Monthly Archives: April 2013
Day 7: Congregational excellence
Colossians 3:12-14
Therefore, as God’s choice, holy and loved, put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Be tolerant with each other and, if someone has a complaint against anyone, forgive each other. As the Lord forgave you, so also forgive each other. And over all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.
Colossae folks first heard the gospel from Epaphras, a beloved co-worker of the apostle Paul. Ever since the Colossians had received and understood the message of God’s grace, fruit and growth had taken place. Paul gives thanks for this church, reminds them of their rescue through Christ, and now, in this passage, Paul’s words are offered as encouragement for even greater things.
Prayer: O Lord, help us put on Love like a beautiful garment to wear! Thank you for setting us free from sin by love for love! We understand that this gift we receive is the same gift to be given.
In all our congregations, our sisters and brothers in faith, may we remember and renew this awesome work of your grace on our behalf: your compassion for us, kindness to us, humility, gentleness and patience with us, your forgiveness of us and this incredible experience of your love through Christ Jesus.
Considering all that you have done for us, may we now with joy do the same, not only with each other, but with ALL! AMEN.
The Rev. Karen Barrineau
Clarksville District Superintendent-TN Conference
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REFLECTIONS FOR THE DAY | Use a program on your computer, a traditional journal, or feel free to use the comment section of this blog post to record your reflections as a conversation with others…
READ – What spoke to me as I read today’s meditation?
REPENT – Where is God showing me that I have failed to be obedient to the call to discipleship today?
RECEIVE – What words of redemption and grace is God offering to me?
REMEMBER – Who and what is God calling me to remember in prayer related to today’s reading?
RESPOND – How is God calling me to respond today?
RESOURCES:
> DOWNLOADS - 40 Day Walk prayer guide (.PDF), 40 Days of Doodles kids journal (.PDF)
> CLICK HERE for sermon starters/suggestions
Day 6: Pastoral excellence
Matthew 25:39-40
When did we see you sick or in prison and visit you? Then the King will reply to them, “I assure you that when you have done it for one of these brothers and sisters of mine, you have done it for me.”
It was 1998. My family’s life had taken a dramatic turn the summer of ’96 when I answered the call of God to become a pastor. Friendships were forming for my son in his new high school, and life was going well, though, as family adjustments were being made. We had slowly moved into our new family “normal.”
Then, my son came home from school one afternoon telling me that he had heard that a friend of his from his old school had been arrested for murder. He asked me to go visit him in Juvenile Detention. We were about to enter into a new world.
Murder was something one might see on TV or in the movies, but certainly was not a part of our lives. My son continued to press me to find time to go and visit his friend. Several weeks later, my son came to me with a letter that he had written. I wept as I read my 16-year-old son’s letter to his friend. He shared in the letter about the freedom that he could find in his heart and life through repenting of his sins and asking Jesus Christ to be His Lord and Savior.
One day, sitting outside the chaplain’s office at the prison, while reading to my son’s friend from Romans, chapter eight, I found myself overcome with deep emotion as I shared with him how much Jesus loved him. I began weeping, while feeling an indescribable love well up in my heart for this young man. I, then, realized that God was pouring out His love “through” me to him. We were both deeply moved that day by the power of God’s love at work in and through us.
Fifteen years later, while he still sits unjustly behind prison bars, I can honestly say that nothing has impacted me more deeply in life than the love that God deposited into our hearts that day. “Jesus loves us this I know, for the Bible tells us so!”
Is there anything greater than love? I think not. We read in I John that God is love. May we walk in no other authority than in the authority of God’s love!
Prayer: Lord, teach us how to love well. Give us your heart for others, so that we might serve with excellence the sheep of your pastures.
The Rev. Dr. Diana M. DeWitt
Chairperson, Spiritual Formation Team-TN Conference
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REFLECTIONS FOR THE DAY | Use a program on your computer, a traditional journal, or feel free to use the comment section of this blog post to record your reflections as a conversation with others…
READ – What spoke to me as I read today’s meditation?
REPENT – Where is God showing me that I have failed to be obedient to the call to discipleship today?
RECEIVE – What words of redemption and grace is God offering to me?
