The Epistle
St. John's Presbyterian Church in Houston
April 29, 2026
Dear friends,
There is a moment in Daniel 3 that I keep coming back to this week. Three young men get thrown into a furnace so hot it kills the soldiers who toss them in. Nebuchadnezzar peers through the flames expecting ash. Instead he sees four figures walking around. Calm. The fourth one, he says, looks like a son of the gods. Nobody sent for him. He just showed up, right in the middle of the fire.
That is the Easter we are still living inside. This Sunday we will sit with Daniel 3 and John 14 together, and I think you will feel how much they belong in the same room. Jesus tells his frightened disciples, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life." No map. No emergency exit. Just: I am with you, and I go before you. His answer to their fear is his presence. That's all. And somehow that's enough.
If you are walking through something that feels like a furnace right now, I hope you will be with us Sunday. The testimony of Easter, every week of it, is that fire gets company. Walls get walked through. And the one who meets you in the middle of the worst thing turns out to have been there all along.
See you in worship.
Peace,
Pastor Jon
May 14 | St. John’s Friends United 11:00 AM in Room 203
Join us as Lisa Sparaco, LCSW, presents "Coping with Daily Living." Please bring a light sack lunch; dessert and drinks will be provided by the church.
BIM Gala Rescheduled to October 30
The Braes Interfaith Ministries (BIM) Gala has been rescheduled to October 30th. While specific details about the rescheduled event, including the time and location, have not yet been released,more information will be shared as the date approaches. You can monitor the official Braes Interfaith Ministries website for future updates.
Want to go to the alley?
Houston’s Alley Theater of course! St. John’s seniors, as well as the wider senior community, have the wonderful opportunity to attend 8-9 performances per season. In addition to those performances, a Christmas tour is planned and possible other excursions in the greater Houston area. Transportation to and from the performances is free.
There is a seasonal cost for the productions themselves. The bus leaves from St. John’s, usually on the 3rd Thursday of the month, drops off at The Alley and picks up from there as well. After picking up from St. John’s, the bus stops at Lubys or another restaurant for a meal, and from there, on to The Alley. The minimum age to participate is 50. For additional questions or to sign up, you can contact Ruth Roach at 832 922-2747. See you in the Alley!
Men of the Church
The next meeting of the Men of the Church will be 29 April at 6:30 PM in the Session Room.
Come for a time of study and service projects that benefit the church.
Welcome Delafosse family
We welcome the Delafosse family: Zach, Jessica, and their two little ones, Mark and Eric. They did not stumble upon us by accident. They came looking specifically for a congregation that takes the gospel seriously enough to live it out even when it costs something. Some of you will remember the opposition that arose when PCHAS brought its Single Parent Family Ministry to our campus. The Delafosse family heard about that, and it told them something about who we are. They will be scheduling baptisms for their boys here soon, and we look forward to that celebration.
Welcome Rev. Valerie Bell
We welcome to Rev. Valerie Bell into our fellowship. Valerie is an honorably retired PC(USA) pastor who now makes her home in Meyerland. She has served congregations in Florida and Arkansas, and she brings with her real gifts for teaching and pastoral care among others. As a minister, Valerie will be joining our presbytery rather than our membership roll, but in every way that matters she is one of us, sharing her time and her talents alongside the rest of the congregation. We are glad she is here
Texas Driving laws revised in 2026
by Dan Herron
There are federal and state revisions to driving laws.
You can look these up, perhaps online.
Some of these are discussed below. Try online at Texas DPS New Laws. Here are a few of the national traffic laws that are being
revised. Some apply to Texas.
Yellow Traffic Lite
We used to “test” this by trying to
get through the intersection quickly. No longer. Don’t run
a yellow light. New equipment allows “them” to view the
situation. If your bumper is not completely thru the light
when it turns red, you can be ticketed. This can be
automatic, not viewed by an enforcement officer.
Cell Phone Cannot do messaging while driving. Wow.
Vehicle stopped on right side of street.
If your vehicle, turn the emergency lights on. If you are
approaching a stopped vehicle, slow down to 20 mph.
Move over to the left if possible.
Posted speed limits these are only for “good”
conditions.
Construction zones…handle as 24 hours, always
Slow down, earlier than expected. This is “construction
speeds,” especially at night.
Rearview Mirror
If something is hanging from this mirror, take that extra
thing off.
Driver age 65+
This needs a plan for the future. There is more cognitive
testing at license renewal time. If you have some senior
issues, check this out. Plan ahead for what might happen.
What if you cannot renew? Car and driver considerations.
License plate partly covered up
Must be completely visible, no cover-up, “total clarity” on
the plate. Keep aware of how this is being handled.
Wipers ON… you must also turn on the headlights. Even
if intermittent wiper setting. Wipers ON, Lights ON!
Insurance This is more easily tracked now, by
computers. So, plan on no lapses in your coverage. Also,
renew early because the insurance company now knows
more about your driving and may give you some heat!
For new drivers there is a series of education courses
and tests. Plan to be ready. Do the education online.
These notes are only an introductory reminder that rules
have changed. If you go online to check out these new
laws, search for a website that doesn’t charge for your
looking. Some revisions are for Texas drivers, some are
national. Texas laws are in the website above.
Electrical Protection
Our home is about 25 years old. We’ve been having some
electrical faults which blink lights or turn off appliances. A
voltage spike burned out the circuit card in the dishwasher
and some neon lights in the kitchen. And the main outside
ground wire was faulty. Take a look at your electrical box
and those wires on your home. Anything loose? That
needs to be fixed. But, do not touch electrical wiring!
We got a Whole House Electrical Protection device,
and during that installation that main ground wire was
updated. This device helps with surges of voltage on your
main power line. Now we have fewer electrical
interruptions. This is a good thing for lighting, computers,
phones, TVs and other appliances. An electrician or two
will give you a bid for installing such a device. Results are
positive. Research this on the internet.
The whole home model may have no battery since it is
primarily for protection of electrical voltage variations but
not zero voltage.
A way to protect your TV and computer equipment is to
buy and use a UPS Battery Backup & Surge
Protector. This is Power Outage Protection for a short
outage and protection for voltage surges. There is a battery
in this backup device which can offer power for a few
minutes during an outage.
You plug in the new UPS. Let it charge up. Then, plug the
TV or computer into the UPS. I have this small backup
device on my computer and another on my TV. The
battery in the device helps to keep me computing for
several minutes if the power fails. I can shutdown
normally or continue to watch TV for about ½ hour during
a power outage. These UPS devices are for sale online and
at stores.
Dan Herron
For Further Investigation
If you missed last Sunday or want to catch a recent sermon again, you can
watch our live worship stream any time. We go live at 11 AM every Sunday, and past services stay up on the page if you need them.
A lot of folks have been asking what makes Presbyterian worship a little different from what you find at the bigger churches around town. I wrote something on that a few weeks back. You can read it over at the blog:
Presbyterian Church Houston: What Makes Our Worship Unique. Honest answer is, it probably won't appeal to everyone. But for some people, it feels like coming home.
We also have a piece up that might help if you're newer to the area or just starting to look around for a church home:
Christian Churches in Houston: Why Smaller Churches Create Stronger Community [link: that blog article]. It covers some things worth thinking about before you settle in somewhere.
And if you have a friend or neighbor going through grief right now, pass along
my new book
Walking Through Christian Grief. We walk with people through those hard seasons. That is a big part of who we are here at
St. John's Presbyterian Church in southwest Houston.
Peace,
Pastor Jon Burnham
St. John's Presbyterian Church in Houston, Texas
