Be Doers Of The Word

Proper 17 (B), August 31, 2003 James 1:21-25 It's 6:30 in the morning. You awake to that most usual and unfriendly of sounds - the buzzing of your alarm clock. You lay there for a minute as reality rescues your mind from the night's dreams. Then, slowly, you sit up, turn your body and rest

Apathy

Malcolm Muggeridge wrote about Mother Teresa after he had seen her work in Calcutta: "The biggest disease today is not leprosy or tuberculosis, but rather the feeling of being unwanted, uncared for, and deserted by everybody. The greatest evil is the lack of love and charity, the terrible i

Be Strong In The Lord

Proper 16 (B), August 24, 2003 Ephesians 6:10-20 The imagery in our text today carries a special weight considering our present conflict in Iraq. We've watched with great diligence as our country progresses toward victory. We boast an astonishingly well trained military with superior tec

Be Careful How You Live!

Proper 15 (B), August 17, 2003 Ephesians 5:15-20 In his book entitled, Margin, Dr. Richard A. Swenson notes that the average American will, in his lifetime: Spend six months at traffic lights. Spend one year searching through desk clutter looking for misplaced objects. Spend eight months op

Unfinished Business

Proper 14 (B), August 10, 2003 1 Kings 19:1-8 "How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him. "But the people said nothing" (1 Kings 18:21). It was a showdown. "High Noon" starring the prophet Elijah. The odds were 850 to l. Elij

The Dimensions Of God’s Love

Proper 12 (B), July 20, 2003 Ephesians 3:14-21 One of the scariest moments growing up is when you say something that sounds exactly like your parents, and you suddenly realize it is not them but you. When I was about seven we visited my aunt in Lubbock, Texas. Dad had already admonished us

Why Do You Search For Jesus?

Proper 13 (B), August 3, 2003 John 6:24-35 From my earliest memory I have always wanted to know more about how things work, and "why" has plagued my vocabulary. My family often told me the slogan of one of the tabloids, "Inquiring minds want to know," was written just for me. The Scriptu

The Foundations Of Life

Proper 11 (B), July 20, 2003 Ephesians 2:11-22 As a teenager I weighed approximately 300 pounds. During gym classes we would build a human pyramid of boys. Our goal was to get as many bodies on the pyramid as possible. I was usually in the center of the crowd on the bottom row. The higher t

Life As A God Possession

Proper 10 (B), July 13, 2003 Ephesians 1:13-14 The people of Ephesus would understand this portion of Paul's writing, ". . . you were sealed with the Holy Spirit" because of their geographical location. Ephesus was a maritime city and carried on an extensive timber trade. Merchants of the

Commanding Love

Commanding Love (Lectionary Starters) Fifth Sunday after Easter, Year B May 25, 2003 John 15:9-17 Donald Charles Lacy, Pastor, Yorktown United Methodist Church, Yorktown, IN The death on the Cross continues to be explored 2,000 years later. Why would a totally innocent man suffer the excruc