REV. Zachery Sarrault, Associate PASTOR
Pastor’s Corner for August 24-30, 2025
The Father’s Discipline
(Hebrews 12:4-24)
Being disciplined is not always fun. When I was growing up, I remember when I was punished for not doing what my parents told me to. Whatever the punishment was, the discipline that they put down, it was never fun. I’m learning, as a new and very flawed parent, that giving discipline is not always fun either, because a child is not always willing to receive their parent’s discipline. When Kelsey and I are trying to discipline our child (I’ll let you discern which one…) for not going potty or throwing food on the floor or throwing her toys at the dog or running through the house naked and wet, she is not always ready to listen to us. At its worst, discipline turns into us chasing the child while she is screaming through tears because she doesn’t want to be disciplined. Discipline isn’t always fun, so why do we do it?
Often, I associate discipline with punishment, but punishment is not the main goal of discipline. If punishment were the main goal, then discipline would always be bad. There wouldn’t be any point! Instead, the point of discipline is learning how to live well, safely, and joyously. Is punishment involved? Sometimes, yes, but it isn’t the end goal.
The same is true in the relationship we have with our Father-God. Because He is our Father, He also disciplines us. He wants to teach us how to live well, safely, and joyously. He wants us to live the Good Life according to His will. How do you react to your Father’s discipline? Do you sit quietly and listen to Him or do you react like a toddler and run screaming from the Word He tries to speak. When we run from our Father’s discipline, we find ourselves living in the punishment of that discipline. Running from our Father’s presence is running into our sin, telling the Father that we don’t need Him and we can do it better on our own. This only leads to our own hurt and destruction. If I were to let our kid run around the house wet and naked every night, sooner or later she would get hurt. The same is true if we run from the Father (don’t go too far with this imagery…), we will get hurt.
Your Father-God knows what you need, and He wants to discipline you, to teach you how to live well. He does this when we read His Word, live in the community of His Church (both in weekly worship and daily family living), and through consistent conversation with Him. Through it all, we learn to live well, safely, and joyously according to the Father’s will.
This weekend at Resurrection, you will receive a Christian Education Booklet of all the Bible Studies for the coming season. Think of this as ways your Father can discipline you, teach you how to live well, safely, and joyously. I would encourage you, as children of the heavenly Father, to consider where your Father is guiding you to grow in His Word at your Church in the coming season.
Your learning-to-live brother in Christ,
Pastor Zach Sarrault
Ordination and Installation of Pastor Zachery Sarrault (July 18, 2021):
Sunday was a great day at RLC! We celebrated the Ordination and Installation of our new Associate Pastor Zachery Sarrault. It was a beautiful service with a heartfelt sermon by his father, Pastor Joel Sarrault. Congratulations and welcome, Pastor Zach! Thank you to all who participated in this special day.
Pastor Sarrault Ordination and Installation
Pastor Zachery Sarrault Ordination and Installation Bulletin
From Pastor Zach (July 16, 2021):
Hey Resurrection Family!
Kelsey and I are finally here! We have finished up at St. Louis, seen family in Michigan, and moved into our new home. After all of that traveling and living out of suitcases, we couldn’t be happier to finally be back to something comfortable. Comfort is always something nice to hold on to. All of us have something that makes us comfortable, whether it be a family member or friend, a good book or fishing pole, a quilting machine or a wood shed, we all have our go-to comfort places. This is part of being human! We love comfort!
The thing with comfort is that sometimes we get too comfortable. We can settle in and tell ourselves that we never wish to see any change. “Life would be perfect if I could just stay in my recliner with Tom Sawyer all day.” Or whatever your comfort may be. Sadly, we know that this isn’t how life works. No matter how much we enjoy our comforts, ‘real life’ happens and it disrupts those little joys. But, is it ‘real life’ or is it God, calling us into His mission to do more than just the comfortable?
Jesus never led a life of comfort. From the manger to the cross and even the empty tomb, Jesus’ life was one of challenge and the uncomfortable. When one of the scribes declared that he would follow Jesus, all Jesus had to say was, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head” (Matt. 8:20). Kind of an odd response, one that rightly scared away the scribe. Probably would have scared me too!
So, what does this mean for us? Are we supposed to throw away all of our earthly comforts and live lives of asceticism? Not at all! But we are called to know where these comforts come from and who our ultimate comfort is. In all things, comfort or challenge, our Lord and Savior stands before us, behind us, and beside us. As Jesus prepared His disciples for life after His death and resurrection, Jesus told His followers, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
There is our ultimate comfort! Not in our little hide-a-ways or indulgences, but in the One who has overcome all sin and who has promised us peace. Our comfort is in the faith that we have through Christ’s death and resurrection. Our comfort is in the kingdom of God that has already been given to us! That is a comfort that is never changing and never ending. No matter what God has in store the Sarraults in North Carolina, we know that the comfort of our Lord will always prevail!
In the comfortable and the uncomfortable, but always in Christ,
Pastor Zach Sarrault
From Pastor Jonathan (July 15, 2021):
There's a new face at Resurrection! Seminarian Zach Sarrault and wife Kelsey made it down to Cary last Monday, and soon-to-be "Pastor Zach" is already taking part in leadership team activities here at RLC. He will serve as Associate Pastor at Resurrection... meaning he will be working full-time in all aspects of ministry: preaching and teaching, visiting the homebound, discipling others, showing up at youth events, leading school and preschool chapel services, making friends in his neighborhood, evangelizing... and doing it all as one who is privileged to be an Under-Shepherd of the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ. We are very blessed to have him and Kelsey in our midst!
Though the Sarraults hail from Michigan they know a little bit about our area already since Zach served as Vicar at Hope Lutheran Church in Wake Forest from 2019 to 2020. At church you can find Pastor Zach in the Associate Pastor's office, next door to the main office on the left side. I look forward to working with Pastor Zach and seeing him welcomed as warmly by all of you as Juli and I were not so long ago! May God bless and further your ministry among us, Pastor!