Did you
know that you can read Pastor Stephen Grant’s daily journal by becoming a
member/supporter of the Pastor Stephen Grant Fellowship?
There
are many other rewards for becoming a member depending on the level at which
one joins, including getting every Pastor Stephen Grant adventure free and
before the rest of the planet, being acknowledged with a “thank you” in each
book, gift boxes, and getting a character named after you or someone else. Just
visit www.patreon.com/pastorstephengrantfellowship.
In the
meantime, here’s a recent week’s entries by Pastor Stephen Grant in his
journal. Enjoy…
Pastor
Stephen Grant Journal, June 24
Tonight,
Jen and I settled in for a Sunday night movie, and we chose “Murder on the
Orient Express” – the new one directed by Kenneth Branagh, who also played
Poirot. One word: Brilliant.
Pastor
Stephen Grant Journal, June 25
June 25th
is quite the date in history for Lutherans. On this day in 1530, Emperor
Charles V heard the Augsburg Confession from German princes. And fifty years
later on the same date, the first edition of the “Book of Concord” was
published.
Pastor
Stephen Grant Journal, June 26
Matins
is a wonderful service, especially on weekday mornings. I know plenty of my
brother pastors who give up on doing Matins because few people show up. I get
it. It can be frustrating. But I try to focus on both parishioners who show up
every week on Tuesday and/or Thursday morning, and those who find their way to
St. Mary’s on a weekday morning on only rare occasions. In those two cases, as
well as in the cases of others, Matins matters.
Pastor
Stephen Grant Journal, June 27
Can a
Christian truly be a pessimist? That was the discussion that Tom, Ron, Zack and
I engaged in over breakfast, after devotions, at the diner. Zack was still
affected by his journey to Walt Disney World, so he was as far from pessimism
as one could get. But seriously, given that Jesus never promised a rose garden
in this earthly life, the act of being a pessimist – that is, subscribing to a
lack of hope or confidence in the future – is impossible, in the end, for a
faithful Christian. After all, we know the Good News and what that means
ultimately.
Pastor
Stephen Grant Journal, June 28
Tonight
is our monthly “God and Guinness” gathering at Buckley’s Pub. Zack and I
decided to take the conversation we had over breakfast yesterday, and present
it to the group. Should be an interesting discussion on whether or not a
Christian can be a true pessimist.
Pastor
Stephen Grant Journal, June 29
The
“God and Guinness” chat last night over whether or not a Christian could truly
be a pessimist turned out to be quite interesting and, at least for some,
illuminating. There was a fair amount of “light bulb” moments in that several
people admitted not to having thought much about the topic, and found some
solace and perspective. A night well spent.
Pastor
Stephen Grant Journal, June 30
With
July 4 arriving on Wednesday, Scott, Pam and Zack have decided that the St.
Mary’s Saturday night outdoor movies this week and next will be patriotic.
Tonight it will be “Apollo 13” and next week “Miracle.” I love both movies.
