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First Steps – June 18, 2018

From the Book:  Which Way, Lord?

“When a storm raged on the Atlantic one night, John Wesley’s English companions screamed and cowered; surely Wesley felt fearful himself. But he marveled at a group of German Christians called Moravians who worshiped and calmly sang hymns while the storm raged. What accounted for their composure? One Moravian explained to Wesley that the group was “not afraid to die” – strange words to a man who believed he had to be sanctified, that he had to live a holy life, before God would accept him.

Like Paul’s moment of reckoning on the road to Damascus, the episode began a lengthy period of discernment for Wesley that led him to learn more from the Moravians. Upon his arrival in Georgia, he sought out a Moravian pastor who posed the question: “Do you know Jesus Christ?”

“I paused,” Wesley wrote in his journal, recounting the conversation, “and said, ‘I know He is the Saviour of the world.’ ‘True,’ replied he, ‘but do you know He has saved you?’ ”

Wesley wrestled with this question even as he struggled to bring people to Christ. Two years later he departed Georgia, depressed and defeated. “I who went to America to convert others,” he wrote, “was never myself converted to God.”  Imagine his desperation at this point. How many times do you think he was driven to pray, in so many words, Which way, Lord?…

Wesley realized he didn’t have to earn God’s acceptance. He’d found the starting point to a new, God-inspired direction. His purpose grew from God’s love, and he lived out that purpose by taking the message of this boundless love to his parishioners. Eventually, Wesleyan theology would spread throughout the world.”

I like the last paragraph!  He realized he didn’t have to earn God’s acceptance.  How about you?  Do you know you don’t have to earn God’s acceptance—you have it in Jesus Christ.  Now, go and live knowing that you are accepted into the beloved.

 

 

This week’s reading:

  • Monday – 1 Corinthians 7
  • Tuesday – 1 Corinthians 8
  • Wednesday – 1 Corinthians 9
  • Thursday – 1 Corinthians 10
  • ​Friday – 1 Corinthians 11

Please Pray for:

  • Leaders and participants of St. Paul summer activities.
  • The Ukraine Mission Team as they travel to Ukraine and abroad. (Click this link to get a list of needs.)
  • ​Unwillingly absent members.
  • Those grieving the loss of loved ones.
  • Our new mayor and city leaders.
  • Our families, homes, workplace, church, and community.
  • Ongoing Building Renovations, Modifications, and Phase 3: Construction of New Youth Building and rear parking.

 

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First Steps – June 11, 2018

Oftentimes, we are not sure how to pray or even know what to pray while praying. We can pray for ourselves, for others, and for the world. We can pray in lots of different ways – silently or aloud; while moving or still; with others or alone. There are thousands of excellent resources available to help us develop meaningful prayer lives. All of them will express the need for practice – practice praying.

We practice prayer because it is the means by which we practice our faith. When you pray you practice what you believe. Prayer centers us on our relationship with God, brings into focus the joys and sorrows on our minds, and can even be a way to be present in the lives of others.

Summer is the perfect time to practice prayer. It is in this season that we have a “slower” schedule. We see time differently in the summer; therefore, use this time to practice prayer. It will tone our faith muscles so that when summer is over and life resumes at a faster pace, we are ready.

This week’s reading:

  • Monday – 1 Corinthians 2
  • Tuesday – 1 Corinthians 3
  • Wednesday – 1 Corinthians 4
  • Thursday – 1 Corinthians 5
  • ​Friday – 1 Corinthians 6
Please Pray for:
  • Leaders and participants of St. Paul summer activities.
  • ​Unwillingly absent members.
  • The Ukraine Mission Team as they travel to Ukraine and abroad. (Click this link to get a list of needs.)
  • Those grieving the loss of loved ones.
  • Our new mayor and city leaders.
  • Our families, workplace, church, and community.
  • Ongoing Building Renovations, Modifications, and Phase 3: Construction of New Youth Building and rear parking.
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First Steps – June 4, 2018

I like Brother Lawrence. He reminds me of those who have street knowledge. There are some in life, who are not highly educated, but have wisdom. They are observers of life, people, and things. They can see beyond the immediate to something on the horizon. Lawrence was extremely gifted this way.

He is famous for his religious life as a kitchen aid for a monastery. What made him unique was that in his common daily routine he practiced living in God’s presence. It wasn’t in worship or in lengthy prayer or mission but in the everyday common task that he found God. He said, “We can do little things for God. I turn the cake that is frying in the pan for the love of him. And when I have turned it, if there is nothing else to call for my attention, I worship God [in the kitchen].”

There lies the lesson for us. When you do your everyday common task—at work, at school, at home—do it in the name of God. Imagine that you do the task as if Jesus is right beside you. Do it as an act of worship. It is then that you will practice the presence of God in all things.

 

This week’s reading:

  • Monday – Galatians 3
  • Tuesday – Galatians 4
  • Wednesday – Galatians 5
  • Thursday – Galatians 6
  • Friday – 1 Corinthians 1

Please Pray for:

  • Leaders and participants of St. Paul children and youth summer activities.
  • Unwillingly absent members.
  • Those grieving the loss of loved ones.
  • Our new mayor and city leaders.
  • Our families, workplace, church, and community.
  • Ongoing Building Renovations, Modifications, and Phase 3: Construction of New Youth Building and rear parking.
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