News, News

   Epworth was blessed to receive the Good News on the first Sunday of the Christmas season from the Rev. Ben Gosden, one of our own. I spoke with Ben the night before and he shared the outline of his message with me then: it sounded so good. Our family was blessed to worship at the church in Fayetteville. The same church I worked and we attended when I started seminary, where Julie and I lived after we were married, and where Sam was born. We saw friends from over a decade ago and also heard a message crafted out of the Scriptures for this Season.

   One of the songs we sang in Fayetteville repeated a refrain that can be seen on every television, handheld smart phone or tablet, and even in the folded pages of ink-laden newspaper pages. The song was “Good Christian Men Rejoice” and the line went, “give ye heed to what we say: News, news! Jesus Christ is born today!” It seemed so very relevant, since everywhere we turn around someone is proclaiming that they have the latest news.

   The front page of the Ledger-Enquirer for the past few days featured the top news stories of the past year from a host of topics: crime, courts, government, education, politics, business, baseball, hospitals, babies, and more. All week long, cable news networks and morning talk shows are also featuring the top news stories from the previous year. There is value in looking back and remembering. What stories from the news do you recall? What are you holding onto as the new year begins?

   Is all news the same? No. We know better. Just the other day, my mechanic called to say, “I have good news and I have...” Don’t laugh. That second set of news cost me a lot of money!

   Christians talk a lot about Good News. The Greek word that is translated to English as Good News in the New Testament is ԑúаүүέλıоv (euangélion) and it is gospel. We use this same word to describe the collections of stories about the life of Jesus. Put one way, every time the church leans in to hear the stories of Jesus, we are tuning into the good news.

   I am resolved to begin the year right. I want to work even harder to pay attention to the news that changed my present and influences my future. I want to give more attention to the voices that offer the best wisdom for my life. I invite you to join me in worship to do the very same thing. 
   Grace and Peace to you, Scott

Keeping Christmas

   Henry van Dyke was an American author, educator and clergyman, born in 1852 in Germantown, Pennsylvania. This poem was one handed down to my brother, cousin, and me by my grandfather, the Rev. Carlton Carruth.
   Merry Christmas to you, and may the grace and peace of Christ help us keep Christmas always.

Christians at Christmas: Prepared To Do It All Over Again

   It's the most wonderful stressful time of the year. Don't get me wrong, it is a wonderful time, but there is something about trying to get everything done before morning Christmas arrives that adds stress to this season. Television commercials, songs on the radio, classic movies, and our inaccurate memories of holidays gone by have us convinced that these days are to be exclusively filled with gathering with family, feasting on delicious meals, or singing the songs of the Season. However, those idyllic activities are often few and far between. Instead, many feel the hours pass with purchases, traffic, and deadlines.

   With all of this as the backdrop, imagine my reaction upon receiving word last week from the professor of my next course, that starts on January 5, that we were to have five different books read and four different projects completed before the start of our first class. I stared at the computer screen for a while trying to process what my eyes were telling me. In fairness to the professor, this class goes towards a graduate degree; I don't expect it to be easy. And, he did include a kind note apologizing for that this would be happening during the Christmas break. 

   Then, the faintest glimmer of hope shone upon the situation; I had already read one of the books before and it would be easy to pick it up and skim its pages to refresh my memory of its contents! As silly as it may seem, knowing that even one little part of my preparations for the class would be stuff that I already knew brought me great joy.
   It dawned on me. This mirrors the experience of the Church every year. As the four Sundays of Advent move us closer to the night that changed history, one of the last things to check off of our 'to-do' list is reading or listening to a familiar story. We remember the gist of it, but actually opening the Bible and turning to the accounts that Matthew and Luke offer takes us even deeper. We are all busy. We all have demands from outside or within that occupy our time. But, the church's annual return to these same passages is a beautiful reminder that some tasks need to be repeated. We need to read the story, again. We need to marvel at the faith of that young woman, again. We need to be inspired by the obedience of that young man, again. We need to get lost in the wonder of God's peculiar way of operating through the meek, the forgotten, and the tossed aside, again.
   My prayer for you and for me is that we would spend these last days of the Season of Advent preparing to do some things all over again. Grace and Peace, Scott

Seeing God from a Different Room

   Sister Chris greeted me at the door of the Blessed Trinity Shrine Retreat last week with a hug and a smile. She said she'd been praying her favorite Advent prayer, "Come, Lord Jesus, come," as she walked the halls of the building. The building is laid out much like a cross, with a gorgeous chapel on the north end, and three wings of residential rooms on the other three. On this morning, she pointed me in a different direction than that of the room we normally sit in when we're together every couple of months. We walked through the long eastern hallway until we reached a large porch on the end whose "floor-to-ceiling" glass windows offered a panorama of the woods and river bottoms off in the distance. It was a different perspective of creation that I'd not seen before. When I remarked at how I had never looked out that way before, she told me about the view she had last January when the winter storm that socked in the South had covered every limb and trunk with glimmering ice. Her eyes lit up, remembering how her normal view had been transformed before her eyes.
   I travel the few miles of highway out of town and, literally, through the woods in order to receive from her spiritual direction. Not having grown up with that term in my working vocabulary, I still struggle to define it when people ask what we do when she and I sit together. My best attempt is to say that we talk about life and about where God is at work. Often, I talk about where I've messed up and she, invariably, talks about where God's love and grace are shining through. We begin and end our time in prayer, and I leave encouraged and possessing next steps to travel upon as I return to the place of God's great love for me. It is Divine; God is present and active in the words spoken and unspoken.

+++   

   My trip really reminded me of how desperately our lives need Advent. How many of us go through routines that rarely allow our eyes - those in our heads and in our hearts - the chance to see the world from a different perspective? How many of us miss the beauty of the world because we stay to our familiar courses and paths? How many of us are startled to realize that some of God's very best work comes after the storm?  This is the season of anticipating what is to come.
   "Come, Lord Jesus, come." I invite you to join Sister Chris and me in praying this prayer, that our eyes might be open to the places, people, and moments of potential where God is at work around us. The Gospel of John says that Jesus came into the world "to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." Lord, let it be for me.
   Grace and Peace to you, Scott

The Human Software Problem

   Janie and Conover were witnesses to my troubles. They were in the office this week when I went missing. I wasn’t really missing, I just could not be found. The root cause of the problem was my smart phone; it was not delivering text messages.On Monday, at least three different people sent texts to me that I did not receive. There could have been more, but I wouldn’t know!

   I first discovered this little glitch earlier this year when I never heard back from another local preacher about our scheduled lunch meeting. When I called him he told me he had never received my message. I’ve updated my phone and it does not happen all the time, but sometimes text messages that are properly sent simply do not go through. The best I can deduce is that there is some sort of glitch between my cell phone carrier and the operating system of my phone. It is a software problem. 

