Category: First Steps

A political season awaits!  In a few months, there will be a bombardment of mailings, commercials, and who knows what else.  Though I hope every person will be informed and participate in the elections by voting, the political seasons normally bring out the worst in people. For this reason, consider this advice from Francis de Sales:        In the addition to a mental solitude to which you can retreat even in the middle of a crowd, learn to love actual physical solitude.  There is no need to go out into the desert.  Simply spend some quiet time alone in your room, or in a garden, or some other place.  There you can think holy thoughts or do a little spiritual reading.  One of the great bishops said, ‘I walk alone on the beach at sunset.  I use such recreation to refresh myself and shake off a little of my ordinary troubles.’        Our Lord received a glowing report from the apostles about how they had preached and what a great ministry they had done.  Then he said to them, ‘Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest’ (Mark 6:31).   When advertisements and communication turn dark, find a place of retreat, a place of solitude. There, you can shake off a little of your ordinary troubles. This Week’s Readings: *Monday – 1 Thessalonians 5 *Tuesday – 2 Thessalonians 1 *Wednesday- 2 Thessalonians 2 *Thursday -2 Thessalonians 3 *Friday- Romans 1 Prayer Requests: *Children’s safety as they participate in summer activities.  *An immediate end to the crisis in Ukraine. *Heal those who are sick and protect those who are not. *Comfort those who are grieving and in distress. *Wisdom for our leaders as they navigate through uncertain times. *Guidance for those seeking to find their way. *Continued Growth Inside and Outside the Walls of St. Paul UMC.

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done.” – Philippians 4:6

I realize social media and the perceived reality created by it are relativity new, just a few decades old.  Though social media has many assets, it has one horrible byproduct, because it creates an environment that has the potential to prey upon one’s insecurities which normally leads to bad actions that hurt others.  Social media definitely wasn’t around in the 16th or 17th Century.  However, it doesn’t mean there aren’t similarities where we can learn from our ancient brothers and sisters.  Francis de Sales wrote this in his work, The Devout Life:      If you are not under an obligation to mingle socially or entertain others in your home, remain within yourself.  Entertain yourself.  If visitors arrive or you are called out to someone for a good reason, go as one who is sent by God.  Visit your neighbor with a loving heart and a good intention.      There is great risk in visiting mean and vicious people.  It is something like exposure to rabies.  As for ordinary social gatherings, we need to be neither too careful to participate in them nor impolite in condemning them.  We can modestly do our duty.      A vine planted among olive trees produces oily grapes with tainted taste.  In the same way, a soul that is often a companion with virtuous people will absorb their good qualities.       In all of your mixing with others, be natural, sincere, and modest.  Some people annoy others with their affectations.  Some don’t speak:  they sing instead.  Some take steps and must count everyone out loud to you!  This becomes irritating.  Artificiality in social life is very disagreeable.    Here are some takeaways that are helpful for our day: 1. One doesn’t have to participate, but when one does engage others, do it as one sent from God.  Remember your witness. 2. Don’t engage mean and vicious people.  There is power in the “delete” key.  Just because someone sends a message, a text, or a video doesn’t mean anything other than they sent it.  One doesn’t have to respond. 3. Engage people that you want to be like.  We do acquire the traits of others.  Therefore, acquire the traits you really want, especially those that make you a better person. 4. Learn to be yourself.  Maturity has more to do with loving your own skin and being sincere, which means one doesn’t have to fake it. This Week’s Readings: *Monday – Matthew 28 *Tuesday – 1 Thessalonians 1 *Wednesday- 1 Thessalonians 2 *Thursday – 1 Thessalonians 3 *Friday- 1 Thessalonians 4 Prayer Requests: *Children’s safety as they participate in summer activities.  *An immediate end to the crisis in Ukraine. *Heal those who are sick and protect those who are not. *Comfort those who are grieving and in distress. *Wisdom for our leaders as they navigate through uncertain times. *Guidance for those seeking to find their way. *Continued Growth Inside and Outside the Walls of St. Paul UMC.

