Thought of the Day !!

And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.
                                               Romans 8:11 (NIV)

 

If we claim the name Christian and have asked Jesus to come into our hearts by the power of the Holy Spirit, let us allow the same Holy Spirit to drive and motivate us.  Let the Spirit fill you and send you where God wants you to go.  Let your lives be spent for Him until such time in which He chooses for us to see Him face to face and eat at his table with Him.

 

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

This is a time for singing.  What is your favorite Christmas carol?  Mine has long been "Do you hear what I hear?"  How about this?  Wherever you go today, sing, hum or whistle a cheerful Christmas tune.  Maybe it will catch on.  Others may find the joy of Christmas and begin singing themselves.  It's hard to sing Christmas music and be down or in a bad mood.  We might just bring a little cheer to this world today, and that is the gift you can give your Lord this day.  Merry Christmas everyone!

Do You Hear What I Hear?

Said the night wind to the little lamb,
"Do you see what I see?
Way up in the sky, little lamb,
Do you see what I see?
A star, a star, dancing in the night
With a tail as big as a kite,
With a tail as big as a kite."

Said the little lamb to the shepherd boy,
"Do you hear what I hear?
Ringing through the sky, shepherd boy,
Do you hear what I hear?
A song, a song high above the trees
With a voice as big as the the sea,
With a voice as big as the the sea."

Said the shepherd boy to the mighty king,
"Do you know what I know?
In your palace warm, mighty king,
Do you know what I know?
A Child, a Child shivers in the cold--
Let us bring him silver and gold,
Let us bring him silver and gold."

Said the king to the people everywhere,
"Listen to what I say!
Pray for peace, people, everywhere,
Listen to what I say!
The Child, the Child sleeping in the night
He will bring us goodness and light,
He will bring us goodness and light."

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

(Joseph) took with him Mary, his fiancé, who was obviously pregnant by this time. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the village inn.

                                            Luke 2:5-7 (NLT)

Most of us have heard the story of the birth of Jesus over and over again.  How the shepherds saw an angel proclaim the birth, how some wise men saw a star, how there was no room in an inn, how Mary pondered the happenings of the night in her heart.  Yes, many a stage has been filled with children acting out the first Christmas and many shelves, counter tops and even yards have displayed nativity scenes. 

 

We do know the story (If you don't, look to Luke 2), but what about those who came to see the baby?  Did they know what to expect?  Think about the shepherds.  They came to the place where the Savior of the world was born.  And even though they were told that he would be wrapped in "swaddling clothes", or strips of cloth, I wonder if they were surprised. 

 

I wonder if the shepherds, and later the wise men, were surprised to see what they had heard was a King residing in peasants' care.  I wonder if they were surprised to see that a stable, and later an ordinary house, was where this king resided.  I wonder if they thought that they might have the wrong address.

 

No, I think not.  After all, they had been told.  And even more importantly, I imagine that when they saw the baby, they just knew.  My only reasoning for this is that when we meet Jesus, we know that there's something different about him.  He attracts and pulls us to him.  There's no mistaking the one person in the world that will love you more than anyone else in the world.   

 

He may have been a fragile baby in a cold stable lying in a hay-filled manger, but he was something special.  And even now, we are drawn to him.  May he bless you this Christmas as you are attracted to the manger.  And may we all share the gift that God shared with us so many years ago.  The gift of love.  Merry Christmas.

 

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, "God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said."
                                                              Luke 1:42-45 (NLT)

Three times Elizabeth tells Mary she or her baby is blessed.  But just what does this mean?  We thank God for our blessings.  We thank Him for the good things we’ve received and those good things going on in our lives.  We associate blessings with comfort and ease…with good times (and they certainly can be).

But Mary’s blessing had nothing to do with security or well-being.  As a matter of fact, hardships would continue to follow her because of her blessing.  She would flee for her and her baby's life to Egypt, have to worry about those plotting against her son and end up seeing him crucified like a common criminal. 

Her blessedness came not from an easy life, but from being a part of God’s plan.  She was blessed because God chose her, and because she believed that He would do what He said He would do.  She was blessed because she was chosen to bear the Messiah…the Savior of the world.

We can all live out our lives in relative ease, especially when compared to others living in slums all over the world.  But if we want to experience the true blessings of God we will seek our callings from God and then do just as Jesus taught his disciples to do.  We will “deny ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow.”

The world…and sadly…some preachers out there…teach that blessings come in security, fame, wealth and other things we can gain in this world.  But Jesus teaches us that blessed are not those who have it all, but those who are meek, humble, merciful, who mourn and who suffer for his sake.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

[Mary] will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.
                                                    Matthew 1:21 (NRSV)

This verse is but a piece of the conversation that the angel of the Lord had with Joseph when Joseph found out that Mary was pregnant.  The angel is telling Joseph to name the child Jesus, which means "God saves". 