   Our human condition could be likened to a software glitch. It is not in our design, mind you. The Psalmist declares God is to be praised because we have been fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). God is great at creating things and we are at the very top of his created order (Genesis 1:26-31). The problem found in humanity - which people of faith have referred to as ‘sin’ for a couple of thousand years - is not in our original design. It is something we have done to ourselves. We have created the software glitch. We have taken the freedom that God has given us and twisted, perverted, and abused each other, our world, and even our understanding of God. To top it all off, we often miss out on the very messages God is sending us because we are too busy, too tired, too arrogant, or too dense! God is still speaking, but like my cell phone, we are not receiving God’s messages.

   I am so thankful for Advent. The church has just entered the season of preparing and waiting. It is the reminder that we are in need of a Savior. Hear the truth for you and for me in this Advent lyric:

O come, O come, Emmanuel, And ransom captive Israel,

That mourns in lonely exile here Until the Son of God appear.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Wisdom from on high, Who orderest all things mightily;

To us the path of knowledge show, And teach us in her ways to go. 

     (Author Unknown, 12th century)

   Lord, come that we might be saved. Grace and Peace, Scott

Thankful for Names and the Lives They Represent

   How many times do you write your name in a week? In a life? Who else is writing our names down? Think about it. The examples seem endless. Yet, how many of those instances endure beyond our lives?
   Psalm 69 is the first reference in the Scriptures to the Book of Life. Paul, himself an Jewish scholar and teacher, refers to women and men he has worked alongside in his letter to the Philippians whose names will be included in this list. And, of course, the Book of Revelation is the place where the Book of Life is most often named. Seven references there help make clear how firmly the early church was convinced that God is keeping a list of names. In every case, it is a list on which faithful people want to be included.
   I was thinking about names and lists on Sunday afternoon, after seeing Walter Champagne honor Jimmy Bridges as the 2014 Lonnie Whitehurst Man of the Year recipient. I was thinking how his name joined the faithful workers who have come before him. It prompted me to return to the wall where they are honored and spend a few moments appreciating them. Here they are, for you to appreciate, too:
Lonnie Whitehurst, Bobby Clark, Eddie Reid, Wesley Crews, Lem Sawyer, Earl Haynes, Bob Thompson, Jim Carter, Judson Mullican, Glenn Griffin, Dick Stallings, Bill Hughes, James Johnson, Carroll Ward, Frank Littlefield, Tom Patrick, Gene Frantz, Buddy Dunn, Wayne Morris, Tommy Mayton, Harold Morris, Steve Sawyer, Gary Ledbetter, Bill Pharris, Jerry Brown, Mike Morris, Ron Weese, Ted Bush, Walter Champagne, James Waters, Shawn Jandreau and now Jimmy Bridges. I am grateful for them.
   I pray that this week that starts a season of holidays and celebrations is good. We have much for which to be thankful and celebrate. I pray that the people you gather with, and the names you remember and cherish, will spur you on to faithfulness and a life that pursues God's love. Grace and Peace, Scott

Do Worry What People Think (and See)

   There is merit in the adage that we are not to worry about what other people think. Life should not be measured by popularity, or public opinion. There is more to life than getting so-and-so to like us. Paul says in Ephesians 4 that we are not to be blown around by the efforts of other people.
   And yet, there is something to be said for what people see in us. Specifically, a fundamental tenet of classical Christianity is the witness that our lives give to our beliefs. How do our actions support the claims we make with our hearts? Jesus says of his own ministry, "For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you," (John 13). He came to be an example and we are to be examples, too.
   All of this was stirred up on Monday, when I found an offering envelope in front of the church, surely where it landed when boys hit the front doors after worship to spend a few precious moments throwing the ball in our church's front yard. First thinking it was trash, I soon discovered the hidden treasure sketched on the back. It is the family tree that Carter drew. His parents confirmed the hunch I had based on the fact that he was listed first, before all of his siblings. My eyes were immediately drawn to his representation of his parents, Kelli and Stacey. He showed them holding hands.

   I love this. There is no better witness to a child by their parents than the image that you love your spouse. I love this.
   How do people see you? How would those closest to you draw you? What actions or emotions have you left in their minds and their hearts?
   One of the core values of our congregation, spoken into reality through our Vision Team earlier this year, is that Epworth is real people. What you see is what you get. People are watching and our responsibility is to set an example for other believers and even those outside the church of who we are and what we believe. What better time than December to show people what we stand for? Our witness is in our attendance, our speech, our giving, and our Spirit.
   Grace and Peace to you, Scott

I Don't Know Anything

   The English proverb suggests, "Good things come to those who wait." This week, Epworth received approval from the City of Columbus to move forward in the new construction of a storage room that will adjoin the Fellowship Hall, as well as with renovations to the Fellowship Hall. ROCON had done as much as they could in preparing the walls, duct-work, floors, and electrical fixtures up to the point that the first inspections would take place and allow the work of putting things back in place could begin. The progress inside and outside will pick up quickly now that the permit is approved and on site. Good things are going to come quickly!
   I've learned so very much throughout the previous ten months that Epworth has been engaged in renovations. From fire and building codes that keep us safe, to energy-efficient light fixtures, and the latest HVAC units that heat and cool spaces for a fraction of the cost of previous designs, it has been a fascinating journey for someone who likes to learn new things. Glenn Griffin (architect), Andy Rolling (contractor) and Laura Jane Murphy (city inspector) are just three of the countless folks who passed through our hallways offering both knowledge and care to our congregation's buildings and future.

   The most recent lesson was a refresher in a course I've had many times before. It came as I stood behind a giant concrete truck - someone told me that when full they weigh 67,000 lbs - and watched a crew of workers spread and smooth the perfect combination of rock, water and chemicals into trenches that had been perfectly dug, measured, covered and then reinforced. I was struck: I would not have a clue how to do this correctly! For as much as I have learned over the years from my grandfather in his shop, from the mission teams from Albany First UMC along the hurricane-damaged coast, and recently with Riley Middleton on one project after another, I don't know anything about pouring concrete to create a new room. Thankfully, I don't have to!
    One of the greatest and most beautiful truths of the church is that we are not in this alone. Romans 12 tells us our team is like the body of Christ, Ephesians 4 tells us that each has been given various gifts for ministry, and Hebrews 12 reminds us that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. And 1 Corinthians 3 proclaims that underneath it all is the perfectly poured foundation of Jesus Christ which the hymn-writer Samuel Stone turned into the tune in 1866 that even now sings in my heart, "The Church's one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord...."
   May the grace and peace of Jesus, upon whom our salvation is built, be with you! Scott

Jesus Wants More and Less from Me and You

   It is November. The Methodist Men will soon be tempting is with selling delicious desserts for the holiday week. Thanksgiving is drawing closer. People are supposed to be thankful - the calendar and the Hallmark company say so. But, why is gratitude something that needs to be scheduled? Brene' Brown, one of my current favorite authors, shared this passage from one of her favorite authors.

