me to run this week.

The plays are pretty straightforward and involve loving others, showing them how great it is to trust Christ and his love, forgiveness, power and purposes. If I do this this week I’ll be able to shake off those things that seek to distract me and bring me down.

Ready set - Hike!!

Blessings - Pastor Pete

Week 20 in our journey through 2026 with Christ

"Humble yourselves under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” I Peter 5:6-7

With yesterday being the national day of prayer here in in USA I decided to take what the Apostle Peter says about prayer in his first letter to focus on, to pray, and to share with others this week. This will help me that though trusting God and putting his will above mine may not be easy and comes with its share of anxiety, difficulties and hardship, the opposite is utter disaster – not only for me but for those around me as well.

But if we humble ourselves God has promised to life us up in the end. This lifting up will be an exalting and the beginning of a new life in a new body and in a new world. To bridge the two God has encouraged us to pray, to case our anxiety, fear, and concerns, which will be many, upon him.

So off into the week we go with God’s will and kingdom on our mind, all the time keeping our hand on the hot line to God for encouragement, help and support.

Blessings – Pastor Pete