VALLEY VINE Valley Presbyterian Church
February 2016
Volume 61, Number 1 How well do you control your thoughts? In Romans 12:2, Paul says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good, acceptable, and perfect.”
Dear friends, Everything we say or do shapes us from the inside out. Every thought we have impacts our soul and ultimately our character. Some thoughts and attitudes advance us in obedience and holiness and joy. Others inhibit our growth, infect our emotions, and poison our hearts. Everyone who is healthy and whole desires to be virtuous, for the virtues we acquire become pathways to freedom in the life of faith. Who would not want to be passionate, self-disciplined, pure, optimistic, generous, gracious, and humble?
This Lent, we will study the freedom that comes to the disciple who learns to control his or her thoughts. May this season be, for all of us, one in which we mature in our faith and grow from the inside out! Look for an opportunity this month to greet and encourage Rev. Mike and Rev. Kelly Nieto, our new clergy couple, who are excited about fostering that growth in all the men and women in our congregation. Yours faithfully,
Yet the acquisition of these virtues is no easy matter. For to have holy habits of the heart, we must reject the darker tendencies that live within us. All of us have struggled with vices that match the list of virtues—laziness, gluttony, lust, apathy, greed, anger, and pride. This struggle has long been recognized as a necessary part of the Christian journey. Evagrius, a 4th century priest in Constantinople, and later a hermit in Egypt, wrote and spoke about the “eight deadly thoughts.” Later tradition condensed these into seven deadly sins, all of which germinate in the mind of the believer.
New Series starts Sunday, February 7
Valley Presbyterian Church 6947 E. McDonald Drive, Paradise Valley, AZ 85253-5342 Phone: 480-991-6424 Fax: 480-991-6427 Email: church@myvalleychurch.org Website: myvalleychurch.org
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