“For me, and for many of us, our first waking thought of the day is "I didn't get enough sleep." The next one is "I don't have enough time." Whether true or not, that thought of not enough occurs to us automatically before we even think to question or examine it. We spend most of the hours and the days of our lives hearing, explaining, complaining, or worrying about what we don't have enough. We don't have enough exercise. We don't have enough work. We don't have enough profits. We don't have enough power. We don't have enough wilderness. We don't have enough weekends. Of course, we don't have enough money - ever. We're not thin enough, we're not smart enough, we're not pretty enough or fit enough or educated enough or successful enough, or rich enough - ever. Before we even sit up in bed, before our feet touch the floor, we're already inadequate, already behind, already losing, already lacking something. And by the time we go to bed at night, our minds are racing with a litany of what we didn't get, or didn't get done, that day. We go to sleep burdened by those thoughts and wake up to that reverie of lack. This internal condition of scarcity, this mind-set of scarcity, lives at the very heart of our jealousies, our greed, our prejudice, and our arguments with life” 

- Lynne Twist, The Soul of Money, 2003

Does this speak to you? It does to me!
   Brown goes on to connect this hunger for more joy with our lack of gratitude. We want because we don't recognize what we already have. We bought the lie that abundance can be measured and have shunned the notion that sufficient is okay. We have the power to claim the truth: "We have a sufficient amount. We have enough."
   It was Marianne Williamson who said, "Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are." In John's Gospel, Jesus explained his ministry and teachings to the disciples this way: "I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!" He was not promising an abundance of anything that could be purchased, sold, touched, or even seen. He was promising the very thing that defines everything else: joy.
   Jesus wants more from me and from you. At the same time, Jesus is perfectly fine with us having less of some things: worry, shame, regret, and the weight of scarcity around our necks.
   Grace and Peace, Scott

I'm Having Trouble Praying

Read and pray daily.

It is for your life;

There is no other way:

Else you will be a trifler

All your days.

                                    - Rev. John Wesley

   I don't know many people who would argue with Wesley on his opening admonition. We are supposed to read and pray, daily. Such habits shape our life for the good. It is his use of the word 'trifler' that has me pondering my own situation.
   I have been struggling to maintain a regular prayer life. I do pray every day, mind you, but am not sitting regularly in one place and engaging all of myself in the task. My prayers lately have come in between the other stuff. Lately, the other stuff has piled up above eye-level, or so it seems.
   I have been working on some important things. I very rarely attend a meeting that is not worthwhile. I never make a visit to a home or hospital without sensing the presence of God. The sermons for the past two months have spanned the scriptures and (most weeks) offered the Word of God in forms that are relevant to where people are in their own lives. The construction work throughout the church looks great. The furnishings in the Children's Wing have created a place for children to learn and grow in the very best stuff of life. How could anyone call this trifling work?
   Yet, I know Wesley is right. All of my efforts are empty offerings compared to the gift of my heart to the One who made me. God does not delight in a completed To-Do list. God delights in my desire to hear and know Him. Steve Harper writes in A Pocket Guide to Prayer, "God gives each of us the same amount of time. The difference comes in how we understand and make use of the gift. Time must be organized and managed, but it also must be consecrated.... Sacred time provides the space for the work of the heart and the actions of the hands."
   I am praying that my prayers happen with more intention. I am praying that I don't trifle away my days and weeks and more with tasks that are accomplished without first sitting to listen for God's leading in all of it. I pray that I would know God loves me for me and not for what I produce.
   And, I pray all of this for you, too. Grace and Peace, Scott

Trash and Treasure

   I was ushered into a paradise hidden within the bounds of Columbus this week. I was on the hunt for something specific and a man, who only offered Billy as his name, opened the lock that secured the gate, behind which acres of potential waited for discovery. I was about as far south on 10th Avenue as you can travel and had inquired about some used metal roofing from EJ Knight's scrap yard. That is when he pointed me across the street to go scavenging. It was like a scene from a Hollywood - the kind where the innocent guy stumbles upon a body or becomes one. It was awesome back there.
   I spent thirty minutes, alone, perusing the items that other people had offered up as being no use to them. I had a revelation standing there in middle of all of it: every bit of this was the part of a project, or a plan, or even a dream. Every item was intended for use somewhere else but had now landed in small piles that are spread across this fenced-off yard.
   Some of it can still be captured as treasure. Most of it would accurately be described as trash. Either way, none of it was originally intended to end up there.

---

   I don't think the church is really anything like the lot on the corner of 10th Avenue and 5th Street. But, I started to think about the church as I was there. Specifically, I was thinking about how grand Epworth is, both the place and the people. I was reflecting on what we will do this weekend on Consecration Sunday. Each commitment card becomes our individual response to the work of God in our lives. The very act of submitting one, in some ways, is an indication of our faith in God that we will have enough leftover to provide for our needs and the needs of the others who count on us. But, God is also at work. God takes our offerings and redeems them. God takes our individual amounts, some small and some large, and brings them together to do a greater work. The ministry of Epworth is advanced by the faith of her people and the work of God.
    I struggled this week to capture the past year of ministry in the letters that went out this week. From buildings, to baptisms, we've had an amazing year. We have provided pastoral care, nursing home visits, discipleship opportunities, and countless other ministries in the church. We have renovated the hallways, doubled our available parking spaces, built a Children’s Wing that is state of the art, and are in the midst of making the Fellowship Hall first class. We have served people in Columbus and other continents. All of this happens because people give.
   I want to be used, as long as I can, for my created purpose: to be loved by God and to reflect that love to others. Epworth is filled with people are living and giving for that purpose, as well.
   Grace and peace, Scott

The Ebola Crisis: Stop, Check Your Pulse, Think

   The Ebola crisis is now front-page news every day. As of this week, 4,995 cases and 2,729 deaths have been confirmed through laboratory testing, though the World Health Organization believes that this substantially understates the magnitude of the outbreak. One expert believes that there could be as many as 10,000 new Ebola cases per week by December 2014. How are we to respond? 

   First, let’s get clear on the facts. Ebola is not the beginning of a zombie apocalypse. (I am not kidding, people I know have repeated that to me.) However, it is serious and deadly. This outbreak started last December in Guinea, but Ebola was first identified in 1979. Symptoms start with a fever, sore throat, muscle pain and headaches. Typically, vomiting, diarrhea and rash follow, along with decreased function of the liver and kidneys. Some patients begin to hemorrhage, also, and death is occurring around 50% of the time. No specific treatment for the disease is yet available (information from wikipedia.org). All of this is stark, considering we know that Ebola has spread to two people in the past week in the US. The Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention admitted on Tuesday that they failed to do all they should have done to prevent Ebola from spreading in Texas. Agency Director Tom Frieden says, “Ebola is unfamiliar. It’s scary, and getting it right is really, really important because the stakes are so high,” adding that he wishes the CDC had done more from the beginning to train the hospital staff (from the Associated Press).

   Second, let’s stop doing harm. I have been praying for the people affected by Ebola, patients, families and healthcare workers, since June. We all need to pray more and panic less. It should go without saying that gossip and spreading half-truths in this crisis is the opposite of helpful. 

