"Running to Church"

This morning at 10:30am the childen and youth of Centerville UMC will present their Christmas musical "Christmas Letters" in the church sanctuary. The kids have worked very hard and I expect that it will go well with an occasional miscue here and there.

The children have been practicing on Tuesdays after school. They come in with smiles, tons of energy, hungry, talkative, and lots of school paraphenalia. This Tuesday, a couple of the kids showed up a little early, breathless and laughing. I looked at them and said, "Did you run all the way here from school?" (their school is about 5 or 6 blocks from Centerville UMC) They looked up at me and said, "Of course! We always run from school to practice!" It was obvious from their expressions that "running to church" gave them great pleasure and that this was the place they really wanted to be on Tuesday afternoons. When I mentioned to a few of them that Sunday was their program at church and that this would be the last Tuesday afternoon practice, they looked crestfallen and disappointed. One child actually said, "Can we come to church next Tuesday anyway?"

Running to church........with enthusiasm and joy! I love it!  As a pastor, I pray that all of the folks who come to Centerville UMC for worship and/or the numerous activities at the church throughout the week are "running with joy" to get there simply because they are excited to be in the place of worship, fellowship, learning, joy, and most of all meeting Jesus Christ in His church. And I pray that we continue to welcome them, encourage them, and thank God for their presence.

Are your "running to church" this morning? Or sometime this week? Or sometime during this Advent and Christmas season? I encourage you to get out there and make your way to church. You might just find the same kind of enthusiasm and joy that our children and youth have been finding these past 8 weeks or so. And certainly, Christ will find joy in your being in His house of worship.

See you in church!

Psalm 100
^1-2 On your feet now—applaud God! Bring a gift of laughter,
sing yourselves into his presence.

³ Know this: God is God, and God, God.
He made us; we didn't make him.
We're his people, his well-tended sheep.

⁴ Enter with the password: "Thank you!" Make yourselves at home, talking praise.
Thank him. Worship him.

⁵ For God is sheer beauty,
all-generous in love,
loyal always and ever.

The children and youth of Centerville UMC will be gathering at the church after school today to delve into their second to the last rehearsal before the big Children's Christmas program slated to enhance our worship experience on Sunday. Somehow I got elected to do the music portion of the program and have enjoyed learning along with the kids some of the kind of funky, but fun music that goes along with the play they are performing. The musical numbers are sprinkled throughout the program and take about 18 minutes altogether, so the kids and youth will be singing a lot. Thankfully the children and youth enjoy singing (at least they look like they do) so having a lot of music in the program is a joy.

Most people do love to sing - especially this time of year as we haul out our Christmas mp3's and take a break from the hustle and bustle by kicking back and listening to those old and new Christmas favorites. I particularly love Handel's Messiah.....and have some sad feelings about not being able to sing it this year. I think I've sung at least some portion of the Messiah at Christmas for the last 20 years? at Christmas starting in my home church, Clay United Methodist Church in South Bend. Clay is a large United Methodist Church in South Bend with a marvelous music ministry lead by my friend Bob Ham; director of music at Bethel College. Each year, since about 1990 or so, the choir and soloists at Clay Church sing the Christmas portion of the Messiah at their 9:00pm Christmas Eve service. I've also sung The Messiah with Huntington University orchestra, chorus and soloists, Vesper Chorale (a semi-professional chamber chorus in South Bend that I was a member of for 4 years while in South Bend) accompanied by a chamber orchestra made up of members of the South Bend Symphony and these past few years with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Chorus and Orchestra. This year brings a different experience to my plate - a year that I will not participate in a production of the Messiah.  Don't get me wrong - I love being in Centerville and serving at Centerville UMC. What a great church with a great love for Jesus Christ! But, there is almost always some kind of loss involved in the changes that life brings and I miss singing the Messiah this year.

What is different in your life this year as you prepare for the coming of Jesus? Are there places of grief still resounding in your heart? Maybe your grief doesn't involve singing, maybe your grief is more about people and relationships - people that have moved on; whether because of life circumstance, broken relationships, or even death? Where are you grieving this season? We feel loss more intensely this time of year, perhaps because of those expectations that tell us everything should be wonderful at Christmas. 

Please know that God cares. God cared so much that He would send His Son to earth so that God would know what it fells like to be human and be able to enter into those times of grief and loss in our lives with understanding, love, peace, and hope for a better tomorrow. When the Christmas cheer scene seems to much for you this season, let God in and let God help.

And, it wouldn't hurt to come and see a bunch of kids and youth singing to God's glory this Sunday, so join us at 10:30am at Centerville UMC!

Advent 2

Today begins the second week in Advent. Advent is the time of year when we prepare for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ as a baby in the manger and as the King of Kings, Lord of Lords who will come again to judge the quick and the dead. Are you preparing yourself, your household, your church for Christ's coming?

