The View From My Window Pastor's Weekly Blog

My dog just kept putting on weight so I asked some advice from a clerk at Pet Smart. He asked me how much food I gave my dog. I said, “I keep filling her bowl until she stops barking at me.” Problem identified.
Maybe you have the same problem with your stomach that I have with my dog: you feed it until it quits barking. Or maybe it’s your brain that has grown accustomed to overstimulation. Or maybe it’s your wallet that suffers from scratching your spending itch too often. In any of these cases, it’s the owner’s duty to master up: take responsibility, endure whatever consequences come due to past neglect & start eating, exercising, resting, & spending sensibly.

All of this is one reason to fast: to get your flesh under control. We’ll talk about another reason in this morning’s message: we fast in order to tap into the power of God (which is necessary if you are planning on taking on your belly, social media or wallet).

– Pastor Joel Everhart

When we were greeting people at my mother-in-law’s memorial service there were a lot of people from Barb’s extended family & friends I’d never met even after 39 years of marriage. People would often look at me as if to say, “Who are you?” I started telling people, “I’m Barb’s 1st husband.” I am, after all, Barb’s 1st husband but I learned that sometimes, like at a memorial service, one should keep one’s attempts at humor to themselves.

Discerning what words come to us from the Holy Spirit as opposed to coming from our own imagination or even from the enemy’s camp is huge. Don’t dismiss the possibility that it is the Spirit prompting you just because you’ve made some mistakes in the past. Do get better at discerning who is prompting you to think & speak, then follow the Holy Spirit’s lead. His words can help change someone’s life forever.

– Pastor Joel Everhart

When we stayed at that hotel with the alarm problem (see last week’s post), I got ready to take my morning run. Just as I was about to head out the door, my wife asked me to get her some breakfast so she could take her meds. My only consternation was that I was dressed in a safety green reflective vest & wrist bands along with shorts to match. Since the hotel’s breakfast nook had just opened for the day I was hopeful to be their 1st & only customer.

There were, however, about 8 or 10 people in various stages of getting their breakfast. But alas, over half of them belonged to a road crew that had spent the night & they were all dressed in safety green, reflective vests! I said to one of them, “I sure appreciate all of you dressing in those vests just to make me feel like I belong.” She gave me a pleasant smile then headed on her way.
Once you’ve joined God’s team it sure is nice to discover fellow team members! They can feel like an oasis in the middle of a dry, hot, hostile desert. Let your light so shine before men that it helps other lights feel right at home.

– Pastor Joel Everhart

We stayed at a hotel recently that had some issues with its alarm system. Tired from travel & the events of the past several days I went to bed at 8:30 & quickly fell into a restful sleep. At 10pm the fire alarm blared & a piercing light flashed. We quickly gathered a few necessary items & used the stairs (we were on the 3rd floor) to exit the building. We were told it was a false alarm triggered by one of their dryers. The clerk at the desk said it had happened four times the previous week.

It took a while but I fell back asleep only to repeat the same scenario at 12:30am, then at 1:04am & finally at 1:30am. The motel is called the “Sleep Inn” but I now refer to it as the “No Sleep Inn.” Alarms are designed to awaken sleeping guests & let me tell you — they work. Their impact is so severe that even a good sleeper, such as myself, has trouble falling back asleep after it blares for 10 or 15 minutes. I guess the piercing light is designed to produce a headache because that was its effect on me.

I noticed that alarm every time it sounded. Scripture indicates that when we are empowered by the Holy Spirit, other people should notice that as well. Hopefully, we don’t give them a headache, but rather a reason to consider what a difference Jesus can make in their own lives. Keep the light on!

– Pastor Joel Everhart

When the attack on America occurred on 9/11 it changed us forever. It arrested our attention. It sent bombers & soldiers into action. It made going to the airport & getting on a plane a whole new experience. Homeland Security became a thing.
The Lord knows how to get people’s attention. He did it on the day of Pentecost & He’s still doing it today. It shouldn’t surprise us if He chooses to repeat some actions He’s used in the past nor should it seem strange if He were to use some completely new strategies today (He is, after all, a very creative God).

God moves when His people get serious about seeking Him in prayer. Pray for God to arise in our generation, to do some attention-grabbing stuff, to empower us to do some mega harvesting.

– Pastor Joel Everhart

My wife & I attended Barb’s mother’s memorial service last weekend, which concluded a four-week odyssey that began in late July when we started what we thought was going to be a vacation. We ended up taking Mom to the emergency room, then visiting her every day in the hospital to finally helping to set her up with Hospice, a hospital bed, etc. Then it was time to say goodbye.