   I came across a post from a friend of mine that captured my hopes so beautifully. Leah Leslie was a Sunday School teacher, the mother of youth, and my co-teacher in Confirmation classes in Fayetteville. She is also a nurse. She wrote this earlier this week:

So in 1979, I had been a nurse for 1 year and heard about a terrible virus that killed homosexual men. Soon, we found that the facts were not correct and fear among healthcare providers was rampant. Nurses refused to take care of patients, and some died alone in their rooms... we had little information so we became hysterical and acted without compassion and reason. It’s easy to be brave about HIV now- we know more. But now almost 35 years later we are again walking in fear. It’s a different virus, but I recognize the same fear. Is fear unreasonable, no, but let’s use it in a different way. Let’s learn from the past, Let’s not act hysterically, Let’s not behave without compassion, Let’s remember to ask questions regarding exposure and travel histories, Let’s isolate appropriately, Let’s use appropriate Personal Protective Equipment, Let’s put on and take off PPE with meticulous attention to detail. Let’s communicate appropriately, Remember, it is the job of the media to excite and sensationalize. Let’s make sure our sources are evidence based. We will be less stressed and our patients will be better cared for. Let’s be an instrument of peace and comfort- not of chaos and fear. Remember the first rule of any emergency is: Stop, check your pulse and then Think.

   Leah’s words of calm, written to any who would hear, apply beyond the world of those who practice medicine. We, who practice faith, should stop, check our pulse, and think in order that we are spreading love and not fear. Grace and Peace, Scott

Our Little Corner

   I was blessed to stand in a crowd of family, friends and enlisted soldiers and commissioned officers a week ago to see Kris Farrar pinned with the two bars signifying his promotion to the rank of Captain in the United States Army. It was great to see Nicole and their two boys standing proudly with Kris for the brief, but meaningful, ceremony.
   Two of Kris' supervising officers spoke of his excellence in leadership. They gave specific instances of how his work has served the mission of the infantry training unit that Kris helps to run and how all of their work there serves the larger mission of the entire Department of Defense. I love the way our military is able to connect specific actions and the people who carry them out with the greater mission that each has signed up for. In the middle of the ceremony, the commanding officer offered a few words of inspiration to every soldier who was present. He said,

We are each responsible for our little corner of the Army. - Lieutenant Colonel Jim Pangelinan

He went on to say that every one of them oversees their part of what is happening to advance the mission and every one has the ability to expand what they are doing for the good of the cause.
   My mind raced. As the son of a retired military officer, my father was in the Coast Guard Reserve for thirty years, I knew this to be true. I also delight in the close friendships I have with current officers in the Air Force, Army and Navy. His statement resonated with what I know of each of their work and service, but I could not help but think that the truth he had so eloquently captured with a few words was applicable far beyond military service.
   We are each responsible for our little corner of God's Kingdom. God has chosen to order the world in such a way that we are called to be partners in God's work.
   Paul, an early Christian leader who helped start churches and wrote about the mission of the people of God, described the Church's responsibility as "the ministry of reconciliation" because "God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself" (2 Corinthians:5:18-19). God's ultimate purpose is to reconcile - bring back and make right - all people to Himself. The Church plays an important role in achieving this mission. We are called to live (by deed and word) in such a way that we point to the very heart of God's love for the world - which is Jesus Christ crucified that we might have life.
   The mission of Epworth is to connect and equip all kinds of people to seek, serve and share Christ. How am I helping achieve this mission? How am I doing with my little corner of the Kingdom?
   Grace and Peace, Scott

The Same and Different

Everett

   A week ago, I held Everett Bates Carpenter in my arms about 20 hours after he was born. He came into the world weighing over 10 pounds. He is the second son of Bryan and Sydney, regular visitors to our church while Bryan is training at Fort Benning. Sydney is also my wife's second cousin!

Kirk and Henry

   This Monday, I was so thrilled to hold Henry Carlton Hagan about 3 hours after he was born. He is the second child born to my brother, Kirk, and sister-in-law, Robin. Henry was born in Dublin, the closest hospital to Wrightsville, where my brother serves as the United Methodist pastor. Little Henry weighed a little over 6 pounds when he was born.
   I was amazed, standing there holding my nephew, at how little he is. Not just because he was just born, but because I had held another, heavier, newborn the previous week. We all come into the world in our own, unique form. We are different.

   We are the same. That was Ellen Murkison's opening message to our congregation on Sunday as she set out to capture the work and grace of God through the retelling of their family's amazing story of life over death. When Ellen said, "We are regular people," I could sense every person lean in. [You can still purchase copies of her book, Prayers from Fiji, on Amazon.com.] Her message resonated with what we believe about Epworth. I continue to be amazed at how God has been preparing our next steps as a church through the work of our Vision Team earlier this year. Who knew then that our first core value, seen here, would be lived out in that very moment?

Epworth’s Missional Motives - Why We Do What We Do

• We are real people.

• We welcome all God's children. 

• We love what we do.

• We seek Jesus in all we do.

• We serve to make the world better.

We all want to connect with people who are real. On Tuesday of this week, Glenn Griffin stopped me out front to say a word of appreciation for Ellen's message. He said, "We all need to be reminded of good stories and God's work." Amen to that.

   We come into the world in different shapes, sizes, and colors. Soon enough, though, all of our stories come together to share many things in common: heartache, loss, triumph, betrayal, trauma, joy, delight, and connection. Epworth is filled with people who are different and the same. The greatest story of all, though, is the love of God for all of us. We are loved and saved back from the brink of destruction by the most powerful force in the universe: God's love.
   Beautiful, saved, loved people - that is what we are becoming. Grace and Peace to you, Scott

A Theology of Telling the Truth and Inspiring Hope

   My parents were the first to share with me the devastating news by telephone: the family of one of my high school friends had been involved in a serious car accident while back home visiting Statesboro and his two children were critically injured. We learned that they had been rushed by helicopter to a hospital in Savannah and we should begin praying for all of them. Conversations like that, updates on Facebook and, later, the CaringBridge.org site became a norm for the family and friends of David and Ellen Murkison in December 2011. We were praying for the health of their sons and, soon, for miracles to happen.
   The Murkisons will be with us this Sunday morning to share some of their story. I've been reading the book that Ellen has published this year and I must say, it is powerful. She is a really gifted writer, but there is something more going on than the retelling of a powerful story: Ellen is a theologian. It is not a title she would probably readily claim, based on her own words. She says as much to start the third section of the book, Prayers from Fiji,

I have no theological background, but I am person of faith. By writing this book, I am trying to follow what I believe is God's plan for me, namely to give others hope by sharing the extraordinary events of Brian's recovery. It would be a somewhat safer venture if I were to stop at this point to just let the events themselves be the story. Yet, I have heard a voice in my head saying to write on. [What follows]... are reflections on my journey through this experience from a faith-based perspective, and I humbly offer them up, flawed and imperfect as they are, from my heart and as honestly relayed as I can. (page 113)

I love her humility. She wants us to know that she does not have a theology degree in her past, but I cannot help declaring that what she is sharing is her own claim to a theological present. Ellen writes from a theology of 'this is what happened.' Like the Gospel writers of the New Testament, she writes about what she knows. She goes on to share the truth, as her family has lived through it, in sections about faith in the unknown, perseverance, community, forgiveness and gratitude. She writes openly about the Holy Spirit and the presence of God. I cannot wait to hear from them in person this Sunday at 9 AM and 11 AM in worship.
   We don't need more theology degrees in the church. We do need people to live into their calling to be theologians. We each possess the essential qualities needed: senses to be aware of what is happening around us and tools to share what we have seen and are experiencing. Here is what I know: the world is desperate to hear, from real people, a message of what God is doing in the world. We can inspire hope by simply telling the truth of what God is doing.
   Grace and Peace, Scott

God loves you. Your church does, too.

