We’ve Got a Problem
There is something terribly wrong with the world. The evidence is everywhere we turn. God has created an amazingly beautiful planet and put us in charge. We have pursued knowledge unlocking many of the secrets of the universe. But we are seriously flawed, perhaps fatally so. Will goodness and love prevail on earth, or hatred and destruction? We need to accurately understand the problem if we want to be able to find an appropriate and effective solution.

There is nothing that diagnoses our problem with such precision and poignancy as the scriptures. Written thousands of years ago, they still speak to the human condition today. We need to spend time in the scriptures to cut through all the layers of self-deception that keep us from recognizing how far we have fallen.

Our problem is much worse than we would like to admit. We are broken beyond our ability to fix ourselves. But that doesn’t mean the situation is hopeless. God can fix us and has provided a solution, if we are willing to accept it.

I hope you will join us as we “Sail the 7 ‘C’s.” We will look at the major themes that flow throughout the scriptures, unfolding God’s solution to our fatal flaw. We’ll see to what lengths God has gone to address our problem.

Admit your problem and seek God’s solution, Jesus Christ. If you are a believer, I hope you will participate and be strengthened to continue the good fight of faith. I hope you will also invite someone to join you, perhaps an unbeliever or a wavering believer, whose life could be changed by learning the basic message of the Bible, the message of God’s amazing love for sinners. Skeptics are welcome to come and meet Jesus!

– Pastor David

Meet our Pastor

The Rev. David L. Brown has served as Pastor of Holy Cross since 2007. He is a native of Eastern Pennsylvania. Both his father and his maternal grandfather were Lutheran pastors. He grew up in the church, was baptized at St. Paul Lutheran Church, Summit Hill and confirmed at Zion Spies Lutheran Church, Reading. He came to faith at an early age, making a conscious decision to follow Christ and committing himself to daily prayer and Bible reading at the age of 14. He had no plans, however, to follow in the footsteps of his father. His career interest was in business. He graduated from Minersville Area High School and earned a B.S. in Economics from The Wharton School, of the University of Pennsylvania.

David’s faith came under fire in college. That’s when he really began to grow as a follower of Christ. David was profoundly influenced by his involvement as a student leader in Penn Christian Fellowship. “God began changing my heart about ministry. As a management major, I found myself applying what I learned in class to ministry and the church, rather than the business world. By my senior year I knew I would eventually end up in full time Christian ministry, but I did not feel I was ready yet. I felt that experience in the business world and lay involvement in the church would be valuable and help me discern what kind of ministry I was best suited for.”

After graduation, David had a summer missionary experience, witnessing to Muslims in Paterson, NJ. He then entered the job market and his first career was in publishing. He worked for about ten years as business manager of New Generation Press. He enjoyed this work, but his interest in ministry continued to grow.

David’s wife, Karen, has been a source of encouragement and a ministry partner as David has pursued his calling. A graduate of Cedar Crest College, she also was active as a student in campus ministry. As newlyweds they began volunteering with the inter-denominational Christian Fellowship at Muhlenberg College. In a few short years this volunteer position would grow into a full-time job for David with DiscipleMakers. Campus ministry would become David’s second career. He also served on campus with the Coalition for Christian Outreach (CCO) at Lehigh-Carbon Community College, Northampton Community College and Penn State-Lehigh Valley.

Sensing a call to pastoral ministry, David received a Masters of Divinity from Biblical Theological Seminary, Hatfield PA, in 2004, and did his Lutheran year at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. He did field work at Jordan Lutheran in Orefield, Clinical Pastoral Education at Phoebe Home in Allentown, and interned at St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, Allentown. He began his third career when he was called to Holy Cross and ordained there in 2007.

Pastor David is committed to scripturally based preaching and teaching and enjoys sermon preparation. His passion is explaining the scriptures and relating them to individuals and the congregation. In their Bible Studies Holy Cross is currently using his guide, “Sail the 7 ‘C’s – A Stormy Adventure Through the Seasons of God’s Story Found in Scripture.”

Pastor David plays the guitar and loves many types of music, ranging from church music to alternative rock. He’s an avid sports fan, following the local teams, especially the Phillies and Eagles. He enjoys playing for Holy Cross in the Bethlehem Inter-Church Dart Baseball League.

Pastor David and Karen, just celebrated their 25th Wedding Anniversary. They live in Allentown (near the fairgrounds) and have one son, Jeremiah, who is a student at Wheaton College in Illinois.