Memorial Day

Believe the Best – Jerk Reaction

Key Bible Verse:  The trouble with you is that you make your decisions on the basis of appearance.  2 Corinthians 10:7

Bonus Reading:  Hebrews 6:4-12

I showed up at the house of a friend and rang the doorbell.  I was supposed to bring some chairs.  He opened the door and said, “Ron, where are the chairs?”

I responded, “Oh, I forgot.”

He glared at me and barked, “That figures!”

I thought, That figures?  He thinks I’m no good.  He thinks I can’t follow through.  He thinks I’m useless.

Then I thought, Who does he think he is?  The creep.  I bet he’s got a problem or twelve!

But then I decided I had two options: believe the best about what he was saying—although that was pretty tough—and just forget about it, or ask him what he meant—even though it seemed obvious to me.

A couple of weeks later I saw him and brought it up: “You know the other day when I was at your house and forgot to bring the chairs and you said, ‘That figures’? …”

He interrupted me and said, “I shouldn’t have said that.”

“I was wondering what you meant.”

“Well, all day long that day in every meeting someone had forgotten something.  It just figured.”

So, he wasn’t saying, “Jenson, you’re a jerk.”  He was saying, “My day’s been terrible.”

—Ron Jenson in Fathers and Sons

My Response:  A time that I mistakenly assumed the worst was …

Adapted from Fathers and Sons (Broadman & Holman, 1998)

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, you received me when I was down and out.  Help me to accept others in the same spirit.

Central Church – Online Worship Service – Trinity Sunday & Memorial Day Observance – 5-30-2021

On this cool, overcast, Trinity Sunday, when the coronavirus prevents many of us from gathering in Central Church’s Sanctuary to worship in body, let us join together in spirit for with our online worship experience! Today’s online worship service includes a favorite HYMN with lyrics so you can sing along! AND… Both the video on Facebook and the video on YouTube now have closed captions (if you turn them on) so you can read along with the spoken words during the service!  To activate captions in Facebook, click on the Settings “gear” symbol in the bottom right corner of the image, and then click on the “Off” button to change it to “On” for “Auto-Generated Captions”. To activate captions in YouTube, click on the “CC” icon in the lower right corner of the image to toggle captions On and Off. A brief comment on our new closed caption capability – The closed captions on our videos use voice-recognition software similar to that used on Television broadcasts, and with similar accuracy!  Sometimes, the captions are not entirely accurate, so if you read something incongruous, back up the video a few seconds and listen carefully for what is actually being said. To begin, simply click on one of the links below to join with the folks who have already made their way into our digital Sanctuary.  You can find this week’s online worship service on both Facebook and YouTube at the following coordinates: Facebook –   https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=354879309393019 YouTube –     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3BD-VXxVQk (If the video doesn’t come up after clicking on the link, just copy and paste the address into your browser search bar.)

Memorial Day: For What Shall We Live?

Here on Memorial Day, below please find an insightful reflection by Roger Brady, retired as a general from the United States Air Force,that appears in today’s issue of Christianity Today online:

---

Whether we wear a uniform or not, we all have sacrificial service to offer.

Image: Ken Holmes / Lightstock

Memorial Day likely conjures up memories for all of us. Mine start from when I was too young to know what the day meant.

When I was a young boy, it was a family time, a holiday from school or other obligations, and a time for picnics, multi-generational baseball games in an open field, and reunions with seldom-seen relatives.

Over the years I have gained a much greater appreciation for this day and what it means. From my first assignment in Vietnam to my last in Germany, I was continually reminded of the extraordinary sense of commitment and service in the young men and women with whom I was privileged to serve.

The Last Full Measure of Devotion

During my last assignment, as 33rd commander of the US Air Forces in Europe, I routinely received invitations to speak at memorial events at one or more of the many cemeteries in Europe where young Americans are interred. I was particularly moved by an event in Paris at the Arc de Triomphe.

The heavy traffic that normally circles that beautiful edifice at a frantic pace had been stopped, and a crowd had gathered to remember and honor French and American men and women who had given their lives in the horrible wars of the 20th century. Many living veterans of those conflicts wore the uniform they had first donned at a much earlier age, and some of them still bore the scars of war. It was humbling to be in their company that day.

For four decades, I was honored to serve with thousands of dedicated young men and women. Some of them would die in service to their country. We were extremely sad at their loss as we comforted their loved ones and each other. They gave their very best, and we were reminded that we must do the same. They died serving something bigger than themselves—the transcendent ideals that make America the country we cherish.

For us as Christians, this day should have an even more poignant meaning. Many of the same values that our nation hopes to nurture and the traits military members are challenged to embody are consistent with those perfectly modeled for us by our Savior. He was the quintessential example of service and sacrifice.

In his letter to the Roman church, the apostle Paul said, “Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:7–8).

But before he died, he lived. Boy, did he live! To the consternation of those watching him, he invited himself to the home of a hated tax collector named Zacchaeus, he challenged the hypocrisy of religious leaders by coming to the rescue of a prostitute, he exposed the meaninglessness of their religiosity by healing the sick on the Sabbath, and he challenged bigotry and insensitivity by publicly engaging in conversation with a Samaritan woman that his society said was unworthy of his time.

As Christians, this example is our heritage also, regardless of our earthly citizenship. Citizenship in his kingdom, after all, is the one that counts. Do not mistake what I am saying. I am grateful every day for that I am a citizen of America, and there is no other place on earth I would rather call home. Like most Americans, I am here by virtue of circumstances over which I had no control. I cannot explain it. I can just be thankful for it.

Patriotism and Piety

As I now view life in America as a private citizen, I am struck by the similarity of our expressions of patriotism and faith. Occasionally I wonder if we get the cross and the flag confused. As American Christians, we are indeed twice-blessed, but we should not get the two confused. America is an imperfect place, an unfinished project, an ideal we hope to make a reality.

Our citizenship in the kingdom of God is a gift extended to us freely by God’s grace. Paul told the Ephesian Christians, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Eph. 2:8–10).

The society in which Jesus lived also had many problems. There was hypocrisy, bigotry, poverty, and oppression of the weak by the strong, and he condemned all of that. America is probably a better place than that for even the most marginalized of our citizens, but it is not always what it should be for all of us. As Christians, regardless of our earthly citizenship, this is part of the work he left us to do. Is it our duty as Americans? Yes, it is—but even more so as citizens of his kingdom.

I do not always understand how God’s providence works. I cannot explain why those extraordinary individuals we now call our “founding fathers” came together when they did. They created a country based on their belief that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights.” Their belief in these universal, eternal truths—however imperfect their understanding and expression of those truths—yielded a society in which people of faith can function with more freedom than anywhere else in the world.

Does this mean that God favors America? I often hear people express that belief, but what I read in his Word is that he favors people who rely on him, who place their trust in him, and who proclaim him as their God, regardless of their earthly citizenship. Does that ensure their health and wealth and a life of ease? No, it ensures us of the opportunity to be his sons and daughters, to tell others of the salvation that was freely given to us, to share in his suffering, and to live with him eternally.

The American writer Samuel Clemens, better known as Mark Twain, once said we should give loyalty to our country always and to the government when it deserves it. I believe he meant that our only true loyalty is to those eternal principles to which governments aspire but do not always demonstrate. There may well come times when our government takes a path we cannot in good conscience follow, and we must stand where God stands. But it is right that we devote time to remember and honor those fellow citizens who gave their all for us—we are forever in their debt.

Living a Life of Service

Most Americans will never serve in the military—actually less than one percent of our population do so.  And even among those of us who do, very, very few of us are asked to give that last full measure of devotion.  So what is the question for us on this day as we remember those Americans who died on our behalf?

I believe that question is —for what shall we live?  Whether or not we wear the uniform of our country, we all have a service to offer, a service to those ideals that reflect God’s universal truths and that our American ancestors captured in the formation of this country.

When Jesus left this earth to take his place at the right hand of the Father, he left us, his bride, the church, to carry on his work.  So when evil strikes in the form of a school shooting or when nature unleashes its fury and devastates property and lives, when children suffer, when people are hungry or homeless and ask “Where is God?!” we must be there and have them see him in us.

We must bring his comfort and his healing to this world. When we live lives of service to those around us, we honor the God who saved us and we honor all those who gave that last full measure to secure for us all the things we enjoy in this nation.  Someday we will find ourselves at the end of our lives looking back, and we will ask ourselves what it was all for.

At that moment, we will all want to recall a life of service to something larger than ourselves, to children who needed our teaching and our example of service, to people whom we gave a hand up in time of need, to friends and colleagues whom we comforted in times of sorrow, lives with whom we shared the many physical and spiritual blessings that have been bestowed on us.

If we live that life of service, we will have fulfilled the challenge of the Savior when he said, “Whatever you did for one of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” (Matt. 25:40).

So on Memorial Day, and every day, we need to ask ourselves, for what shall we live? How are we doing at fulfilling not just the ideals of our American forefathers but those universal values set in place by the one who made us in his image, who sent his only begotten son to secure our salvation, the one who “created us in him to do good works?”

Roger Brady retired as a general from the United States Air Force. He speaks and writes on principled leadership and serves as minister of adult education in his local congregation. His books include Forget Success!! and Nothing Has Changed.

Memorial Day Blessing!

As we reflect upon the blessings that we have as a nation, and the high cost that has been paid for the security of our land, please join us…

 In giving thanks for those who have served in our armed forces, risking their lives for our liberty.

 May God bless those who have sacrificed and the families of those service members who have done without in duty to our country.

 On behalf of Central Church, may you have a blessed holiday weekend!

 

Believe the Best – Silent Treatment

Who Said It…Ron Jenson

Ron is chairman of Future Achievement International, a personal leadership development organization.  He also leads High Ground, a non-profit organization focused on mutual support between business leaders worldwide, and Christians in Business International.

He has sold over 700,000 audiotapes, and speaks internationally.  Dr. Jenson lives in San Diego and has co-authored one of his books, Fathers and Sons (Broadman & Holman), with his adult son, Matt.