Events like these seem to drain the color out of life. They are exhausting physically, mentally & emotionally. Yet, God keeps showing up in significant ways. He is powerfully present even as we are feeling anemic. Usually whenever God shows up it fills us with energy & joy but in times like these He very gently supports us until our knees are once again strong enough to keep us upright. The Lord joins us in our grief rather than jolting us out of it. I think that’s because there is so much to learn about life whenever we experience death. We shouldn’t be too quick to get back into the race. Solomon wrote that its better to attend a funeral than a party. Parties entertain us but funerals change us. Embrace the change.

– Pastor Joel Everhart

Recently we were called back to Pittsburgh to wait along with family for my mother-in-law to graduate to glory. Ruth was 92, suffering from congestive heart failure & other complications. The waiting was quite stressful as family members disagreed on procedures & where mom would spend her final days. The knowledge that we did not want to face grief disjointed from one another & that it would grieve mom for us to be at odds kept us swallowing our pride & making gestures of support.

We were waiting for mom’s suffering to end. We were waiting to begin the real work of grief. We were sad, waiting to get sadder.
Jesus asks his followers to wait for an experience that will bring great joy & empowerment to their spiritual lives: the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. We are not to wait passively but seek that experience through prayer.

Sometimes we’re waiting for good things to happen, sometimes we’re waiting for bad stuff to occur. Either way, waiting is itself an experience. It requires self-discipline; it requires patience; it requires faith. Its alright to think about other things, to take care of necessary business, but the focus of our waiting is ever present in our thinking. Keep thinking about more power coming from the Holy Spirit to fuel your life.

– Pastor Joel Everhart

Our past Superintendent of the Penn Del District, Brother Bongiorno, saw his wife slowly deteriorate due to dementia. Eventually, she had to be placed into a home. Sadly, the disease progressed to the point where she no longer recognized him. Still, he visited her every day. They shared breakfast together before he headed off for work & then he’d usually stop by on his way home again. She passed away a few years ago.

I love seeing people keep their promises. Philip & Janet Bongiorno stood at an altar a long time ago & made promises to one another. Phil stayed true to his word &, because of that, Janet was well cared for when she needed care the most. Phil was able to “walk his bride home” into the arms of Jesus. A good promise can get you through some very rough terrain.

Jesus made us a promise that most Christians have not used. It’s the kind of promise that makes life worth living. Maybe it’s time for you to cash in on what He’s already provided. That’s what we’ll be talking about today.

– Pastor Joel Everhart

Our past Superintendent of the Penn Del District, Brother Bongiorno, saw his wife slowly deteriorate due to dementia. Eventually, she had to be placed into a home. Sadly, the disease progressed to the point where she no longer recognized him. Still, he visited her every day. They shared breakfast together before he headed off for work & then he’d usually stop by on his way home again. She passed away a few years ago.

I love seeing people keep their promises. Philip & Janet Bongiorno stood at an altar a long time ago & made promises to one another. Phil stayed true to his word &, because of that, Janet was well cared for when she needed care the most. Phil was able to “walk his bride home” into the arms of Jesus. A good promise can get you through some very rough terrain.

Jesus made us a promise that most Christians have not used. It’s the kind of promise that makes life worth living. Maybe it’s time for you to cash in on what He’s already provided. That’s what we’ll be talking about today.

– Pastor Joel Everhart

I had a friend tell me that he has a love/hate relationship with vacations. He loves anticipating that soon he will break away from his routine & be doing stuff that is relaxing & enjoyable; he loves actually being away doing those things & he loves how relaxed he feels after its all over. The hating part comes with deciding what to do, booking reservations, packing supplies & coming to a compromise with all the other members of the family as to exactly what they’ll be doing & where they’ll be going. I have another friend that travels so much for his job that his dream vacation would be a week at home never having to leave the house. Try selling that idea to your spouse & kids!

I think we’d all agree that more valuable than enjoying a get-away is to have a life worth coming home to. Don’t stop working on yourself. Don’t stop improving. The more you invest in your daily routine the richer your life will become. Start each day by connecting with God, seeking His will & asking for His help. Then go build a great life.

– Pastor Joel Everhart

Wal-Mart has supplied me with a steady supply of seedless watermelons this summer at an average cost of about $4 each. I go through a whole process when choosing a melon: I look at the color, I knock on it listening for that hollow sound. Still, most of them are only pretty good, occasionally they are exceptional & one was so bad I took it back. The watermelon I got in exchange for the bad one was probably the best one I’ve had so far.

Even when we don’t know what we’re doing, thinking we have some control over the outcome inspires confidence. Now, some people take that too far thinking that wearing their lucky socks will determine the outcome of a game or opening an umbrella indoors will bring bad luck. That’s called superstition.

We are called to be people of faith, not superstition. When we walk in obedience to the Word of God we are planting good seeds that will, in God’s timing, bring about the best life we could possibly live. I just wish there was something in the Bible about picking a really good watermelon.

– Pastor Joel Everhart