“When the people saw Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, ‘Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us out of Egypt, we don’t know what happened to him.’ “ Exodus 32:1 We all know the problem… Continue reading Give it all to God
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
Looking On
“And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens…” Exodus 2:11a Moses is, to say the least, an interesting and complex character. Hidden as a child from harm, raised in luxury and wealth in an adopted family, led to see the… Continue reading Looking On
A Snappy New Day
I have a collection of coffee mugs. Some have been given to me by friends, some advertise non-profits or businesses I endorse, some offer poignant or witty sayings to ponder. A few even have my own artwork on them – from when I was actively working as a freelance cartoonist. One I especially like is… Continue reading A Snappy New Day
Keeping It Simple
There are times when I feel life has become very complicated. Maybe I was raised in a rather protected environment, maybe I have always been a little too naive – a little too willing to give people the benefit of the doubt. If, as it has been said, that “a sucker” is born every minute… Continue reading Keeping It Simple
Waiting for the King
They had been waiting for four centuries. Oh, the world had been turning, and history was made during that time. Empires came and went, Alexander the Great had come and gone, Rome was in charge now, and a tiny strip of land – squeezed between great desert expanses – was about to become very, very… Continue reading Waiting for the King
The End of the Beginning
“So Joseph died, being a hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.” Genesis 50:26 Newsflash: Everybody dies. Now I know, on the one hand, that seems painfully obvious. On the other hand, I meet people almost every day who have seemingly forgotten this basic… Continue reading The End of the Beginning
Take a Deep Breath
I bless God every chance I get; my lungs expand with his praise. 2 I live and breathe God; if things aren’t going well, hear this and be happy: 3 Join me in spreading the news; together let’s get the word out. 4 God met me more than halfway, he freed me from my anxious… Continue reading Take a Deep Breath
Looking for peace in all the wrong places
This morning I was saddened, but not all that surprised to learn of a disturbing trend in our society, According to a The Washington Post, “A new study published in JAMA Psychiatry this month finds that the rate of alcohol use disorder, or what’s colloquially known as “alcoholism,” rose by a shocking 49 percent in… Continue reading Looking for peace in all the wrong places
The Devil Made Me Do It
I remember as a kid watching a comedian named Flip Wilson talking about the devil. in one of his signature comedy bits he would take on the persona of a minister confronting a woman who would always blame the devil whenever she gave into temptation. Her common refrain was “the devil made me do it.”… Continue reading The Devil Made Me Do It
Nearness to God
Sometimes God can seem very far away. This is one of the most common “complaints” I hear from the people I work with as a pastoral counselor. They aren’t estranged from God, they aren’t angry, or hurt, or afraid. They just feel an absence, a vague detachment, they can’t quite put their finger on. They… Continue reading Nearness to God
IGW3 - In God's Word, In God's Will, In God's Work 