Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Bible Challenge 05/12 - 05/18
Greetings All!
This week our reading will have us finishing up the book of I Samuel, going entirely through the book of II Samuel and dipping into I Kings with the first chapter.
The book of I Samuel ends with the death of Jonathan and King Saul. That story continues in II Samuel. In chapter 1, David hears of the deaths of Saul and Jonathan and lifts up a beautiful song of lament over their lives. Chapter 2 finds David being anointed king over Judah and the next few chapters show the problems between the house of David and Saul before David is anointed king over Israel in chapter 5. Chapters 6-8 detail some of the early victories and the establishment of David's kingdom. But chapter 9 is my favorite. It's the story of David and Mephibosheth - one of Jonathan's descendants - and it is a rare story of amazing grace. Read it. Put yourself in the place of Mephibosheth. Read it again and put yourself in the place of David. It's remarkable.
The focus of this latter half of the book deals with the weaknesses and failures of David's reign as king. Specifically we find here the account of David's adultery with Bathsheba and complicity in the murder of her husband (chapters 10-12) as well as David's difficulties with his children and the loss of Amnon and Absalom (chapter 13-20). The book wraps up with some final reflections on David's reign (chapters 21-24).
Next up on the agenda is I Kings. Just as with the books of I and II Samuel, the books of I and II Kings were originally one long unbroken narrative. I Kings begins with the succession of Solomon as king after David.
Here is the schedule:
12, Sunday: I Samuel 29 - II Samuel 1
13, Monday: II Samuel 2-5
14, Tuesday: II Samuel 6-9
15, Wednesday: II Samuel 10-13
16, Thursday; II Samuel 14-17
17, Friday: II Samuel 18-21
18, Saturday: II Samuel 22 - I Kings 1
May God add His richest blessings to the reading, the hearing, the understanding and most importantly the living out of His holy word. Amen.
Blessings,
This week our reading will have us finishing up the book of I Samuel, going entirely through the book of II Samuel and dipping into I Kings with the first chapter.
The book of I Samuel ends with the death of Jonathan and King Saul. That story continues in II Samuel. In chapter 1, David hears of the deaths of Saul and Jonathan and lifts up a beautiful song of lament over their lives. Chapter 2 finds David being anointed king over Judah and the next few chapters show the problems between the house of David and Saul before David is anointed king over Israel in chapter 5. Chapters 6-8 detail some of the early victories and the establishment of David's kingdom. But chapter 9 is my favorite. It's the story of David and Mephibosheth - one of Jonathan's descendants - and it is a rare story of amazing grace. Read it. Put yourself in the place of Mephibosheth. Read it again and put yourself in the place of David. It's remarkable.
The focus of this latter half of the book deals with the weaknesses and failures of David's reign as king. Specifically we find here the account of David's adultery with Bathsheba and complicity in the murder of her husband (chapters 10-12) as well as David's difficulties with his children and the loss of Amnon and Absalom (chapter 13-20). The book wraps up with some final reflections on David's reign (chapters 21-24).
Next up on the agenda is I Kings. Just as with the books of I and II Samuel, the books of I and II Kings were originally one long unbroken narrative. I Kings begins with the succession of Solomon as king after David.
Here is the schedule:
12, Sunday: I Samuel 29 - II Samuel 1
13, Monday: II Samuel 2-5
14, Tuesday: II Samuel 6-9
15, Wednesday: II Samuel 10-13
16, Thursday; II Samuel 14-17
17, Friday: II Samuel 18-21
18, Saturday: II Samuel 22 - I Kings 1
May God add His richest blessings to the reading, the hearing, the understanding and most importantly the living out of His holy word. Amen.
Blessings,
Friday, May 10, 2013
Friday Fives
2. Bible Study - Grace. We talk as though we understand the term. The bank gives us a grace period. The seedy politician falls from grace. Musicians speak of a grace note. We describe an actress as gracious, a dancer as graceful. We use the word for hospitals, baby girls, kings, and premeal prayers. We talk as though we know what grace means.
