Did you know you can be lost and found and not even know who you are?

This is exactly what happened to 200 French soldiers at the end of World War II. The soldiers were suffering from amnesia when they were released from POW camps.

Doctors thought determining their identity and reuniting them with families and friends would be vital to their recovery, so a massive effort to identify the unknown men was carried out.

The Red Cross was able to identity most of the men. To determine the identity of the remaining veterans, photographs of the few dozen remaining unknown men were published in newspapers throughout France. Then the public was invited to a gathering at the Paris Opera House.

On the evening of the gathering, each man whose identity remained unknown walked on stage, one at a time, and asked a simple question, “Does anyone know who I am?” Each man was then seated in hopes someone would know them.

Most people believe it was a miracle each man was eventually identified and reconnected with family and friends.

The prophet Ezekiel speaking for the Lord says, “I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. … I will seek the lost, bring back the strayed, bind up the injured and strengthen the weak…” (Ezekiel 34)

When God commits to seek after us then we can be found even if we think we don’t want to be, even if we don’t know we’re lost!

One example happened just a few weeks ago when record-setting cold temperatures inspired news coverage of the cold weather’s impact on the homeless. In the middle of the cold spell Jacqueline Martin, an Associated Press photographer, was dispatched into the heart of our nation’s capital to find and photograph the homeless.

She photographed a young homeless man on a park bench named Nick. Nick’s photo ran prominently nationwide and ironically this photo led to his reunion with his family near Rochester, New York.

The reunion is ironic because Nick declined to give the photographer his last name when asked to do so. He knew who he was. He just didn’t consider himself lost and he didn’t want to be found, but he was lost and he was found.

For many people, the despair in being lost is thinking no one cares, thinking no one is looking for them, but Christ seeking after the lost is a central part and promise of the Gospel.

Whether you’re lost mentally, physically, emotionally or spiritually, maybe you’ve forgotten who you really are even if you don’t know you’re lost or you don’t want to be found, you still have the assurance of knowing Jesus is always seeking after you …

Jesus says, “Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost.’” (Luke 15: 4 – 6)

Join us this Sunday morning for informal chapel worship at 8:30 or sanctuary worship at 11. The message “Lost and Found” is based on the Gospel of Luke, Chapter 15.

Dennis Andrews is a minister at Community Presbyterian Church of Deerfield Beach (Steeple on the Beach) located five blocks south of Hillsboro on A1A. See more at www.communitych.org or on Facebook.

“Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.”

(Matthew 1:23)

One of the least recognized lessons from Joseph in the Christmas story highlights the importance of change; the willingness to change when we should, stay the course when we should and the wisdom to know the difference.

We all have “God surprises” from time to time and it goes without saying that Mary’s surprise is unmatched in the history of humankind. The divine delivery speaks for itself, but Joseph took a good jolt himself and he eventually did exactly what he needed to do.

Change is hard once we are invested where we are, once we are invested in where we think we’re headed. How does the saying go? “The more we care, the longer we’re there, the less likely we’ll dare to change!”

You don’t have to live very long to learn the greatest blessings in the world involve God surprises. We had one of these God surprises and big changes in our family over Thanksgiving when our middle child announced she was going to have a baby.

How cool is that?

Talk about a big change that leads to a little blessing and a little blessing that that leads to a big change. Some of the more emotional people in my family get all teary in the eyes when they hear about this sort of God surprise. I only required a small towel…

Christmas is a great big God surprise, although it shouldn’t have been a surprise at all given the predictions… You know the story. Joseph and Mary are betrothed. They have wedding plans and they’re excited as any young couple would be. The families long-since approved. Nazareth is a small town. Word gets around.

Joseph and Mary are mentally, emotionally and personally invested when Mary turns up with child. Joseph may have been teary in the eyes, too, given the story told that Mary is still a virgin. How could that be true?

I personally think it would have been great if the angel appeared to Joseph back when the angel appeared to Mary. Gabriel could have just held a little premarital counseling session with the two of them and let them wrestle with the news about the baby together.

But God surprises have a way of happening the way God wants and not the way we want! And we’re left to wonder and believe, or not .

There is disbelief in Joseph’s first change of plans, which is to quietly send Mary away. This remains his plan until Joseph is shown an angel of his own. With the help of the angel, Joseph eventually has the right frame of mind. He changes when he needs to change and stays the course when he needs to stay the course. Ultimately, Joseph does what all of us are supposed to do. He uncrosses and opens his arms to the will of God.

