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.

2012.04.16 Monday Morning Message

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

Holy Week, the most significant week of the Christian calendar, is a drama that portrays life in three acts.

Jesus endured the stress of his arrest and trial, and then was hoisted to a cross to hang in excruciating  pain.  To be sure he was dead, soldiers, with a spear, pierced his side.  Then he was laid in a borrowed tomb, sealed by a large boulder.

The world of his disciples, and those earliest followers of Jesus, collapsed.  When the women went to the tomb on Easter morning to annoint his dead body they found the tomb was empty.  They discovered that Jesus was alive, their Lord and Master was free.

When the disciples got this report, they dismissed it as an idle tale.  But after the report of the women was confirmed, they came alive again!  Jesus was risen from the dead.  Jesus was free!  With that good news, the spirit of the disciples was restored.

How often are you really down?  When everything seems to go wrong, when you are disappointed, when you are in the pits,  Jesus comes with a helpful word or a kind act and you are inspired again.

Let Easter be your year round experience.  Through us, Jesus wants to work to help people, to free people, to cheer the lonely and to heal the afflicted, and to guide the lost.

God needs each of us and we can be joined in a partnership with God, through the living Christ.  Let's not run away from the important part we have in God's plan.

With blessings and fond regards,

Richard

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

Bingo at Burroughs Manor Sat. April 21 - 2:00 - 3:00

Helpers are needed

The Reverend Craig Gibson will be in the pulpit this Sunday April 22

(we refer to him as the one who brings his kids)

Please plan to attend.

Attendance April 1 -- 31

April 8 (Easter) -- 79

April 15 -- 32

　

2012.03.12 Monday Morning Message

Greetings and all good wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, Vinita, Oklahoma.

Christianity is profoundly inward, but at the same time outreaching and social.  It brings enlarged vision and it stirs deepest emotions, but it also moves the will to action.  It calls all aspects of a person into full function.

Jesus put a strong emphasis upon "wholeness of life".  "Do you desire to be made whole?"  is a basic question addressed not to one solitary person, but to everybody.  His gospel aims at nothing less than an integral wholeness of life, a harmony of the outer and inner self.

The kingdom of God, of which he persistently  speaks, begins as an attitude of the soul, as an inner experience of God.  "The kingdom of God" is within you.

We do not discover the full richness of the inner life until we take in terms of the love which he expects of us.  "You are to love", Jesus said, "even as I have loved you."  These words are demanding and at the same time they are words which reveal an immense faith in the inner possibilities of everybody.

Never neglect your fellowship with the unseen Lord of your life.  Always nurture and appreciate the richness and abundance of your inner life.

Hear the words of the prayer of St. Patrick, and make it your own prayer:

Christ within me, Christ beside me,

Christ before me, Christ to guide me,

Christ in my rising, Christ in my sleeping,

Christ in working, Christ in speaking.

Christ in the heart of all who love me,

Christ in the mouth of neighbors near me,

Christ in the eye of all who see me,

Christ in the ear of all who hear me.

With blessings that Christ bring to an expansion of joy!

Richard

Bingo at Burroughs Manor, Saturday, March 17 - 2:00 - 3:00

There will be a free screening of the Tar Creek documentary created and directed by Vinita native Matt Myers,

Monday, March 12 at Vinita High School cafeteria  sponsored by Vinnie Ream Cultural Center.

If you have not seen this movie, or would like to see it again this film shows what happened

in the Tar Creek area over the last century.

Tar Creek is located near Picher, Oklahoma.

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

2012.02.06 Monday Morning Message

　
Greetings and best wishes from all of us at Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, Vinita, Oklahoma.  

It may be a sign of old age, but I know that life's arithmetic means that for every new year we celebrate, we can subtract a year from our life.


That sounds pessimistic, but what I mean to say is don't wait too long to do what you want to do.


In too many simple things we wait too long to do them.

• Don't wait too long to show kindness.
• Don't wait too long to speak or write a word of encouragement.
• Don't wait too long to express your love and thanks to elderly relatives.
• Don't wait too long to love and enjoy your children and grandchildren.
• Don't wait too long to read the books and listen to the music that enlarges your mind.
• And of course, don't wait too long to practice a daily quiet time when you strengthen your inner spirits.

Life goes by quickly.   Don't wait too long to do the things you want to do!


With blessings and in friendship,
Richard

"The PAST is where you

learned the lesson

The FUTURE is where you

apply the lesson.

Don't give up the Middle!"

2011.12.05 Monday Morning

Pilgrim Presbyterians in Vinita, Oklahoma send greetings and best wishes as you make your Advent journey to the Cradle of the Christ child.

 

Announcing the birth of Jesus, an angel said "I bring you good tidings of great joy"  (Luke 2:10).  Today, the good tidings are communicated by you, and people like you, who are aglow in faith, strong in hope, love and kindness.

 

Often the good tidings are communicated by people who see themselves as co-workers with God in our secular world.  Do you remember Pogo, or Peanuts, or Mr. Rogers?  They were full of good tidings.