What He Said…Silent Treatment

When I was the president of a graduate school, I’d encouraged my staff to serve their customers (students) by being attentive and supportive.

During a staff meeting someone came in and told me, “You’re urging us to serve the students, but I was just in the bookstore and the manager wouldn’t even talk to the students.  They asked questions and all he did was to point them toward various resources.”

I was livid. I marched to the bookstore to chew out the manager.  Right before I got to the store, my vice president for the bookstore division passed me.  I stopped him and said, “Gus, I want you to come with me.  Your bookstore manager is being so insensitive to some of our students, he’s not even talking to them.”

“Ron, he has laryngitis!” Gus responded.

Man, did I feel small and stupid.  I’d assumed the worst.

Trusting one another is about having enough faith in the other person to put aside any assumptions.

Adapted from Jesus Up Close (Tyndale, 2001)

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, you received me when I was down and out.  Help me to accept others in the same spirit.

Music in Honor of Memorial Day

In addition of our observance of Trinity Sunday later today, May 30, 2021, we will also take time during our worship service in recognition of Memorial Day, which will officially be observed on Monday, May 31.

In remembering with grateful hearts all those whose sacrifices make our freedom possible, we will also feature special music during our worship service.

Our service music in preparation for worship will feature “Prelude on ‘The New Commonwealth'” by Ralph Vaughan Williams, and our selection during the Offertory will be the beautiful “Elegy in B Flat” by Sir George Thalben-Ball.

Please join us for this special worship service of remembrance and thanks.

New Sanctuary Banners!

Last Sunday, May 23, 2021, we celebrated Pentecost Sunday.  Tomorrow, Sunday, May 30, 2021 is Trinity Sunday, and the following day, Monday, May 31, is set aside to observe Memorial Day.

We at Central Church are fortunate to have a dedicated soul who creates colorful and educational banners to adorn our Sanctuary and help maintain our focus on the particular Sunday that we are celebrating each week. 

 

 

We have a new banner at the front of the Sanctuary to the left of the Choir Loft depicting the Holy Spirit for Pentecost Sunday…

 

 

 

.

 

 

…and to the right of the Choir Loft, we have another new banner this week in honor of Trinity Sunday.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In addition to these new banners, this week we also have two new banners outlining one of our more popular and powerful hymns, “Here I Am, Lord”: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Be sure to take a moment to enjoy these beautiful banners the next time you’re in our Sanctuary.

Our thanks to Barb for sharing her talents and time to make our Sanctuary a beautiful and educational space for our worship services!

Central Church

Time to Count the Cost – The Great Cost of Discipleship

The turnout for Jesus’ “evangelistic campaign” was impressive.  But Luke informs us that Jesus didn’t follow-through with an invitation.  Instead, the paragraphs we look at today record His in-your-face “disinvitation”!

Jesus sensed a superficiality about the enthusiastic crowds.  So He urged them to turn back if they weren’t prepared to go deeper.  This is sobering stuff for believers of our generation as our culture shifts from tacit support of Christian values to barely concealed hostility.

Interact with God’s Word

Luke 14:25-35

1. Why do you think Jesus’ popular following made him uneasy?
2. Why is enthusiasm alone inadequate to support long-term discipleship?
3. How would Jesus’ hearers have understood carrying their own cross?
4. Have you seen a disciple who began well throw in the towel? What happened?
5. What costs should a Christian be prepared to pay?
6. Do Jesus’ demands strike you as extreme? As unreasonable?
7. What would make a believer—like leached-out salt—blend in and lose his distinctive flavor?

Spend Time in Prayer:  Ask God for strength to move beyond a surface comfort with your Christian sub-culture to a rock-solid commitment to Christ that will hold up under attack.

Luke 14:25-35

25 Great crowds were following Jesus. He turned around and said to them, 26 “If you want to be my follower you must love me more than your own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, more than your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. 27 And you cannot be my disciple if you do not carry your own cross and follow me.

28 “But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first getting estimates and then checking to see if there is enough money to pay the bills? 29 Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of funds. And then how everyone would laugh at you!

30 They would say, ‘There’s the person who started that building and ran out of money before it was finished!’

31 “Or what king would ever dream of going to war without first sitting down with his counselors and discussing whether his army of ten thousand is strong enough to defeat the twenty thousand soldiers who are marching against him? 32 If he is not able, then while the enemy is still far away, he will send a delegation to discuss terms of peace. 33 So no one can become my disciple without giving up everything for me.

34 “Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? 35 Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for fertilizer. It is thrown away. Anyone who is willing to hear should listen and understand!”

Prayer for the Week:  Being an out-and-out disciple isn’t for wimps, Lord.  Give me what it takes to be all Yours.

COVID-19 – Beaver County Metrics – 5-27-2021

Here are the weekly COVID-19 statistics for Beaver County, PA as of May 27, 2021, showing continued improvements in both categories.

• The Incidence Rate moved down 21.4 points (32.4%) to 44.5 from last week’s 65.9 in the Moderate category.
• The PCR Positivity Rate has moved down to 4.4% from last week’s 5.1%, moving into the Low category for the first time in 29 weeks.

(Allegheny County’s figures moved down during the past week from 42.6 and 4.0% to 23.8 and 3.0%.)

• • Beaver County is now classified as MODERATE.  

(If both metrics are Moderate, the PA Dept. of Health’s recommended school instructional model is Hybrid Learning.)

• Deadlier COVID-19 variants have now replaced the original coronavirus as the predominant strains here in the United States, making it more important every day that we do all that we can to protect the people who come to our Church.

On April 5, the CDC issued a “Science Brief” outlining that, in addition to people becoming infected through contact with contaminated surfaces or objects,  the principal mode by which people are infected with COVID-19 is through exposure to respiratory droplets carrying infectious virus.

---

• Small Group Meetings (Sunday School, AA, other meetings):

The current guidance on when and how gatherings can take place is based upon the threshold of infection rate.

For Indoor meetings/Sunday School to resume, the 7-day average of daily cases for gatherings that include unvaccinated folks should be:

• • 1.5-2.0 – for everyone except those at high risk; and
  • Less than 1.0 for those at high risk.
  • Our current level is 6.3, so resuming small group meetings will not be feasible until we can provide sufficient active air filtration in light of the latest CDC guidance and the deadlier variants now moving into the USA.

---

As the pandemic continues, we are continuing our efforts to:

• Disinfect Central Church prior to every worship service and feeding ministry event using EPA-registered products in compliance with CDC standards to kill germs and reduce the risk of spreading infection, and in compliance with EPA criteria for use against SARS-COV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19; and

• We are also employing HEPA-13 air filtration equipment to help reduce any airborne coronavirus in our Sanctuary.    
  

Central Church

Time to Count the Cost – Shunning the Bait

Key Bible Verses:  So if you are suffering according to God’s will, keep on doing what is right, and trust yourself to the God who made you, for he will never fail you.  – 1 Peter 4:19

Bonus Reading:  1 Peter 4:12-19

“Jimmy Houston may be America’s most famous fisherman.  As host of the ESPN2 tv series, Jimmy Houston Outdoors and Jimmy’s Outdoor World, his aw-shucks humor (kissing a fish after each catch), Cheshire cat grin, and shaggy blond hair are known to thousands.  Houston has won nearly $336,000 on the Bass Angler Sportsman Society (BASS) circuit, making 15 appearances in the BASS Masters Classic tournament, and winning its Angler of the Year title twice.

But BASS signed Anheuser Busch on as an official sponsor in 2002.  Houston refused to add the beer sponsor’s decal to his boat at BASS professional events.  He says he knew immediately that, for “ethical, moral, and scriptural reasons,” he couldn’t adhere to the Busch requirement.  That cost him points needed to qualify for the BASS tournament, the Super Bowl of fishing, and a potential Angler-of-the-Year prize worth $100,000.

“One guy asked me if I prayed about it first,” Houston recalls.  “I told him, ‘Not for a second.  To me, it wasn’t a decision.  I’m simply not going to promote beer for anybody.”

He was “totally shocked,” he says, that other Christian anglers, fearing it would jeopardize their careers, didn’t react the same way.

—Eric Tiansay in New Man

My Response:  What inducements would I automatically reject?

Thought to Apply:  You make up your mind before you start that sacrifice is part of the package. —Richard Devos

Adapted from New Man (9-10/03)

Prayer for the Week:  Being an out-and-out disciple isn’t for wimps, Lord.  Give me what it takes to be all Yours.

Coronavirus Update – 5-27-2021

Here are the latest modifications to the COVID-19 restrictions, including the PA Dept. of Health’s announcement today concerning masks.

• • • We at Central continue to be focused on protecting our vulnerable members, friends, and visitors during what the PA Dept. of Health is calling “this transition period.”

---

• Capacity Restrictions – The capacity restrictions in the latest mitigation Order (75%) will be lifted on Memorial Day (Monday, May 30, 2021).

• Masks – The PA Dept. of Health announced today that Pennsylvania’s mask order will be completely lifted on June 28 (or possibly sooner, if 70% of residents get their second dose of vaccine).

To date, 52.7% of the 18 and older population are fully vaccinated.  According to the CDC, 97.7% of Pennsylvanians over 65 have received at least one dose of vaccine.

Once the statewide masking order is lifted, Pennsylvania will continue to follow the CDC guidance for wearing a mask where required by law, rules, and regulations, including local business and workplace guidance.

The CDC is still requiring masks on planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation. In addition, all individuals should still follow the guidance at workplaces, local businesses, long-term care facilities, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters.

• • • Since our in-person worship attendees are a mixture of fully-vaccinated and unvaccinated folks, Central has adopted a “masks optional” position for attendees to enable the fully-vaccinated to forego wearing masks at their option.  The CDC and PA Dept. of Health still require unvaccinated folks to wear masks and be physically distant until they are vaccinated.

• Physical Distancing – Unvaccinated people must continue to follow the CDC’s guidance for unvaccinated people, which includes masks and physical distancing.