This morning in worship at Centerville UMC we will be studying the gospel of Mark Chapter 1, take a look at the Advent hymn, People Look East and see how scripture and hymnody intersect with John the Baptist's call for repentance and baptism.  Most importantly, it is my prayer that we all experience the presence of God in our worship time together.

Rev. Michael Slaughter, pastor of Ginghamsburg Church in Ginghamsburg, Ohio, posted a remark on Facebook that reminds me of the importance of celebrating a Holy Advent in the midst of a culture that wants to jump immediately to the commercial aspect of Christmas. "Getting ready for Christmas and getting ready for Jesus are two different things." How are you preparing spiritually for the coming of Jesus?

If you are sick of Christmas by the December 25th, you haven't done Advent right.......

 People Look East! Kathy

Disciple Bible Study Starts in October

These past four weeks we have been involved in a sermon series on the Old Testament book of Jeremiah here at Centerville Church. The sermon series is over, but some folks have expressed an interest in a continued study of scripture in small group setting.

The study of scripture continues to be a high priority for this community of faith. The church has three different adult Sunday School classes, a prayer and share group that meets during the week, and others in the church are involved in the Bible Study Fellowship experience offered in Richmond.

And yet there is always room for another Bible Study! Below is the "blurb" that will appear in the next few weeks' bulletin offering information on the new small group eight week Bible Study at Centerville Church.

Small Group Bible Study
Disciple Bible Study Introduction to the Old Testament
Starts October 16th in the Centerville Church Annex
Time: 6:00pm - 7:30pm
Leader: Pastor Kathy Miller

The Old Testament of the Christian Bible can be a difficult part of the Bible to read, understand, put into historical context, and apply to our lives today. Yet the Old Testament was Jesus' Bible; with the stories and passages so deeply ingrained in his heart and mind that we find many connections in his ministry, teachings, and life to the Old Testament scriptures. Do you have a heart to dig into the Old Testament to learn more about its origins, stories, and connections to Jesus and our lives of faith today?

Join us, as Pastor Kathy leads a short term Disciple Bible Study called

"Invitation to the Old Testament."
We will explore the Old Testament’s story of God and God's calling of the people of Israel through the many "voices" of the biblical text. Hear the magnificence of a Creation hymn, discover the law and wisdom teachings, listen to the warning of the prophets and explore the poetry of the Song of Solomon. 

Sessions:
1. The Making of the Hebrew Bible
2. The Creation Story of Israel
3. Out of Bondage
4. Promise and Problem in the Land
5. Israel Has a King
6. Division and the Rise of Prophecy
7. Exile and Response
8. Restoration and Renewal

Tentative Meeting Dates: October 16th, 30th, November 13th, 27th, December 18th,

January (2012) 8th, 22nd, February 5th.

Please let Pastor Kathy know if you are interested in joining this group.

Church office # 855-5576;

Pastor Kathy's cell # 960-7104.
Cost of the participant's book is $10.00.

I pray you will consider joining us on October 16th as we explore together an "Invitation to the Old Testament". We will meet in the church annex. The church annex is an older house right next door to the church with a comfortable meeting room, kitchen, and the church offices. Because we are meeting in a "home", some of our friends outside of Centerville UMC might be a little more comfortable than if we were meeting in the church proper. So, invite a friend!!

"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and prayers." Acts 2:42

Time.....

I had a couple of clergy friends come to Centerville on Monday for a vist. They came for a couple of different reasons; the most important of which was so they could spend some time getting to know the new place I'm living in and the church I am newly appointed to. By the way, they both approve of the town of Centerville and of Centerville UMC! I'm delighted that my friends would choose to take the time out of their busy schedules and make the trip from "up north" to share time with me. We also got some sermon planning done on Monday, but in retrospect, that was the "bonus points" that came from their visit. The most important thing was their concrete way of saying by their presence here in Centerville that, "These relationships are important to me and because of that importance, I'm willing to invest my time and energy."

Time is a valuable resource in our lives; a resource we have choices about. Certainly many of us have parts of our days and time chosen for us; we need to spend a certain amount of time at our jobs, eating, sleeping, exercising, resting and doing other kinds of self care activities, but after we take care of the necessities of living, we often have choices about the ways we spend out time. The question then becomes, how are we going to spend our time? In ways that our uplifting, purposeful, and relationship oriented or in ways that might not be as helpful to our own lives and the lives of the people around us?

We are disciples of Christ; called to live out our joy and gratitude for the great blessings of the gift of the gospel in ways that show our thanks and appreciation to God. We show our gratitude in many ways; by attending worship, by our daily devotionals and prayer time, by our work and giving in mission, and by our willingness to be a good neighbor. Our time becomes an important consideration when we choose ways of expressing our graditude to God.

The ways we choose to use our time reflect our dedication and love for God. How are you spending your time today?

1 Corinthians 10:31
So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

In what ways are we showing to God our gratitude for the gift of time?

