Tom Euston After Jesus was baptized, he spent forty days in the wilderness being tempted by the devil. He didn’t eat during those forty days and the devil tried to convince Jesus to turn stones into bread to alleviate his hunger. Then the devil showed him all the kingdoms on the earth and offered to give them to Jesus if he would just worship the devil. Then he tempted Jesus to test God’s protection of him by having him jump from the pinnacle of the Temple. Jesus did not fall into the temptations of the devil, and filled with the Holy Spirit he made his way back to Galilee and started preaching in their synagogues. The people who heard him praised him. I included last week’s reading with tod
The Wedding at Cana Tom Euston Today’s Gospel lesson is one many of us have read and heard many times. The story tells us of one of Jesus’ most under rated miracles, turning water into wine. In ancient Israel, newlywed couples didn’t go on honeymoons, but instead held wedding feasts at the home of the groom that lasted seven days. It was up to the groom’s family to provide the hospitality. Running out of wine before the party ended would be a huge embarrassment to the groom and his family. But, I don’t think this story is really about a wedding, not primarily anyway. I think the wedding is just the setting for what God is doing. I also don’t think this story is primarily about Jesus turning
With Him I am well pleased Tom Euston A family mourning the loss of a loved one who died of lung cancer at the age of 56 almost missed bidding him farewell at his funeral when a flight delay made them late for the last flight of the day to their destination. Before Jay Short died December 16, 2015, he requested that his body be buried in the family plot in Bolivar, Tennessee. In accordance with his last wish, his casket was placed on board a plane on Saturday morning, December 19. That afternoon Marcia, Jay's wife of 32 years, the couple's three children and other family members were to fly from Phoenix, Arizona, to Memphis, Tennessee, in order to attend the funeral the next day. But damage
New Years Reflection Tom Euston Happy New Years to all of you. I hope you all enjoyed any celebrations you may have taken part in this past holiday and I wish for each of you a wonder filled New Year. It seems every New Year, many people take a close look at their lives up to that point and re-evaluate where they are and where they would like to be. Then, many people make resolutions to change their lives to get them closer to where they would like to be. Unfortunately, most New Years resolutions don’t last very long and the next year many people often make the same resolution again. Now, there is nothing wrong with taking some time to look back on our lives and re-evaluate what and who we a