Receive the Word of God. Learn its stories and study its words. 

Its stories belong to us all, and these words speak to us all. 

They tell us who we are. They tell us that we belong to Christ 

and to one another, for we are all people of God.

   As they prepared to receive their Bibles and the prayer throws made for them by the hands of our Prayer Shawl Ministry volunteers, these were the words that Kelley Conkle read to Ema, Emma, Carter and Davis, the rising third graders who stood before the congregation on Sunday. The faces of these four young people beamed with pride as they received these gifts and the attention of standing in front of everyone. I then made an attempt to capture all of this. I said,

God loves you. Your church does, too.

   I made it to the parking lot after worship before the magnitude of that moment began to sink in further. What a privilege to speak to young people in such precious moments. What an honor to be a small part of what God is doing through the hundreds of family, teachers, counselors, coaches, doctors, nurses, and volunteers who have helped these young people to make it this far. Of course, we know they have further to go. The world is complicated and amazing and terrible and beautiful and sad. They know some of that now and will know more of that later. But, throughout, these two truths do not change; God loves them and so does this church.

Epworth's Sanctuary in April 1963

   Epworth has a long history of shining the love and light of God into the lives of children and adults. It started with families gathering in a home on Rosemont Avenue, continued with months of meeting at Sherwood Methodist Church, and has continued these 51 years that we worshiped here on Devonshire Drive. Our Homecoming preacher, the Rev. Dr. Rick Mitchell, is a part of our great history. He served here for three years, including the time that the Hamp Stevens Memorial UMC congregation merged with Epworth. That merger helped make possible the amazing renovations and updates that our building and parking have seen this year.
   Epworth has a good history. We gather to celebrate the God who makes history worthwhile. We gather to embrace the present that we are called to help transform. We gather to claim and proclaim a future overseen by the sovereign God of the universe that loves us. To that, we can all say, Amen.

Home Depot (and the World) Leave us Exposed

   The good people at the Home Depot headquarters in Atlanta confirmed on Monday that its computer systems were hacked into and that everyone who made purchases in stores since April of this year possibly had their card number and information stolen. This includes me and probably many of you. While it is not yet known how many consumers were affected by the breach, this story follows others just like it from Neiman Marcus, P.F. Chang’s, and Target. The Target crime affected some 70 million customers and has so far cost the company $146 million, according to the Washington Post.
   Clark Howard is an Atlanta celebrity and expert in the world of finance and common-sense living. He writes extensively on things you should know and do when it comes to protecting your accounts and your credit. Here are summaries of five of those things:

1. Expect news of more breaches for the next 2 years - It will take at least that long for US banks to make the switch, which they could have done decades ago, to a safer process for cards. The retailers (Target, Home Depot, or anybody else) are not at fault here. The blame lies with the banks.
2. Know the difference between debit vs. credit cards - Debit cards don't have the normal protections under federal law offered by a credit card. With a breached debit card, you have only 2 days after you notice that money is gone from your account, or else your liability rises to $500 or beyond.
3. Watch your bank statements carefully - Go through your credit card and debit card statements this month and next month with a fine tooth comb. Identify any false charges and dispute them immediately with your bank or credit card company.
4. Be on the lookout for email or phone scams - Be wary of anyone calling or emailing you trying to impersonate a breached retailer or your bank. When in doubt, hang up the phone or close out the email. Then call your bank or visit the merchant website to verify the legitimacy of the request.
5. Limit the risks from debit cards by setting up a separate account - Customers who use debit cards are hit hardest by any breach. If you wish to continue using debit in the future, be sure you tie it into a separate account that's only used for debit transactions. You can read more of all of this on his website, clarkhoward.com.

I especially like what Howard says first; expect that breaches will continue to happen. The truth is, the moment we choose to engage in the world we put ourselves at risk. This risk goes far beyond swiping our cards. We risk our bodies, our feelings, our hopes, our spirits, our closest relationships, and the list goes on. Jesus finishes a parable in Luke 19 with this line, "'The person that uses what he has will get more. But the person that does not use what he has will have everything taken away from him." Risk is necessary.  People who are overly concerned about security and consistency are likely to miss amazing opportunities that present themselves in our path. To be a disciple of Jesus is to take risks - but when it comes to your bank account, take some protections, too.

   Grace and Peace, Scott

I Did Not See It Coming

   I ask a lot of questions. I hope some of that springs from a sense of wonder that I have for the world. I hope some of my questions come from a recognition that I don't know all of the answers. Of course, I sometimes ask questions for other reasons. I like asking questions when I am teaching in order to elicit the answers from the people I am with. I think teaching often happens best when more than one person is doing the talking.
   You already know that when I ask questions of the children sitting around me during the Children's Sermon, all bets are off as to what they might say. There is no telling. Art Linkletter (and later Bill Cosby) had it right, "Kids say the darnedest things."
   My most recent experience with an answer I did not see coming happened this week in our adult Bible Study, however. We've had great groups of people attend on Tuesday evenings and on Wednesday mornings. Our topic this week was worship. Worship appears as the W within the framework of Epworth's Missional Measures - the way we know we are succeeded in our purpose - GLOWS. The question I asked was simple: "What words come to mind when you think about the history of worship?" Buddy Dunn spoke up and said, Pagan.
   I did not see that coming. I should have. It was brilliant.
   Just like that, in an instant, his answer gave the feeble lesson I was embarking on a new level of depth I could not have imagined. In another way, he pointed all of us to the very target I had in my notes for us to arrive at an hour later. He did it with a word I did not see coming.
   You had to be there to experience just how perfect a word it was. If I were to summarize it, I would say that recognizing the role that pagan worship has played, as the alternative to the Judeo-Christian worship outlined in the Old and New Testaments of the Bible, really captures so much of what should be said on the topic. From the first offerings made by Cain and Abel, to the first altar built by Noah, to the "best theological conversation ever" about worship held between Jesus and a Samaritan woman at a well, our worship of the One True God runs counter to the pagan worship of the little gods of the world. We worship a true God who reigns above the silly, smaller gods that the world props up.
   Buddy's answer out of nowhere is how God often works. Answers are delivered when we think we already know it all. Solutions are found in precisely the place we were not looking. The word given is nothing like what we expect, but soon our vision adjusts and it makes perfect sense. Which is why our worship - keeping our eyes open to the glory of God in our midst - cannot be limited to one hour, one place, or one morning. God is at work all around us. We gather weekly as the people of God to reconnect with these very truths.
   May we have the faith to be ready for whatever next God-thing we don't see coming! Grace and peace, Scott

Epworth connects and equips all kinds of people to seek, serve, and share Christ

   Our mission statement, developed by the group of eleven on the Vision Team earlier this year, captures God's unique call on our church in the present. In many ways, our Mission also picks up the history of so much of what Epworth has been about since it was founded in 1960. It also, in a beautiful way, speaks to the legacy of the Hamp Stevens Memorial UMC congregation that was formed over a century ago, whose members now call Epworth home after our merger in 2006.
   I am already getting excited about some great moments, that will help to connect and equip us, coming up in our near future.

