I hear you, you are busy and tired and stretched and running around frantic just to get the schedule accomplished. I'm in there with you. I'm always seeking those moments that catch me up in rest or in peace to be able to turn and do all over again. I recently found this translation of Psalm 62 from the Contemporary English Version...it has a way of putting things in perspective.
Peace and a little light for the journey!
Psalm 62: 5-12
I find rest in God. Only God gives inward peace, and I depend on him.
God alone is the mighty rock that keeps me safe, and he is the fortress where I feel secure. God saves me and honors me. He is that mighty rock where I find safety.
Trust God, my friends, and always tell him each one of your concerns. God is our place of safety. We humans are only a breath; none of us are truly great. All of us together weigh less than a puff of air. Don’t trust in violence or depend on dishonesty or rely on great wealth. I heard God say two things: “I am powerful and I am very kind.” The Lord rewards each of us according to what we do.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Worth the smile!
Got this at the end of an email newsletter from a missionary in Mozambique...
Live your life in such a way that when your feet hit the floor in the morning, Satan shudders & says... “Oh no...she's awake!!”
Live your life in such a way that when your feet hit the floor in the morning, Satan shudders & says... “Oh no...she's awake!!”
Monday, April 20, 2009
What Is Your Witness?
Below you will find an article I wrote for the newsletter, I wanted to share it here and add a little more to some information about First UMC. Catch you on the other side...
We will be welcoming some new members to our congregation this month! A blessing to the body of Christ gathered at First UMC to be sure. Anytime a new member is introduced to the congregation they are asked the question: Will you support First UMC with your prayers, your presence, your gifts and service? And in their answer we are also reminded of our pledge of membership recommitting ourselves to those same promises. Since General Conference in 2008, a new committment has been added to the list, it is "witness." Reminding us that sharing our faith in mission and evangelism are part of our Wesleyan heritage and especially important in these days as Christianity seeks its relevancy in the world.
One of the definitions of witness is "to serve as evidence of." I think that probably best provokes our thoughts in this context. How do you "serve as evidence of" being a follower of Christ? How can you share the evidence of God in your life with the world? I have shared with the Confirmands that coming to church on Sunday morning is a witness to their neighbors that that is what they choose to do instead of staying home. We have also shared that it is a witness to each of us that have also made that decision. There is nothing like coming to church and finding your friends here!
So might I suggest that our witness begins with coming to worship - regularly - and from there our witness is further shaped as to how we will go forth to live it in the world. How will you "serve as evidence of" being a Christian in the world today?
I recently changed the bulletin board downstairs and it is entitled "What Is Your Witness?" We took some time to do some good research into the data base to get a good picture of the spiritual health of the congregation, at least what we could learn from those numbers. We were not able to discern some things, but others we were.
There are 1131 members of First UMC
516 people attend more than 1/month (not all of these are members)
543 members have not attended worship at all in the past year
(the difference in numbers are those who attended less than 12 times in a year)
414 people attend worship and give to the church in someway (could include one time gifts)
137 people attend worship, give and are part of a small group whether that be Sunday School, choir, a study or volunteer group.
So if our discipleship is about prayers, presence, gifts, service and witness...where do you fall in these numbers? As I say above...part of our witness is choosing to go to church and attend a class and give to the church and pray for each other....
I also assure you that First UMC is no different than any other church...these numbers would compare to many a church; so don't shake your head and sigh about how "bad" we are, but look into your own life and ask where you can go a little deeper and then by all means: GO!
We will be welcoming some new members to our congregation this month! A blessing to the body of Christ gathered at First UMC to be sure. Anytime a new member is introduced to the congregation they are asked the question: Will you support First UMC with your prayers, your presence, your gifts and service? And in their answer we are also reminded of our pledge of membership recommitting ourselves to those same promises. Since General Conference in 2008, a new committment has been added to the list, it is "witness." Reminding us that sharing our faith in mission and evangelism are part of our Wesleyan heritage and especially important in these days as Christianity seeks its relevancy in the world.
One of the definitions of witness is "to serve as evidence of." I think that probably best provokes our thoughts in this context. How do you "serve as evidence of" being a follower of Christ? How can you share the evidence of God in your life with the world? I have shared with the Confirmands that coming to church on Sunday morning is a witness to their neighbors that that is what they choose to do instead of staying home. We have also shared that it is a witness to each of us that have also made that decision. There is nothing like coming to church and finding your friends here!
So might I suggest that our witness begins with coming to worship - regularly - and from there our witness is further shaped as to how we will go forth to live it in the world. How will you "serve as evidence of" being a Christian in the world today?