• Not Yet Lifted –
  • Disinfecting requirements
  • Physical Distancing
  • Temperature Screening
  • Attendance taking for Contact Tracing

For the immediate future, we are continuing to observe our modified in-person worship service precautions:

• • Our “vacationing” Choir will tentatively resume in September;
  • Limited hymn singing (low volume, with masks optional);
  • No touching;
  • Prepackaged communion products;
  • Hand sanitizer stations.

---

At Central Church

We are all weary of the restrictions that the global pandemic has imposed in an effort to minimize the danger of contracting COVID-19.  We pray for the recovery of those infected, and grieve for all of our friends and relatives who have been lost to this cruel disease. 

Although we yearn for a return to “the way it used to be,” we are not there yet, and we at Central Church are mindful of the need to not act in ways that require unvaccinated folks to choose between being safe and participating in the life and ministry of Central Church.

Some are forecasting a serious resurgence of COVID-19 and its variants when colder weather returns, so our dedicated Trustees continue to be focused every day on doing what we reasonably can to protect everyone, especially our most vulnerable family, friends, and visitors.

• You are invited to join us for worship in our Sanctuary each Sunday at 11 am. 
• If you are not yet comfortable returning to in-person worship, please join us for our online worship services each week on Facebook and YouTube.
• If you have a concern or a need, please reach out to a member of your Central Church family.

---

Central Church

Fire Destroys Mount Pleasant Presbyterian Church in Darlington – How You Can Help

Mount Pleasant Presbyterian Church, on Market Street in Darlington, was consumed by smoke and flames just after 5 a.m. Monday, May 24, 2021. Investigators believe that the fire was caused by an electrical box. 

 

 

Fire crews from Darlington, Chippewa Township, Beaver Falls, South Beaver and other nearby departments battled the fire for hours, closing Market Street.

 

 

 

The building, located at 718 Market St., is likely a total loss following a roof collapse and extensive interior damage. The fire destroyed the sanctuary, including a recently donated organ worth $70,000. Little Beaver Helping Hands held meetings at the decades-old church, too.

 

The church was founded October 24, 1797 and celebrated 200th year on October 25, 1997.  The present Sanctuary and Christian Education Centers were dedicated on April 20, 1969.

• How you can help –

You can contribute toward the cost of rebuilding Mount Pleasant Presbyterian Church by:

• • Mail at Mt. Pleasant Presbyterian Church, P.O. Box 216, Darlington, PA 16115; or

 

• • At their GoFundMe page at:  https://gofund.me/510bc5c7 (or at  https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-mt-pleasant-presbyterian-church-rebuild?utm_campaign=p_cp_display&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer )

 

Please remember our brothers and sisters in Christ at Mt. Pleasant

as they take their first steps toward rebuilding their church.

 

Time to Count the Cost – G.I. Standard-bearer

Key Bible Verse:  “Remain faithful even when facing death, and I will give you the crown of life”  – Revelation 2:10

Bonus Reading:  Matthew 5:10-12

A panel of the stained glass window behind the West Point Cadet Chapel altar honors Maurice, the patron saint of the Infantry.

Maurice was brigade commander of the Theban Legion, composed entirely of Christians recruited from Upper Egypt.  In 287, it marched under Roman general Augustus Maximilian Hercules to crush the revolt of the Berguadae Gauls.

Maximilian ordered the offering of pagan sacrifices before battle near the River Rhone at Martigny (in modern France).  The Theban Legion refused to participate and withdrew to the town of Agaunum (now Saint Maurice-en-Valais).  They had also refused to kill innocent civilians in the conduct of their duty.  Enraged, Maximilian ordered every tenth man killed.  His order was carried out, yet they still refused.

A second time the general ordered Maurice’s men decimated; again they refused to offer sacrifices.  “We’ve seen our comrades killed,” Maurice replied. “Rather than sorrow, we rejoice at the honor done to them.”  At this, Maximilian ordered all the Thebans killed.

Isn’t it interesting that steely-eyed, snake-eating, bad-to-the-bone soldiers chose to emulate a man known for his faith and the overarching power of principle?

—Col. Mike Tesdahl, USA (Ret.), in Command

My Response:  What am I facing that requires undaunted courage?

Thought to Apply:  Fear God, fear sin, and then dear Britons, fear nothing! —Lord Horatio Nelson (British admiral)

Adapted from Command magazine (2/03)

Prayer for the Week:  Being an out-and-out disciple isn’t for wimps, Lord.  Give me what it takes to be all Yours.

Time to Count the Cost – Prostituted Press

Key Bible Verse:  Yes, and everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.  – 2 Timothy 3:12

Bonus Reading:  Luke 14:25-35

Several years ago the wire services carried an account of a printing press operator in the Midwest whose employer signed a contract to print a pornographic magazine.  This man refused to operate his press on that one contract.  He pleaded, “Allow me to work on any other project.  Give me the worst hours in the shop;  I won’t operate my press when that magazine comes through.”

He was fired.  He appealed to his labor union, which declined to support his “censorship.”  He lost his job with only three years to go on his pension and retirement.

I discussed this disturbing story with a pastor I know.

“What a jerk!” my preacher friend laughed.  “Gagging at gnats and swallowing camels.  How big of a deal is it?  He doesn’t have to read them or look at the pictures.  That fool has no responsibility in the matter.  All he has to do is operate a printing press.”

That pastor’s attitude exposes a deep wound in our society.  When we can no longer even identify which situations demand truly courageous responses, then we no longer know when to take a stand.  Finally we will lose our understanding of what courage is.  If a society misdefines courage, it’s on the verge of barbarism.

—Mark Rutland in Character Matters

My Response:  An issue of which I believe Christians should take a stand is …

Thought to Apply:  It is important that people know what you stand for.  It is equally important that they know what you won’t stand for. —Source Unknown

Adapted from Character Matters (Charisma, 2003)

Prayer for the Week:  Being an out-and-out disciple isn’t for wimps, Lord.  Give me what it takes to be all Yours.

Time to Count the Cost – Where Most Needed

Key Bible Verse:  “We will never … worship the gold statue”  – Daniel 3:18

Bonus Reading:  Daniel 3:1-23

Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1963 “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” was addressed to eight white clergymen who, fearing violence, opposed King’s civil disobedience.  King had been jailed for unlawful demonstrations against the city’s segregationist ordinances.

“How can you advocate breaking some laws and obeying others?” King wrote. “The answer is that there are two kinds of laws: just and unjust. … One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.”

One factor propelling his letter to such explosive influence was that he wrote it from a prison in the epicenter of segregation. Dr. King didn’t move to New York City and carry on his ministry from there.  He didn’t move to Los Angeles and call strategic initiatives from there.  He personally took his ministry to a town where the injustice was at its worst.  The Birmingham Chamber of Commerce bragged about its status as the most segregated city in America.  Today Birmingham has an African-American mayor, and it’s situated in one of the most integrated parts of the country.

—Richard Land in Real Homeland Security

My Response:  A situation in which I should stand up and be counted is …

Thought to Apply:  There comes a time when one must take a position that’s neither safe, nor political, nor popular, but he must take it because his conscience tells him that it’s right.—Martin Luther King Jr. (pastor, civil rights leader)

Adapted from Real Homeland Security (Nelson, 2004)

Prayer for the Week:  Being an out-and-out disciple isn’t for wimps, Lord.  Give me what it takes to be all Yours.

Time to Count the Cost – Diverse Except for…

Key Bible Verse:  The world would love you if you belonged to it, but you don’t.  – John 15:19

Bonus Reading:  John 15:18-25

Back in 2002, when Ron Brown was a University of Nebraska Assistant Football Coach, The Daily Nebraskan reported that he was denied the head coaching job at Stanford University because of his religious beliefs.  Of particular concern was his candid belief that homosexual behavior is a sin.  His religion “was definitely something that had to be considered,” Alan Glenn, Stanford’s assistant athletic director of human resources, told the student newspaper. “We’re a very diverse community with a diverse alumni.”

Brown says he was shocked at both the decision and the school’s candor.  “If I’d been discriminated against for being black, they would’ve never told me that,” he said. “They had no problem telling me it was because of my Christian beliefs.”

In Thinking Against the Grain (Kregel, 2003), N. Allan Moseley notes that the ‘tolerance’ that ensures that no one is denied a job because he or she is homosexual, isn’t extended to Christians.

San Francisco Chronicle columnist Mark Simon, said Stanford was right not to hire such an outspoken Christian.

Brown said the Stanford rejection wouldn’t silence his Christian beliefs.  “I don’t believe you compromise truth for whatever job,” he said.

—Ted Olsen in Christianity Today

My Response: Have I taken any flak for my faith? If not, could it be because I flinched?

Adapted from Christianity Today (6/10/02)

Prayer for the Week:  Being an out-and-out disciple isn’t for wimps, Lord.  Give me what it takes to be all Yours.

Central Church – Online Worship Service – Pentecost Sunday – 5-23-2021

On this sunny, hot, Pentecost Sunday, when the coronavirus prevents many of us from gathering in Central Church’s Sanctuary to worship in body, let us join together in spirit for with our online worship experience! Today’s online worship service includes a favorite HYMN with lyrics so you can sing along!   AND… Both the video on Facebook and the video on YouTube now have closed captions (if you turn them on) so you can read along with the spoken words during the service!  To activate captions in Facebook, click on the Settings “gear” symbol in the bottom right corner of the image, and then click on the “Off” button to change it to “On” for “Auto-Generated Captions”. To activate captions in YouTube, click on the “CC” icon in the lower right corner of the image to toggle captions On and Off. A brief comment on our new closed caption capability – The closed captions on our videos use voice-recognition software similar to that used on Television broadcasts, and with similar accuracy!  Sometimes, the captions are not entirely accurate, so if you read something incongruous, back up the video a few seconds and listen carefully for what is actually being said. To begin, simply click on one of the links below to join with the folks who have already made their way into our digital Sanctuary.  You can find this week’s online worship service on both Facebook and YouTube at the following coordinates: Facebook –   https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=206596747812536 YouTube –     https://youtu.be/0kDjH2Nix1A  (If the video doesn’t come up after clicking on the link, just copy and paste the address into your browser search bar.)

