Victory News (Page 3)
Victory News – May 1, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, When I was about seven years old, I made a costly mistake when I played golf between our house and our neighbor’s house. Sounds kind of silly, doesn’t it? It gets better though. Because instead of using a golf club I was using a baseball bat. I teed the ball up and swung away! And the ball went right through our neighbor’s window. That was costly. In fact, the cost was more than I could pay.…
Victory News – April 24, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, One of the greatest challenges for me as a pastor lately is preaching to a camera, wondering if I’m connecting with the people on the other side. I miss meeting with you all and talking with you. Through those conversations, I learn about your successes and your struggles. You tell me about how you are feeling and what causes you pain or anxiety. As I prepare each sermon, I think about those conversations and how God’s…
Victory News – April 17, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, We live in what has been called the Information Age. With one click on my computer, I can read blogs, watch the news, read books, get reports on stocks, find sports highlights, and a whole lot more. I have been told there is more information in the Sunday edition of the New York Times than people just generations ago received in a lifetime. I don’t know if that is true or not . . . and…
Victory News – April 10, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, It’s safe to say that nobody could have predicted our current situation. Who would have thought that much of the world would be locked behind closed doors, fearing the rapid spread of COVID-19? Who could have guessed that our world would be turned upside down, schools canceled, sports postponed, businesses closed, and (strangest of all) Easter moved out of the church building. Although our current reality is bizarre, it’s not much different from the first Easter…
Victory News – April 3, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, This Sunday is Palm Sunday. It is the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey to the shouts and delight of the people and to the dismay of Pharisees. Maybe you will remember the scene. The disciples were preparing the colt for Jesus to ride into Jerusalem. One translation says, “[The disciples] cast their garments on the colt.” Casting is an intentional act of relocating an object. So, the disciples took off their garments and…
Victory News – March 27, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, These are historic times, huh? How are you all doing out there? It seems so strange that we can only communicate through digital means. I long for the day we can gather around the Victory Cafe for some egg bake and conversation. I can’t wait for when we can sing and worship Jesus together again. I’m looking forward to sitting together and receiving God’s Word and his Supper together. That’s not possible at the moment. But…
Victory News – March 20, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, We are all in a storm. The storm looks different for different people. Government officials and business owners are having to make difficult decisions. Some have had their hours cut and others have lost their jobs, at least temporarily. Others are working many hours away from family and friends but their hearts yearn to be at home. The medical professionals are right in the middle of the storm. Some of us are on a search to…
Victory News – March 13, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, Let me acknowledge the elephant in the room. Our country, even our world, is experiencing an unprecedented situation. I am a pastor, so I will let the healthcare professionals and our world leaders speak to facts of the Coronavirus. Instead, I want to address your spiritual concerns at this time. First of all, as fast as the Coronavirus is spreading, anxiety, fear, and panic are spreading even faster. Some of you might be concerned that you…
Victory News – March 6, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, Things changed, literally overnight, when I moved from Texas to Wisconsin to go to college. Culture shock set in. Here are a few of the differences: I went to a high school with almost 5,000 students and then I went to college with not quite 250 students. Friday nights were about football in Texas, along with all-you-can-eat enchiladas, tacos, burritos, quesadillas, and sopapillas. In Wisconsin, Friday nights were about all you can eat fish fry. In…
Victory News – February 28, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, This Sunday, as we finish our series on Messy Families, I’m going to talk about my favorite movie of all time: Back to the Future. I love that movie because I always wanted to have the power to travel back in time. Sometimes I look at the mess in my life and think, If I could just go back and do some things over, then my life would be much better. But here is the problem: there…
Victory News – February 21, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, Did you ever fight with your brother or sister? Did you ever feel like you were getting the short end of the stick? Sibling rivalry and messy families go hand in hand. Sibling rivalry often starts not long after the birth of the second child. Siblings can be tough on one another. This rivalry is made up of fighting, competition, and jealousy as the children strive for significance and acceptance from their parents and their peer…
Victory News – February 14, 2020
PASTOR’S MESSAGE Hi Friends, The other day, I asked my daughter Shelby, “Honey, if I told you that you are becoming more and more like your mom and dad, would that be a compliment or an insult?” She gave a perfect answer: “It depends.” You see, there are some things about our parents that we want to imitate. Maybe your parents were disciplined and organized. Perhaps they were caring and thoughtful. Maybe they were godly and tried to put God…