Thursday, May 9, 2019

MATT Good Morning, I’m Matt Farmer, Associate Pastor at Central United Methodist Church. Tourists rarely take great photographs. They seldom make the effort to be at the right spot at the right time to get the right angle of light in the right weather conditions. To capture beautiful outdoor pictures, professional photographers are careful to view the scene from different angles, during different seasons, and at different times of day. This makes me wonder if the reason some people don’t have a clear picture of the beauty and glory of God is that they make snap judgments. They come to wrong conclusions about God based on a bad church experience or an encounter with someone who claims to be a Christian but isn’t living like one. They misjudge what the Lord is like and turn away from Him, feeling disillusioned. The pursuit of God involves more than casual observation. King David told his son Solomon, “If you seek Him, He will be found by you.” The psalmist said, “Blessed are those who seek Him with the whole heart!” And the author of Hebrews wrote that God rewards “those who diligently seek Him.” To see and know God in all His fullness and glory, we can’t approach Him like tourists. We need to seek Him at all times with all our heart.

Wednesday, May 8, 2019

TIM GOOD MORNING, I’M TIM WISE, SENIOR ADULT MINISTER AND SANCTUARY CHOIR DIRECTOR AT CENTRAL. In the time of the prophet Micah, the people’s hearts were far from God. They’d created a religion based on rituals and rules that no one could keep. Some even abandoned God and worshipped idols, and yet God continually called them back to a relationship with Him. Micah tried to tell the people that following God was really much simpler than they made it out to be: “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). I imagine some of the religious folk having a problem with that simplified version of faith or maybe agreeing but wanting to add a few hundred rules to it. But Micah clearly communicated God’s desire through that prophesy — just three things are required: justice, mercy, and humility. It’s interesting to note that although there is action involved, each of those requirements starts with a soft and loving heart. We won’t act justly if we harbor resentment or hate. We won’t show kindness and mercy if we seek to serve ourselves, and a prideful heart will always walk ahead of God. Could those three conditions apply to me today? Maybe all God is asking of me is to stand for what is right…to choose kindness…and to walk closely to Him, submitting my will daily. Perhaps I’m making my choice harder than I have to. If I strip away all the man-made rules and all the expectations I’ve placed on myself, and if God hasn’t clearly spoken to me, then the only thing that matters is if my heart is in the right place—near God’s.

Tuesday, May 7, 2019

GLENDA Good Morning! I heard a story about a plumber who had a very bad day. He lost an hour of work due to a flat tire; he broke his electric drill; then his ancient truck wouldn’t start. A friend drove him home and he sat in stony silence all the way. When he got home, he walked by a small tree, touched it with both his hands, then walked into his home with a huge smile on his face, hugged his children, and kissed his wife. You see, that tree was what he called his “trouble tree.” He doesn’t want to take his troubles home, so he leaves them hanging on that tree and he asks God to take care of them. He picks them back up the next morning, but after turning them over to God the night before, they don’t seem nearly so bad. What a great idea! I think we all could use a “trouble tree”—but, remember, the secret is not the tree itself—it’s asking God to take care of things. Have a wonderful day!

Monday, May 6, 2019

BOB Good morning! This is Bob Peden of Central, A United Methodist Community in Meridian, Mississippi. In his book, Finding God in All Things, Brian Grogan says, "If someone asked you to give them another word for 'God,' you could use the word 'Presence,' for that is what God is. When Moses asked Yahweh his name, Yahweh replied, 'I am who I am' and this means 'I am present.' God is really saying, 'I shall be there for you.' God is intimately present to everything, and especially to us. Jesus's name is Emmanuel, which means 'God is with us'. Matthew's Gospel ends with the marvelous statement: Know that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time." So surely God is with each of us. My prayer for you is that you would be aware of His presence in your life and in the lives of those around you.

Friday, May 3, 2019

TIM GOOD MORNING, I’M TIM WISE, SENIOR ADULT MINISTER AND SANCTUARY CHOIR DIRECTOR AT CENTRAL. Your faith and your obedience to God could influence an entire nation. If you are put to the test between choosing what is right and what is popular, how will you choose? What if your response could affect your job, your reputation or even your life? The answer to this question is important and the perfect biblical example is Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the third chapter of Daniel. The Babylonian king built a statue of himself and commanded the nation to bow to it. This caused a serious dilemma for these young Jewish men because they knew the commandment to not worship idols or false gods. The king gave them a choice to bow or be killed. What was their response? “Our God is so powerful that He can save us…but even if He does not, we will not bow to your idol.” These young men chose to claim their faith over their lives. What courage that must have took! As you read on in Daniel, you know that their actions caused an entire nation to become believers in God. So, when faced with the choice of what’s popular and what’s right, how will you choose? May you find the courage and strength to choose what’s right, even if it means risking your life.

Thursday, May 2, 2019

JOHN Good Morning! I’m John Branning the Lead Pastor of Central United Methodist Church. When the twelve spies were sent into Canaan to spy out the land, ten returned with a bad report. Their assessment was that it was impossible to conquer the land that God had promised them. Forgetting how God had led them with a pillar of fire by night, fed them manna from heaven during the day, brought forth water out of a rock, and parted the Red Sea, they saw the situation with only their natural eyes, failed to walk by faith, and succumbed to fear. Joshua and Caleb, however, returned with a good report. Refusing to be discouraged by what they saw, they fully trusted that their supernatural God was not going to break His promise to His people, Israel. We are living in days where the world looks bleak, and the evils seem to grow more threatening and dangerous. How will we react? Will we be devastated and terrorized like the 10 spies with a bad report? Or will we do something extraordinary – will we walk by faith like Joshua and Caleb, trust in the love and power of our God, and seize the opportunities that are at hand? I say let’s seize this moment and reclaim our name as followers of Jesus.

Wednesday, May1, 2019

BENJI Good Morning, I’m Benji Riddle – Director of Youth Ministries at Central United Methodist. Loss is an emotion and feeling that can sometimes be incredibly difficult to weather. It is on this day, May first - sometimes called May Day, that I am most personally aware of this, as it marks the anniversary of the passing of my father 22 years ago. Among pilots, May Day is a distress call, a signal of a dire emergency, and losing my dad on this day, of all days, left me feeling in distress, discouraged, alone. But let me tell you, I soon saw that I wasn’t alone. My church surrounded me with support, even when I didn’t initially receive it. When I turned to God with anger, I was met only with love and comfort. I found peace in the words of Psalm 147, where it talks about the greatness and power of God, but also this: “ God heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds.” You are not alone in your hardship, you have never been alone, and you are and will always be, loved by the God who made you.