Rev. Dr. Jeff Garrison
As today is Martin Luther King, Jr. day (and a day of digging out of a heavy snow that had a layer of ice on top), I thought I would repost a review from a former blog of mine. This is a good biography of the first nine years of Dr. King’s professional life. Taylor … Read more Remembering Martin Luther King, Jr
Jeff GarrisonMayberry and Bluemont Presbyterian ChurchesJanuary 16, 2022Daniel 7 Because of the winter storm in our area, neither church will be worshipping in person this morning. To help you in your worship times at home, I have added the bulletin and prayers for today after the sermon. The announcements for both churches are below the … Read more Daniel dreams of the future
Below is a list to books I read in 2021, along with links to books which I reviewed (Often, I reviewed several books in the same post, so you may have to look down to find the book in question). In 2021, I read 54 books. 41 were non-fiction, 8 were fiction, and 5 were … Read more Reading summary for 2021
Jeff GarrisonBluemont and Mayberry Presbyterian ChurchesMark 13:24-37 (1 Samuel 28:3-16)January 9, 2022 Comments at the beginning of worship: I didn’t stay up to midnight on New Years Eve. I was in bed by 10:30. I woke briefly at midnight when some in my father’s neighborhood shot off fireworks, but quickly fell back asleep. Up before … Read more Remain at your post. Stay Awake!
Two days after Christmas, I headed to Southeastern North Carolina. The 29th was my father’s 85th birthday, and my sister had planned a party that I didn’t want to miss. The weather for the first five days were incredible. On New Year’s Eve, my dad and I paddled from Trail’s End to the south end … Read more I’ve been away (a mostly photo essay)
Jeff GarrisonBluemont and Mayberry Presbyterian ChurchesDecember 26, 2021Luke 2:41-52 A few years ago, one of our missionaries in South Korea shared a story about a boy named Amos (obviously, that’s not his Korean name and for obvious reasons, the missionary didn’t use real names). Amos’ father was from North Korea and spent ten years in … Read more Jesus at 12
Jeff GarrisonMayberry and Bluemont Presbyterian ChurchesChristmas Eve 2021Luke 2:1-20 (verse 19) This video contains a whole service that includes music along with the homily Growing up, I never felt like our Christmas tree was the real thing. Yeah, it was a live tree; we’d never go for the artificial variety. But it was store bought, … Read more Christmas Eve Homily
Jeff Garrison Bluemont and Mayberry Presbyterian Churches December 18, 2021Luke 1:39-56 At the beginning of worship It’s the fourth Sunday of Advent. Out waiting is paying off. This week, we’ll celebrate the birth of Jesus. But what does Jesus’ coming mean? What will his return be like? Today, we hear from his mom. Jesus doesn’t … Read more Mary’s Song
I wrote this article for in 2019, on the 300th anniversary of the hymn, for The Skinnie, a magazine for Skidaway Island. I have slightly altered the text for this blog post. Issac Watt’s Role A little over three hundred years ago, in 1719, English hymn-writer Isaac Watts published the words we know today as … Read more “Joy to the World” A History of a Carol
Jeff GarrisonBluemont and Mayberry Presbyterian ChurchDecember 12, 2021Third Sunday of AdventLuke 3:7-20 At the beginning of worship We’re at the third week of Advent. Christmas is coming. Have you’ve been naughty or nice? Of course, that sounds like I’m emphasizing works. We often think the only thing that matters is a belief in Jesus. And … Read more The Preaching of John the Baptist