   At Homecoming, on Sunday, September 21, we will welcome back a beloved preacher from our recent past, the Rev. Dr. Rick Mitchell. Rick and his family moved to begin serving Epworth in June of 2004. Over his years of service, both he and Deb have served great churches in South Georgia. Currently he pastors the Eastman UMC church and Deb is pastor at Shelton Chapel and Dodges Chapel UMC's. Rick embodies our belief that Epworth GLOWS, for he is a person of character who gives God first place. Of course, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that Homecoming is more than just the preaching. We will also celebrate our past and lean forward into our future through the help of music, great old photographs, and finally a covered dish meal that is simply the best there is anywhere.
   A week later, on Sunday, September 28, we will welcome the Murkisons to worship with us. Ellen and David, along with their sons Ben and Brian, have lived through the nightmare of a traumatic crash that led them through what Psalm 23 calls the valley of the shadow of death. Yet, their story includes faith and compassion, hope and healing, and ultimately a glimpse into the mystery and power of prayer. Ellen has written a book about the chapter of their lives that began with a car accident in December 2011. It is titled, Prayers from Fiji. I have loved getting started with it, and cannot wait to read the rest. While you won't have to have read the book to appreciate their story, many of us will want to get a copy to be encouraged by God's work. Our church website features links from the homepage to easy ways you can get paperback copies or even the Kindle version.
   The rest of the fall will also bring exciting and important moments. In mid-October, we will start the last of our four major renovation projects for 2014, with the Fellowship Hall Project. Thanks to the leadership of our Building Committee, the guidance of Glenn Griffin, and the work of Andy Rolling and ROCON construction, the interior of our church already looks vastly different than it did just eight months ago. On Sunday, October 26, we will have the official Open House for our Children's Ministry Area following the renovation work that is happening right now. On that day, we will also celebrate Consecration Sunday, and commit to keep growing and extending the ways god is working not just through our finances, but also our faith in Him.
   It is great to call Epworth home. It is great to have a clear sense of mission and calling. May we celebrate what God is doing in our lives. Grace and Peace, Scott

Ferguson

   The year is 1965. A white police officer arrests a young African-American man, driving drunk at the time, and his mother, violent and mad at her son for driving drunk. The events that would follow in Watts, a neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, left 34 dead, 1,032 people injured, and 600 buildings damaged or destroyed. When you go back and read the account from those who were first on the scene, the riots themselves had little to do with the initial incident.
   Here we are, nearly forty years later. On Saturday, August 9, 2014, an unarmed 18-year-old African-American male, Michael Brown, was fatally shot by Darren Wilson, a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. Since then there have been conflicts, protects, speeches, investigations, autopsies, and news coverage. The nation has been drawn into this affairs of this little community.
   Let's talk about Ferguson, then talk about one of central problems of our world and our lives. Here is how I summarize it, painting the story quickly and with the broadest of strokes:
A - A crime is committed in a convenience store when Brown steals cigars and pushes the owner around. Soon after, Brown is dead. All of the evidence is not in yet to determine if his death is also a crime, or within the bounds of the law. Either way, it is a tragedy.
B - The community mourns the death of their child. Too many children die from tragedies. It is sad. The community is partly reacting to their own beliefs that this local police department acts outside the bounds of ethics and the law, and that race is a part of this pattern. They take to the streets.
C - Criminals, interlopers, and looters from outside of this St. Louis suburb descend. They arrive to create havoc. They succeed. They are soon followed by cameramen, news anchors, community organizers, and television personalities.
   I recall a little quip from our childhood that said, "This is an A - B conversation, and you can C your way out." For me, the tragedy and drama associated with the crime and subsequent protests and criminal activity resemble this silly children's line. Too often, a third party inserts themselves into something for purposes that are not positive. Of course, I know you've probably never looted or thrown flaming bottles at police officers. Have you ever gossipped? Have you ever gotten involved just to stir things up? Have you ever taken sides out of spite, or anger, or meanness?
   My mom was in Watts that summer of 1965. She was there as a college student serving within a group of young adult Methodists as US missionaries. She roomed with an African-American woman of the same age, and remembers experiencing for the first time racism through this new friend she made. They were there as outsiders, but their purpose was for good. Can the same be said of our purposes for getting involved?
   God's heart breaks for the family of Michael Brown. Ours should, too. They should also break for every child that dies at the hands of any gun for any reason. And for every police officer put into such a terrible position. And for our nation, as it still wrestles with it's own terrible past about what it means to be white and black. But, before we rush into the next A - B conversation or situation, let's ask, "What is our purpose for being there?"
   The Apostle Paul says in Romans 12, "Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all."
   May Grace and real peace be with us all, Scott

Content Suitable for Children and Adults

Like you, I was shocked to learn this week of the passing of Robin Williams at his home in California. As with every loss, our prayers go out to the family left behind. Specifically, we pray that they would know the peace of God, would experience God's presence that comforts, and would soon find a growing sense of celebration in the life he lived to take the place of hurt and loss they are feeling now.

Many of us have been watching Robin Williams for decades. I grew up watching Mork and Mindy, where he got his start on screen and played the role of an alien come to Earth. He was wacky, startling, brilliant, quick, and could stop the audience in a moment with his talent. That was just the beginning. How many of us include scenes from his movies as some of the most moving, poignant, and excellent that Hollywood has ever produced? For me, Dead Poets Society, Good Morning Vietnam, and Good Will Hunting are classics. And that list does not even mention Mrs. Doubtfire, Patch Adams, or Awakenings. 

Of course, not every one of these is suitable for children. Like his standup routines, some of the language is crude and some of the content is too edgy. But, when he was at his best, Robin Williams was so authentic and sharp that the lessons and emotions that pour forth from his characters translate across ages, across time, and across society. A life that is lived with transparency and humor crosses all boundaries. It draws us in. Like truth, such life is to be cherished when we encounter it. 

I had a similar epiphany this week in worship after I sat down following the sermon. Margaret and Kathryn, both in the choir and both volunteers as Sunday School teachers in our Children's Ministry, leaned over to tell me that they used the same scripture verses - Romans 13 and 2 Peter 1 - for their lesson on respect, an hour earlier. For a moment, we marveled together at the serendipity of such an occurrence. I was reminded that the truths of God's Word are suitable and needed by children and adults. We all need to be reading and studying the Bible. We all need to encounter lessons that remind us of the best possible life - living in response to the goodness and grace of God in our world. Jesus came that we might see that way of living in the flesh. 