Pray for God surprises in 2014, little blessings, big blessings and maybe even an angel or two to give us the wisdom and willingness to change when we need to change and stay the course when we need to stay the course. But be prepared to be a little teary in the eyes because God knows sometimes it takes a good jolt to change…

Reverend Dennis Andrews

Reverend Andrews is a minister at Community Presbyterian Church of Deerfield Beach (Steeple on the Beach) located five blocks south of Hillsboro on AIA. See more at www.comm unitych.org or on Facebook.

Thanksgiving has been a favorite holiday of mine since I was young.

I remember waking up as a young child on Thanksgiving Day morning to the aroma of turkey cooking in the oven. Ah, the day’s high hopes and expectations preceded my feet hitting the floor.

An early morning tradition at our home included scrumptious warm cinnamon rolls with lemon icing melted over the top. “Um- mm good!” I usually ate a handful of these because they were small and so was I, at the time.

First things in the morning included finding out who was coming and when they were expected to arrive, watching a little of the Thanksgiving Day parade on television and finding out when the football games were to begin.

Thanksgiving Day meal happened in the middle of the day, but a little later than normal to give the family extra time to arrive. Thanksgiving Day travel back then was more a matter of traveling across town than dealing with airports and homeland security.

An early afternoon meal meant I would have time to recover from all those cinnamon rolls. It also gave us time to adjust and turn the old antenna on the roof. HD television back then stood for “Hard-to-Determine” rather than “High-Definition,” so a clear picture of the game required the antenna to be pointed in just the right direction.

I never understood how the Bears and Cowboys were always among the teams duped into playing on Thanksgiving Day, but it explains how I became a Bears and Cowboys fan.

Once everyone arrived, we had a great meal topped off with pumpkin pie. After filling our stomachs, the sports enthusiasts of a certain gender and age would then fall asleep in a comfortable chair before the end of the game they had been so excited to watch.

There were afternoon board games and discussions about family, sports, church and state and maybe a look ahead to Christmas. Early evening was time for the best tasting leftovers in the history of the world and, before the sun went down, everyone was gone.

Traditions can change with time when children become parents and parents become grandparents. Skype, Face- Time and Facebook are not same as being there; but, even when families find themselves scattered across the globe, Thanksgiving has not lost its luster.

This is so because Thanksgiving is more than turkey and cinnamon, or parades and football. Somewhere in the love of family, one for the other, in familiar scents and sounds, in memories, in emotions is found the Spirit greater than our own.

We discover the Source of the food in the oven is the One who creates and sustains our high hopes and expectations. This is the Spirit of Thanksgiving and this is the Spirit of the Lord.

The Psalmist says “Know that the LORD is God. It is he that made us and we are his. We are his people and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him, bless his name. For the LORD is good. His steadfast love endures forever and his faithfulness to all generations.” (Psalm 100:3-5 NRSV)

Thank God, it’s Thanksgiving again in this great land blessed with abundance, hard fought freedom and opportunity. I just hope it is my turn to sleep in the comfortable chair.

Join us for Thanksgiving worship this Saturday @ Six or Sunday morning at 8:30 or 11 a.m.

Reverend Andrews is a minister at the Community Presbyterian Church of Deerfield Beach (Steeple on the Beach), located five blocks south of Hillsboro on A1A. See more at www.comm unitych.org or on Facebook.

I grew up in a fairly strict Christian home so I should have developed enough discipline to successfully navigate my first year away at college. What I developed, however, was an appetite to enjoy my freedom.

I will not bore you with details except to say, go figure, my first year at college did not work out so well. I was fortunate to be able to start over and eventually earn more degrees than I know what to do with, but not before learning important life lessons.

I had academic interests when I was young, but study came a whole lot more natural when inspired by the importance I attributed to the subject and with answers to questions that matter.

Do you know where I am going with this? I bet you do.

I obviously do not speak for all Christians or all Christian churches, but it is not a stretch to make the claim that the Holy Bible, which is the Holy Word of God, is the most important book in the world. Believing this is why I went to seminary.

One reason (some might prefer the word excuse) given for not reading, let alone studying, the Bible is the mistaken thought that the Bible does not apply to contemporary 21st Century issues, personal or otherwise. Nothing could be further from the truth?