 

I remember once when Charlie Brown and Lucy were leaning against a tree, and Lucy asked, "What do you think security is, Chuck?"

 

He replied, "Security is sleeping in the back seat of the car when you're a little kid and you've been somewhere with your Mom and Dad, and it's night.  You're riding and you can sleep without worrying about anything.  Your Mom and Dad are in the front seat, and they've done all the worrying.  They take care of everything."

 

Lucy smiled and said, "That's really neat!"  But a serious look came over Charlie's face and he said:  "But it doesn't always last.  Suddenly you've grown up, and it can never be that way again.  Suddenly it's over and you'll never go to sleep in the back seat.  Never!"

 

Lucy got a scared look and said, "Never?"  And Charlie who got scared himself with a terrible truth said "Never!"

 

In the last picture Lucy, aware of the real world, reaches over to Charlie and said, "Hold my hand, Chuck.  Hold my hand."

 

The good tidings - the gospel of Jesus Christ - tells us that we can hold one another's hand in the midst of discomfort - with love and support, for Christ has come to dwell in us and we are his co-workers in life's adventure.

 

With blessings and in friendship,

 

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

 

2011.10.24 Monday Morning

Best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma!

Golden memories are the gratitude of the heart. How grateful I am for the five years (1986-1991) Helen and I lived in her old family home in Wales, that small, beautiful land of song.

I remember one morning sitting along the expansive estuary at Bangor, in North Wales. I saw boats - large boats, small boats, pleasure boats, fishing boats. And, all of them were anchored in mud. Every boat tilted, some to the right, others to the left. It was most definitely not a picture post card. The tide was out. The estuary was a mess, grim and unattractive. But, when the tide came in - and it always does - the mud lost its grip on the boats. They stood straight again. Awake, ready to go to sea! Those boats were free to come and go once more.

Bangor Photo...  Probably not the view referred to by Richard, however...

Our lives are often like the tides; some are tempestuous, while others come and go with the smoothness of silk. I like the words of the poet, Dylan Thomas (1914-1954) as the tides of life envelope me.

"Every morning when I wake,

Dear Lord, a little prayer I make.

O please to keep Thy loving eye

On all poor creatures born to die.

And every evening at sundown

I ask a blessing on the town.

For whether we last the night or no

I'm sure is always touch-and-go.

We are not wholly bad or good

Who live our lives under Milk Wood.

And Thou, I know, will be the first

To see our best side, not our worst."

With blessings and in friendship,
Richard

2011.10.17 Monday Morning!

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

If you are in the area any Sunday morning at 10:00, come worship with us. If that's not possible, please say a prayer for us wherever you are. Thank you.

I want to tell you today about a good friend who was a professor of New Testament studies. He had escaped from his beloved Hungary during the uprising in the mid-1950's. More than a quarter million Hungarians left their homes at a time when Communists were oppressing dissidents, including Christians.

My friend, and a group of anti-Communists, captured the Communist headquarters in his home town. They held it for only a short time before being crushed. In that brief time he and his friends discovered a list of 'informers'. On the list was the name of my friend's best buddy.

When my friend confronted him, the man broke down and through his sobs asked, "What would you have done when the Communists threatened your wife and children?" The next day the informant committed suicide.

Life is complex. Evil is powerful. It is not easy to be a Christian in all circumstances.

When we become too smug in our faith and are tempted to find fault in how others respond to horrific situations, we will do well to hear the haunting question of that Hungarian informer: "What would you have done in my situation?"

With blessings and fond regards,

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

2011.8.22 Monday Morning!

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

 

A few weeks ago, I reminded you that the Bible says that laughter is good medicine.  Today, I offer you some "good medicine" given me by friends who visit our BLOG.

 

Tommy Bolt was well known as one of the finest pro-golfers in the 1940's and 50's, and for his red-hot temper.

 

During one tournament Bolt was joined by a caddy who was known around golf circles for his constant chatter.  Bolt would tolerate no chatter from the caddy, ordering him not to speak at  all unless Bolt asked him a question.  Even then the caddy was told that he could answer only with a 'yes' or 'no'.

 

On one hole Bolt found himself lying next to a tree.  Surveying the situation he asked his caddy, "What do you think?  Five iron?"  "No," said the caddy.  "What do you mean not a five-iron,"  Bolt snarled.  "Watch this shot."

 

Bolt hit the ball placing it within a few feet of the hole.  He then turned to his caddy, handed him the five iron, saying "What do you think about that?  Go ahead, you can talk now."

 

"Mr. Bolt,"  replied the caddy, "that wasn't your ball."

 

Keep that smile on your face and you'll feel better.

 

Richard

2011.7.25 Monday Morning!

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

Have you ever wondered why humor is lacking in our practice of the Christian life? When it comes to our religion, do we take ourselves too seriously. We speak of joy and praise, but when was the last time you heard laughter in a church service?

