A Word about our Church Conference on Monday, February 3

   By now, we hope everyone has received word about the Church Conference that Dr. Buddy Cooper has approved Epworth to hold on this coming Monday, February 3, at 6:30 PM, in our Fellowship Hall. Everyone is welcome to attend. Members of Epworth, who are present, can vote.

   Prior to the Conference, we want to introduce the plans and concepts that will be presented on Monday. We also want to bring everyone up-to-date with some of the progress and obstacles the Building Committee experienced in regard to the plans previously approved by our Church. You will recall that we met on Sunday, February 26, 2012, to hear and act on a recommendation to purchase property on Manchester Expressway for the purpose of increasing visibility, paving a driveway, and expanding our parking in the rear of the church. The Church approved these plans with an 87% vote of support. We entered into a contract with the sellers in September 2012. Unfortunately, that contract expired without the sellers ever being able to provide evidence of a clear title that we could trust. We have little confidence that this will change in the near future. Therefore, we have moved on to focus on projects that can be completed based on funds available and the priorities of our congregation.

   The recommendation on Monday will include details for two projects and ideas about some others. The first project concerns plans for expanding the rear parking lot, which currently has 26 spaces, to 56 spaces. The design also calls for a more accessible driveway at the corner of Southgate and Lancelot streets. The second project involves renovations to most of the existing hallways of the church, beginning in the rear sections. This would entail removing the current ‘low-hanging’ ceilings, removing old HVAC duct-work, then installing new sheetrock walls, new higher ceilings, and new carpet for most of the hallways. The ceilings in the front of the church would also be replaced and the block walls near the Glass Meditation Garden entrance would be covered in smooth sheetrock.

   We believe the need for additional parking is a top priority. With more people entering at the rear of the church, updating those hallways would make our church’s interior match the excellent look of our exterior. These projects will enhance the experience of our members and the regular stream of visitors who join us every week.

   Handouts with drawings and figures for these two projects will be provided Monday night. In addition, we would like to dream into the future about other, smaller projects, to be undertaken. Our desire is to seek the funds, kept by the Columbus District, from the Hamp Stevens Memorial congregation that merged with Epworth in 2006. 

   We look forward to questions, discussion, and progress on Monday, at 6:30 PM. 

  

Steve Sawyer, Building Committee Construction Chair

Leslie Morris, Building Committee Finance Chair

Scott Hagan, Pastor

Extra Points and the Only Score that Matters

The Falcons' Matt Bryant was 39 for 39
this year in kicking Extra Points

   Roger Goodell, the Commissioner of the National Football League, revealed Monday that he is considering changing the rules of football to eliminate the kick attempt after a touchdown. For as long as the sport has been played, touchdowns earn a team 6 points before the chance to kick the ball through the goalposts for an extra point. It is sometimes called the Point After Touchdown or PAT, for short. He explained, “The extra point is almost automatic. I believe we had five missed extra points this year out of 1,200 some odd. So it’s a very small fraction of the play..." The plan would be to make touchdowns worth seven points, not six. Rather than sending the kicking team on after a touchdown, teams would have a choice whether to attempt to get in the end zone for a conversion and a total of eight points. A failed conversion, however, would drop the damage down to six points, so as involve a little risk in exchange for the higher return.

   I don't like the idea. I really don't. Here is why.

   I like getting extra stuff. We all do. I like paying one amount and getting more for it. I like upgrades and discounts and two-for-one deals, but I don't see these as being comparable to what is happening on the football field. In football, the point after the touchdown is something you earn. Who cares if teams have become so consistent with it that kickers make it 99.9% of the time? Some games have been won because these kicks are not automatic - just ask the Jaguars who won 20-19 when the Saints' kicker missed the PAT with .00 on the clock. Make the teams play. Make them execute. Excellence is found within the details and the small stuff. Extra points might seem like small stuff...until you miss one to lose the game.

   What does this have to do with God, Jesus, the Bible, and the rest of the world apart from sports? Nothing. Unless in this conversation we are reminded that life is really about the small stuff. Executing the details is where days are won or lost for the good. We are remembered by most people not for the dramatic, suspenseful, daring acts that come around so rarely. Most of our actions are of the PAT variety:  

When you forgave your sister. 

When you offered grace before the meal in front of your kids. 

When you spent your afternoon in a church kitchen preparing a hot meal for hungry people.

When you wrote that check that helped a teenager to go serve in missions.

When you read with your grandchild.

