Pastor's Devotions by Tim Harris

As many of you know by now, I’m currently in the process of retiring from over 40 years of pastoral ministry. My final Sunday at First Assembly of God of Shrewsbury, NJ will be September 7, just over a week from now. Thus over the past few weeks, I’ve been dismantling my office, piece by piece and book by book. And, have I collected a lot of books! After all, in ministry one is constantly using books.  Some of those books were one time reads. Some were kept on hand for help with further study and sermon preparation. I had my share of commentaries, word study books, concordances, counseling books, leadership books, and more. Some I’ve given away. Some I’ve reshelved in another room in our church office for use by others. And there are a number that I’ve boxed up to bring home. Thus, both my office and my home now have boxes of books.   Admittedly, it’s not easy for me to part with books that have been on my shelves for so many years. In fact, the other day I found myself g...

Most mornings, I try to eat a good/healthy breakfast to get my day going.  For me that means eggs, toast, some fruit, including a banana, and of course coffee. My goal is to eat a good balance of protein, carbs, and fat so that I can avoid the morning crash I would face when eating merely a bagel and butter or a muffin or a bowl of cereal. I think of my breakfast as fuel for the day. It’s like putting gas in the tank so that I’ll have the energy and strength to do what needs to be done, at least in the first part of that day. In the same way, and even more so, I know I need to fuel not just my body but as well my heart, mind, and spirit. That’s where time spent reading the Bible comes in. Thus, each morning, I pull out my Bible (actually on my iPad), and pick up where I left off the day before, reading two passages of scripture, including one Psalm. Often I include a reading from a devotional book as well.  You see, my time spent reading the Bible is not merely an obligation, ...

The other day, as I was walking the boardwalk, I passed by an elderly couple walking hand-in-hand. I couldn’t help but stop and ask them how long they have been married. The husband simply said, “A very long time.” The wife, however, with a big smile on her face gave the real answer: “70 years!” I thought that was astounding. Here they were, married for 70 years, and still walking the boardwalk hand-in-hand! (Think of it, they must have been in their 90’s.) I let the couple know that about two weeks ago, Kim and I celebrated our fortieth wedding anniversary!  To which the wife responded, “Mazel tov…may you have many more!”  At that moment, however, their 70 years of marriage made me feel like a newlywed—as if I was just starting out. I wish I could have sat down with them and heard their stories and learned how it was that after 70 years of marriage, they were still holding hands. I’m sure they would have had some pretty good advice.  As I reflect on my own 40 years of ma...

Over the past few weeks Kim and I got to spend quite a bit of time with our three grandsons, Jesse, Jack, and Caleb. As we did, we learned one of the dinner routines they often do as a family in order to create conversation around the dinner table, as well as keep the kids engaged during that time (after all, like most kids they hate sitting at the table for too long).  Their routine is called, “Highs, Lows, and Buffalos.”  One by one each family member first shares a “high”—that is, something from their day that was especially good or that they really enjoyed. Then they each share a “low”—i.e., something they had to do or that took place that they didn’t like at all. Then they share a “buffalo.” I’m not sure why it’s called a “buffalo,” but a “buffalo” is some sort of surprise that they experienced that day. (I guess if they came across a buffalo that would be quite a surprise!) So, during our time together with them, we would periodically all share our “highs, lows, and buff...