REMEMBER – Who and what is God calling me to remember in prayer related to today’s reading?
RESPOND – How is God calling me to respond today?
RESOURCES:
> DOWNLOADS - 40 Day Walk prayer guide (.PDF), 40 Days of Doodles kids journal (.PDF)
> CLICK HERE for sermon starters/suggestions
Day 5: God’s transforming presence – Offering Christ to a hurting world
Acts 9:17-19a (Read verses 17-22)
Ananias went to the house. He placed his hands on Saul and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord sent me—Jesus, who appeared to you on the way as you were coming here. He sent me so that you could see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Instantly, flakes fell from Saul’s eyes and he could see again. He got up and was baptized. After eating, he regained his strength.
This Scripture passage from the Book of Acts recounts the story of two men, both doing what they felt was faithful, both encountering the Risen Christ in their own way, both whose lives were changed forever. Saul was protecting the faith of his fathers, while Ananias was praying for the followers of the Way. They were apparently on opposite paths until Jesus called them together.
It was the whole-hearted pursuit of God that allowed both of these men to see with entirely new eyes, and to experience the most unexpected change of direction.
Neither Saul nor Ananias anticipated God’s direction, but the outcome has had lasting impact! That’s the transformation of the world we seek, as we practice being and making disciples: the transformation of vision, to see what God sees, and to love as God does.
We have no chance of changing others’ vision. It is overwhelming to consider the depths of the issues that face the Church and the world today. Poverty is an ongoing reality, we continue to battle disease, and many people feel hopeless and helpless. If it were up to us, we would be lost.
The Good News is still the good news: we serve the Risen Christ who makes the lame walk and the blind see. Unexpected course changes, hope and help and the power to persevere are all fruit of life with Jesus. Greater things are yet to come because He that is in the Church is greater than he who is in the world. Thanks be to God!
Prayer: Lord, we ask that you open our eyes to your transformational presence in the world around us. Help us to see with your eyes, to hear with your ears, and to speak with your voice. Help us to bring your presence to others. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.
Sue Engle
Intentional Discipleship Action Team-Memphis Conference
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REFLECTIONS FOR THE DAY | Use a program on your computer, a traditional journal, or feel free to use the comment section of this blog post to record your reflections as a conversation with others…
READ – What spoke to me as I read today’s meditation?
REPENT – Where is God showing me that I have failed to be obedient to the call to discipleship today?
RECEIVE – What words of redemption and grace is God offering to me?
REMEMBER – Who and what is God calling me to remember in prayer related to today’s reading?
RESPOND – How is God calling me to respond today?
RESOURCES:
> DOWNLOADS - 40 Day Walk prayer guide (.PDF), 40 Days of Doodles kids journal (.PDF)
> CLICK HERE for sermon starters/suggestions
Day 4: Missional excellence
Acts 1:8
Rather, you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.
When the call came, I felt the very life knocked out of me. How could it be?
Surely this was a bad nightmare that would go away when I awakened!
But I was wide awake, and the nightmare was real. My son had been murdered!
How could I now survive?
The anger within me burned like a fire that was all consuming. Revenge was on the edge of the insanity that was consuming my heart…how does a parent move beyond such pain and grief?
The answer came as my wife and I and our younger son were driving down the mountain toward Florida where the random shooting had taken place in a church parking lot. The questions, both spoken and unspoken, were filling the air inside our car like a dark blanket that was almost suffocating us. How could something like this happen? Why did this happen? Why Jason? Who did this? Why? Why?
Why?
It was 15-year-old David who broke through the dark myriad of unanswerable questions. He said, “We know where Jason is, but what do we do about the boy who killed him?”
I heard myself say, “We forgive him!” It was at that raw moment when healing began for our family. Forgiveness is that point where life begins for all of us.
Jesus died so that we might live. That is the story that must be shared to the uttermost parts of the earth.
Prayer: Lord, help us to share our stories of faith so that others may find life through Jesus Christ.
The Rev. Tom Halliburton
Cumberland District Superintendent-TN Conference
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REFLECTIONS FOR THE DAY | Use a program on your computer, a traditional journal, or feel free to use the comment section of this blog post to record your reflections as a conversation with others…
READ – What spoke to me as I read today’s meditation?