May we all pursue such a life and celebrate those around us who are living it in our midst. Grace and peace be with you, Scott

Correct Me Please, I am Still Learning

   Are we still learning? Are we open to guidance? To direction?
   John Wesley, the founder of Methodism in the 1700s, once wrote about this very subject. He knew that some, from time to time, disagreed with him. To this he said, "I trust, wherever I have been mistaken, that my mind is still open to conviction. I sincerely desire to be better informed. I say to God and man, "What I do know, would you please teach me!""
   This is amazing humility. For many people today, not knowing is seen as failure. We are hyper-competitive (coming from the former college basketball coach) and are driven by fears at home and work that if others think we don't know something, they will have some power over us. But, there is a better way. In his preface to a collection of his writings, known as his Standard Sermons, Wesley described what happened whenever he read a scripture and was unclear of its meaning. After following a process of prayer and continued scriptural reflection, he would turn to others for their opinions: “If any doubt still remains, I consult those who are experienced in the things of God . . . and what I thus learn, that I teach.” Again, take note that Wesley, a national bestselling author and probably the most followed preacher in England for five decades or more, is willing for others to correct him in scriptural interpretation, a field in which he had excelled all his life.
   For Wesley, the Methodist movement was to be a movement of revitalization. It was to revitalize not only the Church of England that he served as a local parish priest, but also the hearts of men and women in the pews and outside on the streets. For Wesley, grace was at the core of what he believed about God. He taught that it can be 'received' like water flowing down through channels like prayer, reading the Bible, attending worship, taking communion, and serving others. Wesley believed this grace was best seen in the life of Jesus the Christ. This grace was reshaping everything. The Methodist historian, Albert Outler, stated, "The heart of Wesley's gospel was always its lively sense of God's grace at work at every level of creation and history in persons and communities."
   Imagine how our lives would be different if we could live into the truths about God, the purpose of the church, and grace in our lives that Wesley had. Imagine if each of us committed to lives that did not stop learning. Wesley was actively preaching and studying and learning until his last days. Can the same be said of us? I pray that it can.
   Grace and Peace, Scott

Water Cooler Woes

   Many of you have taken note of the fact that the renovations of the hallways meant the removal of the old metal water coolers that hung on the walls. We had three of them and, from time to time, two of them would operate. In their places, we have installed a new-style water cooler that will offer fresh water.
   What seemed like a simple purchase and solution has become more complex than you could imagine. First of all, I really thought we could do this in a way that saved the church in the long run by not using a water delivery service that would bring new jugs every couple of weeks. I've since learned that sometimes saving money leads to headaches, but that is another story for another week.
   Our journey toward doing this ourselves started with the realization that no single company makes everything needed. No company makes the water cooler and cup holder, and no company seems to make either one to be compatible with the other. This week we discovered that the unit we had in our hallway was defective - it never turned on because it was accidentally built without an 'on' switch. To top it off, four calls into their Customer Service center have gotten us a different answer every time. It is funny and frustrating at the same time. We've finally been told they will ship us a new one. Their people are nice - but there has to be an easier way to get to the finish line of clean, fresh, affordable water in our hallway.
   Which makes me think of the church. I wonder how our experiences with this company are similar to the experiences of visitors who've come to Epworth. How many people have come to our church looking for a simple, clear path to get connected, only to find it is not always that simple? How many of our members have longed for a way to serve but cannot get easy answers on where they are needed most? How many times have I wondered about the vast array of things that we offer people to learn, serve, and grow and how many of them actually lead to different destinations?
 Matthew records in 7:13 Jesus saying, "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it." I don't think discipleship is easy. I don't think following Jesus is supposed to be simple. It isn't. But, I do think we should help people connect and we should be clear in how people can be equipped to follow this path. Jesus is the way. The church is called to help people along the way. I am so excited to serve a church that wants to be intentional in making that happen.
   Grace and Peace, Scott

Ancient Pharisees, Modern Politicians, and Enduring Problems

   At the time that Jesus was engaged in ministry, there were varying philosophies within his own Jewish faith. Four predominant religious groups had emerged from the circumstances that pressed in on the little nation of Israel: Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and Zealots.  Jesus likely interacted with all of them, touching the hearts of some and sparking violent hatred among others.(1) This first group, the Pharisees, has become a bad word to many of us who grew up attending Sunday School or reading through the stories of Jesus. There is another side, though. They descended from brave freedom fighters who died trying to resist tyranny, like our early American colonists. They were Middle-class merchants. They believed in the entire Old Testament as law, believed that studying the Scriptures was the highest act of worship and had even believed in bodily resurrection and life after death.
   Modern politicians share some of these common characteristics. Most of them rose from humble beginnings and serve as a response to the way they were raised. All of them hold certain values above all others and these values serve to guide them in their actions and speech.  Many of them believe that, even after the worst of moral or ethical defeats, they can resurrect their political aspirations in miraculous ways. (I’m thinking about Newt Gingrich, Bill Clinton, and Mark Sanford to name but a few.)
   But Jesus did take issue with the Pharisees on a number of occasions. In Luke 12, he warns that the active ingredient in their behavior was hypocrisy. He believed Pharisees often said the right things, but did not do them. They were more interested in appearing to be right than actually doing right.

   To be honest, I think of American politicians today on a number of issues, not the least of which is that of children and immigration on our borders. Since last October, 52,200 children have entered the US unaccompanied. They are fleeing the absolute chaos of their home countries - primarily Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador - created by gangs and the drug industry. If they didn’t leave, they would be forced to enter the gangs or be killed. This current crisis is driven by a host of underlying causes, not the least of which is that our US laws and our morality require us to care for these children when they arrive until a better option can be found.
   Like the Pharisees of Jesus’ time, our modern politicians (on both sides) are more interested in winning points by ‘sounding right’ than by doing what is right. Every one of them, from Texas to DC, is offering quotes and soundbites to make themselves look better. Political posturing has become their measure of success. The problem is that the real enduring problems - poverty, fear, scarcity, child abuse - are not solved with posturing. The real problems of today require people who are doers of what is right and not hearers and speakers only. Jesus instructed his followers to be doers.
   What can I do? To be honest, there are not easy answers, right now. We can pray for wisdom for our leaders. I think we can also discern which leaders are doing what is right and which ones are satisfied with only looking right. Finally, I think we can care for children here in our community on behalf of those in Texas. We can engage even more with Open Door to help families find their way out of poverty and with the Wynnton Neighborhood Network to help feed families. One of our core values is simple: we serve to make the world better. That is what it means to follow Christ. Grace and Peace, Scott
1 - http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/religion/portrait/judaism.html

Thin Skin

   I'm writing from the island of Manhattan, where Julie, Sam, and Jack are helping me retrace much of a trip I took with my family a couple of decades ago. We are visiting sites that are historic and help us understand our past and some sites that are meaningful in the present. We are also going to stop at two baseball stadiums, for fun!

   This morning we were retracing the steps that over 12 million Americans made over a century ago. We took the ferry out to Liberty and Ellis Islands. This is American history. They are also significant to Julie's family, and the families of over 100 million Americans alive right now that trace their time in the United States back to Ellis Island. Julie's great-grandfather Natale DiNatale arrived here in June 1903 from his village in Italy on board the ship Montevideo. He was 17. Imagine how much courage that took. 