Time to Count the Cost – Don’t Flinch

Who Said It…Ron Brown

In 2004, Ron Brown was the receivers coach for University of Nebraska football.  Although intense, energetic, and demanding, he was also there to help his players if they needed him.

Ron is outspoken about his faith.  “Some people around the university aren’t always happy about it,” he once admitted, “but that’s their tough cookie.”  In 2005, Ron chucked his headset and clipboard to become Nebraska state director for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

What He Said…Don’t Flinch

Paul told the elders from Ephesus, “I didn’t shrink from declaring all that God wants for you” (Acts 20:27).  If we let pain cause us to flinch in our Christian walk, we’ll definitely lose impact.

Football players have to learn not to flinch.  One fearless player who has that down is Mike Brown of the Chicago Bears.  I recruited Mike to the University of Nebraska.

He was only 5’8″ and barely 180 pounds in high school, but he moved around the football field like a rocket!  He never hesitated when he tackled another player.  Not once did I see him flinch when driving his body into a ball carrier.

Most players, just before they make contact, flinch and turn their head and shoulders a little.  They don’t want to take the full blow.

Coaches teach that it’s better to initiate the blow at full speed with proper technique than to avoid the contact by flinching.  God needs full-speed players willing to tackle the opposition in the name of Christ at all costs.  Don’t flinch!

Adapted from Sports Spectrum Power Up! (11-12/03)

Prayer for the Week:  Being an out-and-out disciple isn’t for wimps, Lord.  Give me what it takes to be all Yours.

Pentecost – Come Down, O Love Divine (Down Ampney)

This Sunday, May 23, 2021, is Pentecost Sunday.

Come Down O Love Divine, by Ralph Vaughan Williams, is a hymn loved around the world that is often sung at Pentecost.

This particular version is performed by the world renowned choir of King’s College Cambridge and led by director of music Stephen Cleobury.

Verse 2 is particularly charming as the male only first half breaks into a full choir fortissimo harmony for the second half.

Click on either the photo or the hymn name to go to the YouTube video of the King’s College Choir in Cambridge, England singing this beautiful hymn.

Come Down O Love Divine

Central Church’s Holy Spirit Stained Glass Window

Come down, O love divine, seek Thou this soul of mine,
And visit it with Thine own ardor glowing.
O Comforter, draw near, within my heart appear,
And kindle it, Thy holy flame bestowing.

O let it freely burn, til earthly passions turn
To dust and ashes in its heat consuming;
And let Thy glorious light shine ever on my sight,
And clothe me round, the while my path illuming.

Let holy charity mine outward vesture be,
And lowliness become mine inner clothing;
True lowliness of heart, which takes the humbler part,
And o’er its own shortcomings weeps with loathing.

And so the yearning strong, with which the soul will long,
Shall far outpass the power of human telling;
For none can guess its grace, till he become the place
Wherein the Holy Spirit makes His dwelling.

How to Dis Discontent – The Secret

Ephesus was a wealthy city, and the Ephesian church probably had some prosperous members.

Paul advised Timothy to instruct them about how to regard and use their resources.  But he also warned Timothy to be on his guard against those whose involvement in the church was based on greed.

Paul’s counsel fits our era just as well.

Interact with God’s Word

1 Timothy 6:5-11, 17-19

1. If religion shouldn’t be seen as a way to get rich, how can it be the source of great wealth?
2. How can the perspective of verses 7-8 help you distinguish between needs and wants?
3. To what extent can advertising to stimulate demand in our consumption-driven economy undermine the contentment urged in these verses?
4. How much do you think your outlook has been affected by this advertising?
5. How have you seen greed ruin marriages, friendships, or business relationships?
6. Why is trusting in the security of savings (v. 17) a trap?
7. What is the antidote for relying on accumulated wealth (vv. 18-19)?
8. Do you really share Paul’s confidence (v. 17b) about how God relates to His children?

Spend Time in Prayer

Ask God for satisfaction when your basic needs are met, acceptance of what He’s doing in your life, and fulfillment in relating to others in His work.

1 Timothy 6:5b-11, 17-19

5 These people always cause trouble. Their minds are corrupt, and they don’t tell the truth. To them religion is just a way to get rich. 6 Yet true religion with contentment is great wealth. 7 After all, we didn’t bring anything with us when we came into the world, and we certainly cannot carry anything with us when we die. 8 So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content. 9 But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is at the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. 11 But you, Timothy, belong to God; so run from all these evil things, and follow what is right and good. Pursue a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness.

17 Tell those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which will soon be gone. But their trust should be in the living God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. 18 Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and should give generously to those in need, always being ready to share with others whatever God has given them. 19 By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future so that they may take hold of real life.

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, make me grateful for Your past blessings, confident of Your future provision, and at peace with my current circumstances.

COVID-19 – Beaver County Metrics – 5-20-2021

Here are the weekly COVID-19 statistics for Beaver County, PA as of May 2013, 2021, showing continued improvements in each metrics in the Moderate category.

• The Incidence Rate moved down 25.0 points (27.5%) to 65.9 from last week’s 90.9 in the Moderate category.
• The PCR Positivity Rate has moved down to 5.1% from last week’s 5.4% in the Moderate category.

(Allegheny County’s figures moved down during the past week from 6.2% to 63.6 and 5.0% to 42.6 and 4.0%.)

• • Beaver County is now classified as MODERATE.  

(If both metrics are Moderate, the PA Dept. of Health’s recommended school instructional model is Hybrid Learning.)

• Deadlier COVID-19 variants have now replaced the original coronavirus as the predominant strains here in the United States, making it more important every day that we do all that we can to protect the people who come to our Church.

On April 5, the CDC issued a “Science Brief” outlining that, in addition to people becoming infected through contact with contaminated surfaces or objects,  the principal mode by which people are infected with COVID-19 is through exposure to respiratory droplets carrying infectious virus.

---

• Small Group Meetings (Sunday School, AA, other meetings):

The current guidance on when and how gatherings can take place is based upon the threshold of infection rate.

For Indoor meetings/Sunday School to resume, the 7-day average of daily cases for gatherings that include unvaccinated folks should be:

• • 1.5-2.0 – for everyone except those at high risk; and
  • Less than 1.0 for those at high risk.
  • Our current level is 9.4, so resuming small group meetings will not be feasible until we can provide sufficient active air filtration in light of the latest CDC guidance and the deadlier variants now moving into the USA.

---

As the pandemic continues, we are continuing our efforts to:

• Disinfect Central Church prior to every worship service and feeding ministry event using EPA-registered products in compliance with CDC standards to kill germs and reduce the risk of spreading infection, and in compliance with EPA criteria for use against SARS-COV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19; and

• We are also employing HEPA-13 air filtration equipment to help reduce any airborne coronavirus in our Sanctuary.    
  

Central Church

How to Dis Discontent – Gear Glut

Key Bible Verse:  True religion with contentment is great wealth.  – 1 Timothy 6:6

Bonus Reading:  1 Timothy 6:5b-11, 17-19

I entered a shelter along the Appalachian Trail late one afternoon after witnessing incredible overlooks and enjoying nature’s beauty up close.  But there was one problem—my pack was too heavy.  My shoulders were aching, and my neck felt like it needed one of those thick, padded braces.

I’d packed way too much food and dreaded lugging the heavy pack the next day.  So I started giving away dried fruit and granola bars to the other hikers settling in for the night.  They probably thought it odd, but accepted the provisions I’d (unknowingly) been carrying for them.  I’d never been such a cheerful giver!

Today’s verse reminds me that if I carry too much bartering power, my journey will suffer.  Understanding my limitations has become the most efficient, least painful way to carry my pack.

Some of us are stronger than others.  A friend of mine carries large bank accounts in his “life pack,” and it seems to never slow him down.  However, for others of us, our loads are lighter because our heavenly Father knows what we’re able to heft.

Seeking to fill our packs and pockets is a grave mistake.  As we learn to trust God more fully, we know He’ll meet all our needs—so there’s no need to overpack!

—Nathan Chapman in With God on the Hiking Trail

My Response:  To lighten my “life pack,” I need to …

Thought to Apply: God doesn’t call upon us to give up a single thing that adds to our happiness; all He wants us to give up are the things which blight our lives.—D.L. Moody

Adapted from With God on the Hiking Trail (Doubleday, 2001)

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, make me grateful for Your past blessings, confident of Your future provision, and at peace with my current circumstances.

How to Dis Discontent – Reach for Less

Key Bible Verse: Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind.  – Ecclesiastes 4:6, NIV

Bonus Reading:  Luke 14:28-30

The third weapon of contentment is a realistic reach.  Before you set a goal, candidly assess the time, the talents, and the resources you have.

Jesus rebuked those who started a tower without calculating what it would take to finish it.  We must know our strengths, and limitations.

Our lives were meant to be built on the capabilities and personality strengths a good God has given us.  We don’t need to strain to be somebody else.  There’s great satisfaction in focused energy and completed towers.  If your reach will compromise a quiet center or push you beyond the boundaries of peace, consider it too expensive.

King David revealed the secret of his relaxed spirit: “Lord, my heart is not proud; my eyes are not haughty.  I don’t concern myself with matters too great or awesome for me.  But I have stilled and quieted myself” (Psalm 131:1-2).

To be content with our life position cancels out the reach for more.  It means that who we are is okay—our looks, our abilities, our singleness.  Where we are is okay too—our address, our school, our job, our position.  And contentment includes how we are, even in a sickbed or with an empty wallet.

—Ron Hutchcraft in Living Peacefully in a Stressful World

My Response: When has my appetite for more created the stress I deplore?

Thought to Apply:  To feel that one has a place in life solves half the problem of contentment.—George Woodberry (college professor & poet)

Adapted from Living Peacefully in a Stressful World (Discovery, 1985, 2000)

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, make me grateful for Your past blessings, confident of Your future provision, and at peace with my current circumstances.

