2012.05.21 Monday Morning Message

Greetings and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma. 

Founded in 1871, Vinita is the intersection of several railways. It is the second oldest town in Oklahoma, and is the oldest incorporated town along historic Route 66. If you are visiting on a Sunday morning, please worship with us at 10:00 a.m. If you can't be with us in person, say a little prayer for our worshipping congregation.

Do you ever feel lonely? I was stunned to read a report of an AARP survey which states that 35% of adults over the age of 45 are chronically lonely, up from 20% a decade earlier.

Sixty million Americans are unhappy with their lives because of loneliness!

I am sure that there are many reasons for people feeling lonely. Could the modern social media be one? Facebook and Twitter, exchanging 'clicks', avoids human face to face conversation. Some studies report that one in four Americans have 'zero close friends'.

Why do you think there is so much loneliness in our society? Let me know.

Are you conscious of the presence of God in your daily life?

With all good wishes,
Richard

Announcements:

• Our minister for Pentecost Sunday, May 27 will be Craig Kilgour. He is the minister from New Zealand.
• The next Sunday, June 3 we will have a family meal and welcome Ken Bailey and his wife Jeannie. Ken is the brother of Bow Bailey and they live in Kentucky.
• Red Morris will be barbecuing pulled pork and the congregation is asked to bring salads and desserts. The rest of the meal is provided.

2012.04.23 Monday Morning Message

Greetings and all good wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, located in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma.

A young cynic was depressed by the evil and suffering in the world.  He complained, "Why did God make a world like this?  I could make a better world than this."

His wise teacher answered, "That's exactly the reason God put you into the world...to make a better world.  Now, go and do your part."

The Christian gospel is about changed lives, renewed faith.  Though dependent upon God, God gave us the gift of free will, and God depends on us to choose wisely.  God cannot make a peaceful nation and world unless we root out hatred from our hearts.  God cannot build healthy families unless we work with God to bring sharing love and mutual respect to our relationships.  God needs each one of us.

Now, go and do your part!

With blessings and in friendship,

Richard

Our minister this Sunday, April 29 will be the Reverend Jo Wright from St. John's Episcopal, Vinita.

2012.02.13 Monday Morning Message

Greetings from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma.


I hope the messages are a welcome start to the new week.  Several email friends have asked for prayers.  Be assured that any and all communication, including prayer requests, will get a personal reply.

With blessings and all good wishes,

Richard Evans

One of the convicted co-conspirators in the Watergate scandal made this remarkable confession:

"I have lived 50 years of my life without ever coming to grips with the very basic questions of what is and what is not important to me;  What is and what is not right and wrong; What is and what is not valuable and worthwhile."

We might ask ourselves in pursuit of taking a good, hard look at ourselves some useful questions.

Have I grown more caring or more callous?

Have I become more forgiving or more vengeful?

Have I become more tolerant or more critical?

Have I become more generous or more self-centered?

Have I tried to become better or only better off?

Have I change for the better or for the worse?

Have I grown as a person or have I become smaller?

TAKE A GOOD, HARD LOOK AT YOURSELF!

A NOTE FOR THE LOCALS:

St. John's Episcopal has invited Pilgrim Presbyterian to a salad luncheon following morning worship Sunday, February 19.  Their church is over about 11:30 and we have Session and Deacons meetings at 11:00 so it should work out great.  Please let the church know if you plan to attend.  It is a privilege to have them prepare a luncheon for us so please try to participate.  

Call the church office and leave a message 918-256-2258 or email pilgrimpresby@sbcglobal.net.  

THEY DO NEED AN APPROXIMATE COUNT.

SESSION AND DEACONS MEET FOLLOWING MORNING WORSHIP SUNDAY, FEB. 19

THE REV. RAY HICKMAN WILL CONDUCT MORNING WORSHIP AND MODERATE SESSION

Final Monday Morning for 2011...

Pilgrim Presbyterians in Vinita, Oklahoma send greetings and best wishes as you make your  journey to the New Year 2012.

I am cleaning out my overstuffed files and found this piece, One Solitary Life, by an unknown author.  It is appropriate for after Christmas, and at the threshold of a New Year.  I hope you like it.  Of course, it comes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, Vinita, Oklahoma.

 

ONE SOLITARY LIFE

 

Here is a man who was born of Jewish parents in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman.  He grew up in another obscure village.  He worked in a carpenter's shop until he was thirty, and then for three  years he was an itinerant preacher.

