I can hear the music used for the theme song to the once hugely popular TV show “The Apprentice,” can’t you? The part where the singers sing gleefully, “Money, money, mooooooneeey!” I can see the stereotypical old miser too, hunched over his desk, almost drooling over his little stacks of gold coins. I can see… Continue reading Money, Money, Money
Author: Paul Simrell
The Reverend Paul W. Simrell has served for over thirty years in a variety of congregational and institutional settings. He is a recognized minister with standing in the Virginia region of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada and is nationally endorsed by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) for specialized ministry in both pastoral counseling and chaplaincy. Ordained in 1982, he has served congregations in Kentucky, Texas, Florida, and Virginia. He currently serves as the pastor of Elpis Christian Church, a small, historic congregation located just a few miles west of Richmond, Virginia. Elpis is the Greek word meaning “expectant hope.” He also serves on the associate clinical staff of the Virginia Institute of Pastoral Care, Richmond, Virginia, both as a pastoral counselor and a ministerial assessment specialist, specializing in executive, clergy and relationship coaching. He is a graduate of the University of Florida and Lexington Theological Seminary and has done advanced clinical training in chaplaincy and pastoral counseling at the University of Kentucky Medical Center in Lexington, Kentucky, Children’s Medical Center and Parkland Hospital in Dallas, Texas and the Virginia Institute of Pastoral Care in Richmond, Virginia. He is a Certified Pastoral Counselor, an ACPE Practitioner, and a member of the American Association of Christian Counselors. He is a Certified Facilitator of the Prepare-Enrich relationship assessment and skills-building program and served as a volunteer chaplain for over twenty years with the CJW Medical Center campuses in Richmond, Virginia. His avocational interests include playing the piano and drawing. He is very happily married to his wife Elizabeth Yeamans Simrell, a free-lance writer, who is also a Certified Facilitator for the Prepare-Enrich program.
Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton
Purity
Are you a Puritan? Even if your familiarity with this historic religious movement – Puritanism – is limited to images from popular culture – I suspect a picture pops into your head when you hear that question. It’s the image of a very stern looking fellow, perhaps with a white beard, clad from head to… Continue reading Purity
Encouragement
We all need it, some more than others, but we all need it – encouragement. How do you define it? What lifts you up, sets you right, enables you to take that next step in achieving whatever you need, or simply want, to do? Chuck Swindoll said encouragement is “the act of inspiring others with… Continue reading Encouragement
Involvement
“I don’t want to get involved…” “What does that involve?” “Whose involved with this?” These are the typical comments you may get – or make yourself – when the issue of commitment comes up. Most of us are so busy, so committed, so “involved” already – that one more request or consideration can put us… Continue reading Involvement
Priorities
“Every decade possesses a particular characteristic. It comes into focus without announcement or awareness as the years unfold. Not suddenly, but quietly. Almost imperceptibly.” Swindoll, Charles R.. Strengthening Your Grip (p. 7). Worthy Publishing. Kindle Edition. That’s how, years ago, Chuck Swindoll introduced his important and helpful study on how to “get a grip” on… Continue reading Priorities
Strengthening Our Grip
Do you ever feel like sometimes you are (to borrow a great line from a Paul Simon song) slip slidin’ away? The media bombards us with the latest screaming headlines regarding the latest horrific news… You find yourself in deep into the “same old argument” with your boss, your spouse, your child, the neighbor next… Continue reading Strengthening Our Grip
Out of the Storm
The Lord Speaks 38 Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm. He said: 2 “Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge? 3 Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. 4 “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand. 5 Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!… Continue reading Out of the Storm
Yes!
“He is risen!” “He is risen, indeed!”
The Darkest Days
Good Friday, and the next day, are the darkest days of the Christian calendar. It is a time of remembering the horrors of the betrayal and death of Jesus and a time of waiting. Easter joy has not yet come. We can only wait in hushed anticipation. We are blessed in that our waiting, as… Continue reading The Darkest Days
A Simple Meal
Jesus, gathered with his closest friends, for an intimate meal. Sounds simple enough but it was anything but simple. It was more than just the celebration of Passover – though that is significant enough. It was more than just one more way for Jesus to model the love he had for them, and that he… Continue reading A Simple Meal