   One of the fascinating details of the morning was learning about the design of the Statue of Liberty. It was both a gift to the United States and a critique of the tyranny of the French ruler Napoleon III. It was also an engineering feat. While it looks like a solid piece of sculpted metal, it is actually a meticulously crafted series of cooper sheets that were attached to an inner metal frame of steel. The frame was designed by Gustave Effiel, three years before the tower that bears his name in Paris was erected. But, what shocked me was the fact that the actual width of the cooper skin of Lady Liberty is only 3/32", or the same as two pennies pressed together. 

   She has withstood hurricanes and so much more with such a thin skin. That takes courage and good design. I think we could learn a thing or two about living with thin skin. It requires forgiveness and grace. People will test you. How do we respond? Do we turn the other cheek or strike back? Do we admit when we're hurt or pretend to be able to take everything? This is the very stuff Jesus talked about. 

   Living with thin skin takes courage. For many of us, being so vulnerable is akin to sailing around the world and starting over in a brand new place. 

   May we all have such courage. Grace and peace, Scott

Picnics, Watermelons, and Fireworks

   Picnics, Watermelons, and Fireworks. Those are the things that first come to mind for Bob Wait when he thinks back about the Fourth of July from years gone by. Those probably make a lot of peoples' lists of memories for this week. What about you? What do you remember? Some folks will add trips to the lake, visits to grandmother's house, and family meals together. All of the 50+ in our Carruth family would name our annual family reunion as a beloved Fourth of July tradition. We almost always gather at my Aunt Margaret's cabin in Lake Junaluska, North Carolina for a few days of the very stuff named above: fireworks, food, and family all over the place.
   As Bob and I sat talking the other day our conversation jumped from the holiday week to the work that has been happening at Epworth this year. In particular, the renovations in the hallways, the addition of the parking lot in the rear of our property, and now the start of the Children's Wing renovations. He and I are both aware that the faithfulness of generations of people from years gone by has played a part in bringing those projects to life.
   It was special to be able to share with Bob about the newest plaque that now hangs in the hallway of Epworth, commemorating the people and legacy of the Hamp Stevens Memorial UMC. Featuring a photo of the church building, a section with history and a great poem given to the church's namesake back in 1909. The plaque hangs above a special Bible, also given to Rev. Stevens back in 1909, that came to Epworth in the joining of the two congregations in 2006.
   Columbus has changed since that little church was founded in 1902 out of a tent revival meeting, but it's legacy is remembered in a plaque, a bible, and, most of all, the ongoing witness of the saints who still live out their calling at Epworth by singing in the choir, teaching Sunday School, serving in leadership, contributing to the ministry offering every week, and caring for one another. Sitting with Bob Wait, the prayer I offered was one of thanksgiving for the past and one of expectation for the future. What a delight to serve a God who reigns over our past and our future!
   Grace and Peace to you in this week we celebrate freedom and independence - Scott

Power Near and Far

   Our toilet started running about a week ago. Not all the time, of course, but every few minutes the sound of flowing water would indicate that more water was needed to keep the float at the right level in the tank. This is not the way it is supposed to work. It wastes water and keeps people up at night. People like me!

   While I know a couple of things about toilets, everything I knew to try did not apply. The flapper was not warped due to age and there was no water leaking onto the floor. I was stumped.

   I saw Billy Bullock, one of Epworth’s newer members (he and Alison joined in December), in a meeting about serving at Rose Hill this week and asked him. Billy is one of those guys who can fix lots of things. Lots. He told me two things to consider - check the flapper again and maybe reduce the water flow at the wall because the pressure could be too high. Then, about an hour later, he called me because he thought of one more thing to try. You guessed it, that third thing worked. If you’re wondering, he had me pop the plastic cap off of the float stem, with the water turned off at the wall, and then turn it back on slowly to knock any sediment out of the supply line that might have kept it from filling all the way every time. Honestly, I have no idea how it worked, but it did! Billy has that kind of power.

   People like Billy impress me. And, Epworth has lots of people like Billy. People who are good at stuff. People who have expertise and gifts and who are willing to share them. Epworth is filled with people who serve and give generously. This phrase is the last line of our Missional Measures, Epworth G.L.O.W.S., that define what Epworth people look like when our ministries have been successful. We believe that God intends for all of us to shine the light of Jesus.

   Along with having a quiet commode, I also love the fact that Billy’s power was exerted from afar. Sometimes we can have great influence from a distance. The Gentile Centurion that approaches Jesus in Luke 7, knows that Jesus can heal from a distance and Jesus marvels at his faith. Our prayers and our gifts are two obvious examples. Then, there are times that God’s power through us is best offered up close. We have to draw near to make a difference.The youth people are doing that this week, having driven twelve hours to Washington D. C. It is also what happens every week in our church when adults offer the power of God’s love and care to our children. 

   We are called to draw close to serve and bring about God’s Kingdom. Our Vision for Epworth in the next eighteen months is to help every person become actively engaged every month in ministries that are transforming the community. Imagine seeing God’s power at work near and far when that happens! 

   Grace and Peace, Scott

God is Good

   I shouted this down the halls of the church earlier today when a call came from someone with news that I had prayed would happen for them. I repeated it in the parking lot earlier today when two people walked up at the very moment another was walking out and they were able to meet and introduce themselves. I had literally thought about how I could get them to meet just minutes before and there they stood together. God is good. How else can we explain the small, serendipitous moments when everything lines up and good happens? I believe God is good even in the midst of the bad stuff, but it sure is nice when good things are happening. I think Romans 8:28 affirms this when Paul says, “That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.” (The Message translation)

   We could have ended Tuesday night’s Church-wide meeting with shouts, “God is good!” For indeed, months of preparation, countless prayers, generations of generosity, and the Spirit of God were all moving in and around the two reports that were offered.

   First, the Building Committee presented a report of what has been done. The hallways and entrance areas have been updated and refinished. It is amazing the difference that wider, smooth walls and higher new ceilings make, isn’t it? The rear parking lot was paved this week and that project will be complete in a week or two, after the last touches of landscaping are finished. These little things mean a lot to our members and visitors who attend Epworth every week. Then, the Building Committee presented two projects for the immediate future. Both were adopted with a unanimous vote by the large crowd that was gathered. The first project, set to begin next week, will renovate the Children’s Ministry wing. The second project will involve updating the ceilings, lights, walls, and floors of the Fellowship Hall. Then, later, a new external, adjoining storage room will be added.  This will provide some desperately needed space for the good stuff we use often, but have no place to keep.

   Second, the Vision Team presented the work of their six months together. Eleven members worked to capture our mission, our values, our definitions of success, and our vision for the next 18 months. We will talk more about this at length, but for now, I leave you with the new Missional Mandate that gets to the very heart of how God is using and wants to keep using Epworth for God’s Kingdom. It says this:

Epworth connects and equips

all kinds of people

to seek, serve, and share Christ.

It is simple, yet important. It is a statement about what happens inside our church and what our people do outside our church. It is something we do now and something we will strive to live into even more. What a way to start our fifth year together - God is good!

   Grace and Peace, Scott