 

He never wrote a book, he never held an office, he never owned a home.  He never had a family.  He never went to college.  He never put his foot inside a big city.  He never traveled two hundred miles from the place where he was born.  He never did one of these things that usually accompany greatness.  He had no credentials but himself.

 

He had nothing to do with this world, except the naked power of his manhood.  While still a young man the tide of popular opinion turned against him.  His friends ran away.  One of them denied him.  He was turned over to his enemies.  He went through a mock trial.

 

He was nailed to a cross, between two thieves.  His executioner gambled for the only piece of property he had on earth, while he was dying - and that was his coat.  When he was dead he was taken down and laid in  a borrowed grave, through the pity of a friend.

 

Nineteen wide ceturies have come and gone, and today he is the centerpiece of the human race, and the leader of the column of progress.  I am far within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, and all the navies that were ever built, and all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man upon earth as powerfully as has that solitary life.

 

Thanks be to God for self-revelation in Jesus Christ.

 

With blessing and all good wishes for the New Year.

 

Richard

********************************

 

This is the last Monday Morning message I have received from Richard as he is still ill.

 

There will be no Morning Worship Service at Pilgrim Presbyterian this Sunday, January 1.

Services will resume the next Sunday, January 8 at 10:00 a.m.

I would ask that everyone keep Richard in their thoughts and prayers this Holiday Season.  

Peace and Love to him and us all!

Brian

2011.11.14 Monday Morning

Greetings and all good wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, OK.  Your keeping in touch with us "offsite-online" is appreciated.

 

A story is told of a faithful church member who rocked back and forth as the pastor denounced dancing, drinking and gambling, crying "Amen".  But when the pastor denounced gossip she sat bolt upright and muttered loudly, "Wouldn't you know it!  He's begun meddling."

 

The Old Testament prophet, Amos, was chief among meddlers.  He lived in the 8th century before Christ in the southern kingdom of Judah.  A blunt, plain spoken man, Amos went to the northern kingdom of Israel, where he denounced its policies and practices.

He condemned Israel for oppressing the poor and powerless.  As a result, he was branded a meddler.

 

Amos' attitude is echoed in the words of William Faulkner, when he wrote:  "I love my country to want to cure its faults and the only way I can cure its faults within my vocation is to shame it, to criticize it...to show the difference between its evil, its good, its moments of honesty, integrity and pride.  Just to write about the good qualities won't change the bad ones."

 

The value of criticism, even of harsh words, must be grounded in loving concern and passion for a better world for all people.

 

With blessings and all good wishes,

 

Richard

 

2011.10.31 Monday Morning

 

Special warm greetings to all of you from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, in Vinita, Oklahoma, where we celebrate the 129th anniversary of Pilgrim Church.  

For six years at Pilgrim Church, I always sensed a feeling of thrill and humility to preach, and to serve Communion, as the congregation celebrated its birth on the Sunday nearest All Saints Day (Nov. 1, 2011).

 

To be in the company of an unseen cloud of Christians (Hebrews 12:1) who risked everything by leaving the comforts of their homes in the east to cross a hostile terrain to Oklahoma, with the good news of Jesus Christ, makes me feel very humble.

 

Humbling, yes, but it is also challenging to have entered into their labors.  Each generation is a link in a chain of Christian discipleship.  We must see to it that ours is not a weak link!

 

Let us run with patience the race that is set before us.  In that way we will be true to them, and to our Lord, who is the same yesterday, today and forever.  (Hebrews 13:8)

 

God is with you!

 

With blessings and in friendship,

Richard

 

2011.10.03 Monday Morning!

Greetings and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma.

We have a choice. We can choose to build up one another, or we can choose to tear down one another. Let me share two encounters to illustrate what I mean.

I stopped at a gas station in Vian, a small town in Oklahoma, near Dwight Mission, our Presbyterian Camp and Conference Center. A gas attendant came out in the rain to pump gas. He smiled, and said hello, and seemed to be genuinely happy to serve his customers. After filling my tank, he did an extraordinary thing: he shook my hand, said "Thank you" and wished me well. He made my day.

Later, in Tulsa, I bought gas at a self-service station. The attendant was in a glassed-in-booth. Her eyes never met mine. Sullen lines marked her face. I felt like an intruder as she cracked her gum, took my money, all the while looking down. She seemed completely disinterested in her job. That young woman made me sad.