REPENT – Where is God showing me that I have failed to be obedient to the call to discipleship today?
RECEIVE – What words of redemption and grace is God offering to me?
REMEMBER – Who and what is God calling me to remember in prayer related to today’s reading?
RESPOND – How is God calling me to respond today?
RESOURCES:
> DOWNLOADS - 40 Day Walk prayer guide (.PDF), 40 Days of Doodles kids journal (.PDF)
> CLICK HERE for sermon starters/suggestions
Day 3: Congregational excellence
Ephesians 3:17-19
I ask that Christ will live in your hearts through faith. As a result of having strong roots in love, I ask that you’ll have the power to grasp love’s width and length, height and depth, together with all believers. I ask that you will know the love of Christ that is beyond knowledge so that you will be filled entirely with the fullness of God.
It had been coming for quite a while, but we had not recognized it for what it was, as I believe that we should. We lost precious children and teachers in a horrific event at Sandy Hook School. We also lost a parent and her troubled child.
But, God came to save all of the cosmos in the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Doesn’t that call us to accept our shared humanity with all of its brokenness? To do so would open in each of us opportunities for the pain of others to be felt. By acknowledging and feeling the pain of others, we can begin to respond with compassion. After all, the word “compassion” means “with passion.”
Compassion is not regret. Regret forgets until the next time. Compassion is active involvement in the healing process.
I pray that you have never had to suffer the horrific pain of such violence. And, I pray that you never will. I also pray that we will be more sensitive to the pain and struggles of others on all levels, whether in our own country or in other lands across the globe.
There are no easy answers to the pain and brokenness that surrounds us. There is, however, hope. Hope came in the form of an innocent child:
• exposed to the elements,
• the neglect of the community,
• and the retaliatory fear from both religious and secular leadership.
Hope came through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is this hope that draws all of us to gather together in the loving embrace of a congregation where mercy and compassion reaches out to one another to bring healing and wholeness.
Prayer: God, grant us compassion for those You came to save. Place in us your heart for others, that we might find the fullness of life through living in the embrace of your love in our churches and in our conferences. May our congregations be healthy examples of your forgiveness and grace.
Dr. John R. Bonson, Sr.
Director of Connectional Ministries-Memphis Conference
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REFLECTIONS FOR THE DAY | Use a program on your computer, a traditional journal, or feel free to use the comment section of this blog post to record your reflections as a conversation with others…
READ – What spoke to me as I read today’s meditation?
REPENT – Where is God showing me that I have failed to be obedient to the call to discipleship today?
RECEIVE – What words of redemption and grace is God offering to me?
REMEMBER – Who and what is God calling me to remember in prayer related to today’s reading?
RESPOND – How is God calling me to respond today?
RESOURCES:
> DOWNLOADS - 40 Day Walk prayer guide (.PDF), 40 Days of Doodles kids journal (.PDF)
> CLICK HERE for sermon starters/suggestions
DAY 2: God’s transforming presence – Offering Christ to a hurting world
Psalm 139:7
“Where could I go to get away from your Spirit? Where could I go to escape your Presence?”
One Sunday afternoon I had just finished preaching my third sermon for the day. I was completely exhausted and drained of energy as I was driving the thirty-five miles back home. Then suddenly there it was right before my eyes. I stopped the car and got out, only to behold the glory of God’s beautiful creation.
The majestic mountains rolled on both sides of me. Just below the dark-green and waxy leaves of the trees reflected the glow of the sunlit sky. There were tiny buds covering the ruby-leaf plum trees. The porches and lawns of the houses were filled with colorful flowers. The vines covering the walls and porches splashed of bright orange, yellow and red colors. It was a magnificent sight!
As I beheld the beauty of God’s creation that summer day, suddenly I felt the Holy Presence surrounding me, filling me with little whispers of peace and love. My tired and worn body was completely transformed into a ray of energy, joy and new life. God’s presence hushed my sighs of weariness, bringing a breath of cheer and ease to my troubled soul.