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done.” – Philippians 4:6

A few weeks ago, I attended the annual meeting of the conference that I belong to as a Methodist minister.  In four days, our conference conducted business, reviewed ministries, ordained new ministers, celebrated those retiring, and worshipped together.  What made this annual conference special was that this was the first time our conference had been able to hold all of it in a live format due to Covid.  This year was especially meaningful for me.  Emotionally, it was more than I expected.  I’ve been to countless worship services, business sessions, and gatherings – so many that I don’t think I could count them (all); but, after a three-year hiatus, each event has been simply more meaningful.   The most meaningful event was the memorial service where our conference remembered those who have died from one conference year to the next. Previously, due to my age, I seldom had a connection with those remembered that had gone before us. The ministers being remembered had retired long before I entered the ministry, so I never knew them; however, that is not the case anymore.  As I sat in the pew, I could recall faces, stories, and shared events of friends and colleagues that are now no longer with us.  It was sobering and emotional.   It has been my experience that in times like this, the liturgy of the church can be a foundation.  The written prayers that have sustained the test of time, spoken by the faithful throughout the years, were more than just words we prayed during the service.  They were a connection to those now celebrated.  Though I hope it is years from now, those after me will pray those same prayers when my path is finished.  I’m grateful for the great cloud of witnesses that completed their journeys and now rest from their labors.  I’m grateful that we are still connected in the mystical union that exists for all those who are in Christ.  I’m comforted by this connection.    I hope you are as well.  You don’t have to be in a memorial service to acknowledge this connection.  We are connected through the bonds of Christ.  However, worship does help, as does the liturgy:   “As we gather in this holy place, we feel God’s flowing Spirit raising our eyes towards heaven.  We feel the eternal light of the Holy One lifting the shadow of death.  We feel the fellowship of the living echoing the friendship of those gone from this world.  We come to the Author of Life, the lover of our souls, secure in our Lord’s great faithfulness and the hope that rings triumphant over the silence of the tomb.        O God of both the living and the dead, we praise your holy name for all your servants who have faithfully lived and died.  We thank you for the sacred ties that bind us to each other and to those who now encompass us in the great cloud of witnesses.  We pray that encouraged by their example, and strengthened by their fellowship, we may be diligent followers sustained in prayer, worship, witness, and service by your great faithfulness. Amen.”   This Week’s Readings: *Monday – Matthew 23 *Tuesday – Matthew 24 *Wednesday- Matthew 25 *Thursday – Matthew 26 *Friday- Matthew 27 Prayer Requests: *Children’s safety as they participate in summer activities.  *An immediate end to the crisis in Ukraine. *Heal those who are sick and protect those who are not. *Comfort those who are grieving and in distress. *Wisdom for our leaders as they navigate through uncertain times. *Guidance for those seeking to find their way. *Continued Growth Inside and Outside the Walls of St. Paul UMC.