How to Dis Discontent – Equalize the Pressure

Key Bible Verse:  Now I can rest again, for the LORD has been so good to me.  – Psalm 116:7

Bonus Reading:  Psalm 78:18-28

Our outside environment pushes us to compare, complain, compete, and conquer.  To avoid chronic discontent, we need to counter with three kinds of inside pressure.

First, we need to renew our confidence in our secure Source.  When something happens to our paycheck or our best friend, we feel fearful and restless.  But those are only vehicles of God’s supply, not the Source.  He’s infinitely creative in finding other ways to send what we need.  After all, our Father invented manna in the wilderness, water from a rock, and food delivered free by ravens.  If we belong to Him, our Source is beyond the reach of any recession, depression, or hydrogen bomb.

Second, we fight discontent with a grateful memory.  David’s memory was working well when he told King Saul, “The Lord who saved me from the claws of the lion and the bear will save me from this Philistine [Goliath]!” (1 Samuel 17:37).

God sends His gifts to us daily, but because we’re too busy to notice or say thanks, we lack David’s poise.  Regular, specific thanks warms our Father’s heart, and reconfirms our contentment.  If He’s done it before, He’ll do it again!” [continued tomorrow]

—Ron Hutchcraft in Living Peacefully in a Stressful World

My Response:  Is my ultimate security based on savings, investments, or insurance?

Thought to Apply:  We should spend as much time in thanking God for His benefits as we do in asking Him for them.—Vincent De Paul (French clergyman)

Adapted from Living Peacefully in a Stressful World (Discovery, 1985, 2000)

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, make me grateful for Your past blessings, confident of Your future provision, and at peace with my current circumstances.

What is Ordinary Time?

The Christian year includes two central cycles focused on major events in the life of Christ: the Christmas cycle (Advent-Christmas-Epiphany) and Easter cycle (Lent-Easter-Pentecost).

Each of these seasons begins with a time of preparation and anticipation followed by a time of celebration. Ordinary Time follows each cycle.

The word “ordinary” here does not mean “routine” or “not special.” Instead, it refers to the “ordinal numbers” (first, second, third, etc.) used to name and count the Sundays (such as the Third Sunday after Epiphany). This term comes from the Latin ordinalis, meaning “numbered” or “ordered,” and tempus ordinarium, “measured time.”

The first period of Ordinary Time, called the Season after Epiphany, begins on Epiphany Day and ends on the day before Ash Wednesday (the beginning of Lent). The central theme of this season is the calling of disciples and the early ministry of Jesus.

For some congregations, this will mean a focus on evangelism, as found in the Old Testament and Gospel readings for each week. For others, the focus will be preparing to help others grow in their discipleship. The Epistle reading each week emphasizes this.

The second period of Ordinary Time, the Season after Pentecost, follows the Easter cycle. It begins the day after Pentecost and continues to Advent. The purpose of this season is to support new disciples and the whole congregation in living out the gifts and callings discerned during the Easter Season and commissioned on the Day of Pentecost.

Every year, Christians experience the contrast between the central seasons of Christmas and Easter, where we see God in the events around the coming of Christ, and the in-between times, where we see, speak about and join God’s ongoing work in the world.

We thus experience two regular cycles of preparation, celebration and action in ministry each year, with the Ordinary Times as the primary periods of action.

Have questions? Ask The UMC or find a pastor near you to talk with. And check out other recent Q&As.

This content was produced by Ask The UMC, a ministry of United Methodist Communications.

 

 

 

How to Dis Discontent – Virus Protection

Key Bible Verse:  I have learned to get along happily whether I have much or little.  – Philippians 4:11

Bonus Reading:  Philippians 4:10-20

Life is never good enough for some people, while others have great joy even though their lives are plagued by problems.  According to the apostle Paul, the problem for those who are never happy is that “their minds and consciences are corrupted”  (Titus 1:15, NIV). It’s as if a bad computer virus has corrupted all their spiritual files.

We’re all created to enjoy this brief life by finding the marks of the Creator in everything He’s made.  Yet sin has distorted our vision, making it hard for us to see God’s good work.  Instead we see only a world that’s not good enough, a family that’s imperfect, or friends and colleagues who don’t appreciate us.

It’s tempting to just get new friends, change jobs, and bombard our family members with criticism.  Yet the problem doesn’t lie out there.  It lies in our own corrupted minds and guilt-ridden consciences.

Until we deal with these corrupted files through confession, the invitation to joy won’t compute for us.  That’s because joy is essentially an expression of gratitude, and nothing makes us as grateful as believing we’re forgiven. When we’re overwhelmed by the grace we’ve received, it’s hard to be judgmental of the world around us.

—Craig Barnes in An Extravagant Mercy

My Response:  Today, I’ll thank God for my most basic blessings.

Thought to Apply:  Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out. —John Wooden (basketball coach)

Adapted from An Extravagant Mercy (Jossey-Bass, 2004)

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, make me grateful for Your past blessings, confident of Your future provision, and at peace with my current circumstances.

How to Dis Discontent – 4-Wheel Dream

Key Bible Verse:  Those who love money will never have enough.  How absurd to think that wealth brings true happiness.  – Ecclesiastes 5:10

Bonus Reading:  Ecclesiastes 2:10-11

In a class I taught on money, I asked one husband, “Peter, if you could drive any car you wanted and didn’t have to pay for it, what would it be?”

With a wide grin, he replied, “A Ford F-250 V-8 pickup truck, every option, extended cab, four-wheel drive with a topper and a ski rack.”

“Should we make it diesel?” I asked.

Bigger grin. “Yeah, let’s make it diesel.”

“Peter,” I followed up, “Say you may have a new Ford like that every year for the rest of your life.  However, the trade-off is that you’ll never be content.  Or you can drive a 1996 Ford Taurus that’s seen better days.  The trade-off is that you’ll always be content.  Which do you choose?”

Peter sat there stunned and undecided.  He’d always thought, When I get to this level and have these things, then I’ll be content.

Was that his conscious thinking?  No. Was it his practical behavior?  Yes.  As is true for most of us.

Our culture has conditioned us to believe our contentment is something “out there.”  “When I get the right job …” “When we can afford to move to a larger house …” “When we can afford to retire …”  “When” never gets here.

—Neil Atkinson in The Shrewd Christian

My Response:  To move the basis of my contentment from “out there” to “in here,” I need to …

Adapted from The Shrewd Christian (WaterBrook, 2004)

Prayer for the Week: Lord, make me grateful for Your past blessings, confident of Your future provision, and at peace with my current circumstances.

Central Church – Online Worship Service – 7th Sunday of Easter – 5-16-2021

On this sunny, warm seventh Sunday of Eastertide, when the coronavirus prevents many of us from gathering in Central Church’s Sanctuary to worship in body, let us join together in spirit for with our online worship experience! Today’s online worship service includes a favorite HYMN with lyrics so you can sing along! NEW THIS WEEK – Both the video on Facebook and the video on YouTube now have closed captions (if you turn them on) so you can read along with the spoken words during the service!  To activate captions in Facebook, click on the Settings “gear” symbol in the bottom right corner of the image, and then click on the “Off” button to change it to “On” for “Auto-Generated Captions”. To activate captions in YouTube, click on the “CC” icon in the lower right corner of the image to toggle captions On and Off. A brief comment on our new closed caption capability – The closed captions on our videos use voice-recognition software similar to that used on Television broadcasts, and with similar accuracy!  Sometimes, the captions are not entirely accurate, so if you read something incongruous, back up the video a few seconds and listen carefully for what is actually being said. To begin, simply click on one of the links below to join with the folks who have already made their way into our digital Sanctuary.  You can find this week’s online worship service on both Facebook and YouTube at the following coordinates: Facebook –  https://facebook.com/362949807093157/videos/507898800351415/ YouTube –     https://youtu.be/0kDjH2Nix1A  (If the video doesn’t come up after clicking on the link, just copy and paste the address into your browser search bar.)

How to Dis Discontent – “There’s Your Model”

Who Said It…Richard Bewes

Richard is rector of All Souls Church, Langham Place, London.  He grew up as a missionary kid in Kenya.

His love of tennis began there and continued during secondary school in England, where he represented the combined Public Schools of Britain against the All-England Club at Wimbledon.

Richard says his family’s gospel tradition began in 1882, when his grandfather, then 14 years old, responded to a sermon by American evangelist D.L. Moody.

What He Said…”There’s Your Model”

Missionary Ken Ogden used his skills as a carpenter to good effect in one of the developing countries.  At one point he’d shown his local pupils how to build a church.  They did it together.

They were just about to embark on the final lesson of making the seating when the blow fell.  The totalitarian government of the day found fault with Ken and ordered him out of the country with 24 hours notice.

What would you have done?  Run ’round to the bank and try to extricate what funds you could?  Frantically gather your most precious belongings for a hasty exit?  Ken did none of that.

Those last hours he spent with his pupils, and made one seat for the new church.  “There!” he said when it was done. “There’s your model.  Now I’m going, but you finish the rest.”

He left them, not only with the prototype for a church seat, but also with a standard of how an integrated Christian behaves under pressure.  It was the lesson of contentment.

Adapted from Words that Circled the World (Christian Focus, 2002)

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, make me grateful for Your past blessings, confident of Your future provision, and at peace with my current circumstances.

Mini-Investment, Mega-Payback – Wardrobe Makeover

Paul had probably never visited Colosse.  But he had a good idea of what the believers there were up against, so he knew how to pray for them.

Today we look at part of his recorded prayer.

In the second excerpt from his letter, Paul describes our altered behavior as a total wardrobe makeover.  We’ll take a close look at some specific items of clothing.