I am convinced that we can discover God’s presence in all, yes all, of our daily lives; not only in the beauty of the earth, but in the faces of all our brothers and sisters. We can know God’s presence when we serve others living with poverty and injustice; when we stand up for truth, justice and righteousness, when we protect the least, the lost and lonely, when we reach out to the poor, the homeless and imprisoned. How many times have we looked back over our lives only to realize that God’s presence was there with us all the time: in the close encounter of an accident, the reconciliation of a family member, in caressing a new born child.
When was the last time you felt bathed in God’s majestic presence? When was the last time you recognized God’s presence in the ordinary, mundane circumstances of day-to-day living?
Prayer: Loving God, open our hearts to see your Holy Presence in all of our daily lives. May your closeness burst forth in the purity of the dawn and in the glowing ray of sunset, speaking your words of hope, joy and new life. May we always know your Holy Presence as we offer Christ to a hurting world. AMEN.
The Rev. Bettye P. Lewis
Director of Connectional Ministries-TN Conference
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REFLECTIONS FOR THE DAY | Use a program on your computer, a traditional journal, or feel free to use the comment section of this blog post to record your reflections as a conversation with others…
READ – What spoke to me as I read today’s meditation?
REPENT – Where is God showing me that I have failed to be obedient to the call to discipleship today?
RECEIVE – What words of redemption and grace is God offering to me?
REMEMBER – Who and what is God calling me to remember in prayer related to today’s reading?
RESPOND – How is God calling me to respond today?
RESOURCES:
> DOWNLOADS - 40 Day Walk prayer guide (.PDF), 40 Days of Doodles kids journal (.PDF)
> CLICK HERE for sermon starters/suggestions
DAY 1: 40-Day Walk With God
I John 4:9
This is how the love of God is revealed to us: God has sent his only Son into the world so that we can live through Him.
Our grandson, Thomas, is 18 months old. He can say a few words now, but my favorite is “Papa.” He calls me Papa and sometimes calls his grandmother Papa. It makes me smile when I hear him say my name. Sometimes Thomas says “Papa” as praise. Sometimes he cries it when he is wounded and hurt. There are other times when he says “Papa” as a prayer.
Recently, in my own prayer life, it occurred to me that when I pray to God, call God’s name, God must surely smile as I do when Thomas calls my name. In its simplest form, this is what prayer is. Sometimes when I say God’s name it is praise. Sometimes it is when I am in pain. At other times, it is simply as a silent prayer.
Inviting God’s presence to give us a deep sense of the many ways God’s love is being revealed into us and through us is our hope for this prayer guide. For the sake of the mission of Jesus Christ in the world, we invite you to commit the next 40 days to a “Season of Prayer.” We invite you to journey with us as we seek to bear witness to the love of God in the world.
Across the Nashville Area, we are calling you to be a disciple of Jesus Christ who will invite others to become a disciple who will then change the world. May this prayer guide be a tool to assist us as we lean into God’s movement across our conferences.
We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. (I John 4:14)
Prayer: O Lord, speak to us with clarity as we seek to bear witness to the world of your love. Keep our lives focused in you as we live into your desired future. These things we pray in the strong name of Jesus Christ. AMEN.
Bishop William T. McAlilly
Nashville Episcopal Area Leader
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REFLECTIONS FOR THE DAY | Use a program on your computer, a traditional journal, or feel free to use the comment section of this blog post to record your reflections as a conversation with others…
READ – What spoke to me as I read today’s meditation?
REPENT – Where is God showing me that I have failed to be obedient to the call to discipleship today?
RECEIVE – What words of redemption and grace is God offering to me?
REMEMBER – Who and what is God calling me to remember in prayer related to today’s reading?
RESPOND – How is God calling me to respond today?
RESOURCES:
> DOWNLOADS - 40 Day Walk prayer guide (.PDF), 40 Days of Doodles kids journal (.PDF)
> CLICK HERE for sermon starters/suggestions
A 40 Day Walk With God starts tomorrow morning!
Beginning tomorrow morning the Memphis and Tennessee Conferences will embark on a 40-day journey together with God and through prayer. As we prepare for this upcoming Annual Conference season (Memphis – June 2-5, Tennessee – June 10-12), consider walking with us!
