Thoughts and Musings from My Faith Journey
A brother questioned Abba Poemen saying, “What does it mean to repent of a fault?” The old man said, “Not to commit it again in the future.”
— The Sayings of the Desert Fathers: The Alphabetical Collection, quoted by Roberta Bondi in To Love as God Loves.
Tonight at the book study we’re discussing the third chapter of To Love as God Loves by Roberta Bondi. It’s a chapter on humility, real humility, not the pale disjointed imitation of it that is so often mistaken for the real thing. It’s a chapter that stretches me. There are parts of it I disagree with. It’s also been made clear to me that the entire book has been stretching some people. It seems that it’s not an easy read for everyone and I think that’s all the more reason why everyone should read it. Just as our muscles atrophy for lack of physical exercise, so our mental and spiritual “muscles” will also wither and fade if we do not put them to work. I strongly believe that God gave us brains for a reason and that Jesus came to take away our sins, not our minds. We need to think hard, we need to push ourselves spiritually that we might better conform to the pattern of Jesus Christ and grow in the love of God. A lot of what is currently in print doesn’t challenge us; it’s important to our faith development that we find things that do. Over spring break I pushed myself to finish King, Priest, and Prophet: A Trinitarian Theology of Atonement for the purpose of exercising my mind. It deepened and enhanced my understanding of God and my faith.
A Service of Death and Resurrection for Effie Jo Wade will be held Wednesday at 2 pm in the Sanctuary. Burial will immediately follow at Fairview Cemetery.
Do not listen to gossip at your neighbor’s expense. Do not spend time talking with those who love to find fault in others. Otherwise, you will fall away from the love of God. You will find yourself alienated from eternal life.
— St. Maximus the Confessor
Hat Tip: Sojourners
I’ll be preaching next Sunday (April 3, 2011) on the Gospel of John 9.1-41 (yep, that was not a misprint, 1-41) with a sermon titled “Who Sinned?” The other two scripture readings will be 1 Samuel 16.1-13 and Ephesians 5.8-14. Hymns will be O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing, Be Thou My Vision, and One Bread, One Body. Lisa and Brian Lang will be presenting their son, Hudson Jack Lang, for baptism during the 10:50 service. Lisa is the daughter of Paula Miller. We’ll be celebrating the sacrament of holy communion at both services.
Our guest preacher this Sunday is Brenda Davids. She is the Conference Director of Student Ministries & Program Director of Camp Chippewa. Her responsibilities include coordinating youth ministries throughout the conference as well as coordinating the camps at Camp Chippewa
The United Methodist Women will be having a Lunch for Missions this Sunday (March 27, 2011) after the 10:50 worship Service. They’ll be serving taco soup, jello, baked potatoes, and dessert. Freewill offerings will be accepted.
We’ve received the following reminder from the Parsons District Office:
All clergy and teams from our churches are strongly encouraged to attend “Creating a Culture of Generosity” led by Dr. Clif Christopher on April 2 at Chanute First UMC. Topics will be covered that you are asking for help with — such as: the changing culture of giving, the big questions that donors ask that you must answer for them, the top reasons why people give, generational differences in giving, etc. Please take advantage of this opportunity located right in our District to grow in our understanding of stewardship and how we may share that with our congregations. Registration deadline is March 29.
The Vision Team has been studying Clif Christopher’s book and Jenny and I would like to have as many people attend as possible. We would especially encourage members of the Finance Committee and the Vision Team. There is a small registration fee that the church will cover. Please let John or Jenny know, by 9:00 am on Tuesday, March 29, 2011, if you’re able to attend. The schedule for the event on April 2 is as follows. Registration: 8:30-9:00 am, Seminar: 9:00 am – 3:30 pm, lunch is provided on site.
We’ve successfully switched from AT&T to Cox Communications and the 620-251-3240 phone number is back in service. The best way to get ahold of Pastors John and Jenny directly is still through their cell phones, the numbers of which are printed on the back of the bulletin every week.
We’re switching our phone service from AT&T to Cox Communications. The switch should begin on Thursday and continue Friday. We’re porting our current phone number (620-251-3240) to our new service, but there may be a brief gap. If you can’t get ahold of us at 620-251-3240 try 620-688-6467. Again, when all is said and done we’ll be back to our present number (620-251-3240). One of the main reasons we’re switching is in hopes of better sound quality.
Everyone had a great time at our last Kid’s Night Out event and we’ve decided to host another. It will feature the New VeggieTales® feature, ‘Twas the Night Before Easter. It will be held, fittingly, on the night before Easter (April 23, 2011) from 4:30 to 7:00 pm. We’ll have pizza, juice and lots of activities. Let Heather Allen know if you’re interested in helping. Registration will be available soon.
I’m really enjoying re-reading, To Love As God Loves, by Roberta Bondi for our current book study. I wanted to share the following quote from the second chapter: “No amount of pious behavior or Christian discipline can replace love.” It’s a simple, though often forgotten or overlooked point that has a great deal of scripture behind it.