Interact with God’s Word

Colossians 1:9-10; Colossians 3:12-14

1. Are you asking God for insight into what He wants to do in your life (1:9)
2. What are aspects of His answer that you can count on (1:10)
3. What is included (3:12 & 14) in the properly dressed Christian’s attire? (The previous paragraph, vv. 5-11, describes the clothing you threw out and what replaced it.)
4. What (3:13) is the key to making allowance for the irritating traits and deliberate snubs of others?
5. Why do you think Paul calls love the most important part of your spiritual wardrobe?

Spend Time in Prayer

Ask God to turn your self “inside out,” so that your desire for others’ good comes through in everything you say and do.

Colossians 1:9-10

9 So we have continued praying for you ever since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you a complete understanding of what he wants to do in your lives, and we ask him to make you wise with spiritual wisdom. 10 Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and you will continually do good, kind things for others. All the while, you will learn to know God better and better.

Colossians 3:12-14

12 Since God chose you to be the holy people whom he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 You must make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14 And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony.

Prayer for the Week:  Fill me with Your Spirit, Lord, so that Your love will overflow to others in thoughtful actions.

Mini-Investment, Mega-Payback – Refreshed

Key Bible Verses:  The more you grow like this, the more you will become productive and useful in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.   – 2 Peter 1:8

Bonus Reading:  2 Peter 1:3-11

“You didn’t need to do that.”

“I know—I wanted to,” Les replied.

All morning I was working like mad to complete a report due after lunch.  It was an unusually hot, muggy, Seattle morning in August, and I was parked at the kitchen table in front of my laptop computer when Les quietly slipped in and set up a fan to cool the room.

“I don’t know if it’ll make any difference,” Les said, trying to place the fan in just the right place, “but I thought it was worth a try.”

I don’t know if the fan did anything to alleviate the oppressive heat that morning, but I recall feeling suddenly soothed by my husband’s kindness.

Why?  Because he didn’t have to go to the trouble of scrounging around our basement, still wearing his pre-shower bathrobe, to find our old fan in an attempt to make me feel better. I didn’t ask him to do it.

He never even heard me complain about the heat.  He wasn’t looking for appreciation, to make amends, or to get something in return.  No, this was sheer kindness.

Kindness is an integral part of love because it stems from an uncalculating attitude that desires only the joy of seeing another person’s situation enriched.

—Leslie Parrott in Love Is …

My Response:  Today I’ll look for an opportunity to do a favor before it is requested.

Thought to Apply:  Every act of kindness and compassion done by any man for his fellow Christian is done by Christ working within him. —Julian of Norwich (English recluse)

Adapted from Love Is … (Zondervan, 1999)

Prayer for the Week:  Fill me with Your Spirit, Lord, so that Your love will overflow to others in thoughtful actions.

COVID-19 – New “Mask Optional” Policy at Central Church

On May 13, 2021, the CDC announced that fully-vaccinated people can attend a full capacity worship service and sing in an indoor chorus, both without masks, and the PA Dept. of Health has adopted the CDC’s guidance..

Unvaccinated folks are urged to continue to wear masks until they receive their shots.

• Effective Sunday, May 16, 2021, Central Church will move from the CDC’s prior “masks mandatory” policy to the current CDC policy of “masks optional”. 

All of Central’s remaining COVID-19 precautions and procedures (e.g., physical distancing, attendance tracking for contact tracing) will remain in effect for the present so any members of the congregation who are not yet fully-vaccinated have an opportunity to get their shots.

Other individuals with a compromised immune system, or anyone who is simply concerned for any or no reason, is welcome to continue wearing a ask.

The remainder of Central Church’s COVID-19 precautions and procedures will remain in effect for the time being as we wait to see if there is an uptick in coronavirus cases in the county following wider adoption of the new “masks optional” policy.

Central Church

COVID-19 – Beaver County Metrics – 5-13-2021

Here are the weekly COVID-19 statistics for Beaver County, PA as of May 13, 2021, showing slight improvement with  both metrics in the upper Moderate category.

• The Incidence Rate moved down 7.3 points (7.4%) to 90.9 from last week’s 98.2 in the Moderate category.
• The PCR Positivity Rate has moved down to 5.4% from last week’s 6.0% in the Moderate category.

(Allegheny County’s figures moved down during the past week from 87.9 and 6.2% to 63.6 and 5.0%.)

• • Beaver County is now classified as MODERATE.  

(If both metrics are Moderate, the PA Dept. of Health’s recommended school instructional model is Hybrid Learning.)

• Deadlier COVID-19 variants have now replaced the original coronavirus as the predominant strains here in the United States, making it more important every day that we do all that we can to protect the people who come to our Church.

On April 5, the CDC issued a “Science Brief” outlining that, in addition to people becoming infected through contact with contaminated surfaces or objects,  the principal mode by which people are infected with COVID-19 is through exposure to respiratory droplets carrying infectious virus.

---

• Small Group Meetings (Sunday School, AA, other meetings):

The current guidance on when and how gatherings can take place is based upon the threshold of infection rate.

For Indoor meetings/Sunday School to resume, the 7-day average of daily cases for gatherings that include unvaccinated folks should be:

• • 1.5-2.0 – for everyone except those at high risk; and
  • Less than 1.0 for those at high risk.
  • Our current level is 12.9, so resuming small group meetings will not be feasible until we can provide sufficient active air filtration in light of the latest CDC guidance and the deadlier variants now moving into the USA.

---

As the pandemic continues, we are continuing our efforts to:

• Disinfect Central Church prior to every worship service and feeding ministry event using EPA-registered products in compliance with CDC standards to kill germs and reduce the risk of spreading infection, and in compliance with EPA criteria for use against SARS-COV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19; and

• We are also employing HEPA-13 air filtration equipment to help reduce any airborne coronavirus in our Sanctuary.    
  

Central Church

COVID-19 – CDC Clears In-Person Worship Without Masks for the Fully Vaccinated

Pastor Jan to Also Serve Homewood UMC as Pastor

Effective on July 1, 2021, Conference has announced that Pastor Jan, who will continue serving Central and Bennetts Run UMC as pastor, will also begin serving Homewood UMC as its pastor.

• For Central, there will be no change in our current Joint Charge arrangement with Bennetts Run UMC.
• For Pastor Jan, she move from a “half-time appointment” (i.e., a quarter-time for Central and a quarter-time for Bennetts Run) to a “three-quarter time appointment” with the addition of Homewood UMC.

The text of the Conference announcement is reproduced below.

---

At:  https://www.wpaumc.org/appointments

Davis to Serve Homewood UMC

 Announced: 05-09-2021

About Jan Davis

Jan Tronzo Davis was born and raised in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, attending the Otterbein and Riverview United Methodist churches and graduating from Beaver Falls High School.

After graduating high school, Jan earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing. She also received a Master’s in Social Work from Geneva College. Jan felt a strong calling to ministry over 35 years ago but resisted the Holy Spirit’s promptings. In 2012, during a season in which she and her husband had both been diagnosed with cancer, Jan finally surrendered to God’s call and began her journey into vocational ministry.

Previously, Jan served Koppel UMC and Clinton UMC. She currently serves Central UMC and Bennetts Run UMC in Beaver Falls, and will continue to serve those two churches as she begins her appointment at Homewood UMC. Jan enjoys her work with the feeding ministry in her community. Jan is also Chaplain at Heritage Valley Beaver

Jan’s husband, Terry, passed away in October of 2019 after 36 years of marriage. She has a beautiful daughter, Mallory, and three grandkids, Bryson, Brooke, and Hope.

About Homewood United Methodist Church

Homewood United Methodist Church is a small but vibrant and loving community of Christ-followers, located in a quiet and picturesque portion of Beaver Falls, PA. They are a congregation that feels like family, and are always eager to welcome new family members! At Homewood Church, they worship God with conviction, reach out to the community with an eagerness to bless, and love God and one another with a joy that is truly contagious. The  congregation is deep-hearted and mighty in spirit, and fully committed to making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

---

Central Church

Mini-Investment, Mega-Payback – Marked City

Key Bible Verse:  The way you love will always honor and please the Lord, and you will continually do good, kind things for others.  – Colossians 1:10

Bonus Reading:  Colossians 1:9-10; 3:12-14

In 1940, researchers studied 43 American cities and concluded that Rochester, New York, was the kindest city.  The researchers used an elaborate procedure to come to this conclusion.  A little more than 50 years later, the study was repeated in the same cities.  Rochester again came out on top.

Writer John Tompkins determined to find out why Rochester came out on top.  His own research, reported in the Reader’s Digest, led him to conclude that the city’s history of kindness and generosity stemmed from its earliest days.

In the mid-1800s, renowned evangelist Charles Finney spent six months preaching the gospel and conducting prayer meetings in Rochester.  Thousands were converted to Christ.  New believers renounced their selfishness and began to give themselves to others.  For a century and a half, the city has maintained this strong track record.

The New Age spirituality philosophers teach their followers to do “random acts of kindness” to feel good about themselves.

In sharp contrast, the true spirituality of God’s Holy Spirit calls us to take no thought for ourselves but to seek the good of others.  We are to be kind at all times, in all places, to all people.

—Michael Youssef in The Spirituality that Heals

My Response:  Are believers enhancing the climate of my community?  How?

Thought to Apply:  Kindness is the golden chain by which society is bound together.  —Johan Von Goethe

Adapted from The Spirituality that Heals (WaterBrook, 2003)

Prayer for the Week:  Fill me with Your Spirit, Lord, so that Your love will overflow to others in thoughtful actions.

Mini-Investment, Mega-Payback – Crucial Gesture

Key Bible Verse:  What I want is for you to receive a well-earned reward because of your kindness.  – Philippians 4:17

Bonus Reading:  Galatians 5:16-26

Walking home from junior high, Mark saw the boy ahead of him trip, dropping all his books, two sweaters, a baseball glove, and other odds and ends.  Mark helped pick up the scattered items.  Since they were going the same way, he helped carry some of the stuff.

As they walked, Mark learned that the boy’s name was Bill and that he loved video games, baseball, and history, but was having trouble with his other subjects and had just broken up with his girlfriend.  They arrived at Bill’s home first, and Bill invited Mark in for a Coke, and to watch some tv.  They passed the afternoon with small talk.

