12 When you call me and come and pray to me, I will listen to you. 13 When you search for me, yes, search for me with all your heart, you will find me. Jeremiah 29: 12-13 CEV
I thought, I knew the feeling expressed on the face of the fowl when I saw the picture above on Facebook. So the next Monday in painting class, I “borrowed” the confused fowl to create a painting to hang near my laptop which is used only as needed, not daily. The laptop is often slow and frustrating. Sometimes it is difficult to remember exactly how programs operate – “if you don’t use it, you lose it” or just forget or the mode of operation changes. As my niece who is a teacher shared we use the Cloud not flash drives (which contained many of my documents and PowerPoints when teaching.)
Some things have been around for a long time and still work. Yesterday, our church celebrated Homecoming and 162 years of service to God in our community and across the world. Our speaker was Dr. Michael Brown who has published books, taught in several Divinity schools, hosted national television and radio programs, as well as preaching in many places. For three nights Dr. Brown is preaching a series: “Planning Spiritually for the Future.”
In the Sunday night message, Dr. Brown shared the importance of faith even as small as a mustard seed. If you allow God to use that small amount of faith, great things can be done for Him. He spoke about service to others, relating that small acts are important -speaking a kind positive word or doing just a small act of kindness creates relationships that allow the sharing of the Gospel. He also related what you do is between you and God and that it is important not to compare your works to the works of others but to allow God to work through you.
Reminded me of a recent quote from Richard Rohr – “People who are living from a truly God-centered place are dangerously free precisely because they are tethered at the center.”
Many things create confusion in our lives. Change is a constant in our lives. It important to put Christ at the center of our lives and follow His example as we serve others!
Continued blessings,
Roxie
Update on Lay Servant Ministries in our Sound District –
Registration is open for the advanced LSM class,
Living Our United Methodist Beliefs (United Methodist Heritage) to be held on October 29th from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm via Zoom.
The class will be led by Rev Tom Greener of St James in Greenville.