My heart is filled with gratitude for the rich experience First United Methodist Church of Hurst has brought me. At the same time, sadness settled in on my soul on Saturday night as I wandered through the building ensuring that I had not left any belongings behind and remembering the ministry that had taken place…
Tag: God
Bigger than Ourselves
One of the things I absolutely love about being a United Methodist is our connectional system. Often when I meet a new person who happens to be United Methodist, we get to talking and end up having many different points of connection with different people. The comment is usually made, “What a small world!” and…
Living into the Overlap: God, People & Purpose
Over the last month, I have had the joy of spending time with an adult small group examining our church’s understanding of discipleship. Connecting with God, Connecting with People and Connecting with Purpose formed the framework for the lessons and discussions that were shared. We looked deeper into both the biblical roots for this path as…
Handprints of the Saints
I went back to FUMC Boyd today for the funeral of a dear friend named Mary. Whenever I am in that sanctuary, I am flooded with memories. Everywhere I look, I see the handprints of so many of the Saints who have gone before. Mary and my mother both loved the church and loved to…
Finding God in the Midst of Transition
In 1986, calls were made to the leadership of Cloud’s Bend United Methodist Church in Kingsport, Tennessee. It was truly a devastating day in their history. That snowy day, a few young men gained access to the church building. They piled the church pews in the corner and lit them on fire. The blaze changed…
Investment Returns
This week my fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Batte, “friended” me on Facebook. I will be honest. It made my day! She was one of my favorite teachers and I was immediately thrown back in time, remembering that classroom. It was the year that I misspelled “restaurant” in the spelling bee – a mistake I never…
Jesus Meets Mary of Magdala
Jesus met Mary of Magdala twice. The first time was before his death in the house of Simon the Pharisee. Jesus was eating with his disciples when Mary of Magdala entered the house. Mary threw herself at Jesus’ feet, wept, wiped his feet with her hair and then poured a bottle of rare and very…
A Child’s Faith
I write this as I am preparing to attend Rev. Leanne Hadley’s Holy Listening Training. I previously attended a five-day Holy Listening event a number of years ago when I was working in Children’s Ministry with Rev. Holly. Those five days confirmed what I have always believed about children and their faith. Rev. Hadley teaches that…
Sacred Family Time
At 5 and 7, my daughters know that I don’t have a “normal” job. Their mom goes to work in the morning and makes it home before dinner every Monday-Friday. For the most part, when she’s not at work, she really doesn’t have to do anything for work because at 5 p.m. the business ceases…
An Unexpected Graveyard Visit
Being a pastor married to pastor, my wife and I work hard at balancing our ministries and the variety of opportunities to serve. We are respectful of each other’s responsibilities and rarely do work related things together. This is what works best for us. However, on this day, I find myself sitting in the car at…
Wilderness Wanderings
We are moving – not churches (that I’m aware of!), just houses. I HATE MOVING! We have just started packing and it feels like it will never end. Don’t get me wrong, I am very excited about our new space and yes, it’s a great time to clean out the extra junk. I love projects…
Angry With God
Anger and sadness go hand in hand. When a tragedy occurs in our lives we often ask ourselves these kinds of questions: “For what, Lord?” Or” why me, my Lord? “. In fact, these kinds of questions are a form of reaction that reveals two failures in our way of thinking. As Christians, we always…
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