Moving on into high school, the two occasionally ate lunch together.  Then three weeks before graduation, Bill reminded Mark of the day they met. “Did you ever wonder why I was carrying so many things home?” he asked. “I’d cleaned out my locker so I wouldn’t leave a mess behind.  I’d stashed away some of my mom’s sleeping pills and was going to commit suicide.  But after we spent time together, I realized that if I killed myself, I’d miss any more pleasant times like that.  So when you picked up those books, Mark, you saved my life!”

—Randy Alcorn in In Light of Eternity

My Response:  A gratifying response to a kindness I extended was …

Thought to Apply:  You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late. —Ralph Waldo Emerson (poet, essayist)

Adapted from In Light of Eternity (WaterBrook, 1999)

Prayer for the Week:  Fill me with Your Spirit, Lord, so that Your love will overflow to others in thoughtful actions.

Mini-Investment, Mega-Payback – Power of the Unexpected

Key Bible Verse:  Kind words are like honey—sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.  – Proverbs 16:24

Bonus Reading:  Proverbs 3:3; 11:17

The first time I walked into the medical practice Walt Larimore operated in Kissimmee, Florida, I was taken by surprise—by a smiling face.  The receptionist stood up, beamed at me over the counter, and said, “Hi, how can I help you?”  I was impressed!

I often feel more like a bother than a cared-for patient in medical offices.  When greeted by a glass window and a clipboard to sign in on, you can only hope that someone realizes you’ve arrived and will in time call your name.

Not so at Heritage Family Physicians.  The staff greeted me by name and appeared delighted to see me and interested in helping me.

And that’s not all.  If the doctor was running late, an office worker would alert patients of the approximate time the doctor would see them and then ask, “Is that okay?”  This said they cared about their patients and realized their time is valuable.

Ordinary?  Yes.  Powerful?  Absolutely.  These common courtesies told patients that something was different about their staff and doctors.  They created a foundation of goodwill in which trusting relationships could develop.  Over time this resulted in many spiritual conversations.

—William Carr Peel in Going Public with Your Faith

My Response:  I’ll work at extending common courtesies to everyone I encounter today.

Thought to Apply:  Kindness has converted more sinners than zeal, eloquence, or learning.  —Frederick W. Faber (British priest, hymn writer)

Adapted from Going Public with Your Faith (Zondervan, 2003)

Prayer for the Week:  Fill me with Your Spirit, Lord, so that Your love will overflow to others in thoughtful actions.

Mini-Investment, Mega-Payback – Commuter Shuffle

Key Bible Verse:  The Lord’s servants …must be kind to everyone …and be patient with difficult people.  – 2 Timothy 2:24

Bonus Reading:  Ephesians 4:31-32

Hurrying home after work, I entered New York’s Port Authority bus terminal, briefcase in one hand, newspaper in the other.  The usual crowd was lined up behind the escalators that take suburban passengers to their buses.

Just as I got to the head of the line, a hard-faced, middle-aged woman came up from my side, shoved in front of me, planted her elbow in my stomach, and stepped onto the escalator. Removing her elbow, I said with elaborate sarcasm, “Forgive me. I didn’t mean to shove you.”

As she turned and looked me in the eye, her face seemed to fall apart.  “I don’t understand,” she said with apology and shock.  “Why are you so nice to me? I was really rude—I shouldn’t have shoved in line like that.”

I was at a loss for words.  The woman had reacted to my counterfeit display of love as if it were real, and appeared transformed.  I began to envision this woman as a person who’d been fighting all her life for a place in line.

Humiliated by the pettiness of my first reaction and overwhelmed by the effect it had produced, I gathered my wits enough to mumble, “It doesn’t hurt to be nice to people.”  Then I ran headlong for my bus.

—Bruce Larson in The Edge of Adventure

My Response: A time when I saw kindness melt hard-heartedness was …

Adapted from The Edge of Adventure (Word, 1974)

Prayer for the Week:  Fill me with Your Spirit, Lord, so that Your love will overflow to others in thoughtful actions.

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

Happy Mother’s Day from your friends at Central Church!

Mini-Investment, Mega-Payback – Little Things

Who Said It…Les and Leslie Parrott

As co-directors of the Center for Relationship Development at Seattle Pacific University, Les and Leslie teach the basics of good relationships.

Les is a professor of clinical psychology; Leslie is a marriage and family therapist.

The Parrotts have teamed up to write several books and to host the radio broadcast “Marriage Matters.”  They have one son, John.

What They Said…Little Things

Kindness comes from small behaviors.  We don’t think of big donations or grand contributions as “kind.”  We call them “generous” or “benevolent,” but it’s the small things we call “kind.”

Kindness, for example, comes when we turn down our partner’s side of the bed before crawling into it ourselves.  Kindness comes when we readjust the car seat after driving so our partner doesn’t have to.  Or when we load the dishwasher when it’s not our turn.

Kindness comes from a million small behaviors that enhance the life of the one we love.  That’s why Kenneth Wuest’s translation of Paul’s love poem underscores the gentle kindness of love as “mellowing all which would have been harsh and austere.”

Kindness sets aside fear that we’ll be exploited.  It relinquishes self-focus and is energized by the needs of another.

Kindness causes us to pause from our own pursuits in order to augment someone else’s life.  Once we remove kindness from a loving heart it’s only a matter of time before the heart atrophies and love is lost altogether.

Adapted from Love Is … (Zondervan, 1999)

Prayer for the Week:  Fill me with Your Spirit, Lord, so that Your love will overflow to others in thoughtful actions.

The Founding Mothers of Mother’s Day

In the late 1860s, before there was an official Mother’s Day holiday in the U.S., a Methodist mom organized “Mothers’ Friendship Day,” at which mothers gathered with former Union and Confederate soldiers to promote reconciliation.

When Ann Jarvis was working to establish Mother’s Day as a national event, and when her daughter picked up the mantle from her, they were not thinking about greeting cards and flowers.  Instead the Methodist women who invented the idea in America wanted to honor mothers in a deeper way.

They were thinking about the work of women and the significant testimony that women could give about the need for peace.  Ann Reeves Jarvis organized women’s clubs in the 1860s to serve suffering mothers and children.

Women came together with their sisters in their locations to respond to the needs that they could see. For Ann, she was in a coal mining part of what is now West Virginia. And she could see the needs of women and children. And she could see the effect of the economy of her day on the people that she cared for most directly.  She started mothers clubs. And she talked to them about hydration for fevered babies, about sanitation and nutrition. And then the Civil War came along and they put a field hospital right outside Grafton.

Ann recruited nurses for military hospitals, and after the war formed friendship clubs to promote reconciliation.  Ann Jarvis was convinced that mothers, women, but especially mothers, had to work for peace because they could see the ravages of war in their husbands and in their sons, in a way that was so focused and so clear that their voices would be powerful. And that’s what’s at the genesis of the current Mother’s Day.

In May 1908, Anna Jarvis organized the first official Mother’s Day celebration at a Methodist church in Grafton, West Virginia.  There was also a Mother’s Day event at one of Wanamaker’s retail stores in Phila00delphia on the same day.

In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson signed a measure officially establishing the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day in the USA. Others like Julia Ward Howe and Juliet Calhoun Blakely also advocated for a Mother’s Day type recognition in the U.S. in the late 19^th century also.

Mother’s Day is celebrated in a variety of countries.  In Thailand, Mother’s Day is celebrated in August on the birthday of the current queen, Sirikit.  In Ethiopia, families gather each fall to sing songs and eat a large feast as part of Antrosht, a multi-day celebration honoring motherhood.

In the United States, Mother’s Day in 2020 will be celebrated on Sunday, May 10.

Becoming a Trusted Leader – How Godly Leadership Is Exercised

Paul and Barnabas’s trip centered on evangelistic campaigns in Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, and Lystra. In each city they won a following (Acts 13:13-14:20) but were eventually run out of town!

Their risky return trip to consolidate the gains for the gospel with these new converts demonstrates how godly leadership is exercised.

Interact with God’s Word

Acts 14:21-23

1. How did Paul and Barnabas go about strengthening the new believers?
2. Preparing believers to face persecution doesn’t sound like encouragement. Why was it an essential component of strengthening them?
3. What initiative did Paul and Barnabas take to move these infant churches beyond loosely knit groups of believers?
4. How did they demonstrate confidence in, and support for, the new leadership they had put in place?
5. Have you been approached to provide leadership in your church?
6. Have you humbly accepted this responsibility?
7. Has your reading this week provided any fresh insights on the role of a leader?

Spend Time in Prayer:  Ask God to guide and use the pastoral and lay leadership in your church for His glory.

Acts 14:21-23

21 After preaching the Good News in Derbe and making many disciples, Paul and Barnabas returned again to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch of Pisidia, 22 where they strengthened the believers. They encouraged them to continue in the faith, reminding them that they must enter into the Kingdom of God through many tribulations. 23 Paul and Barnabas also appointed elders in every church and prayed for them with fasting, turning them over to the care of the Lord, in whom they had come to trust.

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, help me to promote a shared vision and mesh my energies with those of others to achieve it.

COVID-19 – Beaver County Metrics – 5-6-2021

Here are the weekly COVID-19 statistics for Beaver County, PA as of May 6, 2021, which show for the first time in six weeks that both metrics are in the Moderate category.

• The Incidence Rate moved down 18.9 points (16.1%) to 98.2 from last week’s 117.11, into the Moderate category.
• The PCR Positivity Rate has moved down to 6.0% from last week’s 7.0% in the Moderate category.

(Allegheny County’s figures moved down during the past week from 97.9 and 6.2% to 87.9 and 6.2%.)

• • Beaver County is now classified as MODERATE.  

(If both metrics are Moderate, the PA Dept. of Health’s recommended school instructional model is Hybrid Learning.)

• Deadlier COVID-19 variants have now replaced the original coronavirus as the predominant strains here in the United States, making it more important every day that we do all that we can to protect the people who come to our Church.

