Pray Always! Do Not Lose Heart!

Meditation on Luke 18:1-8 Reverend Dr. Karen Crawford First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown Oct. 19, 2025 (Baptism of Oliver Reinhardt) Did anyone read Anne of Green Gables as a child? The story is by Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery and is set in a farming village on Prince Edward Island in the late 19th century.Continue reading “Pray Always! Do Not Lose Heart!”

Praising God with a Loud Voice!

Meditation on Luke 17:11-19 First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown Reverend Dr. Karen Crawford Oct. 12, 2025 I had a nice phone conversation with Sue Potter Spencer yesterday. Does anyone remember the Potters? Sue, who now lives in Weston, MA, mailed me a large envelope of church materials belonging to her parents, Edwin and Marjorie Potter,Continue reading “Praising God with a Loud Voice!”

Embracing our History, Living our Faith

Meditation on 1 Cor. 3, selected verses (MSG) First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown, NY The Reverend Dr. Karen Crawford Oct. 5, 2025, in honor of our 200th/350th anniversaries     Four years ago, when I was in conversation with a committee seeking a pastor for the Presbyterian church in Smithtown, I was curious how a congregationContinue reading “Embracing our History, Living our Faith”

Guard This Treasure, This Precious Thing

Meditation on 1 Timothy 1:1-14 (MSG) First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown, NY Reverend Dr. Karen Crawford World Communion Sunday: Oct. 5, 2025 Earlier this week, families with young children received a letter from me. I told them that today, on World Communion Sunday, we would be celebrating Communion early in the service, immediately following aContinue reading “Guard This Treasure, This Precious Thing”

Pray for Everyone

Meditation on 1 Timothy 2:1-7 First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown, NY Reverend Dr. Karen Crawford Sept. 21, 2025 How many of you have ever ridden in a sailboat? How many of you have rowed a boat? It’s a lot of work to row a boat, isn’t it? Which would you rather do? Sail or row? Continue reading “Pray for Everyone”

Being Made Useful to the Lord

Meditation on Philemon First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown, NY Reverend Dr. Karen Crawford Sept. 7, 2025  My mom and I just returned from our cruise, traveling from Norway to The Netherlands. It was amazing at times, especially when we were in the little village of Flam, and we had breathtaking views of the fjords. WeContinue reading “Being Made Useful to the Lord”

Run the Race of Faith!

Meditation on Hebrews 11:29-12:2 First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown, NY Reverence Dr. Karen Crawford Aug. 17, 2025 Any golf fans in here? Any golfers? I admit that I don’t know much about the sport. I have never played golf before. Well, only miniature golf. My husband persuaded me to watch a new American sports comedyContinue reading “Run the Race of Faith!”

Faith: Conviction of Things Not Seen

Meditation on Luke 12: 32-34 and Hebrews 11:1–3, 8–16 First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown Reverend Dr. Karen Crawford Aug. 10, 2025 My healing journey continued this week. I am feeling better than I did a week ago and certainly better than two weeks ago, when I first hurt my back cleaning up my yard. SeveralContinue reading “Faith: Conviction of Things Not Seen”

Too Much Stuff?

Meditation onLuke 12:13-21 First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown, NY Reverend Dr. Karen Crawford Aug. 3, 2025 We had the pleasure of hosting Daniel Davidsen’s Eagle Scout Court of Honor here in our sanctuary yesterday. Quite a few of our church members attended and helped with the reception that followed. The ceremony included numerous speakers sharingContinue reading “Too Much Stuff?”

For Daniel Davidsen’s Eagle Scout Honor Court

First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown, NY Rev. Dr. Karen Crawford Aug. 2, 2025 It is rare for a pastor to meet in her congregation a young man who possesses the gifts and talents of Daniel Davidsen. It is rarer still to meet a young man whose heart is for serving God and neighbor. Daniel grewContinue reading “For Daniel Davidsen’s Eagle Scout Honor Court”

Practical Resources for Churches

Everyone has a calling. Ours is helping you.

Consider the Birds

Pastor Karen shares thoughts on faith, scripture, and God's love and grace revealed through backyard wildlife.

F.O.R. Jesus

Fill up. Overflow. Run over.

Becoming HIS Tapestry

Christian Lifestyle Blogger

Whatever Happens,Rejoice.

The Joy of the Lord is our Strength

Stushie Art

Church bulletin covers and other art by artist Stushie. Unique crayon and digital worship art

The Daily Post

The Art and Craft of Blogging

WordPress.com News

The latest news on WordPress.com and the WordPress community.