It's the gift of salvation that comes at Christmas.   This gift of salvation is the gift of second chances.  We all need second chances from time to time.  We're sinful people who have had a history of putting ourselves first.  And so God gives us the gift of Jesus...the gift of salvation...and we receive a second chance at being right with God. 

Wouldn't it be great if we could have second chances in everything?  Wouldn't it be great if we could turn back the clock and redo things?  Think about what you would do if you had the chance to go back in time before you said something that hurt someone or did something that angered someone or made any kind of mistake.  Given the chance, would you do the same thing all over again...make the same mistake? 

Any sane person would try to correct the mistake.  Don't you agree?

God gives us second chances daily.  And even though we can't actually go back in time and change what we did or said, we can still begin anew with God each day.  So what will we do with our second chances?  Will we continue to live the way we did before we accepted Christ?  Will we continue to make the same mistakes over and over?  Will we continue to satisfy ourselves instead of God?  Or will we change to be who God wants us to be?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. "Do you understand what you are reading?" Philip asked. "How can I," he said, "unless someone explains it to me?" So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
                                                                         Acts 8:30-31 (NIV)

In reading our bibles we come to know more about Christ through the pages of His Holy Word.  We not only learn more about Him, but we get to know Him as well.  But I would imagine that you, like me, have been reading at some time and found something you didn't understand.  That's only normal.  I tell new Christians to read their bibles and don't worry about everything that they don't understand because in time more and more will be opened to them. 

So how do we come to understand Scripture better?  We can use commentaries, which are other's understanding of what we read.  These are used a lot in sermon preparation to get other people's take on what will be preached on.  But another way that is very important is studying our bibles together.  In doing this, we learn from others as we offer them a fresh new look at things.

Are you in a Bible Study, Small Group, Sunday School or other gathering where the Bible is being read and discussed?  Do you meet with a friend and/or friends to talk about verses of Scripture?  Do you encourage one another to study God's Word?

I encourage everyone to seek ways of learning and being formed by God's Word this week.  Do this in private, and do it with others.  Over time we will all grow spiritually if we hold fast to these disciplines.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

The Pharisees were indignant. "Why does your teacher eat with such scum?" they asked his disciples. When he heard this, Jesus replied, "Healthy people don't need a doctor--sick people do." Then he added, "Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: `I want you to be merciful; I don't want your sacrifices.' For I have come to call sinners, not those who think they are already good enough."

                                                         Matthew 9:11-13 (NLT)

 

John Wesley took scriptures like this to heart as he said that our mission was to seek out the least, the last and the lost.  For is that not exactly what Jesus did?  Is that not exactly what the Church is called to do in Jesus' absence?

We either want to seek out the least, the last and the lost, or we don't want to get dirty.  There is really no in between here.  The dirtiest man that ever lived was Jesus.  Yes, I did say Jesus.  We think more about how Jesus was perfectly sinless and how he makes us clean.  But to make us clean he had to first get his hands dirty and come to us where we were.  And after he does this, he asks that we be willing to do the same. 

 

We can all get caught up in our comfort zones where life is safe and we know how to handle everything that's going on around us.  But the truth is that when we do this, we become like the Pharisees in many ways.  It's time to come out of our comfort zones and do ministry...real ministry.  That may mean going to the places where there are people who are sick in sin.  It may mean inviting people who are different to our churches.  It may mean welcoming people who are different.  It may actually mean that we become a different kind of people ourselves; the kind of people who are more open and welcoming to all God's children.  Oh what a difference that would make in God's kingdom. 

 

Are you ready to make a difference for Christ?  If so, allow him to use you somewhere or somehow today that you might not normally want to be used.  And if you don't feel that calling today, wait patiently and pray about it.  God will find a place to use you.  I suspect He already has it picked out.  He's just waiting for your willingness to allow Him to work through you.

 

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing what is right.
                                                                      Titus 2:14 (NLT)

Jesus gave his life for us so that we could be redeemed, or freed from the guilt of our sins.  The only thing we have to do is accept his love for us.  And when God's Holy Spirit envelopes us, where Jesus begins abiding in us (and us in him), then we become different people.  We become more repentant people desiring change and who are committed to doing what is right.  

In other words, because we are saved by God's grace and have chosen to have Jesus living in us, we are born again as different people.  We have something different guiding us.  We have Jesus in us.  When we were born of flesh and blood, our heart was filled with things of the flesh.  When we are born again of the Spirit, our heart is filled with the Holy Spirit.  

(Jesus said) "I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. So don't be surprised when I say, `You must be born again.'" - John 3:5-6 (NLT)

Have you been born again?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Yesterday's sermon on Joseph

Yesterday I preached the second sermon in our Advent series.  It was about Joseph and can be seen here.


Sermons / Sermons / McLaurin Heights United Methodist Church

Sing for joy, O heavens! Rejoice, O earth! Burst into song, O mountains! For the LORD has comforted his people and will have compassion on them in their sorrow.
                                                      Isaiah 49:13 (NLT)

There is hope in our Lord.  And as long as there is hope, we can sing for joy.