On April 5, the CDC issued a “Science Brief” outlining that, in addition to people becoming infected through contact with contaminated surfaces or objects,  the principal mode by which people are infected with COVID-19 is through exposure to respiratory droplets carrying infectious virus.

---

• Small Group Meetings (Sunday School, AA, other meetings):

The current guidance on when and how gatherings can take place is based upon the threshold of infection rate.

For Indoor meetings/Sunday School to resume, the 7-day average of daily cases for gatherings that include unvaccinated folks should be:

• • 1.5-2.0 – for everyone except those at high risk; and
  • Less than 1.0 for those at high risk.
  • Our current level is 14.0, so resuming small group meetings will not be feasible until we can provide sufficient active air filtration in light of the latest CDC guidance and the deadlier variants now moving into the USA.

---

As the pandemic continues, we are continuing our efforts to:

• Disinfect Central Church prior to every worship service and feeding ministry event using EPA-registered products in compliance with CDC standards to kill germs and reduce the risk of spreading infection, and in compliance with EPA criteria for use against SARS-COV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19; and

• We are also employing HEPA-13 air filtration equipment to help reduce any airborne coronavirus in our Sanctuary.    
  

Central Church

Becoming a Trusted Leader – Deposits and Withdrawals

Key Bible Verse:  Give them my entire message; include every word.  Perhaps they will listen and turn from their evil ways.  – Jeremiah 26:2-3

Bonus Reading:   Jeremiah 26:1-19, 24

How much positive influence can you exert in your organization and in the lives of those you lead? Can you obtain buy-in on a major proposal, lead someone to Christ, or successfully pursue a new position?

It depends on how full your “credibility bank” is.  But this account is different from your financial bank account, where others need your authorization to access it.

Others can make deposits or withdrawals based on what they say to third parties about their experiences and interrelationships with you.  And withdrawals because of a mistake are often bigger than deposits made for a success.

Still, some things are worth the loss of our credibility.  Our core values drawn from the Bible should determine what is most important and what we should stand for.

Jeremiah lost credibility with the leaders of Judah by condemning their rebellion.  Jesus lost credibility with the Pharisees and Sadducees by obeying His Father.  And Paul lost credibility with some of the church when he confronted their inappropriate behavior.  The loss of credibility in the eyes of some may result in acquiring it in the eyes of God and others.

—Jay Desko in Christian Management Report

My Response:  Is my credibility account healthy? Is there a cause for which I should draw on it?

Thought to Apply:  A leader doesn’t deserve the name unless he’s willing occasionally to stand alone.—Henry Kissinger

Adapted from Christian Management Report (11-12/00)

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, help me to promote a shared vision and mesh my energies with those of others to achieve it.

UMCOR Grants go to fight COVID-19 in India

 

 

A man runs past the burning funeral pyres of people who died from COVID-19, during a mass cremation at a crematorium in New Delhi, India. The escalating crisis in India will be addressed by The United Methodist Church through grants to entities there who have been partners in the past. Photo by Adnan Abidi, Reuters.

The United Methodist Committee on Relief will assist two partners in India to provide ventilators, hospital beds, money and more to help combat the dire COVID-19 crisis there.

“The COVID-19 pandemic continues to challenge the capacities of national and global health systems, as it has for more than a year, and to call upon providers of humanitarian assistance, such as United Methodist Committee on Relief, to be steadfast in compassionate response,” said Roland Fernandes, top executive of UMCOR and its parent agency, the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries.

India is suffering more than 3,000 COVID-19 deaths per day and recording more than 300,000 new cases every 24 hours, according to The Washington Post. Relaxed restrictions and new, more virulent strains of the coronavirus have contributed to the crisis. There are shortages of ventilators, hospital beds, oxygen, medicine and other supplies.

More than 153 million COVID-19 cases have been reported worldwide, with more than 3.2 million deaths to date, according to CNN. India is second only to the U.S., with more than 20 million cases and 222,000 deaths. Five states in India — Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh — account for more than half the deaths there.

“While we cannot set up vaccination stations, UMCOR and Global Ministries are responding in other ways such as helping partner health agencies in India to acquire emergency equipment and to deal with the expanding health threats of the virus as well as with humanitarian assistance,” Fernandes said.

How to help

Donations can be made online to the COVID-19 Response Fund or sent by mail to Global Ministries/UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087-9068. “Advance #3022612” should be written on the memo line.

Global Ministries and UMCOR are working with Christian Medical College Vellore in Tamil Nadu, and Church’s Auxiliary for Social Action, a relief and development organization.

“We must … take account of changing patterns of need as these are affected by governmental programs of vaccination and surges of the disease,” Fernandes said. “To date, only governments have access to the several vaccines, and distribution systems vary. Some countries such as Brazil and India are experiencing outbreaks that require increased hospital and medical care for those infected.”

Church’s Auxiliary for Social Action, one of the largest faith-based humanitarian organizations in India, represents all of the Protestant denominations there, including the Methodist Church, an affiliated autonomous church of The United Methodist Church. Its goal is to provide COVID-19 relief to 4,000 households and 20,000 individuals, said UMCOR officials.

Plans call for CASA to contribute information campaigns, medical supplies including oxygen, hygiene support and cash to help meet basic needs.

Christian Medical College is getting a solidarity grant from UMCOR to expand its ability to help up to 1,500 COVID-19 patients.

“We expect to be battling COVID with health care and humanitarian relief for some time to come,” said Mary Lou Greenwood Boice, director of communications at Global Ministries. “The dollar amount of COVID-19 support to India and any other places experiencing surges and hot spots will be determined as we work with partners on the ground.”

So far, Global Ministries has approved 270 grants worth about $2.8 million to 52 countries worldwide to fight the coronavirus.

Patterson is a UM News reporter in Nashville, Tennessee. Contact him at 615-742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org. To read more United Methodist news, subscribe to the free Digests.

---

For additional information on the impact of the pandemic on the people of India, watch this CNN report:

https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2021/04/26/coronavirus-india-oxygen-hospitals-narendra-modi-coren-newday-intl-ldn-vpx.cnn/video/playlists/coronavirus-intl/https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2021/04/26/coronavirus-india-oxygen-hospitals-narendra-modi-coren-newday-intl-ldn-vpx.cnn/video/playlists/coronavirus-intl/

---

Sierra Leone: A Mother’s Day Story

A Hallmark card rarely makes it into the hands of a mother in Sierra Leone.  In fact, across a very wide world, messages of gratitude aren’t delivered via mail.

Mother’s Day for most of in the developed world is usually a time of celebration.  But, in Sub-Saharan Africa where nearly half of the world’s maternal deaths occur, giving birth can be very dangerous.  This is especially true in rural, underserved areas where health care is often lacking and preventable complications during childbirth are often undiagnosed and untreated.

In West Africa, Sierra Leone’s First Lady is addressing the issue of maternal and child mortality and she’s turning to The United Methodist Church and other faith communities to help.  In Africa and beyond, United Methodists reach out to mothers and mothers-to-be by bringing life to their children – vulnerable children whose lives are fragile and short-lived because of malaria and other diseases.

Your heart will be touched when you take a moment to watch love in action in a special Mother’s Day video feature from United Methodist Communications.

This Mother’s Day, give Mom something better than flowers or chocolate

Better than flowers or chocolate-how can that be?  Flowers are a treasured tradition and chocolate is, well  – chocolate – what more needs to be said?

You know Mom will appreciate these things, but there is something that would mean even more.

You already know what that is.  You know she would love it if every Sunday you were where you are now, with her in Church.

It isn’t simply your physical presence that is meaningful, although she loves to be with you.  What would make it meaningful is if you were coming as a faithful follower of Jesus.

There may be many reasons why “faithful follower of Jesus” does not describe your life today. Maybe:

•  When you were young, you were excited about the Church and Jesus, but you feel you’ve outgrown it.

•  You had questions the Church couldn’t answer, so you went looking elsewhere and never came back.

•  Life is simply too busy and Church never was much of a priority.

Whatever the reason, take some time to consider Jesus.  Here are some websites that might be useful:

http://www.whoisjesus-really.com

http:1lwww.allaboutjesuschrist.org/who-is-jesus-n.htm

http:1lwww.christiananswers.net/jesus/home.html http://www.whosjesus.com

After doing that-tell Mom about it, talk about it and give her joy that won’t fade like even the most beautiful flowers do.

Becoming a Trusted Leader – Which Are You Building?

Key Bible Verse:  If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the fault.  – Matthew 18:15

Bonus Reading:  Proverbs 11:24-25

To build mistrust:  Complain to others about problems you’re having with a peer without trying to solve the problem directly.  Establish an atmosphere where this is tolerated.  (It is foolish to belittle a neighbor.—Proverbs 11:12)

But to build trust:  Solve problems through direct communication at the lowest equivalent level: you and your peers; you and your direct manager; you, your manager, and his manager.  Establish an atmosphere where this is the culture.

To build mistrust:  Take credit for yourself, or allow others to give you credit for an achievement that wasn’t all yours.  (Don’t praise yourself; let others do it!—Proverbs 27:2)

But to build trust:  Share credit generously. When in doubt, share.

To build mistrust:  Make a pretend or “halfhearted” commitment, e.g., “I’ll get back to you.” (If you can help your neighbor now, don’t say, “Come back tomorrow, and then I’ll help you.“—Proverbs 3:28)

But to build trust:  When in doubt about taking on a commitment, air your concerns with the relevant parties.  In an ongoing commitment, communicate anticipated slippage as soon as you suspect it.  Ask for help.

—Arky Ciancutti & Thomas Steding in Built on Trust

My Response:  What change would make me a better trust builder?

Thought to Apply:  A boss creates fear, a leader confidence. A boss fixes blame, a leader corrects mistakes. A boss knows all, a leader asks questions.—Russel Ewing

Adapted from Built on Trust (McGraw-Hill, 2000)

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, help me to promote a shared vision and mesh my energies with those of others to achieve it.