Posts Tagged ‘church’
Lectionary Scripture May 6, 2012 – Fifth Sunday of Easter
April 30, 2012Pastor’s Ponderings, Wonderings, Wanderings
April 17, 2012Jane and I attended a funeral Sunday afternoon and the funeral began with this song, Norman Greenbaum’s “Spirit in the Sky.” The video was taken from youtube and I thought it was well done. It was uploaded by “utuber423.” It has been a while since I heard this song but it sure brought back some memories. The song while not used in many funeral services is really pretty appropriate and relevant to the Christian message that you will hear when you go to most United Methodist funerals.
The funeral was ended with the Pastor singing “How Great Thou Art” and he sang it beautifully. What I received from the funeral was a picture of how the person who passed lived his life. I heard it described this way before, “with both feet on the gas wide open and when the end comes slide sideways into the grave.” This person lived his life as a friend to all and as a friend of Jesus Christ. That pretty much captures the Christian message doesn’t it. I have a friend in Jesus and He is going to recommend me to the Spirit in the Sky. I like that….
Randy
Holy Thursday – Pastor’s Ponderings, Wonderings, Wanderings
April 6, 2012
Last night at Wesley United Methodist Church we held a Holy/Maundy Thursday Service. We read from John 13:1-17, 31-35 and from 1 Corinthians 11:23-26. Read the Passion of Christ from John 18:1-19:42 and received Holy Communion.
We received Holy Communion last because we wanted the Passion of Christ to be fresh on our minds and in our hearts when we received the gift He has given us.
We are fast closing out the season of Lent. A time when we should be focusing more on Christ and less on ourselves. Remembering Jesus’ teachings about being servants to all. In Jesus’ day the lowliest of lowly jobs was to have to wash someone’s feet. The footwear of choice was a sandal of some sort and feet were usually pretty dirty. Walking around in the streets of Jerusalem was a dusty endeavor with all kinds of animal droppings and such to be dodged so it is pretty easy to understand why Jesus used such a lowly example of servant hood to example to His disciples what it meant to be a servant to others. He showed them in His washing of their feet that the love He had for them was able to go to extremes for them. Even the extreme of willingly, voluntarily giving His very own life for them. In giving His life He exampled the very depths of suffering that He would go to because He loved them (us) all so much. Such depths as being beaten, spit upon, whipped in the most cruel and punishing way to cause the most damage without causing death. Then He was paraded through the streets carrying His own Cross to be nailed to it and left to die.
Who among those you know would be willing to do that for the one’s you love! Many over the centuries have given their lives for what they believe in. They have become Martyr’s for the cause and love of Jesus Christ. That is the extreme example so what do you do in your every day life to example Jesus’ love for everyone you meet every day. That is really why He gave himself up for us. To help us think about thinking about others. How do you serve every day? What are your thought’s about people and who they are? Why do you ignore those in need? Questions we all need to dig deep down into to search our own hearts and maybe we can allow the Holy Spirit to work within us.
Have a blessed day by being the servant to the world and the one’s you love that Christ calls you to be,
Pastor Randy
Lectionary Scripture for April 8, 2012 – Easter Sunday
April 2, 2012Pastor’s Ponderings, Wanderings, Wonderings
March 20, 2012
A scene from my life in Church at St. John’s UMC in West Orange, Texas came to mind the other day and it got me to thinking. Many years ago we were having an evening worship service and during several of the songs a lady who had been visiting our church began to jump up during the song, dancing around and holding up her fingers at the mention of different names. Certain names would be represented by certain numbers. When I asked our Pastor at the time what was going on with the lady he told me that she believed in Numerology. Check out Wikipedia for a definition of Numerology.
I am not a Numerologist nor do I believe in Numerology. But I do place a lot of faith in Numbers. Numbers such as 3:16 found in the Gospel of John or 22:37-39 found in the Gospel of Matthew. There is 13:1-13 found in Paul’s 1st letter to the Corinthians or 3:1-17 found in his letter to the Colossians. There is 4:11-13 in 1 John and so many more that remind us of God’s love for each and every one of us.
So I guess you could say I believe in numbers. Those numbers that lead us into a divine relationship with our God and His Son. An individual and personal relationship that we each can find in the scriptures found in the Holy Bible and experience if we give our heart to Him.
Don’t let belief in some other way deceive you or distract you away from God’s way of love and peace in this world. There is but one way to eternal life and that is through belief in Jesus Christ as the Son of God. His Holy Spirit is here touching you right now. All you have to do is acknowledge Him and give your life to Him.
Have a blessed day,
Randy
Wesley United Methodist Church, Orange TX 