Has Any Of This Helped?

Last February, I sat in the high school gym with my dad, feeling troubled. He noticed and asked if I was okay. I admitted I was bothered. He began reflecting on aging and his life’s work.  

He asked, "Do you ever wonder if anything you’ve done has helped?” I replied, "Dad, you’ve helped so many people."  

We watched girls compete in a cheerleading competition. He noted that many might have heard him speak at Camp Barakel. I agreed.  

After the competition, a woman in her 50s approached, saying, “Ken Pierpont, you were my youth pastor." They chatted, and I told my dad he had helped her.  

I stood in the cold parking lot, wanting to stay close to him. He spoke of the blessings of good work, a good wife, and good kids. He urged me to be faithful to ministry, my wife, and my kids.  

Today, on the anniversary of his death, I reflect on who he was and know for a fact that his life helped me.  

Bless You.  

Pastor.

There Is Someone On The Stairs

I was asleep, and my wife grabbed my arm and shook me awake. “There is someone on the stairs,” she said. My heart raced and my fear of having to confront a home intruder was now a reality. I have always wondered if I would react with bravery or if I would cower in fear. 

In the moment I sprang into action. I grabbed a piece of equipment to defend myself and sent Cecilia across the hall into the children's bedrooms to make sure they were all in bed. I did not want to mistakenly surprise one of my children coming up the stairs. 

Cecilia gave me the thumbs-up that the children were in bed, and I slowly stepped around the corner to the stairs, fully ready to engage the intruder

There was no one there. "Cecilia, did you hear someone come into the house?" "No, I thought I heard a weird noise on the stairs," she said. 

We live in town and have an old house. We often hear weird noises in and around our house, but there is a big difference between a weird noise in the house and an intruder. 

Now this story is just something silly I wanted to share with you but there is a good reminder about how important words can be. 

Bless You. 

Pastor

Be Aware Of Your Influence

For Christmas, Laela bought me a giant bag of 8 o’clock coffee beans. I thought it was sweet that she knew I enjoyed 8 o'clock coffee and that she bought me a gift with intention. 

This morning, as I wandered into the kitchen before the light of day, I opened the cupboard. There was my big bag of coffee, and a thought came to me. 

8 O’clock coffee is ok, but it is not remarkable in any way. Why is it one of my favorites? As I stood waiting for the beans to grind and fall into their little basket, I thought about it for a moment. I realized that I think 8 o'clock is great because my dad told me it was. He acted like it was the best coffee in the grocery store. I know that growing up my dad made his decisions based on the things he could afford, but my dad behaved as if 8 O’clock was the finest coffee in the world. 

As I began scooping the grinds into my coffee filter, I realized that my dad's desire to romanticize and find joy in every part of life has influenced me, down to what I think of as good coffee. Now, my children assume 8 O’clock is good coffee only because of my dad's influence on me. 

Be aware of your influence and live every mundane moment as a joyful adventure. You will change generations. 

Bless you. 

• Pastor

It’s Not Hard To Encourage Folks

When I was a kid, there was a lady in my church. She was not an especially beautiful person. She did not have much money or hygiene; she was in a wheelchair, so it was hard for her to take care of herself. 

Every Sunday, she would come up to me and shake my hand. When my hands were cold in the winter, she would say the same thing every time she shook my hand. “You have cold hands; that must mean you have a warm heart”

I often think it's hard to encourage someone, but as the woman who had nothing proved to me, it takes nothing more than a kind word that doesn’t really make sense to encourage someone for a lifetime.

Bless You
Pastor

Good Fences Make Empty Churches

There is an old saying, “Good fences make good neighbors.” This is popularly attributed to Robert Frost. It's from his poem “Mending Wall.” People say this as a way of saying that good boundaries are healthy and good. 

I don’t digress. I believe people should have proper boundaries. I do have a problem with this, though. First, I believe Robert Frost was saying this tongue-in-cheek. I don’t think he saw any practicality in the fence between his neighboring property. 

Second, I think many churches sit empty on Sunday mornings because they are more concerned about their boundaries than about being a good neighbor. Rules for this, rules for that. They would site them as proper boundaries, but really they are just protecting themselves from any risk when dealing with people. 

Our mission at FBC Williamston is this: “We Help People Follow Jesus”.  If we are going to help people follow Jesus, there is an element of risk to that. We cannot insulate ourselves from danger without isolating ourselves from the very people we are trying to help.

Think about this today. 

Bless you

• Pastor. 

The Greatest Gift

This year, I bought an advent book to read to my children, though my reading has been inconsistent. Despite that, Cecilia and Laela have taken the time to engage with the stories and pray with the kids.

Last night, as it was getting late, Aspen asked me to read. The first question was about the greatest gift each child had received. They answered, and the story then discussed the greatest gift of all: Jesus. Gunnison exclaimed, “He died on the cross for our sins,” Lately he has grown a lot in understanding and has been asking many questions. Yesterday he asked how God lets bad people into heaven. 

Laela, baptized as an infant, recently asked about believers' baptism, and I hope to baptize her and a few others next year. I believe my children's desire for spiritual growth comes from their Sunday School teachings.

Each night, I pray for my kids, that God would bless them, and the birth of Jesus reminds me that He has already blessed them and the blessing is theirs to receive. 

Thank you to all the teachers in our church for faithfully telling the story of the greatest gift ever. 

As a dad and the pastor it's the greatest gift I will receive this Christmas. 

Bless you. 

• Pastor 

A Wonderfully Wretched Christmas.

Dec 11, 2024

When I was young, my dad decided to leave a mainline denomination and start a church. As a result, he was without a regular income, and we spent many years with very little money.

I remember one year. We were renting a beautiful home under one condition. The man informed my dad that when the house sold, we would need to move quickly. The house did sell and my dad wanted to be a man of his word so he packed up and moved on the day we were supposed to. Even though we had nowhere to go. We moved to a shack that our Amish friends owned. 

My dad eventually found an apartment to move us into. It was too small for all of us and I can remember my dads discouragement and feeling ashamed of himself because he was not “providing” well. 

Here is the funny part. That Christmas in that tiny apartment was one of my favorites. It was cozy and we had a tiny Christmas tree I can still hear Christmas with Jullie Andrews playing as my mother made cookies. I remember all getting the flu that Christmas

It was a wonderfully wretched Christmas.

Christmas time brings with it the pressure to perform. To be some sort of holiday magician and put on the holiday of the century for your kids. Don’t forget that what what you might perceive as a holiday nightmare your Children or grandchildren may hold near and dear to them long after you have passed. 

This Christmas set aside the anxiety and create nostalga.

Bless you. 

• Pastor.