“We will join hands and hearts across Conferences as we enter into a 40-day season of intentional prayer together and with God. I believe this call to prayer will change your life and our churches as we prepare for Annual Conference.” – Bishop Bill McAlilly
RESOURCES:
There are several options for participation during the 40 Day Walk…
- Physical prayer guides: there might still be a few of these floating around, contact your District offices for info (Memphis | TNUMC)
- Digital prayer guides: DOWNLOAD (.PDF) for printing or for reading on your computer
- 40 Days of Doodles for kids! CLICK HERE to download (.PDF)
- Subscribe to the Bishop’s Blog: by subscribing with your email, you receive automatic updates to your inbox – each daily devotion will release at 6:00 am cst every morning between Apr. 24-Jun. 2. Enter your email address in the box on the upper right-hand side of the HOME page
- Follow the Bishop’s Blog daily: just log on to www.BishopBillMcAlilly.com every day to read the daily devotions from the 40 Day Walk With God prayer guide - each daily devotion will release at 6:00 am cst every morning between Apr. 24-Jun. 2
You can also get links from our social media presence on Facebook and Twitter:
> Memphis: Facebook | Twitter (@UM_Memphis Conf)
> Tennessee: Facebook | Twitter (@tnumc)
Use hashtag #40daywalk when sharing and tweeting through Twitter – let’s let the world know that the Memphis and Tennessee Conference’s are in a season of prayer and encourage our brothers and sisters across the connection to join us!
Boston Tragedy
I will lift my eyes unto the hills, from whence does my help come. My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth. Psalm 121:1
Our prayers this day are for those who were in harm’s way this day in Boston at the sight of the finish line of the Boston Marathon. We pray for those families who have lost loved ones. We join our hearts in prayer for our all who are responding to this tragedy and pray for strength.
We stand in shock and fear creeps in. As we seek to make sense out of this tragic moment in Boston, may the peace of Christ be in us. Let this be a reminder to us that the call of Christ is ever before us to live faithful lives and that we continue to live in a world that is broken.
To that end our task is unending as we pray, “Thy kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.”
I invite each congregation in the Nashville Area of the United Methodist Church to offer prayers on Sunday, April 21, 2013 for all victims of this tragedy as well as for those who caused this tragic event. May we pray for the spirit of Christ to transform our World.
Bishop William T. McAlilly
Appointment Announcements
Over the last few days, the two cabinets of the Nashville Area of The United Methodist Church have been engaged in the annual process of appointment-making. Many of you have held us in your prayers and we are deeply grateful. What I can tell you is that we, too, have prayed for every congregation and every pastor in the Tennessee and Memphis Conferences by name. I can also tell you that your cabinet has worked faithfully for the good of the whole. Today those pastors in full time appointments who are moving will be contacted. After the pastors have been contacted, the Chairpersons of the P/SPR Committees where there are moves will be contacted to inform them about the projected appointment for their congregation. Part-time changes will be communicated in May.
The Nashville Area Cabinet has worked extremely hard over the last four months thinking and praying about the mission field, our congregations, and our pastors as we have engaged this work. As we shared with you in the P/SPRC training in January, our hope was to make Missional appointments, which would better match pastor and congregation with an eye toward reaching the mission field. While we are continuing to move in that direction we were not able to do so in every circumstance. However, in many places were able to do so.
This Sunday, the P/SPR Chairperson will share the news of the projected appointment with the congregation in worship. A prayer will be offered for both the departing pastor and the incoming pastor and the churches.
In the coming weeks there will be an introductory meeting with the new pastor and the P/SPR Committee that we call a Covenant Meeting. This will be a time to introduce the pastor and family and for the committee to speak about their mission and vision for ministry for this new beginning. It is NOT an interview, but it is a time of welcoming.
In May, in each of the conferences, there will be a transition seminar for those congregations and pastors who are involved in the moving process.
The dates are:
Sunday, May 5 at St. Mark’s in Murfreesboro from 3-5 (MAP)
Saturday, May 4, 9:00 A.M. at Grace UMC in Jackson, TN (MAP)
Each moving pastor and each P/SPRC will be expected to be in attendance. We believe this is a crucial time to create a positive new beginning. Your District Superintendent will share information with you regarding registration.
We continue to pray for each of you and pray God’s richest blessings on new beginnings.