But do we really understand it? Have we settled for wimpy grace? It politely occupies a phrase in a hymn, fits nicely on a church sign. Never causes trouble or demands a response. When asked, “Do you believe in grace?” who could say no?
Max Lucado asks a deeper question: Have you been changed by grace? Shaped by grace? Strengthened by grace? Emboldened by grace? Softened by grace? Snatched by the nape of your neck and shaken to your senses by grace? God’s grace has a drenching about it. A wildness about it. A white-water, riptide, turn-you-upside-downness about it. Grace comes after you. It rewires you. From insecure to God secure. From regret riddled to better-because-of-it. From afraid to die to ready to fly. Grace is the voice that calls us to change and then gives us the power to pull it off. Let’s make certain grace gets you.
We will resume this week on Thursday, May 16th at 10:30am and 7:00pm in the Fellowship Hall. As a reminder it is never too late to join. For more details, please visit our website by clicking here. I hope you will make plans to come as we make certain grace gets you!
3. Boy Scout Chicken Dinner - Next Saturday, May 18th, our Boy Scout Troop will host a carry out chicken dinner here at the church from 12 - 6 P.M. Dinners will be $7 each. Please come on out and support our boys as they raise money for summer camp this year.
4. Summer Newsletter - This year, as a means of trying to be better stewards of our time and resources,we are combining our June, July, and August newsletters into one summer edition. If you have any information that you would like to include in this edition, please submit it to the office by next Sunday, May 19th. Thank you!
5. Upcoming Worship - We have two very important services coming up where we are asking for your involvement. On Sunday, May 19th, we are asking that you come to church wearing red and/or white to celebrate Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit. Then on Sunday, May 26th, we will observe Memorial Day and would ask that you wear red, white, and blue. Your participation will help to make these worship services more meaningful as we celebrate and honor these events.
Have a great weekend and I will see you Sunday!
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Midweek Moment
Last Sunday was an important day in the life of our denomination. It was Announcement Sunday. Each year, there is one day in May set aside where every congregation around the country learns if they will experience a pastoral change for their church. Last Sunday, it was announced that I will be returning for another year.
I am so grateful to the cabinet and to Bishop Whitaker for appointing me here in July 2009. I came in green, never before serving a church as pastor. I had high expectations, I was excited, and I was hopeful, for how our ministry would develop together here at Druid Hills.
You all treated me and my family with such kindness. You shared with me your wisdom, your history, and stories about your families. Over the years we have grown together, tried new things together, and grieved together. Whatever we have gone through we have tried to do it together. As I have the honor and privilege to stand before you on Sunday mornings and lead worship, I get to look out on your faces. I get the opportunity to be reminded of all those stories we have shared and the relationships we have built. But more important than that, I am reminded of the gifts of the Holy Spirit that are present within all of you. I see those gifts of mercy, giving, intersession, hospitality, and encouragement, among others. That gives me great hope for our future.
It is not secret that God has blessed Druid Hills with amazing people. He has scattered those spiritual gifts among all of you and now it is up to us. It is up to us to discover and continue to develop those gifts. It is up to us to use those gifts as we interact with each other and our world. It is up to us to create an atmosphere here at Druid Hills where people feel safe to explore their gifts, comfortable to develop their gifts, and accepted as they gain confidence in using their gifts.
After almost four years, I still have high expectations, I am still excited, and I am still hopeful. We have great things ahead of us. We just need to continue loving each other, supporting each other, and encouraging each other. We need to continue to cultivate an environment and create a culture that is based on love and always practiced in kindness. When we treat each other, and those we encounter, in that way that is when our gifts come out. That is when the Holy Spirit can make some wonderful things happen.
Thank you for the last four years and I look forward to what God will do though us in the future!
