Pastoring Through A Natural Disaster
Dealing with natural disasters is a seemingly ever-increasing reality. Sometimes we find ourselves amid an entire community that’s been affected (e.g. hurricane). Other times, we’re walking with just a couple of people through a more localized situation (e.g. house fire). In any event, understanding the impact natural disasters have on our communities and those who […]
Being The Church Without A Building
These last months have been a wild ride for all of us! We have had to wrestle with questions we never anticipated we would need to wrestle with. “Should we shut down? When do we open? How do we “be the church” without access to our building?” At the Syracuse Vineyard we made the decision […]
Five Discussions To Have Before Meeting In Person With Your Teens
Is it really possible? Could we actually have a meeting with our teens not on Zoom? Dare to dream! For many of us, things are changing rapidly again. New rules, loosened restrictions, articles (like this one) about how to best do this reopening thing. It can honestly feel even more overwhelming than when things began […]
Reopening Your Kids’ Ministries
We couldn’t have ever predicted that 2020 would hold huge changes for the Church. I never imagined that I’d be watching church on Sunday morning at home in my pj’s! Did you ever dream that we would be given the opportunity to completely reimagine how we can structure a ministry to kids? These have not […]
Embracing A New Normal, Just Like The Disciples
Over the past three months we’ve all learned lots of new words and phrases like coronavirus, Covid-19, social distancing, and flatten the curve. An old phrase is being reused a lot these days: the new normal. I recently saw a cartoon of a husband and wife having their morning coffee. The husband apparently just said […]
COVID-19 Musings From A Vineyard Pastor
We have heard it time and time again. We have thought about it. We have dreamed about. Normal. . I can’t wait to get back to normal. . A meal at your favorite restaurant. A date night with your spouse. A ball game with friends. You know… normal. . Sunday morning with your church family. […]
Pastoring Through A Pandemic
I am the lead pastor of the North Jersey Vineyard. My wife Norma and I planted the church 23 years ago right outside of New York City. I enjoy the challenges and opportunities of pastoring a church in this region of the country. I love the diversity, enjoy the hustle and bustle, and even like […]