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done.” – Philippians 4:6

When is the last time you had a lesson in patience?  Hopefully, it has been a while because those friction moments are never fun.  However, they can be useful because they test one’s metal resulting in an opportunity to grow on the inside.  This was my experience last week while traveling internationally with my family.   Normally when I travel, I like to be in control.  I realize that is a false sense of security because nothing about traveling lends itself to being in control.  Actually, it is the opposite because when one travels, one is at the mercy of many things beyond their grasp.  Because our initial international flight was delayed by 90 minutes, we missed the connecting flight to our destination.  Navigating a foreign airport where customer service isn’t a prized commodity was lesson number one.  I could either get angry and let it set the tone of the trip or realize there are some things beyond my control.  Eventually, we caught a later flight and arrived at our hotel, and it was worth the wait.    Lesson number two was a few days later when it was time to fly back to the mainland.  I mistakenly assumed that our return trip from our first flight (that we missed because of a late departure from the U.S.) was still valid.  However, because we missed the initial second leg of our arrival flights, we were automatically dropped from the return flight.  Long story short, new tickets had to be purchased for a later flight.  If that wasn’t bad enough while sitting on the tarmac, I saw my luggage, which was sitting a few feet from the plane, wasn’t loaded.  As the plane taxied away, we enquired with the flight attendant only to be told, “Don’t worry, it will be okay.”  As one would guess, it didn’t make it on the flight.  After two hours of waiting in line to file the report, my family and I made it to our hotel for the last few days of our trip.   The last few days didn’t disappoint, although those around me might argue that wearing the same clothes for about 50 hours might have created a different vibe for everyone else.   After the day’s excursion, a quick trip to a local department store remedied the clothing problem.  Eventually, the night before we were to leave, I did receive my luggage.  As I write this and I reflect on the experience and the shared memories with people I love the most, I am grateful.  We had a great time, witnessed some of the most beautiful places on earth, created some lasting memories, and arrived home safe and sound.    Nothing in this world is a guarantee.  Seldom are we in control of the things around us.  We can only control how we will respond to the events that happen.  Those events can either define a person or the person can rise above them and seize each moment for what it is…an opportunity.  Patience is always a lesson of reaction to things beyond one’s control.  Proverbs 14:17a says, “a person of quick temper acts foolishly…”. Perhaps in those uncontrollable situations, patience is the best guide.    This Week’s Readings: *Monday – Matthew 18 *Tuesday – Matthew 19 *Wednesday- Matthew 20 *Thursday – Matthew 21 *Friday- Matthew 22 Prayer Requests: *Children’s safety as they participate in summer activities away from home.  *An immediate end to the crisis in Ukraine. *Heal those who are sick and protect those who are not. *Comfort those who are grieving and in distress. *Wisdom for our leaders as they navigate through uncertain times. *Guidance for those seeking to find their way. *Continued Growth Inside and Outside the Walls of St. Paul UMC.

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done.” – Philippians 4:6

Recently I had the opportunity to address a few graduates and their families. I asked them to focus on this statement: Patterns eventually become behavior, which eventually becomes a lifestyle. What we become is the result of the patterns in our lives. Often one thinks life is determined by two or three major decisions. The idea is if one gets those decisions right, all will be well. Unfortunately, that is not the case.  It is the small daily decisions that will determine a life. The daily decisions prepare a person to make the big decisions. Both are needed. Paul encouraged Timothy by impressing upon him the importance of the small daily decisions: But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 3:14-15). The word “continue” is important—keep on doing those daily things! These are words to live by so be encouraged—it is the small daily things that create a pattern, which becomes a behavior, that eventually becomes a life.   This Week’s Readings: *Monday – Matthew 13 *Tuesday – Matthew 14 *Wednesday- Matthew 15 *Thursday – Matthew 16 *Friday- Matthew 17 Prayer Requests: *Our Confirmands and High School Graduates as they transition. *An immediate end to the crisis in Ukraine. *Heal those who are sick and protect those who are not. *Comfort those who are grieving and in distress. *Wisdom for our leaders as they navigate through uncertain times. *Guidance for those seeking to find their way. *Continued Growth Inside and Outside the Walls of St. Paul UMC.

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done.” – Philippians 4:6

Everyone longs for security.  It is a psychological human trait.  We want it for our surroundings, in our relationships, and for our futures.  When one is secure, one will move to a place of health.  When one is secure, one can focus and attend to the things that are larger than basic needs like food, shelter, and preservation.   It is not by chance that Jesus often redirected people away from the worry of basic needs, for they are already provided for us by God.  In Matthew 6, Jesus said:   25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? 28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. How interesting that we worry more about security when it is already provided for us.  Therefore, rest in him.  Listen to the urges to follow the Risen One and seek wholeness that he provides.  As we follow his path, we find fulfillment in the physical, the emotional, the spiritual, and the relational.  When we are overly concerned about security, we miss the greater blessing he desires to give.    This Week’s Readings: *Monday – Matthew 8 *Tuesday – Matthew 9 *Wednesday- Matthew 10 *Thursday – Matthew 11 *Friday- Matthew 12 Prayer Requests: *Our Confirmands and High School Graduates as they transition. *An immediate end to the crisis in Ukraine. *Heal those who are sick and protect those who are not. *Comfort those who are grieving and in distress. *Wisdom for our leaders as they navigate through uncertain times. *Guidance for those seeking to find their way. *Continued Growth Inside and Outside the Walls of St. Paul UMC.

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done.” – Philippians 4:6