Yesterday in her sermon, Rev. Jessica Cavinee, the lead pastor at Lewis Center United Methodist Church said “God is not our vending machine.”  It was a throw-away line.  Not one of the central points of her sermon, which was about stewardship.  But I really liked the line and have been thinking about it ever since. …

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Tom and I are back at our home in Ohio and got to attend worship at Lewis Center United Methodist Church yesterday.  Rev. Phil Rode preached on Romans 15 and it was a good sermon.  As often happens when I am listening to a sermon, Rev. Phil mentioned something – not a major point in …

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When Tom and I were in Death Valley, we went to church with the Christian Ministry in the National Parks.  That was over eight years ago.  This summer, Tom and I have been able to worship thanks to Christian Ministry in the National Parks. Our first month here at Cumberland Gap we tried to find …

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Every morning when we drive to work, we pass through the Cumberland Gap Tunnel.  Emblazoned on signs overhead are the words “Stay in Your Lane!”  They don’t want you changing lanes through the tunnel for safety reasons. It is an interesting message for our lives as well.  Stay in your lane.  There are times when …

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Last Sunday I was privileged to participate in burning the mortgage at Wedgewood United Methodist Church in Akron, Ohio.  I was the Senior Pastor at Wedgewood for 21 years.  We worked together to grow the church in numbers, ministry, and finally, by an addition that doubled the size of the physical church. In order to …

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I am a big believer in persistent prayer.  I believe that prayer changes things, sometimes even changing God’s mind about something.  Through prayer we can move mountains.  Prayer changes the person who prays and the person who is being prayed for. In his teachings, Jesus tells us time and again that we should keep praying.  …

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As I mentioned before, I have been walking the Christ Church labyrinth during Lent.  Today I wanted to share with you some things I was learning from the labyrinth.  I walk the labyrinth three times a week on my days off.  I thought I might get tired of it, but I have actually enjoyed it …

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This last Sunday I attended worship at Christ Church Frederica, Episcopal, for the first time.  Christ Church’s property adjoins Fort Frederica National Monument, so its location is very convenient.  It has an 8 a.m. service which means that I can attend worship and still get to work on time.  I could have been attending this …

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Christ Church, the Episcopal church next to the RV sites at Fort Frederica, built a Prayer Labyrinth.  I have been taking advantage of this way of praying when I take my morning walks on our days off. I have not been attending worship on Sunday mornings since we came to Georgia.  Tom and I work …

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“Away in a Manger” is one of my favorite hymns (songs).  I sing it all year, not just at Christmas time.  The words are simple and yet I feel them in my heart every time I sing them. Away in a manger, no crib for a bed, the little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet …

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