First Presbyterian Church of Valparaiso

“…let the wise also hear and gain learning, and the discerning acquire skill…” -Proverbs 1:5 “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” -John Fitzherbert (Book of Husbandry, 1523) After years of playing tennis casually with friends and family, reinforcing every possible wrong technique and bad habit along the way, I recently decided to register for an actual tennis class. It occurred to me that learning is more fun with friends, and it can be easier to try new things with a lit

Recently, I got my youngest son interested in and watching reruns of Quantum Leap. Quantum Leap is a television show that was popular in the late 80s and 90s. The show is about a scientist, Sam Beckett, who travels through time and assumes the identity of characters to correct “something that has gone wrong in time.” He is assisted via a hologram of his friend from the future named Al. The show began with not understanding why the hero, Sam, jumps from one person to another

So I’ve always been somewhat of a space nerd. As a young teenager, I read science fiction novels by Bradbury, Asimov, and Herbert; and I was thrilled when the original Star Trek series came out, you know the one, the one starring William Shatner as Captain Kirk. It all seems like ancient history now, and of course the special effects seem crude compared to the most recent Star Wars spin-offs. My wife Kathy thinks that my fascination with the sky is a natural result of growi

I spent last week with a group of great FPC Presbyterians at the Montreat Conference Center in Black Mountain North Carolina. We were all there for the annual gathering of the Presbyterian Association of Musicians. It was a wonderful experience for me, even though I have never been confused with a person of musical talent. Many of the finest musical, theological, liturgical people in the denomination were all there in one place, and the result was amazing and inspiring. The