Have a great week and I will see you Sunday,
I am so grateful to the cabinet and to Bishop Whitaker for appointing me here in July 2009. I came in green, never before serving a church as pastor. I had high expectations, I was excited, and I was hopeful, for how our ministry would develop together here at Druid Hills.
You all treated me and my family with such kindness. You shared with me your wisdom, your history, and stories about your families. Over the years we have grown together, tried new things together, and grieved together. Whatever we have gone through we have tried to do it together. As I have the honor and privilege to stand before you on Sunday mornings and lead worship, I get to look out on your faces. I get the opportunity to be reminded of all those stories we have shared and the relationships we have built. But more important than that, I am reminded of the gifts of the Holy Spirit that are present within all of you. I see those gifts of mercy, giving, intersession, hospitality, and encouragement, among others. That gives me great hope for our future.
It is not secret that God has blessed Druid Hills with amazing people. He has scattered those spiritual gifts among all of you and now it is up to us. It is up to us to discover and continue to develop those gifts. It is up to us to use those gifts as we interact with each other and our world. It is up to us to create an atmosphere here at Druid Hills where people feel safe to explore their gifts, comfortable to develop their gifts, and accepted as they gain confidence in using their gifts.
After almost four years, I still have high expectations, I am still excited, and I am still hopeful. We have great things ahead of us. We just need to continue loving each other, supporting each other, and encouraging each other. We need to continue to cultivate an environment and create a culture that is based on love and always practiced in kindness. When we treat each other, and those we encounter, in that way that is when our gifts come out. That is when the Holy Spirit can make some wonderful things happen.
Thank you for the last four years and I look forward to what God will do though us in the future!
Have a great week and I will see you Sunday,
Saturday, May 4, 2013
Friday Fives
1. Preaching Series - This Sunday we are continuing our preaching series entitled, Ashes to Fire, which we are doing in conjunction with Belleview UMC. Ashes to Fire is an intentional journey with Jesus from Ash Wednesday through Holy Week and Easter and on to Pentecost Sunday - from penitence to praise to power. This Sunday we will look to the peace that comes from the grace of God and what that means for our lives today. I pray this time of reflection will be one that will draw you deeper into your faith journey as we look to the life of Christ and example of love that he modeled for us. I encourage you to invite a friend and I hope to see you there!
2. Bible Study - Grace. We talk as though we understand the term. The bank gives us a grace period. Theseedy politician falls from grace. Musicians speak of a grace note. We describe an actress as gracious, a dancer as graceful. We use the word for hospitals, baby girls, kings, and premeal prayers. We talk as though we know what grace means.
But do we really understand it? Have we settled for wimpy grace? It politely occupies a phrase in a hymn, fits nicely on a church sign. Never causes trouble or demands a response. When asked, “Do you believe in grace?” who could say no?
Max Lucado asks a deeper question: Have you been changed by grace? Shaped by grace? Strengthened by grace? Emboldened by grace? Softened by grace? Snatched by the nape of your neck and shaken to your senses by grace? God’s grace has a drenching about it. A wildness about it. A white-water, riptide, turn-you-upside-downness about it. Grace comes after you. It rewires you. From insecure to God secure. From regret riddled to better-because-of-it. From afraid to die to ready to fly. Grace is the voice that calls us to change and then gives us the power to pull it off. Let’s make certain grace gets you.
As a reminder, there will no Bible Study next week, but we will resume on May 16th. We meet on Thursdays at 10:30am and 7:00pm in the Fellowship Hall and it is never too late to join. For more details, please visit our website by clicking here. I hope you will make plans to come as we make certain grace gets you!
3. Moving Forward - The next meeting of our new Moving Forward group will be Monday, May 6th, in the Fellowship Hall at 11am. You are asked to bring a bag lunch and a beverage, as the discussion will center around ideas for the upcoming months. This group is for all of the ladies of our church that have lost their spouse. This social group will give you the chance to share ideas, discuss your faith, and pray for each other.