   What does the bible say about extra points: not one thing. But, Jesus did surprise a bunch of people when he said heaven is open to those who do the little things like visit the sick, feed the hungry, clothe and care for those who are without. He said we do those things for Him in Matthew 25. 

   The NFL can do what it wants. I would hope we would see how important the little acts we execute every day add up to something much larger than any game played in a stadium.
   Grace and Peace to you, Scott

Truth Is Easily Transferable

   We are surrounded by truth. We are also surrounded by half-truths, myths, and outright lies, but I tend to worry less and less about those the more I grow in faith and the greater my confidence in Christ becomes. 
   I once listened to Rob Bell, a pastor in Michigan, go into great detail about how Christians are to deal with truth. Bell bases his teaching on John 14:6, where Jesus says, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." If Jesus is the truth, then can we dare to believe the converse is true also; that anywhere we find truth, Jesus is there. This is bold. 
   What do we do with the truths that surround us? Do we collect them? Apply them? Pass them on? Which raises another question: Can we pass them on? Or is the truth I hear today limited by the specific and narrow context (time and place and circumstances) where I encountered it? Can 'church truth' make a difference at work?  I think truth is translatable. Truth is not limited to one place.
   Think about what you learned early on about manners, sharing, rest, nutrition, or the joy of playing. Most of that came in Kindergarten. Yet, those truths are still true today. How can that be, except that truth is transferable. 
   This pushes me to think, "In what ways do I need to transfer the truth I am learning in worship, in my Sunday School, and in my personal devotions to further areas of my life?"
   I think I saw an example of truth being transferable earlier this week as I was catching up on some reading. INC. magazine published a brief article by Geoffrey James called, "5 Toxic Beliefs That Ruin Careers." I think it has truths that extend to our everyday lives, too. I offer his list, with large sections omitted for space. You can read the entire article online. He begins: "The Book of Proverbs in the Old Testament is, in my opinion, one of the best business books ever published.  One passage, in particular, contains a world of business wisdom: "As a man believes so is he." (Proverbs 23:7). I've observed that there are five other beliefs that consistently make people less successful. Make sure you don't subscribe to any of these:
1. My self-worth is based on what others think of me. 
2. My past equals my future. 
3. My destiny is controlled by the supernatural. 
4. My emotions accurately reflect objective reality. 
5. My goal is to be perfect or do something perfectly. 
   I take exception with some of that third statement. James goes on to say he is talking about fate, luck, and divine intervention which "robs such people of initiative, making them passive as they wait for their 'luck' to change." I agree that too much emphasis on the first two (fate and luck) can be harmful, but I think we should pray without ceasing for divine intervention into our lives! We believe in the supernatural, but also believe that God has given us freedom and power to choose. 
   May God, who is truth, see us take truth and run with it for His glory. Grace and Peace, Scott

Epworth Vision Team Starts This Month

   Every Christian lives in service to God. None of us performs such service perfectly, but all of us are working towards God's Kingdom goals. Paul captures this idea in Romans 8:28. Probably the best understanding of how we serve is captured in the idea of stewardship. I am not talking about financial stewardship. I am talking about something larger. All that we have comes through God's goodness. We are stewards over God's goodness to us. We are challenged to invest it, grow it, share it and return it.
   The leaders of Epworth are stewards. We are stewards over abundant blessings, dynamic families, a rich history and a promising future. For as much as we have going for us, I believe something is missing. We are doing okay where we are right now. Good things are happening and lives are being changed. We are in a nice season of the ongoing ministry of maintenance  - worship, Sunday School, and even improvements to our buildings and ground. But, is this enough? This season will end. I think we are missing answers to important questions; Where are we headed next? Who are we called to be? Who are we called to serve? What is our mission, our purpose, our reason?
   I am convinced that God has the perfect answer for all of that and that God is ready to share it (and already sharing it) with leaders from our congregation. I am excited to share the names of twelve who have accepted a spot on our Epworth Vision Team. There will be awesome opportunities for input from the whole congregation as we move forward, too. This will be a short-term journey of working through a process to listen for God's leading that will have long-term influence.
   The first meeting of this group happens later this month. The process is lengthy. It might last six months or more. But, the desired product is important so we will treat the process that way, too. Right now, I ask everyone to be in prayer for the team and for God's leading in our lives.

Janet Cheraisi

Kelley Conkle

Scott Hagan

Jamie Johnson

Leslie Morris

Diane Morris

Carson Revell

Quinley Russell

Steve Sawyer

Bobby Smith

Andy Unger

Millard Wilson