Faith for Tough Times

Late Summer Sermon Series

Faith for Tough Times – The Message of the Prophet Jeremiah

We’re living in the midst of challenging times. Uncertainty and conflict are pervasive in our world and in our personal lives. In our late summer sermon series, we’ll study and reflect on the book of Jeremiah, written in the midst of economic strife, social division, and personal struggles.

Jeremiah, one of the three major prophets in the Bible, prophesied from 626 to 586 B.C. Called as a young man to speak prophetic words to the people of Judah, he warned of impending judgment at the hands of the Babylonians if the people did not repent. Rather than repenting, they considered him a traitor. Many came to hate Jeremiah. Some plotted to kill him. He was even arrested and thrown in prison.

After Jerusalem was destroyed, the people remembered Jeremiah’s words of hope; those words sustained them during their exile in Babylon. Join us as we explore how Jeremiah’s life and words might help us to develop a faith for tough times and to live with hope for the future

 August 7, 2011                                A Fire Shut Up in My Bones

                                                                Jeremiah 1:4-9; 20:7-9

August 14, 2011                              Following Worthless Idols

                                                               Jeremiah 2; 10:22

August 21, 2011                             We Are Never Too Far Gone

                                                             Jeremiah 3:12-13; 7:5-7

August 28, 2011                           Hope When it All Seems Hopeless

                                                            Jeremiah 29:1; 11-14

I pray you can join us as we study and hear the message of hope from the Biblical book of Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 20:7-10

You pushed me into this, God, and I let you do it.
   You were too much for me.
And now I'm a public joke.
   They all poke fun at me.
Every time I open my mouth
   I'm shouting, "Murder!" or "Rape!"
And all I get for my God-warnings
   are insults and contempt.
But if I say, "Forget it!
   No more God-Messages from me!"
The words are fire in my belly,
   a burning in my bones.
I'm worn out trying to hold it in.
   I can't do it any longer!

Grandchildren

My daughter Sarah snapped this picture of my granddaughter Violet the other day as she was playing with her rubber ducky and watching a little bit of tv. Being a mother to Elizabeth and Sarah continues to be one of the greatest joys of my life; but I have to admit, there is something incredibly special about having a granddaughter. Not only is it a  joy to watch God's incredible creation of Violet Elizabeth grow, develop, learn, and relate to others, I also count it all joy to watch my daughter Sarah grow into motherhood with  all of its responsibility, sleepless nights, fun, satisfaction, and pure love and selflessness.

And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.
(Mark 10:13-16 ESV)

New Beginnings

Sometimes life throws us "curveballs" doesn't it? A year ago I was settled into ministry at Seminary UMC in Roanoke, IN thinking that my ministry there would last another 2-3 years and maybe more if the church continued to do well and was willing to make disciples for Jesus Christ. God had other ideas and working through the Cabinet of the Indiana Conference of the United Methodist Church, I accepted a position as senior pastor at Centerville UMC in Centerville, IN. Once again I find myself in the midst of a wonderful group of loving, faithfilled folks doing their best to follow Jesus' call to make disciples for His Kingdom. While this change has not been easy, I'm finding that this group of Jesus followers have opened their arms wide to welcome me and make sure that my transition into their community has been smooth and grace filled! Thank you Centerville UMC and the community of Centerville for your gracious and warm welcome.

My changes these past five months have been filled with massive amounts of support from my family, the church I left, the church I've gone to, the Indiana Conference structure, district superintendents, clergy friends, church friends, and the communities of Roanoke and Centerville. I am surrounded by support and love and count that as one of the many blessings in my life. There are so many people experiencing changes and disrution in their lives and many times during the changes they experience these folks do not have the kind of support, care, and love that I have been so priviledged to experience over the past 5 months.

That's where our call to the Christian faith journey must be willing to take us - to offer "Radical Hospitality" to those we encounter in life......in our communities, in our churches and in our homes. In the last 12 years of pastoral ministry I have found that most often when a new person or family comes to our churches on any given Sunday morning, there is a good chance that some sort of change has happened or is happening in their lives. These changes can be good changes like the birth of a new child, marriage, a promotion and move to a new community, or these changes could be difficult ones, like the death of a family member or friend, divorce, unemployment, ect. It is up to us to recognize that change is happening in their lives and offer the grace, love, and welcome that Christ would want us to offer to them.

Radical Hospitality, as defined by United Methodist Bishop Robert Schnase in his book "Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations", works when laity and pastors "take the initiative to invite, welcome, include, and support newcomers and help them grow in faith as they become part of the Body of Christ. (Church) members focus on those outside of their congregation with as much passion as they attend to the nurture and growth of those who already belong to the family of faith, and they apply their utmost creativity, energy, and effectiveness to the task, exceeding all expectations." (page 11)

Let us all be people of "Radical Hospitality" to the strangers in our midst!

In Christ's love, Kathy

Matthew 25:35 - 40

"For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me. The the righteous will answer him, "Lord when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and we gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visted you? And the king will answer them, "Truly I tell you, just as you did it to the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me."