4. New Member Class - On Sunday, May 12th at 12:45 P.M., I will host a new member class in my
office.If you have been attending Druid Hills for at least three months
and would like to take that next step in becoming a member of this
church, this class is
for you! To register for this class, either call the church office at
629-5688, or email me by clicking here. This is a one session
get together where we will discuss what it means to be a United Methodist, what it means to be a member of Druid Hills
UMC, and offer you a little background on the history of this church.
If this interests you, I hope you will make plans to attend.5. Upcoming Worship - We have two very important services coming up where we are asking for your involvement. On Sunday, May 19th, we are asking that you come to church wearing red and/or white to celebrate Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit. Then on Sunday, May 26th, we will observe Memorial Day and would ask that you wear red, white, and blue. Your participation will help to make these worship services more meaningful as we celebrate and honor these events.
Have a great weekend and I will see you Sunday!
Bible Challenge 05/05 - 05/11
Greetings All!
This week we will spend all of our time in one of the books of history, I Samuel. It details the history of the Israelites as it details the life of one of their famous leaders, Samuel, who was the last of the judges and the first of the prophets. The first seven chapters deal mainly with his birth, calling and ministry, before turning attention to Israel's request for a king, fulfilled in the person of Saul.
By chapter 15 though, King Saul has been rejected by God because of his behavior. Young David is chosen by God and anointed by Samuel as king in chapter 16, then fights the famous Philistine giant in chapter 17. King Saul grows more and more suspicious and paranoid about David in chapters 18 and 19. Then we read about the friendship between David and Jonathan in chapter 20. The remainder of our reading this week details the ongoing hostilities between Saul and David.
05, Sunday: - I Samuel 1-4
06, Monday: I Samuel 5-8
07, Tuesday: I Samuel 9-12
08, Wednesday: I Samuel 13-16
09, Thursday: I Samuel 17-20
10, Friday: I Samuel 21-24
11, Saturday: I Samuel 25-28
May God add His richest blessings to the reading, the hearing, the understanding and most importantly the living out of His holy word. Amen.
Blessings,
This week we will spend all of our time in one of the books of history, I Samuel. It details the history of the Israelites as it details the life of one of their famous leaders, Samuel, who was the last of the judges and the first of the prophets. The first seven chapters deal mainly with his birth, calling and ministry, before turning attention to Israel's request for a king, fulfilled in the person of Saul. By chapter 15 though, King Saul has been rejected by God because of his behavior. Young David is chosen by God and anointed by Samuel as king in chapter 16, then fights the famous Philistine giant in chapter 17. King Saul grows more and more suspicious and paranoid about David in chapters 18 and 19. Then we read about the friendship between David and Jonathan in chapter 20. The remainder of our reading this week details the ongoing hostilities between Saul and David.
05, Sunday: - I Samuel 1-4
06, Monday: I Samuel 5-8
07, Tuesday: I Samuel 9-12
08, Wednesday: I Samuel 13-16
09, Thursday: I Samuel 17-20
10, Friday: I Samuel 21-24
11, Saturday: I Samuel 25-28
May God add His richest blessings to the reading, the hearing, the understanding and most importantly the living out of His holy word. Amen.
Blessings,
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Midweek Moment
Grace. We talk as though we understand the term. The bank gives us a grace period. The seedy politician falls from grace. Musicians speak of a grace note. We describe an actress as gracious, a dancer as graceful. We use the word for hospitals, baby girls, kings, and pre-meal prayers. We talk as though we know what grace means.
But do we really understand it? Have we settled for wimpy grace? It politely occupies a phrase in a hymn,fits nicely on a church sign. Never causes trouble or demands a response. When asked, “Do you believe in grace?” who could say no?
