Connections by Jeff Nickloy Sandra and I were headed home on a flight from Paris to Philadelphia, with connections to Detroit and Indy.  Three seats on our side of the plane.  A young lady from Romania sat in the window seat.  It was the start of a friendship that has lasted for 6 years.  More about that later. We all learn the…

A Bit of Heaven in Indiana Having lived in Indiana most of my life, the topic of the weather and grumbling about it is a part of Hoosier life. I often hear the expression “If you don’t like the weather in Indiana, just wait a few days, and it will change.”  How true that is, and we have had some crazy weather…

Here’s the buzz from the small groups this week: Self control is a necessary part of being a follower of Jesus for several reasons. First of all, it is necessary because in order for us to handle things God has given us, self control must be part of our lives.  As Paul states in his letter to Titus, ” Since an overseer…

Here’s the buzz from the small groups for the past two weeks.  Week 28:  Faithfulness: Robertson McQuilken’s resignation as a college president to care for his Alzheimer’s-stricken wife is a great illustration. The evening news tells the story of a world filled with unfaithfulness, and the folly of ego run rampant.  But everyday Christian believers can think of illustrations more similar to…

Welcome Jim and Barb Clayton to our congregation.  Read below to find out more about them.  Be sure to stop them and introduce yourself! Barb is from Blufton and Jim  grew up in Lafayette. They met at Purdue University.   Jim graduated two years ahead of Barb and  went to the US Army. After two years in the Army, they were married…

We struggled to define the difference between “Goodness and Kindness”. We decided that Good is what you are, where as Kindness is what you show or do. We then talked of tuff love using the stores of Rahab and of David and Saul as and examples. Rahab lied to her people which was wrong on the surface, but served God’s plan later.…

Drivers in our group acknowledged their impatience when a light turns green, and the person  ahead of us doesn’t  yet notice!  A child asked his mother “Mommy, how come the idiots only seem to come out when Daddy drives?” We pondered how God is patient with us, not  wanting anyone to perish.  The illustrations of David waiting upon God’s timing to become…

David Layman, retired pastor and a member of our congregation was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease 5 years ago.  He is undergoing a procedure to reduce the tremors.  Read about  David’s reflection on the past as he talks about the procedure. The first stage of deep brain stimulation surgery:  attaching my skull to a halo so it could be kept perfectly still while…

Weclome Karla, Matt and Adriana Diuro and Patty Schuler.  Read below to find out more about them.  Be sure to stop them and introduce yourself!   Matthew and I met at a Hispanic scholarship fundraiser gala at the Scottish Rite downtown in April 2008. He was a friend of a friend and when he asked my friend if he could get my…

As a group, we were not very impressed with the concept of “Hope” as it is presented in the book, Believe.  We spent considerable time discussing “Hope” vs “Faith” vs “Belief”.  Interestingly, the group divided along gender lines as to the value of “Hope”.  The men place a lot more confidence in “Faith” and “Belief” than they do in “Hope”.  The women…

This chapter examines peace on three levels – peace with God, peace with others, and peace with yourself.  We determined early in our discussion that one must “Believe” in God in order to find peace through God.  Believing in God and Jesus, we then go to God in prayer (verbal and non-verbal) in our search for peace.  Finding peace is the giving-up…

We discussed how there is a distinction happiness and Christian joy.  Happiness is often connected with pleasant circumstances.  But Christian joy is grounded in God, and the ultimate blessings made possible through Jesus Christ. Difficult circumstances may actually help produce joy, as we see in Acts 5:41.    When we trust in God, we may experience deep, abiding joy and peace.  My heart…

We considered the question,  “Who are the toughest people for you to love?  Strangers?  Someone who’s hurt you?”    Christians may be described by some outsiders as hypocritical and judgmental.  But that hasn’t been the experience of those in our group.”Those who say, ‘I love God,’ and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars”!  I John 4:20  We hope and pray we…

This was a good chapter for our group in that It helped us see the important difference between “sharing” our faith and “seeking to impose” our faith.  We all feel comfortable with “sharing”, but confess to discomfort with the idea of seeking to “impose” our faith.  Randy made good points that in sharing our faith we don’t need to believe we must…

What a chapter.  And that is said with an amount of disappointment and a larger dose of discovery.  Prior to reading the chapter, several thought that it would be a sort of guilt-trip about not giving enough money to church – a guilt trip directed at those who don’t tithe.  The study guide did not help in this regard as the first…