Pastor's Devotions by Tim Harris

For the past few weeks I have been working preparing for a huge conference that will be taking place in a couple of weeks at our church in Flushing, NY. One of my tasks is assigning hotel rooms to over 900 guests from all around the world. In doing so, I have had to read, type, and figure out all kinds of names that are quite foreign to me.   Of course, most of the names of those who are coming from the US, Canada, or Western Europe are not that difficult for me. But some of the names from places like India, Mongolia, Africa and parts of Asia can seem very long and totally unfamiliar.   Those who are coming from Latin America can have multiple names—e.g. a first name, second name, surname, and mother’s maiden name.   And, when it comes to figuring out spouses, many countries around the world do not use our system of sharing one last name.   In the end, I have found the process of reading and processing the many different kinds of names both fascinating and challengi...

One of the things I love about being up in the mountains during the summer is time spent out on a clear night doing a bit of stargazing. Yes, the stars are beautiful here at home, but we often don’t realize how few of them we actually get to see because of the brightness of the lights of the city and surrounding area. Up in the Adirondacks, however, there is little manmade light at night. There the darkness can seem thick and intense. The result is, the number of visible stars just seems to multiply. And not only do we get to see more stars, but the Milky Way is visible, shooting stars are common, and one can follow the satellites across the sky.   It can be absolutely spectacular!   When I am there, I could spend hours just stargazing!   Last weekend at PIF (Promise International Fellowship), I reminded our congregation that God has called us to “shine like stars.”   Actually the Apostle Paul wrote these words to the Philippians, “ Do everything without complai...

Last night had to have been the pinnacle match of this year’s U.S. Open thus far.   The French player Gael Monfils won the first two sets from Roger Federer. It seemed as if Monfils was doing just about everything right and Federer was doing everything wrong.   Monfils needed one more set to win the match. In fact, in the third set he had his chance with two match points in hand. But as Yogi Berra once said, “It’s not over till it’s over!” How true that was last night!   Not only did Federer win the points to get out of a terrible match point situation, he went on to win the set and the next two, winning the match.   It was an incredible comeback!   I’ve learned from watching tennis through the years, never underestimate a true champion. One of their specialties is the comeback. They know how to handle the loss of points, games, even sets. They know how to push through being on the downside until they are back up on top. Their minds are trained to stay focu...

I guess it’s a New York-North Jersey thing, but when walking through the park or on the street, few people, if any, are willing to make eye contact.   It really struck me the other day as I was doing my morning walk at the local park.   As I passed people by, I would look towards them to say, “Good Morning,” but only a small handful of them would actually look my way.   With the large majority of them, I could not make any eye contact at all.   It was as if we were all living in our own little worlds; as if the others around us did not exist.   (Of course, our iPods stuck in our ears don’t help at all!) I know I might be the odd-man-out, but as I pass by people in the park or on the street, I tend to like to make eye contact and greet them. It’s not about the greeting itself but the fact that it causes us to feel like a community.   We connect to each other as we say as simple, “Good morning” or “Hello.”   Not only that, but when we acknowledge ea...

This past weekend Kim and I moved both Joanna and Nathaniel to their respective colleges. Friday was spent preparing everything for the two moves. Saturday we moved Joanna to Lafayette College in Easton, PA to begin her sophomore year.   Yesterday, Sunday, we took Nathaniel back to The College of NJ in Ewing, NJ to begin his junior year.   It was only a few weeks ago that we did the same for our son, Jonathan, whom we moved to Washington D.C. to begin his graduate work at Catholic University of America.   (As you can imagine, we are pretty tired of packing and unpacking!) Well, for the time being Kim and I are alone.   The house is now a bit quieter. There will be much less laundry to do, many less dishes to wash, and less food to prepare. We won’t have to wonder whose coming home for dinner and who will not.   There will be no juggling of vehicles and no sound of music pounding from upstairs. Much less milk will be consumed and there will be no asking, “Wh...