I recently changed the bulletin board downstairs and it is entitled "What Is Your Witness?" We took some time to do some good research into the data base to get a good picture of the spiritual health of the congregation, at least what we could learn from those numbers. We were not able to discern some things, but others we were.
There are 1131 members of First UMC
516 people attend more than 1/month (not all of these are members)
543 members have not attended worship at all in the past year
(the difference in numbers are those who attended less than 12 times in a year)
414 people attend worship and give to the church in someway (could include one time gifts)
137 people attend worship, give and are part of a small group whether that be Sunday School, choir, a study or volunteer group.
So if our discipleship is about prayers, presence, gifts, service and witness...where do you fall in these numbers? As I say above...part of our witness is choosing to go to church and attend a class and give to the church and pray for each other....
I also assure you that First UMC is no different than any other church...these numbers would compare to many a church; so don't shake your head and sigh about how "bad" we are, but look into your own life and ask where you can go a little deeper and then by all means: GO!
Thursday, April 16, 2009
What does the future hold????
Below you will find an article from the Winston-Salem Journal from Winston-Salem NC sent to me by my brother...an interesing article about this man's perspective on the decline of Sunday Morning church goers...join you on the other end....
EHRICH COLUMN: Many are saying no to church on Sunday
RELIGION NEWS SERVICE
Published: March 28, 2009
For 50 years and in growing numbers, American Christians have been saying no to Sunday church. I think that it is time we listened.
We have labeled them "unchurched," "nonbelievers," "former Christians," "happy pagans," "lost," and a "mission field" that's "ripe for harvest." These negative terms imply that the absent have a flaw that needs to be addressed.
New congregations have harvested some of these former mainline Protestant and Roman Catholic churchgoers. But even their numbers rise and fall -- especially when the founding pastor slips up or retires, and the overall trend in church participation remains down. In some Western states, Sunday churchgoing has fallen below 10 percent of the population.
Losses were ignored
When this slide started in 1964 as baby boomers began graduating from high school, many church leaders didn't even acknowledge it. For years, they kept counting the absent as present. Then, when the losses couldn't be ignored, they blamed them on whatever hot-button issues were roiling the religious establishment, as if new liturgies, women in leadership, and liberals (or conservatives, take your pick) had driven people away.
We need to see that these "formers" aren't saying no to God or to their Christian identity. Many are simply saying no to Sunday church.
They are expressing a preference for something other than getting up early on Sunday, driving across town, sitting in a pew for an hour or more, making small talk with people they don't really know, and driving home again.
They are saying no to Sunday, the only day that they can get a slow start in this everyone-works-hard era.
They are saying no to being an audience in an age of participation and self-determination.
They are saying no to institutional preaching, repetitive liturgies, and assemblies controlled by small cadres usually older than themselves.
They are saying no to being told what to believe.
They are saying no to having their questions ignored.
Instead, they find spiritual enrichment on the Internet and on television. They read faith-related books. They pray on their own. They find their own networks of faithful friends.
Poor delivery system
The problem is Christianity's delivery system. We are stuck in trying to lure people to physical locations at a time of our choosing, to do what we think they ought to do, and to be loyal in paying for it. It is time that we looked beyond the paradigm of Sunday church.
I think the future lies in "multichanneling" -- a combination of on-site, online, workplace and at-home offerings that create networks of self-determining constituents, many of whom might never attend Sunday church.
The first challenge, however, is to recognize how deeply wedded we are to Sunday on-site participation as the only true expression and measure of faithfulness. Almost everything about our institutions aims to draw people to a central location on Sunday.
We need to see that what works for some doesn't work for others. Not because the others are flawed, nor because our culture has collapsed and turned against God, but because things change. Just as Jesus took his ministry out of the synagogue and radically rethought the meaning of Sabbath, so God is drawing us away from "former things," even ones we treasure and consider our duty.
■ Tom Ehrich is a writer, church consultant and Episcopal priest. His Web site is http://www.morningwalkmedia.com/.
OK...I can't disagree with all that Rev Ehrich has to say...this decline has been a long time in coming and we weren't all paying attention to what was going on until it was getting late. And believers are not saying no to God or their faith, but rather to the practice of it. They are saying no to irrelevant worship, to worship just for worship's sake...But there is no mention of discipleship and community. Christianity is always counter-cultural - we currently live in a very isolated, self serving, individualistic culture...Christianity's counter to that, is that it is centered in sharing in community - we are meant to be in relationship with others. Rev Ehrich's vision doesn't speak much to that...and I believe that is our hope...that even though Sundays are the one day we have to rest - it can also be the one day we can reconnect with each other and encourage one another for the week ahead.