We recently launched a project to connect the Bible with current issues by utilizing an electronic resource called The Wired Word. Google it if you are so inclined.

Each week, a new topic is sent via email to people who sign up to receive The Wired Word. There is no cost. The email contains the story line, secular news coverage, video links and questions in relation to the story, and then concludes with relevant passages from the Bible.

A sample of topics and questions we have addressed in recent weeks include the stigma of mental illness, civil rights legislation, the murder trial of George Zimmerman, a silent American church while Christians are persecuted, and, in some cases, executed in distant lands, tremendous personal achievements and tremendous personal challenges.

What does the Bible say?

If you have an appetite to enjoy your freedom, to study the most important book in the world with answers to questions that matter, then send your name and email address to communitych1920@gmail.com and we will send you The Wired Word each week.

So give it a try. If you sign up to receive The Wired Word and for whatever reason change your mind, then you can stop receiving it at any time.

Enjoy Bible study on a hot topic in the privacy of your home. And, anytime a topic peaks your interest or hits a nerve, then you are always welcome to come for a safe discussion on that topic at our casual gathering each Saturday at 6 p.m. at the church.

We will even provide the coffee, food, music and prayer.

Jesus said, “Blessed are all who hear the word of God ‘and’ put it into practice.” Luke 11:28

Dr. Dennis Andrews

Reverend Andrews is Minister at Community Presbyterian Church of Deerfield Beach (Steeple on the Beach) located five blocks south of Hillsboro on A1A.

See more at www.communitych. org or on Facebook.

Syria is the focus today, not so much in the church as in the news.

One might think we have attention deficit disorder given we still have troops in harm’s way in Afghanistan. We’ve been out of Iraq for such a short time despite almost everyone’s interest (theirs and ours) in our departure. “Thank you, America. You can go home now!” Things have grown more violent in Iraq in our absence. Curious how that happens …

If there might be a moment of calm in the world, then maybe we’d refocus on the threat of North Korea, as they march toward a nuclear capacity already enjoyed (I use that word loosely) by Pakistan and Israel, to name a few.

If we were to have a lull in crises, we would surely shift our focus back to Iran’s nuclear development progressing in the shadows of Ahmadinejad’s promise to wipe Israel off the face of the map. Should we have a lull in crises, we might then focus on the conflicts of every continent, including our own.

No wonder the world barely noticed Sept. 21 was the International Day of Peace.

The United Nations and the world’s powers, including and especially our own nation, aim to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons for obvious reasons. There are fanatics who would love to kill a million people rather than a few thousand or a few hundred.

If you’ve been awake the last several weeks, you know it was the use of chemical weapons in Syria (chemical weapons sometimes referred to as “the poor man’s nuclear bomb”) which prompted the threat of military intervention by the U.S.A.

By conservative estimates, more than 100,000 people have been killed in the past two years in Syria, 2 million refugees have fled the country and, most notably, on Aug. 21 of this year, almost 1,500 men, women and children were killed with sarin gas. We may argue as to who is responsible, but no one can dispute the inhumane suffering of so many innocent people.

There are millions of peaceloving Syrians. Are they better off with the Assad regime, a Russian-supported secular government many believe is corrupt, or with rebel forces, many of whom have ties to Hezbollah and Al-Qaida? Do we even know? Do our political leaders really know?

What is unfortunate is we don’t seem to know and what is even more unfortunate is Syria is not the only mess in the world today.

Jesus says, “My kingdom is not of this world...”

Can we turn the other cheek to a jihadist who threatens to remove our head? Can we wage war against an enemy and love them at the same time?

Even the Prince of Peace points to the inevitability of war in this conflicted world when he says, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, though the end is not at hand. For nation will rise against nation …” (Matthew 24)

Jesus also teaches that much is expected of those to whom much is given. This is true of nations as well as people.

Thank God there are nations able to confront regimes that build concentration camps with gas chambers for these are regimes and chambers that must be torn down.

In these times when there are too many conflicts for even the world’s superpower to contain or even completely understand, then surely we will turn to the Lord.

Pray “the Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Come, behold the works of the Lord; see what desolations he has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire…” [Psalm 46]

God’s Kingdom is our focus today, not so much in the news, as in the church.

Dennis Andrews is the Pastor at Community Presbyterian Church, “Steeple on the Beach,” located five blocks south of Hillsboro Blvd. on A1A. Sunday Services are held at 8:30 and 11 a.m.

