…and suddenly, it is Holy Week. We began our trek toward Jerusalem, the cross, and beyond six weeks ago. The journey began on top of a mountain, witnessing the mysterious and glorious transfiguration of Christ. Now, we go into the valley of the shadow of death before we celebrate the equally mysterious and glorious resurrection… Continue reading Don’t Miss Jesus
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
Storm Clouds Gathering
The next part of the story is never easy to tell. There are storm clouds gathering. Jesus has been on the road – healing, teaching, listening, preaching – moving. And he has been saying some very disturbing things to his closest, handpicked disciples. Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; And the Son of man shall… Continue reading Storm Clouds Gathering
Snow Day
Today I am working from my study at home because, once again, it has snowed. No big news there. Virginia weather changes more frequently than I change my clothes. So, it’s five degrees out one morning; fifty degrees out the very next afternoon but, for now, I am waiting things out and trying to be… Continue reading Snow Day
Just Stop
As I write these words those of us in the Mid-Atlantic region, indeed on the entire East Coast of the nation, are experiencing a dramatic and unexpected “deep freeze.” With temperatures in the twenties during the day and in the single digits at night – well, things have slowed down quite a bit. Most people… Continue reading Just Stop
Sailing with God
The Storm 13 When a gentle south wind began to blow, they saw their opportunity; so they weighed anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete. 14 Before very long, a wind of hurricane force, called the Northeaster, swept down from the island. 15 The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave… Continue reading Sailing with God
The Greatest Announcement
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29 Mary was greatly… Continue reading The Greatest Announcement
No More Gloom
19 When someone tells you to consult mediums and spiritists, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20 Consult God’s instruction and the testimony of warning. If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn. 21 Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished,… Continue reading No More Gloom
The Peace of Thanksgiving
“Be careful for nothing, but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 (KJV) It’s a wonderful promise – and it’s easy to miss. It’s the promise… Continue reading The Peace of Thanksgiving
The Blessing
“So the people of Israel followed all of the LORD’S instructions to Moses. Then Moses inspected all their work. When he found it had been done just as the LORD had commanded, he blessed them.” … Continue reading The Blessing
A Second Chance
1The LORD said to Moses, “Chisel out two stone tablets like the first ones, and I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke.r 2Be ready in the morning, and then come up on Mount Sinai. Present yourself to me there on top of the mountain. 3No one… Continue reading A Second Chance