Oh there will be times of sorrow for us all.  There will be times when our tears are of sadness instead of joy.  But even then, our God is with us.  His comfort can be found.  For it is deeper than the great deeps for His children. 

In the love of Christ,
greg

Pastor's Monthly Note - A Busy Season

My December article has been posted to our website.  You can check it out below.  

Pastor's Monthly Note / Mclaurin Heights News / McLaurin Heights United Methodist Church

You can also go to sermons and listen to last week's sermon.

Thought of the Day !!

You should remember the words of the Lord Jesus: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'"
                                                                          Acts 20:35 (NLT)

Is it more blessed to give than to receive?  I like it when people give me stuff.  Don't you?

Is it more blessed to give than to receive?  For many it seems not to be because they always got their hands out.

Is it more blessed to give than to receive?  It doesn't feel that way at the gas pump or when the bills come due.

Is it more blessed to give than to receive?  YES it is!  This is because we were created to give.  God created us first and foremost to give Him our love and Christ our lives.  I believe it's just in our DNA, which means we'll only be truly happy when we learn to generously and unselfishly give.

Love is the first thing that should be given.  When our love is given to God and to each other we find more satisfaction than when it isn't. 

Our time is another thing we can give.  Time worth spending is time worth giving.  And when we give this to others, we'll receive their time back.

Money is another thing that when given can bring us great joy.  It might seem like those who receive our money, or who have more money are happier.  But in fact, deep down we find more peace out of our giving than our receiving...even money.  This is because it truly "is more blessed to give than to receive."

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There's no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death. Just see what this godly sorrow produced in you! Such earnestness, such concern to clear yourselves, such indignation, such alarm, such longing to see me, such zeal, and such a readiness to punish wrong. You showed that you have done everything necessary to make things right.
                                                      2 Corinthians 7:10-11 (NLT)
 
Believe it or not, God wants us to feel sorrow.  He doesn't want us to hurt for just no reason.  His desire is that we have a sorrow in us that makes us feel bad about our sin. 

I was at a spiritual retreat one time sharing a testimony about my life when I told the group that God made me feel guilty about some things in my life.  One of the men there said that God doesn't make us feel guilty.  Well of course He does.  We call it our conscience.  And God uses this to help us see what we're doing wrong and to lead us to the sorrow over sinfulness that will then lead us to change. 

If we had no sorrow in life, we would feel no need for repentance.  If we were perfect people still living in the Garden of Eden this would be fine.  But we're not. 

So think about the things you do or say that later bring about a tinge of guilt or sorrow.  Find those things that you've learned to live with, looking past the guilt and sorrow, and repent of them.  If you feel even a little sorry or guilty about something, odds are that it's your conscience telling you that it's wrong and you need to repent. 

In the love of Christ,
greg

Ministry Matters™ | Articles | Revitalization Takes Guts

This is one of the teachers I learned from in School of Congregational Development.

Ministry Matters™ | Articles | Revitalization Takes Guts

Thought of the Day !!

But God, who encourages those who are discouraged, encouraged us by the arrival of Titus.
                                                            2 Corinthians 7:6 (NLT)
 
No deep theological point today.  No, just a simple reminder of something that Paul knew quite well.  And that is the fact that God is the one who encourages us believers when we're down.  I suspect that He sent Titus to Paul and company at just the time that they needed cheering up from their dear friend.  And He will do the same for us in a variety of ways. 

If you need some encouragement today, ask God.  Look to Him for it.  Seek Him in your heart and in His Word.

If you are encouraged today, show it.  You might just be whom God wants to use to encourage another. 

In the love of Christ,
greg

Sermons / Sermons / McLaurin Heights United Methodist Church

This past Sunday's sermon was on Mary as we begin our season of Advent in the Church.  Click below to see the sermon.

Sermons / Sermons / McLaurin Heights United Methodist Church

Thought of the Day !!

O God, we give glory to you all day long

     and constantly praise your name.
                               Psalm 44:8 (NLT)

As I sit and think about this passage, I realize just how untrue it can be at times.  I want to strive to give God glory all day long and to constantly praise His name.  But is it glory that I give to Him when I get angry, act selfishly or neglect others' feelings? 

How many of us think more about "us" in a day than we do about God (whom we're supposed to love more than anything) and others (whom we're supposed to love at least as well as ourselves)?

My God wants more from me.  He loves me and just wants to see me succeed.  And when I fail, He lifts me up.  No matter how selfish I seem or even superficial I can feel, He is there waiting for me to bring glory to Him simply by coming to Him for help.  He's the ultimate Parent that never leaves our side, who cheers us on like a dad at a kid's soccer game and a cares tenderly for us like a mom after we've scraped our knee.  If anyone deserves my praise today, it's Him. 

"Lord, I love you.  Thank you."  This is my prayer today.  I hope it will be yours as well.

In the love of Christ,
greg