Effective Stewardship – December 2022 Theme

Our December 2022 Stewardship Theme:

Describing the Macedonian Christians, Paul wrote, “ . . . during a severe ordeal of affliction, their abundant joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a generosity on their part. For . . . they voluntarily gave according to their means, and even beyond” (2 Cor. 8:2-3).

What does it mean to give beyond our ability? In some ways, it means to discard our treasured calculators and push our giving to the point where the numbers don’t add up. It means to give when the proverbial bottom line indicates we shouldn’t give. It might also mean to give away not just the luxuries, but also some of life’s necessities.

Let’s face it — most Christians (including most of us) do not give beyond our ability. Most of us do not give out of proportion to our income. In effect, we claim 1 Corinthians 16:2 as our life’s verse concerning giving, where we are admonished to give as God has prospered us or in direct proportion to our income. Make no mistake about it — that’s a good pattern for giving, a pattern that every child of God should be following. But sometimes, God calls us to give out of proportion to our income. He calls us to give sacrificially in order that His kingdom might advance and prosper.

Such giving is unguarded, spontaneous, and uncalculated. This type of giving refuses to count the cost of giving, but instead, counts only the joy of fully obeying how God has directed in our lives. Such giving is frequently lavish and represents an act of love and discipleship. Such giving is exemplified by the widow who gave all that she had (Mark 12) and by the Macedonian Christians.

David Livingston, pioneer missionary to Africa almost two centuries ago, was described as having “sacrificed” his life in service for Christ on that continent. His response is highly relevant to our living and our giving:

Can that be called a sacrifice which is simply paid back as a small part of the great debt owing to our God which we can never repay? Is that a sacrifice which brings its own reward of healthful activity, the consciousness of doing good, peace of mind, and a bright hope of a glorious destiny hereafter? It is emphatically no sacrifice. Say rather it is a privilege . . . when we remember the great sacrifice which He made who left His Father’s throne on high to give Himself for us.

As you consider your giving, are you giving less than your ability, according to your ability, or beyond your ability?

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Central Church

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Advent Devotional – Wednesday, November 30, 2022 – Christ is Born

Scripture: Luke 2: 7 –

⁷ And she gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

My how times have changed! When a couple knows a child will be added to the family, there are many celebrations planned. The reveal party, the baby showers, the many shopping trips to purchase every item that might be needed, and the baby’s room must be painted and decorated. All of this while the parents are awaiting the arrival of their bundle of joy.

I do not believe that Mary and Joseph were less excited about the arrival of their baby than we would be today, but the preparation was much different.

In our modern world, we have complicated everything, including the preparation for Christmas, as we await the birth of our Savior. We spend more time preparing our decorations than we do preparing our hearts. The day arrives and is over very quickly. Have we truly prepared? Have we celebrated the birth of the Savior? Would it be Christmas without the tree and presents?

Jesus was born without all of the fanfare we create around the arrival of a new baby. But baby Jesus changed the world and changed the lives of all of those who believe. During this season, try not to miss Advent as you prepare for Christmas.

Prayer: Lord of all, open our eyes to see the real Advent, the coming of our Savior. Amen

–  Doris Hedrick – Natural Bridge, VA

Advent Devotional – Tuesday, November 29, 2022 – Am I Prepared?

Scripture: John 14: 1-6 –

Jesus the Way to the Faher

14 “Let not your hearts be troubled; believe ^[a] in God, believe also in me. ² In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? ³ And when I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. ⁴ And you know the way where I am going.” ^{[b] 5} Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?” ⁶ Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me.

Preparation is everything whether planning a hike, a trip, a vacation, a move, or painting a room or house. Thorough planning is vital for success. Events and projects will go more smoothly when careful preparation has been made.

Lent prepares us for Easter through fasting, sacrificing something we enjoy, or adding something as I do, i.e., reading spiritual books or additional Bible study. Thanksgiving and Christmas preparations must be made also. We plan gifts, meals, social events, church services, and decorating our homes (which I see as a witnessing opportunity). But, most important is preparing our minds and thoughts, which in turn, direct our actions. Spending more time in our devotions and our daily Bible reading prepare us for these most sacred holidays.

How do we prepare the way of the Lord? We prepare by living Christ-like lives, following what I call “God’s Eleven Rules.” These are The Ten Commandments and The Golden Rule, followed by Christ’s command of “going therefore and making disciples of all of the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

Prayer: Father God, help us always place You first in all of our preparations, follow Your guidance, and bring others to You. Amen.

–  Carolyn Stone Purdy – Harrisonburg, VA

Advent Devotional – Monday, November 28, 2022 – What Time Is It?

Scripture: Romans 13:11 –

An Urgent Appeal

¹¹ Besides this you know what hour it is, how it is full time now for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed; 

I learned the motto, “Be Prepared,” many years ago as a young Girl Scout. I could not have foreseen then all the life challenges for which I was not prepared: personal struggles, grief over the loss of loved ones, chronic health problems, and age-related dysfunctions. Add to that list, national, political, and economic brokenness, and my distress is increased.

Yes, I have awakened, along with countless others, to the reality of life. The comfort of knowing that I am not alone is not enough. These days I take greater comfort in the truth that salvation is always at hand, not only in the birth of a Savior but also in his life, death, and resurrection.