Our busiest days were when our three children were young and in school. I remember thinking, “Do they have to play so many sports, be on so many traveling teams, play musical instruments and join six clubs? Good grief!”

Looking back, I know I took a lot for granted.

We were a two parent family living in our hometown. We had good jobs. That meant we could afford one of those minivans with the sticky seats. The family nest, like the family school, was nice enough and safe enough. Siblings and grandparents were nearby. Church was a blend of family and friends. The weekly Bible study was at a neighbor’s house.

I miss those days!

My wife has been a public elementary school principal for several years now. Elementary schools tend to be happy places. The little people are usually excited to be there, which is great to see, and the big people are usually happy to be there too.

Almost everybody looks forward to the end of a school year, but you can still feel the excitement, some call it anxiety, when time rolls around for school to start again.

A new school year means new classmates, new teachers, new classrooms, new books, new technology, maybe even some new clothes.

From the parking lot to the front office, from building maintenance to food service, from transportation to recreation, from the new counselor to the new coach, from the new teacher who prepares her first classroom to the teacher about to retire who prepares her last, schools need rules to function well and the most important is golden.

Jesus says, “In everything, treat others as you would want them to treat you.” (Matthew 7, NET)

How can anything that sounds so simple be so hard? Good grief!

It doesn’t matter if it’s an elementary school, a middle school or a high school. If it’s a public school, especially in South Florida, then you can bet it is a diverse place and we all know students bring a lot more with them from home than a backpack.

Long before the youngest student arrives at school a unique personality is being formed. God-given seeds of talent are either being left dormant, nurtured or trampled. Young life experiences, mostly accumulated outside the school, are shaping every child’s expectations and dreams.

The highest ideal for school is that it be a safe place to lift expectations, to encourage learning, to inspire dreams.

But the pressures of school are not to be denied. Kids want to fit in, but not too much. They want to blend in, but, hopefully, only in a positive way; and how troubles loom large for the ones who don’t find a niche, a sport or a club; for the students who are different, too quiet and alone; for the ones who have troubles at home?

The truth is public schools need help in a lot of different ways these days. I write to encourage that we take the golden rule to school, that we volunteer to help a public school this year.

Google your public school corporation website today. Take a few moments to fill out the on-line Volunteer and Mentor Application or call a public school near you. I filled out the form online myself for Deerfield Beach Elementary and it only takes a few minutes. www.getinvolvedin education.com/volunteers/ application.htm

And just so you know, I realize you do not have to follow Jesus to practice the Golden Rule but it will not surprise you to know I believe Jesus is the only “everlasting way” to live by it. And if this causes you grief, then rest assured it is Good Grief! See ya in school!

You are also invited to join us Sunday at 8:30 a.m. or 11 a.m. for the message “The Golden Rule” based on the 7th Chapter of the Gospel of Matthew.

Reverend Andrews is Minister at Community Presbyterian Church of Deerfield Beach (Steeple on the Beach) located five blocks south of Hillsboro on AIA. See more at www.comm unitych.org or on Facebook.

Do you remember the 2003 award-winning movie Anger Management, directed by Peter Segal, starring Jack Nicholson and Adam Sandler? Adam Sandler plays a businessman mistakenly sentenced to an anger management program. Jack Nicholson plays an aggressive anger management instructor.

It probably is not a good sign that anger is so common that millions of people will go see a movie just to laugh about it. It is also telling that the instructor in the movie had more difficulty controlling his anger than did his students. This is equivalent to a driver’s education instructor who cannot drive a car.

In the movie, this makes for comic relief. In the world, this makes for hypocrisy. Few people think anger is a good thing. It can make the blood boil and keep us awake at night. There is no way to be angry and have the peace of Christ. There is no way to be angry and share the peace of Christ.

Jesus teaches, “Let go. Get over the rage. Turn the page. Make peace even with your adversaries.” Letting go, not being mad, and making peace is hard.

I remember watching an interview of former Indiana University basketball coach Bob Knight, who once got so mad during a televised basketball game with Purdue University that he famously picked up the chair he was sitting on and threw it completely across the floor.

During the interview, Coach admitted he really did have a hard time controlling his temper. You may have heard the saying, “Don’t beat a dead horse.” Coach Knight’s wife told him once, “You can get off now, Bob. The horse is dead.”