Every time we meet another person, each of us is given an opportunity to create or destroy by the way we dignify or deny that person.

Jesus was on target when he taught us to do to others as we want others to do to us.

With blessings and all good wishes,

Richard

www.pilgrimpresbyterian.blogspot.com/

2011.9.26 Monday Morning!

Top of the morning from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, located in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma.

Today, I want to share a story about God's embracing grace and my young college friend, Bill.

Bill and two good friends from his dorm pooled their resources so they could tour Europe "on the cheap." They traveled light, slept in youth hostels, and enjoyed the unique characteristics of every country and village they passed through.

The amazing part of Bill's story didn't happen during a visit to the cathedral; it happened in a pub in Ireland. The thee young travelers were enjoying a meal in a quaint Irish pub when they heard a loud groan. At a nearby table a man struggled to heave himself out of his chair. They saw immediately he had only one leg. He reached for his crutch, but lost his balance and began to fall. Instantly his companion at the table jumped up and caught him.

The man with one leg muttered, "Thanks! I'm as crippled as a blind man."

His friend steadied him while replying, "Well now...come to think of it, who of us here isn't crippled?" A hush fell over the pub as the friend continued, "to lend each other a hand when we're falling is maybe the one kind of work that really matters in the end."


With love, peace and affectionate regards,

Richard

2011.9.05 Monday Morning!

Greetings and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma. 

Since Brian Dishman, a son of Pilgrim Church, set up our BLOG I've received numerous messages, a few from strangers, more from "old time friends." It is always good (and encouraging) to get responses (favorable or unfavorable) to our MONDAY MORNING messages.

I had a good laugh reading the following, and I hope it will put a smile on your face, too.

A teenage boy had just gotten his driver's license and asked his Dad if they could discuss the use of the family car. His Dad said he'd make a deal.  "You bring your grades from 'C' to 'B' average, study your Bible a little, and get your hair cut, and then we'll talk about the car"

The young man thought for a moment before deciding to go for the offer. After a couple of months, the Dad said "Son, you've brought up your grades and I've been watching you studying your Bible, but I'm a little disappointed that you haven't had your hair cut yet."

The son looked at his Dad and said "You know, Dad, I've been thinking about that. I've noticed in my Bible studies that Samson had long hair, John the Baptist had long hair, and I've seen pictures of Jesus with long hair."

To which the Father replied, "And did you also notice that everywhere they went they walked!"

Humor is an important part of a full life.


Blessings,

Richard

2011.6.20 Monday Morning!

Top of the morning from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, Vinita, Oklahoma.

 

In ancient times, when God gave the 10 Commandments to Moses, every person in a family or tribal unit was needed to work so all might survive.

 

When a person was unable to work, there was a threat to the survival of the family or tribe.  The old, the weak and frail were frequently abused and discarded.

 

In this setting God spoke with a new commandment to Israel, saying:  "You are not to treat the elderly, the weak, in in the same manner other tribes do.  You are not to discard them.  By keeping in connection with them you honor your father and mother.

 

Today, most people welcome Father's Day with unreserved feelings of gratitude and affection.  Yet, we know there are others who dread Father's Day as a harsh reminder of abuse and unhappiness.

 

So do your best to keep in contact with your parents.  If that is not possible, don't feel guilty; you've done what you could.

 

For those of us whose parents are no longer living, this is a time to remember pleasant times shared.  That's a good way to honor parents.

 

With all good wishes,

Richard

2011.6.06 Monday Morning!

Greetings and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church!

Still going strong at the corner of Thompson and Illinois, in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma. Our Sunday service begins at 10 a.m....you'll be welcome, if you can attend. If you can't be with us, please say a little prayer for us. We do remember you, our MONDAY MORNING FAMILY, in our thoughts and prayers.

Here is a "Pearl of Value" which comes from one of our church members:

"Knowledge is not likely to enter the head

when the mouth is open."

God endowed us with two ears but only one mouth. Yet, for most of us, the ears are in semi-retirement while the mouth is overworked. There is a great deal of talking, even shouting, but very little listening.

Listening is not easy. Listening with the whole person requires discipline, patience and caring.

When God appeared to King Solomon in a vision , and offered him any gift he wishes, Solomon asked for "a listening heart." Listening is not done alone with ears, it is also done with the heart."

Fondest Regards,
Richard