I do believe God is at work to bring about a new reality... We are called to remain faithful, even in the midst of change and even when it seems we are a minority. While it is tempting to get discouraged, I find that I am more and more intrigued by the ways of the world and where God IS at work. Our hope is in relationship and in sharing our faith with those around us.
Thanks, Steve!
EHRICH COLUMN: Many are saying no to church on Sunday
RELIGION NEWS SERVICE
Published: March 28, 2009
For 50 years and in growing numbers, American Christians have been saying no to Sunday church. I think that it is time we listened.
We have labeled them "unchurched," "nonbelievers," "former Christians," "happy pagans," "lost," and a "mission field" that's "ripe for harvest." These negative terms imply that the absent have a flaw that needs to be addressed.
New congregations have harvested some of these former mainline Protestant and Roman Catholic churchgoers. But even their numbers rise and fall -- especially when the founding pastor slips up or retires, and the overall trend in church participation remains down. In some Western states, Sunday churchgoing has fallen below 10 percent of the population.
Losses were ignored
When this slide started in 1964 as baby boomers began graduating from high school, many church leaders didn't even acknowledge it. For years, they kept counting the absent as present. Then, when the losses couldn't be ignored, they blamed them on whatever hot-button issues were roiling the religious establishment, as if new liturgies, women in leadership, and liberals (or conservatives, take your pick) had driven people away.
We need to see that these "formers" aren't saying no to God or to their Christian identity. Many are simply saying no to Sunday church.
They are expressing a preference for something other than getting up early on Sunday, driving across town, sitting in a pew for an hour or more, making small talk with people they don't really know, and driving home again.
They are saying no to Sunday, the only day that they can get a slow start in this everyone-works-hard era.
They are saying no to being an audience in an age of participation and self-determination.
They are saying no to institutional preaching, repetitive liturgies, and assemblies controlled by small cadres usually older than themselves.
They are saying no to being told what to believe.
They are saying no to having their questions ignored.
Instead, they find spiritual enrichment on the Internet and on television. They read faith-related books. They pray on their own. They find their own networks of faithful friends.
Poor delivery system
The problem is Christianity's delivery system. We are stuck in trying to lure people to physical locations at a time of our choosing, to do what we think they ought to do, and to be loyal in paying for it. It is time that we looked beyond the paradigm of Sunday church.
I think the future lies in "multichanneling" -- a combination of on-site, online, workplace and at-home offerings that create networks of self-determining constituents, many of whom might never attend Sunday church.
The first challenge, however, is to recognize how deeply wedded we are to Sunday on-site participation as the only true expression and measure of faithfulness. Almost everything about our institutions aims to draw people to a central location on Sunday.
We need to see that what works for some doesn't work for others. Not because the others are flawed, nor because our culture has collapsed and turned against God, but because things change. Just as Jesus took his ministry out of the synagogue and radically rethought the meaning of Sabbath, so God is drawing us away from "former things," even ones we treasure and consider our duty.
■ Tom Ehrich is a writer, church consultant and Episcopal priest. His Web site is http://www.morningwalkmedia.com/.
OK...I can't disagree with all that Rev Ehrich has to say...this decline has been a long time in coming and we weren't all paying attention to what was going on until it was getting late. And believers are not saying no to God or their faith, but rather to the practice of it. They are saying no to irrelevant worship, to worship just for worship's sake...But there is no mention of discipleship and community. Christianity is always counter-cultural - we currently live in a very isolated, self serving, individualistic culture...Christianity's counter to that, is that it is centered in sharing in community - we are meant to be in relationship with others. Rev Ehrich's vision doesn't speak much to that...and I believe that is our hope...that even though Sundays are the one day we have to rest - it can also be the one day we can reconnect with each other and encourage one another for the week ahead.
I do believe God is at work to bring about a new reality... We are called to remain faithful, even in the midst of change and even when it seems we are a minority. While it is tempting to get discouraged, I find that I am more and more intrigued by the ways of the world and where God IS at work. Our hope is in relationship and in sharing our faith with those around us.
Thanks, Steve!
Monday, April 13, 2009
Too Long
I do apologize for how long it has been since I last posted. I know some of you look for updates and I have been tardy! But then again it's Easter! I give Easter here in Mid-Mo two thumbs up. Great worship, great crowds, and a great message to proclaim. He lives! not just in our hearts, but HE LIVES...it wasn't until some part of seminary education that I realized there is a difference. I am completely comfortable and able to say that Jesus lives in my heart and in yours. But it is a different animal to proclaim - Jesus lives! It is part of our proclamation of our faith. In the Apostles Creed was say "I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting." Not just a spiritual resurrection, which is what we proclaim when we say he lives in my heart...but the bodily resurrection...Jesus' body was alive again.
