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.
All questions or responses are welcome, but each week the staff will come up with a conversation starter that you are welcome to respond to. Find it by clicking on "comments."
How to Use the "GWIA - Ask a Pastor BLOG":
- Click the comments link under the sermon summary to ask your question.
- Scroll down to view a new "Post Comments" form is displayed below the GWIA sermon summary.
- 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
January 7 Edition: Fear Not
Luke 2:10 (NIV)
But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.
The journey of the magi, the topic of this day of Epiphany, is not just some story that happened long ago. It is a model for the journey you and I are on today. It was a long journey that required faith and perseverance and probably involved a fair degree of fear.
It was a lengthy journey (possibly 700 miles or so), and the destination was a place of conflict. It is likely that the madness and violence of King Herod was well known. What was unknown was what small infraction would be the one that set him over the top on any given occasion. So the magi, having first passed through lands of hostile tribes, had to have approached Herod with great trepidation. And Herod was paranoid, so asking about a new king surely had to have presented in their minds the possibility of Herod’s wrath. But this is all exactly what they did—dangerous journey, dangerous mission, dangerous antagonistic ruler.
Why? The magi came from a polytheistic culture, yet they listened to the still small voice of God leading them on. Again, why? They trusted the signs. They realized that this particular light that they followed pierced the darkness in a big way. They followed their hearts, minds and souls to be open to the light of the star, the light of the world.
We too live in a time of fear: financial fear, health worries, fear of continued war and the loss of loved ones. Ours is not an easy journey, filled at times with pain, suffering and difficulty. But the light that we follow pierces our darkness, our fears. This light, the light of Christ, is with us no matter how deep the darkness. Fear not for God is with us and with God all things are possible.
Listen to the Audio Sermon for this week
