God's Word in Action: Ask the Pastor BLOG
Welcome to this new resource! At the suggestion of God's Word in Action (GWIA) subscribers, we are expanding this resource to include the opportunity to ask questions of our Pastors regarding their sermons, weekly Bible lessons for Sunday or any other faith/Bible based topics.
To best facilitate the question and answer process and to best share the benefits of all questions and answers with anyone who subscribes, we have choosen an interactive tool called a "BLOG". Short for "web log", the BLOG format allows for you to view the sermon summary from each weekly edition of GWIA and ask questions and view answers.
How to Use the "GWIA - Ask a Pastor BLOG":
- Scroll down the page to find the GWIA edition you wish to ask a question about. Note that the newest week (date) appears on top.
- Click the comments link under the sermon summary to ask your question.
- A new "Post Comments" form is displayed below the edition you want to ask a question about. Note the other weeks are temporarily out of view.
- Type a name. Even though a name is required, "Anonymous" and "Guest" are perfectly acceptable if you wish to ask your question anonymously.
- Type your email address. Also required but will not be publically displayed.
- Skip the Website field as it is NOT required.
- Type your question in the Comments Box.
- Click the "Add Comments" button at the bottom to submit your question. Your question now appears below the related GWIA edition.
- Click the <<back to the blog link to return to the BLOG and close the Post Comments box.
- Questions are reviewed and answered by our Pastors which can take anywhere from an afternoon up to 2 days in the event of questions posted on Fridays or Saturdays.
How to View Your Answer:
- Return to the GWIA - Ask a Pastor BLOG by clicking the Question Button in one of your weekly GWIA emails -OR- by visiting the All Saints home page and clicking the "view the current edition" link in the subscription box.
- Scroll down to view the GWIA edition you asked a question about and click the "Comments" link.
- This displays all the questions and answers posted for this edition.
- Once you have completed your review, you can click the <<back to the blog link and return to the complete list of weekly editions. From here you may choose to view other questions and answers posted for other edition, etc.
Questions about or difficulities with the BLOG:
Contact Bobbie Tomasek at btomasek@allsaintsphoenix.org or Gina King at ginaking@allsaintsphoenix.org
April 2 Edition: For Those Who Doubt
“He is risen!” So now what? On Easter Sunday we sang, heard, and rejoiced about it. Now that we are filled with excitement, it is time to share the news with the Earth. Some of us, like Thomas, can’t get into that excitement. He did not believe that Christ had risen because he wasn’t there to see it. Maybe we are like Thomas, we have heard about it and can’t join in the joy. We wonder “What does this mean for me?” We aren’t any happier. John included this story in his gospel for those of us who are like Thomas, who are not really up for celebrating the holy days. Thomas might have thought that the other disciples were crazy or hallucinating when they said they had seen Jesus in the flesh. But Jesus doesn’t just leave him to wonder, he comes back, walks directly up to Thomas, and invites him to put his fingers into His hands and sides. He came back just for Thomas because he cared about him. When Thomas touched Him, he must have felt a great release of fear and pain and he cries out “My Lord and my God!” This is the most powerful and complete confession of recognizing Jesus in the Gospel of John.
The disciples did not “get it” when Jesus talked about being God. Up until this point, the disciples did not grasp that the God of Heaven and Earth was walking aound with them in human form. After He appeared to Thomas, he understood that God has come down to him. This is the God we believe in – the God who comes down to us.