Josanne and I send greetings from La Plata, Argentina! We hope and pray everything went well yesterday during the worship service. We haven’t had a chance to watch it yet, since we’ve been very busy here.   Our travel went smoothly, but we were very tired when we arrived. Our hosts, Randy and Valeria (and their three children Mia, Noah, and Oliver) have been taking good care of us. Josanne did experience some sickness in her first few days here, but is feeling much better now

When you receive this, Josanne and I should be somewhere along the way to La Plata, Argentina. We appreciate the well-wishes you all offered yesterday. We’d very much appreciate your prayers over the next couple of weeks as we seek to serve the people of Argentina. We will especially be working with some faithful missionaries and church leaders in La Plata. We’re going down at the invitation of a former student of mine named Randy Caldwell. We’ll be staying with him and his f

We certainly had a cold, snowy weekend with more cold temperatures predicted to be on the way. We’re so glad to be able to have the livestreamed service available for those who didn’t want to get out in the weather. With the blowing snow, it was wise for those who couldn’t be out in it to watch from home.   Do you want some good news? Only 53 days until the first day of Spring! And surely we’ll get above freezing before then. Won’t we?   We do want to say a  big  thank you to

Yesterday was another good day to be together. After our worship service, we had a nice potluck. It was so good to see such a large group stay and spend some time in fellowship together. Then we had our annual meeting. Many thanks to those who contributed to that. We were able to give honor to some of the people who have volunteered at NDMC for literally decades.   Next week we will begin a short series on the Sermon on the Mount during our worship service. Next week we’ll be

Let me say it right up front! Remember that this Sunday, January 18 th , is our annual meeting. We’ll have a potluck following the worship service and then the meeting will follow.   Yesterday during worship, we looked at Matthew 3 and John the Baptist’s announcement of the coming of our Lord. Next week we’ll see that Jesus’ Kingship did not go unchallenged. In Matthew 4, Jesus’ temptation reminds us that he was truly human, yet he did not give in to temptation (Hebrews 4:15)

New Years’ 2026   We continue celebrating the birth of Jesus this week. Yesterday, in Matthew 1, we saw the royal titles that accompanied his birth—Messiah, Son of David, Jesus, and Immanuel. Next week we’ll look at the Wise Men in Matthew 2 and the conflicting ways in which news of Jesus’ birth was received. There are still conflicting ways that people receive the news about Jesus.   This week is also when we change our calendars from 2025 to 2026. For some people New Years’

It was good to see the crowd in our worship service yesterday. The special music, the singing, the candle lighting, the decorations—everything worked together to make it a really special service. Thanks to all who participated.   With Wednesday being Christmas Eve and Thursday being Christmas Day, we begin our celebration of the birth of Jesus. We will not be holding a Christmas Eve service at North Danvers, but the Presbyterian Church has extended an invitation to theirs. We

Well, yesterday was certainly cold, but at least it was still and bright. Though the temps are warmer today with the wind it feels much colder and the snow is blowing and drifting. If you have to be out and about, be careful.   Many thanks for those who made it possible for us to have a service yesterday. Thanks to those who braved the elements to clear the parking lots and sidewalk. Thanks also to those who stepped in at the last minute in various roles in the service. We ap

It’s that time of year when there is Christmas music everywhere! In the stores, on the radio, in some places it’s on the sidewalk as you go from one place to the other. I asked last week what is that song or songs you need to hear to put you in the spirit of Christmas. I have a few, but one of them is definitely “O Come, O Come Emmanuel.” I’ve heard that several times and in several versions over the past few weeks. Here’s another question: what’s that Christmas song that you

Advent began yesterday, but not exactly in the way we would have hoped. We did do a short, streamed service yesterday if you haven’t watched it yet. The first Sunday of Advent is about hope. God brings about his purposes, sometimes in unexpected ways, so maybe it wasn’t such a bad beginning to the season anyway.   The decorations in the church building look amazing. A big thank you to the crew who worked to get them all up last Friday. It’s always nice to get into the feeling