Pastor's Devotions by Tim Harris

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 each other, we are reminded that the

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, “When will you clean your r

Not too long ago I downloaded Darlene Zscech’s last album, “Revealing Jesus.”   On that album is a beautiful worship song entitled, “Magnificent.”   Its words, melody, and overall tone have captured me to the point that I have probably played the song over 100 times in the last couple of months. For some reason, I just want to play the song over and over again. Most of us know what it is like to play the same song over and over.   You’ve probably had that favorite song for which you kept on hitting the repeat button.   There have probably been those songs that, when they came on the radio, caused you to turn up the volume.   It seemed as if you would never get tired of the song.   Others around you may have been getting weary of hearing it, but for you the song always seemed fresh and new.   The Bible shows us that one day we who are followers of Jesus Christ will be singing a song that will be put on “repeat.”   It will be a song of praise and worship. It will be a song fille

There’s a good possibility that in the next few months we will be selling my mom’s house—that is, the house in which my siblings and I grew up.   With my dad having passed away in May and considering my mom’s current health, the house is too big and, for the most part, unmanageable for her.   Of course, there are lots of emotions associated the house and the thought of its eventual sale is difficult for all of us.   The other day, I was there taking care of some things and ended up slowly walking around the yard doing a bit of daydreaming.   I found myself picturing one of our many wiffle ball games that we played as kids, noting where each of the bases would have been.   I was reminded of my grandfather’s springtime visits and how I would find him, early in the morning, sitting in the side yard with his coffee and his Bible.   I thought about the many hours I spent as a teen mowing the lawn, trimming the bushes, and weeding, remembering exactly where every tree and bush used to b