The story of the prodigal son is well known. It’s a beautiful parable about redemption. You can find it in a section of Luke which includes several similar teachings. For example, there is the parable of the lost sheep and the lost coin. Then we come to the prodigal son—another story of the lost being …
Author Archives: Ken Cluck
Friends before Facebook
Think back about how many fights you have seen on social media. If your experience is anything like mine, you have probably lost scores of friends over various issues. Today I was reminded how easily this could happen when a Facebook “discussion” started with an old friend—we’ve been friends for 15 years, not just on …
What is Love?
Recently, I was asked, “What is love?” This question may seem simplistic to many, but it becomes pretty complex if you think about it. Rather than answering right away, I stepped back to consider it. The world, of course, has its own definition. This is part of the problem when we discuss issues with the …
Reigning in Social Media
Social media has produced some unusual fruit over the last few years. How many of us see a post, do a quick assessment, decide whether we agree, then share it or comment—all in a matter of seconds? It’s incredible how many don’t read the whole post before reacting or read the article linked before sharing. …
Filters
Since our granddaughter moved away, we regularly video chat. It is lots of fun to watch her experience her new home and love her new sister. Her mother will just give her the phone from time to time, and she’ll run and hide to talk to Pawpaw (me). But she does little talking. Mostly she …
Fear or Faith
Recently, our newest Supreme Court Justice, Amy Coney Barrett, told an audience that Supreme Court Justices are not partisan hacks. Here is a CBS News article about it. She wanted people to understand this because many are confused about how two judges can reach such different conclusions in the same case. The difference between them …
Sunday Best
For those of you who don’t know, I have two places which are my favorite to eat in our beautiful little town. One is the Brick House Café. The other is the Cable Café, especially for breakfast. If you haven’t been in either of these lately, go in and support local businesses. I’ve been in …
Serve our community
This Sunday is July 4th, 2021. We have decided that instead of competing against all the community activities and all the plans of local organizations, we should join in and show love to those in our town. Instead of having church services we encourage everyone to be a servant of the Lord among their neighbors. …
Getting too comfortable
Over the last few days, I’ve been meditating on an interesting problem. One thing I often deal with as a pastor is those who have no assurance of their salvation. These are the people who constantly fear they are damned, and never learn to simply trust in Jesus’s words and promises. They assume each sin …
You Don’t Know My Name
Has a song ever struck a chord with you? By this, I mean that the song itself, the music and lyrics, resonate with your inner being. Lately, I have a new favorite contemporary Christian song. The title is Story I tell and is performed by Micah Tyler. Here’s a link to it on YouTube (post …