Max Lucado asks a deeper question: Have you been changed by grace? Shaped by grace? Strengthened by grace? Emboldened by grace? Softened by grace? Snatched by the nape of your neck and shaken to your senses by grace? God’s grace has a drenching about it. A wildness about it. A white-water, riptide, turn-you-upside-downness about it. Grace comes after you. It rewires you. From insecure to God secure. From regret riddled to better-because-of-it. From afraid to die to ready to fly. Grace is the voice that calls us to change and then gives us the power to pull it off.
The above is what I have been including in my Friday Fives for the last several weeks to help describe our current Bible Study series. It is entitled Grace and it is written my Max Lucado, just like the three paragraphs above.
When I read that above description it really got me to think. I have written papers on grace, taken classes centered on grace, talked about grace with other colleagues. But did I practice a “wildness..white-water, riptide, turn-you-upside-down” type of grace in my life? Had I been changed, shaped, strengthened, emboldened, softened, and snatched by the nape of my neck by grace?
Grace is at the center of why we are United Methodists. It is one of our core tenets as a denomination. John Wesley spoke at great length about grace and he himself was greatly impacted by the grace of God. God’s grace is something that will change you from the inside out. It takes you as you are and makes you into what God created you to be. Grace is not reserved for a select few or until you understand it, grace is for everyone. Grace comes after you. It changes the way you see people, it changes the way you interact with people, it changes everything about you.
The subtitle to this series on grace by Max Lucado, is “More Than We Deserve, Greater Than We Imagine”. I want to make sure grace gets you. I encourage you this week to spend time with God, in a quiet uninterrupted space, and talk to God about grace. If you can, find a book about grace, talk to me about grace, begin or continue the process to allow grace to retake you, remake you, and remold you. Do not let your grace be wimpy, do not relegate it to a name or an adjective. Let grace get you, let it change you, let the grace of God, make you into everything God intended for you to be. Grace is life changing and I pray it is always changes yours!
Have a grace-filled week!
But do we really understand it? Have we settled for wimpy grace? It politely occupies a phrase in a hymn,fits nicely on a church sign. Never causes trouble or demands a response. When asked, “Do you believe in grace?” who could say no?
Max Lucado asks a deeper question: Have you been changed by grace? Shaped by grace? Strengthened by grace? Emboldened by grace? Softened by grace? Snatched by the nape of your neck and shaken to your senses by grace? God’s grace has a drenching about it. A wildness about it. A white-water, riptide, turn-you-upside-downness about it. Grace comes after you. It rewires you. From insecure to God secure. From regret riddled to better-because-of-it. From afraid to die to ready to fly. Grace is the voice that calls us to change and then gives us the power to pull it off.
The above is what I have been including in my Friday Fives for the last several weeks to help describe our current Bible Study series. It is entitled Grace and it is written my Max Lucado, just like the three paragraphs above.
When I read that above description it really got me to think. I have written papers on grace, taken classes centered on grace, talked about grace with other colleagues. But did I practice a “wildness..white-water, riptide, turn-you-upside-down” type of grace in my life? Had I been changed, shaped, strengthened, emboldened, softened, and snatched by the nape of my neck by grace?
Grace is at the center of why we are United Methodists. It is one of our core tenets as a denomination. John Wesley spoke at great length about grace and he himself was greatly impacted by the grace of God. God’s grace is something that will change you from the inside out. It takes you as you are and makes you into what God created you to be. Grace is not reserved for a select few or until you understand it, grace is for everyone. Grace comes after you. It changes the way you see people, it changes the way you interact with people, it changes everything about you.
The subtitle to this series on grace by Max Lucado, is “More Than We Deserve, Greater Than We Imagine”. I want to make sure grace gets you. I encourage you this week to spend time with God, in a quiet uninterrupted space, and talk to God about grace. If you can, find a book about grace, talk to me about grace, begin or continue the process to allow grace to retake you, remake you, and remold you. Do not let your grace be wimpy, do not relegate it to a name or an adjective. Let grace get you, let it change you, let the grace of God, make you into everything God intended for you to be. Grace is life changing and I pray it is always changes yours!
Have a grace-filled week!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)