Are we so conditioned to be formal and proper that we repress humor and laughter while at worship? Why in church is solemnity viewed as a mark of piety and laughter a sign of irreverence?

There are a few Old Testament stories that may cause you to smile, even laugh. If there is any humor in the New Testament it is hidden to the casual reader.

Yet, I am sure that Jesus was not a humorless person. He loved parties, and sour people tend to shun parties. He took children in his arms, and I've never seen a person cuddle a baby or small child without a smile or a tender laugh.

Laughter is good for us. Humor has its way of preserving sanity in times of woe.
Should I laugh at this story, where the guest could well be me?

SUNDAY DINNER
A young couple invited their elderly pastor for Sunday dinner. While they were in the kitchen preparing the meal, the minister asked their son what they were having.
"Goat," the little boy replied.
"Goat?" replied the startled pastor. "Are you sure about that?"
"Yes," said the youngster. "I heard Dad say to Mom, "Today is just as good as any to have the old goat for dinner!"

Blessed are you if you can laugh at yourself; for you shall never ceased to be amused.

Richard

2011.7.4 Monday Morning!

Greetings to you and your loved ones on this 4th of July.  Let your celebration be joyful and safe.  And, thanks for visiting our "off site - on line" ... center ... of our Church Family, Pilgrim Presbyterian, in Vinita, Oklahoma.

My heart aches at every war casualty reported in your daily press.  I know the grief families are experiencing, and my prayer for each sorrowing person and family is not to lose hope and give up.  No power on earth can take from you the love you have experienced.  Difficult as it is, ask yourself what life is still expecting from you.  With an aim, with goals, you'll find reasons to carry on.

I have found that in the most difficult moments of my life a look to the future gives me courage and hope.  New challenges, new opportunities give me reasons to live in spite of my sorrows and sufferings.

There is purpose to our existence.  If you nuture your inner life you'll find the light of Christ will shine into your deepest darkness.

With love and in friendship,

Richard

2011.5.16 Monday Morning!

SMILE!  It's my MONDAY MORNING message reaching out to you from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, in Vinita, Oklahoma.   Smile because smiling and laughter are good medicine.   A few years ago I attended a meeting of ministers and elders where one person soon had everyone relaxed and laughing, except one glum person who sat like a sphink.  One gave us all a sense of joy, the other chilled us, never cracking a smile.  One was able to laugh at himself, the other almost lost his temper.   There is, of course, the wrong kind of laughter which is prompted smutty jokes or cruel  jibes at someone else.  However, the right kind of laughter brings fun and happiness into our lives, and that is important.   Hearty laughter for the right reason is good medicine.  And, preventive medicine is cheaper in every way than curative medicine.   Love, laugh and live.   Richard

2011.5.2 Monday Morning!

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

"Dreams, visions and hopes, though invisible, are factors that build and shape the things we see.  An invisible world is behind and within the visible one, the builder of the visible."

 
What unseen, intangible realities are you using to build your life?  You are the builder of your life and what comes forth depends on what invisible forces are at work in your soul, in your inner life.
 
Your invisible ideals construct your life.  Your destiny is connected with your inner attitudes of mind, heart and will.
 
Don't be tone deaf or blind to the unseen and intangible realities of your life.
 
In friendship,
Richard

2011.2.28 Monday Morning!

Greetings and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, in Vinita, Oklahoma. Thank you for your "visit" today. We hope you'll come again and that you'll share our address with friends.

Miss Lyons, my 4th grade teacher at Winslow School, in Racine, Wisconsin, loved poetry and instilled her passion for it in the lives of her students. This line jumped into my mind last week: 

"I shot an arrow into the air, it fell to the ground
I know not where."
Too often our "arrows" take the form of ugly, hurtful words. We "shoot off our mouths" without thinking, and our words cannot be retrieved.

Far better than anything I can say about the use of words is to be found in the short epistle of James; yes, it is in the New Testament. Try to read James, chapter 3, sometime this week.

With blessings and in friendship,

Richard

A PEARL OF VALUE

"The tongue can witness to the

truth and can spread falsehood."

2011.2.14 Monday Morning!

Valentine greetings!  Thank you for visiting our Pilgrim Presbyterian BLOG.  While buried in snow in Vinita, Oklahoma, our Valentine wishes for you are warm and sincere.

 

A young friend was quite upset when I saw her at a card shop in a Tulsa mall.  She didn't like the idea of having to buy a Valentine for her boss to send to his wife.

 

That is hardly a picture of the true meaning of this lovely, sentimental day.  I think it is important for children and adults to know and understand that love is something to count on within families and close circles of friends.  There is something amiss when one has to "farm out" genuine sentiment and love.

 

To forget to share, to communicate, individual love is a failure to express the deepest feelings of one's life.

 

It's Valentine's Day!  I hope you'll receive and give a true expression of individual love.

 

Richard

 

A PEARL OF VALUE

 

While we have loved ones, we ought

to tell them of our love and gratitude.