Some things that make us mad are minor. We usually get over them quickly and move on. But some things that happen are life-altering and moving on is next to impossible. When we, or someone we deeply care about, is wronged in a serious way, it is not comparable to a bad call by a referee in a basketball game. Holding a grudge can be a natural reaction to a serious grievance.

It is important to point out Jesus does not say, “You do not have a reason to be angry.” He does not say, “You are not justified in being angry when you or someone you love suffers harm.” What Jesus teaches is “If you want to be forgiven, then you have to forgive too.”

Jesus arguably makes the “Don’t Stay Mad” doctrine even harder for us when he sets aside what is a popular notion — “Don’t get mad. Get even.” Unfortunately, Jesus rules out revenge too! Can you feel the disciple’s hill getting steeper to climb all the time? I can…

Christ’s teachings about forgiveness are drawn from the Personal Holiness Code in Leviticus, which reads “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against any of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself.”

More often quoted today, however, and also found in Leviticus, is the standard “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” This principle is commonly misused as an excuse for retaliation when what it really calls for is that the scales of justice be in balance.

In other words, we don’t amputate the hand that shoplifts or stone adulterers to death, but we do want the punishment to fit the crime.

If you have a grievance, and you want to know how to turn the page and get over the rage or if you are fighting the instinct to get even, I encourage you to read Christ’s Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5 – 7).

You can also join us Saturdays @ Six or Sunday morning at 8:30 or 11 a.m. Our series on Christ’s Sermon on the Mount continues with the message “Privacy Please” based on Matthew 6.

Reverend Andrews is Minister at Community Presbyterian Church of Deerfield Beach (Steeple on the Beach) located five blocks south of Hillsboro on AIA. See more @ www.communitych.org or on Facebook.

Edward Snowden, a former CIA employee and government contractor, is at the center of a political firestorm that has much of America talking about loyalty.

The story line is that Snowden allegedly leaked classified information concerning our National Security Agency’s authorized gathering of the electronic communications of millions of Americans.

Some people say Snowden, who fled the country, is a traitor for giving away secrets that threaten national security. Others believe he is a patriot whistleblower for revealing the extent of Big Brother’s overreach to gather the private communications of U.S. Citizens.

Regardless how you feel about Snowden, the controversy illustrates the importance and the challenge we sometimes face in deciding loyalty.

Loyalty decisions are more a matter of conscience than law, more a matter of internal debate than national debate, more a matter of private personal integrity than national political scandal.

If the question is “Should I be loyal to God, to my country, to my spouse, to my employer, to my friends,” the answer should be easy. “Yes!” If the question is “Should I be loyal to a gang, to an immoral creed to which I foolishly agreed, or to self interest at the expense of community good,” then the answer is easy once again — “No.”

This will sound too wishywashy to fit comfortably even in my world view, but questions of loyalty are often not so easy to answer unless they are rooted and grounded in faith and even then we may be left wondering …

Loyalty has always been a magnetic field made up of many magnets. We have many allegiances. Our beliefs and our sentiments are not always on the same page. God knows how fickle we can be and how often we make mistakes.

Is it controversial to say “We are a nation and a people of divided loyalties?” I think not.

Is it right to say “We require God’s help deciding our loyalties?” I think so.

After King David committed adultery with Bathsheba, after he made mistake after mistake trying to conceal what he had done, David was confronted by Nathan the prophet.

And David prayed, “Have mercy on me God because of your unfailing love. Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins. Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin. Create in me a clean heart. Renew a loyal spirit within me.” (Psalm 51)

David’s predicament must surely have seemed a national political scandal, but it was ultimately a matter of private personal integrity, albeit in his case, one with dramatic and long-lasting public implications.

David was a great leader who proved himself human.

The Apostle Paul may have been thinking about David when, centuries later, Paul counseled young Timothy. “Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love and peace. Enjoythecompanionshipofthose who call on the Lord with clean hearts.” (2 Timothy)

If you happen to be among the masses thinking about loyalty these days, then answer the question as it pertains not to Edward Snowden but to you. “To what or to whom will you be loyal?”

Most of us do not work for the CIA or the NSA. We do not have access to national security secrets, but we do make loyalty decisions every day and, in so doing, we are well-advised to remember the words of Jesus. “No one can serve two masters.”