That body must have been different because no one recognizes him when they first see him, but none the less it must have been a human body because scripture doesn't describe it as a ghostly presence...so how does that tickle your faith? Did you know that is what we proclaim at Easter? And when we proclaim He lives - what a powerful God we proclaim...death was overcome not in some spiritual "I'll be OK" sense - but death was overcome with life. It is that proclamation that changes the world because it offers hope...that even in the darkest of days, God's love overcame the darkness to restore the light of love in the world.
God continues to be at work...not in perscribed and expected ways, but in the very unexpected and unexplained ways that make life complicated as well as wonderous.
Happy Easter and I'll try to get back on track!
That body must have been different because no one recognizes him when they first see him, but none the less it must have been a human body because scripture doesn't describe it as a ghostly presence...so how does that tickle your faith? Did you know that is what we proclaim at Easter? And when we proclaim He lives - what a powerful God we proclaim...death was overcome not in some spiritual "I'll be OK" sense - but death was overcome with life. It is that proclamation that changes the world because it offers hope...that even in the darkest of days, God's love overcame the darkness to restore the light of love in the world.
God continues to be at work...not in perscribed and expected ways, but in the very unexpected and unexplained ways that make life complicated as well as wonderous.
Happy Easter and I'll try to get back on track!
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Bumper Stickers and Messages
As I was coming out of Gerbes, our local grocery store, I noticed a van that had handwritten messages on all the windows. This was the kind of ink that you get at Hobby Lobby to write
"Just Married" across the back window or "Go Jays!" on each of the side windows. On this vehicle though, was the message: "Michael Roarke Master Roofer, died on March 17." On the back window was a list of names - I can only presume his family, and on another side window the message "We miss you." Driving this car was a young woman - she had just gotten her groceries and was heading home.
I guess it made me wonder how you decide to get the ink and write that message and then how long does it stay on. As I headed to the church, I was behind a truck that had a personalized sticker in the window that said - "In memory of Pvt James Anderson". Small and inconspicuous. And again I wondered about the decision to get such a sticker and put in on your truck.
And then it occurred to me, that like bumber stickers that proclaim political messages or funny messages and sometimes inappropriate messages, these were messages that simply said, "I'm in pain." "I have lost." Messages that were being tossed out into the world - no expectation of response, but simply put out there for those who take the time to read them.
Do these people not have a community that they can share this with? Or are we fellow travelers their community? Do they not have a community that can tell them, "you remain in our prayers even after your husbands death." And offer those signs of recognition and care that are our trademarks - (casseroles and cakes.) I would hope so, but I'm not sure if the need exists to drive around with the message on your window.
And so take the time to look at the windows and bumpers of cars around you, there very well could be someone crying out for a little recognition in a world that is filled with pain and loss. We can't fix it, but we can give a wave or offer a prayer that the grief will be comforted.
Peace to you!
"Just Married" across the back window or "Go Jays!" on each of the side windows. On this vehicle though, was the message: "Michael Roarke Master Roofer, died on March 17." On the back window was a list of names - I can only presume his family, and on another side window the message "We miss you." Driving this car was a young woman - she had just gotten her groceries and was heading home.
I guess it made me wonder how you decide to get the ink and write that message and then how long does it stay on. As I headed to the church, I was behind a truck that had a personalized sticker in the window that said - "In memory of Pvt James Anderson". Small and inconspicuous. And again I wondered about the decision to get such a sticker and put in on your truck.
And then it occurred to me, that like bumber stickers that proclaim political messages or funny messages and sometimes inappropriate messages, these were messages that simply said, "I'm in pain." "I have lost." Messages that were being tossed out into the world - no expectation of response, but simply put out there for those who take the time to read them.
Do these people not have a community that they can share this with? Or are we fellow travelers their community? Do they not have a community that can tell them, "you remain in our prayers even after your husbands death." And offer those signs of recognition and care that are our trademarks - (casseroles and cakes.) I would hope so, but I'm not sure if the need exists to drive around with the message on your window.
And so take the time to look at the windows and bumpers of cars around you, there very well could be someone crying out for a little recognition in a world that is filled with pain and loss. We can't fix it, but we can give a wave or offer a prayer that the grief will be comforted.
Peace to you!
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