Wait for God’s Goodness by Karen Bates
Karen Bates
October 16, 2019
God has gently reminded me more than once that the onus for what he has promised is not on me. It is on him.
God has gently reminded me more than once that the onus for what he has promised is not on me. It is on him.
I was recently visiting my son who is away studying at University, and we attended Sunday worship at a church near his school. After the service, quite a few people stopped us to thank us for showing up to church. The congregation was made up of mostly older members who seemed thankful, relieved, and overjoyed that people from a younger
“Ruth’s life is not living up to her expectations. She is a childless widow, living in a foreign land, dependent on the favor of strangers. Enter the Redeemer – the one who can rewrite the ending of a story gone wrong, buying back tragedy and making way for restoration.”
It is October, which for pastors is Clergy Appreciation Month. Recently I polled clergy on their experiences of Pastor Appreciation in the midst of ministry. The results managed to surprise me. I was curious to know answers to what I thought was a fairly straightforward, simple question: what’s one of the most meaningful gifts or gestures you received for Pastor
As a Mexican, I did not know I was a Hispanic, too. The term “Hispanic” refers to people from Spanish-speaking countries and, in the United States, it is a technical demographic label or distinction used to identify people from a Spanish-speaking origin. Since in Mexico the primary language is Spanish, the term “Hispanic” is not commonly used to identify Spanish-speaking
I love browsing bookstores. Whenever I learn about a new book, I’m frequently excited simply because it’s NEW, and I forget that it actually isn’t new at all. Instead, every new book is the culmination of a journey, with time spent thinking, researching, writing, and rewriting. That exactly describes the journey of WME’s “new” resource, Embrace: Showing and Sharing the
WME is excited to build on our successful launch of The Residency in Mission (RIM). Annie Kate Leinius will serve as the 2020 Resident in Mission in New Zealand. She joins Eliza Edge (2019-2020 RIM), who began her service in New Zealand in August. Annie Kate is working now to build financial and prayer support for her residency. In addition,
When change “just happens,” it never happens to move the organization’s goals forward.
“Today, patience is one of the greatest gifts we can give others.”
Isn’t it true that life will not always turn out the way you want? Maybe you don’t get the promotion you think you deserve or you are struggling with your health. Maybe your marriage doesn’t turn out the way you imagined even though you feel you have worked hard for it and done everything you possibly can. The truth is that we
Thank God for pastors and lay leaders who recognized that history is important, and when unrecognized and unconfessed, sin poisons the body. We don’t keep secrets, our secrets keep us.
The Trinity is, in my experience, the ultimate collector’s plate. A gilded, limited edition Charles and Diana Wedding commemorative. Purely for admiring. Never for serious use … This is a problem … Because we love what we use. Can we really love the beauty of the Trinity if we never talk about it?
The Kingdom of Heaven is the rule and reign of God on earth, and this is what God is building among us. Matthew teaches us that this King and his Kingdom have come and are coming. Thirty-two times in Matthew’s gospel, he uses the term “Kingdom of Heaven.” That’s his working theme as he shares the story of Jesus with
“God, You have outwitted me!” Isn’t that a delightful phrase?…What a testimony to the providence of God, the working of God’s grace in our lives.
Stop inviting people to church! Stop it! Right Now!…Invite them, instead, to follow Jesus.
Why did they leave him at the gate? Why not take him all the way in? Did they not understand that he had spiritual needs as well?
Wesley leads us to the heart of Lent and to the heart of every day of seeking the fullness of life in Christ: such a longing to please our Lord that we want the Holy Spirit to check us at the first sense of pride, wrong desire, or the wandering will — anything, that is, that might “quench the kindling
“The mission of the Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.” The Mission Statement of the United Methodist Church. I am an ordained United Methodist clergy and I have a confession to make. I have a love-hate relationship with the United Methodist mission statement. As a Wesleyan, I love it because it is
On Ash Wednesday, we recall through word and ritual, and even rejoice in, the fact that the Lord our God can bring new life out of the ashes of our brokenness.
A celebration of Easter without a prior descent into the grave is dishonest and naïve, just as observing Lent without the uncompromising proclamation of the Resurrection is hopeless.
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