(Luke 16)

Make God your moral compass. Pray for a clean heart and a loyal spirit…

Join us Saturday @ Six or Sunday morning at 8:30 or 11 a.m.

Reverend Andrews is Minister at Community Presbyterian Church of Deerfield Beach (Steeple on the Beach) located five blocks south of Hillsboro on AIA. See more @ www.communitych.org or on Facebook.

Do you need a prescription for a wisdom-filled today? Do you sometimes make unwise decisions even about simple things? Perhaps you are at a major crossroads in your life and you want to be sure to get it right. Welcome to the human condition! The Good News is the pharmacy is open this weekend at Steeple on the Beach.

The bad news is there is no drive-up window, no quick fix and no pill for you to take that will make you wise, but I do pray you realize there are more than a few biblical principles to bring you wisdom’s way …

This is a time of year for graduations and welldeserved celebrations. It is a great time for the graduates, and for the rest of us, to reflect and respond to our pressing need for wisdom, how we might best achieve it, how we might best hold onto it should God grant that we receive it.

We have to embrace the need.

The human condition is short-lived and, however much we learn, there is always so much more.

“Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12)

We have to want it and work for it.

Wisdom does not come easy. Seeing the need and wishing for it is not enough. Thank God for the graduate who walks through commencement exercises still thirsting for wisdom.

“Seek wisdom like silver and search for it as for hidden treasure.” (Proverbs 2:4) “Prize her highly and she will exalt you; she will honor you for your embrace.” (Proverbs 4:8)

We have to pray for it.

Wisdom is a supernatural gift from God. It is not something we achieve on our own.

Dennis Andrews Ed. D. Reverend Andrews is Minister at Community Presbyterian Church of Deerfield Beach (Steeple on the Beach) located five blocks south of Hillsboro on A1A. See more at www.communitych.org or on Facebook.

It is heartbreaking to see the recent photograph of Martin Richard, a smiling 8-year-old boy, holding a sign that reads “No More Hurting People!”

The heartbreak is because Martin was the youngest of the Boston Marathon bombing victims. Some might say Martin’s tragic passing is no more catastrophic than the loss of 23- year-old Lu Lingzi or 29-year-old Krystle Campbell or 26- year-old M.I.T. police officer Sean Collier. But there is something extra compelling about the innocence of a child’s smile and the ideal of a child’s message when that very child is victim to senseless terror.

We are shocked so often by irrational acts of violence that we have to wonder why we continue to be shocked. Whatever evil drives such heinous acts of cowardice, our response must be toward love and justice, not hatred or revenge. At times like these, even love and justice seem polar opposites, but in Christ they are inseparable.

Roman Catholic Cardinal Sean Patrick O’Malley at Boston’s Cathedral of the Holy Cross last week spoke of the pain and looked ahead to what he called our “spiritual recovery.” In so doing, he acknowledges that even when the human spirit is trampled, God’s Spirit prevails.

This explains the resilience of people sustained by faith to courageously rebound from tragedy, to persevere in the face of uncertainty, and to somehow do so with compassion and restraint.

The teaching to respond in this way comes from Jesus….. Jesus says, “I say to you to listen, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat, do not withhold even your shirt …

Do to others as you would have them do to you … Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven.” {Luke 6} Christ’s teaching is challenging and following Christ is challenging …

Do to others as you wish others do to you presumes good intentions. We know some children are raised to love life while others are raised to loath and murder.

We know the human instinct to a sucker punch is not to turn the other cheek. Many of us feel the desired response to a terrorist is to bomb the bomber, to match force with superior force.

The Good News for the world is Jesus is more than a Teacher. He is the omnipotent force to turn the downward spiral upward to the heavens. He surpasses evil on his way to the cross where he conquers sin and death once and for all.

To people of all ages and all nations, he says, “Pick up your cross and follow me. You will be sorrowful but your sorrow will turn to joy. Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you.”

Each week at church, we share the peace of Christ with each other. We desperately need to share the peace of Christ in the world, especially when and where it is not easy. May God’s Spirit prevail and may there be no more hurting people …

Please come this Saturday @ Six or Sunday morning at 8:30 or 11 a.m. to hear the message “Love Wins!” based on John 13: 34 – 35.

Reverend Andrews is Minister at Community Presbyterian Church of Deerfield Beach (Steeple on the Beach) located five blocks south of Hillsboro on A1A. See more at www.communitych.org or on Facebook.