Epworth recently laid to rest one of its faithful saints: Sally Reid. Her ashes were placed in the Epworth Memorial Garden, alongside the remains of others who have gone before us. They are the Church Victorious; we are the Church Militant. One day we will all be reunited. Occasions like this cannot help but raise…
The following was produced by Ask The UMC, a ministry of United Methodist Communications: Aldersgate Day is celebrated on May 24 (or the Sunday closest) to commemorate the day in 1738 when John Wesley experienced assurance of his salvation. Wesley reluctantly attended a group meeting that evening on Aldersgate Street in London. As he heard…
“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13). When reading this verse, some people conjure up images of soldiers in a foxhole. A hero who jumps on a grenade to save his squad exemplifies the literal sense of this verse. To no lesser an extent, so…
“God wants me to be happy, right?” We’ve probably all heard this question asked. The assumed answer is “yes,” but in reality, it’s more complicated than that. God doesn’t want us to be unhappy, but our happiness is somewhat low on the list. What He wants is for us to be holy, meaning like Him…
Which is more important: The resurrection of Jesus or the decisions of our political leaders? Another way to look at it is, Does it matter more to you that Jesus rose from the dead, or that we have an immigration policy in our country with which you agree? These should be very easy to answer,…
Most people in our society have certain beliefs that are simply absorbed without questioning. These beliefs didn’t arise out of thin air; they were written in previous decades or even hundreds of years ago by authors few of us have read. In particular, Jean-Jacques Rousseau has impacted 21st Century American thinking in vital and dangerous…
What is Lent? From Old English word “lengthen” which means “Spring” By 2nd century the word was used to describe a period of individual fasting, prayer, and almsgiving in preparation for Easter In the first 3 centuries, only catechumens (those being trained and instructed in the faith) observed this period, which lasted usually 2-3 days.…
The United States was founded in the name of freedom, but do we really understand freedom? Freedom is typically understood as being exempt from external control or restraint. If only it were that simple! In his sermon on January 31st, Pastor Brook Thelander said, “freedom comes through the community of faith.” Rousseau and the other…
My boys love to call each other out by loudly declaring, “lying!” Truth is very important to them, though of course, it often tends to be their version of the “truth” that serves their benefit. From a biological standpoint, this makes perfect sense. Aren’t we supposed to engage in behaviors that benefit us, like getting…
My family has the tradition of breaking out our collection of Christmas DVDs after every Thanksgiving. These range from classics such as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, How the Grinch Stole Christmas and A Christmas Story, to more recent “classics” such as The Muppet Christmas Carol, Elf and Arthur Christmas. These are lots of fun and…