Scripture tells of Joshua being called to lead the freed Israelits to the Promised Land. Joshua declares, "As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." That commitment invites us to place not only our words, but our whole lives in God's hands — to offer ourselves in whatever way God can use us.
The God of Covenant and Commandment gave the Israelites laws so that they might live in harmony with one another. Today we still hear the call to shake off the burdens of this life, to connect to Creator and earth in a web of relationship, seeking grace and balance in all that we do.
Today is World Communion Sunday. On this Special Sunday, United Methodists join Christians around the world at the table of Holy Communion. We may speak different languages, worship in different ways, and come from different cultures and backgrounds, but the bread and cup remind us that we are one in Christ. We want to be a generous community, and today we celebrate that with our own crowded table, the Lord’s table, celebrated across time and space.
We all have been through troubles and injustice. God is not the cause, but He can make good things come out of the bad. Rev. Ron Bartlow's sermon is taken from the story of Joseph as told in Genesis 39:1-23.
The call "to go" invites us out into the unknown, which can be anxiety-producing. But if we can accept and choose a sense of adventure in that call, it changes from fearful anxiety to expectant eagerness. God called to Abram and set him on a journey, not with full clarity, but with full trust. He promised blessing, and with it, purpose.
By day or night, in fire or flood, along highway or byway, God is ever present with us. His grace continually sustains us all along our pilgrim journeys. Today, let us experience the way His presence arcs through our universe, like a rainbow hanging in the sky; a momentary illumination of His ever-present wonder. Rev. Ron Bartlow's sermon "Flood? or Promise?" is taken from the story of Noah as told in Genesis.
In September through November, our worship services follow the “narrative lectionary,” working our way through the larger story of the Old and New Testaments. Today, we reflect on stories of Creation as told in Genesis 1:1–2:4a and John 1:1-5.
The greatest challenge of any adaptive change is the change it asks of us. Jonah is an example of this, unwilling to give up his strong grip of religious nationalism or his conviction that "truth" is more important than God's compassion. But, God's love is wider than our comfort, patient with our resistance, and persistent in drawing us toward a mercy big enough for others.
God's mercy is not limited by human expectations of who deserves it. God's mercy reaches people others would write off. In the third chapter of Jonah's story, the violent, evil Ninevites repent, and God relents from bringing catastrophe upon them! Likewise, Jesus' promise of paradise to the thief on the cross illustrates God's giving, and forgiving, nature.
Today is the twelth Sunday after Pentecost. Today, Rev. Ron Bartlow continues our worship series on the Book of Jonah. God meets people not when they are composed or deserving, but when they turn honestly toward God in their need. Like Jonah, we sometimes come to God when life has left us feeling lost, overwhelmed, or far from home. This second week considers how the rituals and elements of our faith can be a resource for us during any period of change. Faith practices help us to center, to find and be calm (or "less anxious," at least) in the midst of emotional difficulties.