Time passes quickly. That is an adage that we often hear and use. It becomes particularly true as we get older. That is certainly the case for me. It is hard to believe I have now served as pastor of Saloma Baptist Church for 30 years - from 1994 to 2024. Needless to say, I was 30 years younger in 1994 when I became your pastor. I had a few gray hairs at that time, and today, I have a full head of gray hair. Now, let me be clear that my gray hair is not because of the responsibilities of serving as pastor of Saloma Baptist Church. My gray hair is a product of age - nothing more.
In retrospect, the past three decades have certainly passed quickly, and God has blessed us in many ways. Many lives have been touched and positively impacted as a result of our ministries. I have had others outside the church family remark that it appears that Saloma Baptist Church is a very close community of believers who have a global vision and commitment. I certainly agree with that statement.
Let me thank our congregation and friends for the love, dedication, and support through the years. None of us know what tomorrow will bring, but this I do know - that I am very thankful to be the pastor of Saloma Baptist Church and pray that we can move forward in a spirit of unity and commitment as we minister to our community and world in the name of Jesus Christ. There is much to be done in His name, and each of you have an important role in the work of the church. The church is the Body of Christ. He is the head of the church. We are his servants and ministers.
As I move to another subject in this blog, some of you may recall a recent mid-week Facebook Bible Study that I shared on the subject of "easy religion." As king of Israel, Jeroboam tried to wean the people away from loyalty to the house of David. Jeroboam found a solution, so he thought, by making religion easy. He completely cut them off from their ancestral roots. This is unfortunately a popular strategy today in many churches. Jeroboam's easy religion had tragic consequences, and the same is true today where "easy religion" is in vogue. Unfortunately, there are those, even within the Christian movement, who seek to compromise the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to seek to make it more "relevant" in the increasingly secularized culture in which we live. While the way we present the gospel changes generation to generation, and the ways we worship are different and change, the Gospel itself does not change. We must not - we cannot - compromise on our Christian faith. What we do we must do in grace, love, humility, and by example - but we must never back away from the transformational power and life change that results from coming to know Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. Easy religion does not get the job done. Living our Christianity is not easy - nor has it ever been easy - but it is the life choice that leads to eternity, abundant life, and transforming power.