As I have said to others, nothing that I have experienced, Christ Jesus has not already experienced. Knowing this in the depths of my being affords me unbridled hope. Isn’t this what Advent is about? The hope and anticipation of new life? Here and now, not only in the future?

Prayer: Gracious God, who has given us a Savior to be with us always, thank you for new life and restored, healing hope. In Jesus name we pray. Amen

–  Chris Suerdieck – Emmitsburg, MD

Community Outreach – Thanksgiving Day Meal

Once again this year, Central Church partnered with our good friends at the Christian Assembly of Beaver Falls to bring free, hot, nutritious meals to members of our community on Thanksgiving Day.

 

While many of us were preoccupied with preparing our own Thanksgiving Day feasts for family and friends, these selfless volunteers donated a large portion of their day to providing similar, tangible expressions of God’s love to those in our community who might not otherwise have much to celebrate on this national day dedicated to Giving Thanks.

 

While teaming with Central for the meal, the folks at the Christian Assembly of Beaver Falls also provided visitors with Blessing Bags filled with items to bring a smile to many faces.

 

* This year, a total of 228 meals were served at the Thanksgiving Day event!

Many thanks to all who helped make this important community outreach event a big success!

Central Church

Central Church – Online Worship Service – The First Sunday of Advent – UM Student Day – 11-27-2022

On this cool and rainy first Sunday in Advent, which is designated “United Methodist Student SundayChrist Day”, when the coronavirus prevents many of us from gathering in Central Church’s Sanctuary to worship in body, let us join together in spirit with our online worship service. Today’s online worship service includes a favorite HYMN with lyrics so you can sing along! Our prior online worship services are available in our online library, and can be viewed on demand, and be sure to join us in worship, either online or in person, every week!    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.  Also, it takes a while to generate the captions after the videos are published, so if the captions are not available immediately after the video is published, just check back a little later. 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=1582290882213351 YouTube –   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_swDSOH-p8 (If the video doesn’t come up after clicking on the link, just copy and paste the address into your browser search bar.) Central Church

What Is Advent?

What Is Advent?

For many Christians unfamiliar with the liturgical year, there may be some confusion surrounding the meaning of the Advent season. Some people may know that the Advent season focuses on expectation and think that it serves as an anticipation of Christ’s birth in the season leading up to Christmas.  This is part of the story, but there’s more to Advent.

The History of Advent                                 

The word “Advent” is derived from the Latin word adventus, meaning “coming,” which is a translation of the Greek word parousia. Scholars believe that during the 4^th and 5^th centuries in Spain and Gaul, Advent was a season of preparation for the baptism of new Christians at the January feast of Epiphany, the celebration of God’s incarnation represented by the visit of the Magi to the baby Jesus (Matthew 2:1), his baptism in the Jordan River by John the Baptist (John 1:29), and his first miracle at Cana (John 2:1). During this season of preparation, Christians would spend 40 days in penance, prayer, and fasting to prepare for this celebration; originally, there was little connection between Advent and Christmas.

By the 6^th century, however, Roman Christians had tied Advent to the coming of Christ. But the “coming” they had in mind was not Christ’s first coming in the manger in Bethlehem, but his second coming in the clouds as the judge of the world. It was not until the Middle Ages that the Advent season was explicitly linked to Christ’s first coming at Christmas.

Advent Today  

Central Church’s Advent Wreath

Today, the Advent season lasts for four Sundays leading up to Christmas. At that time, the new Christian year begins with the twelve-day celebration of Christmastide, which lasts from Christmas Eve until Epiphany on January 6. (Advent begins on the Sunday that falls between November 27th and December 3rd each year.)

Advent symbolizes the present situation of the church in these “last days” (Acts 2:17, Hebrews 1:2), as God’s people wait for the return of Christ in glory to consummate his eternal kingdom. The church is in a similar situation to Israel at the end of the Old Testament: in exile, waiting and hoping in prayerful expectation for the coming of the Messiah. Israel looked back to God’s past gracious actions on their behalf in leading them out of Egypt in the Exodus, and on this basis they called for God once again to act for them.

In the same way, the church, during Advent, looks back upon Christ’s coming in celebration while at the same time looking forward in eager anticipation to the coming of Christ’s kingdom when he returns for his people. In this light, the Advent hymn “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” perfectly represents the church’s cry during the Advent season:

O come, O come, Emmanuel,

And ransom captive Israel,

 That mourns in lonely exile here

Until the Son of God appears.

Rejoice! Rejoice!

Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

While Israel would have sung the song in expectation of Christ’s first coming, the church now sings the song in commemoration of that first coming and in expectation of the second coming in the future.

Advent Devotional – Sunday, November 27, 2022 – Clear the Way

Scripture: Matthew 3:1-3, 7-8 –

The Proclamation of John the Baptist

3 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, ² “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” ³ For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight.”

⁷ But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Bear fruit that befits repentance,

While living in England, my wife Pam and I attended worship at St. James Church, Bristol, England. This was the home church of John and Charles Wesley. One Sunday, a black carriage drawn by a team of four horses arrived. An official entered the sanctuary carrying a large silver mace – a large, elaborate staff symbolizing authority. This mace bearer was not the VIP. He strode down the aisle announcing the dignitary. His actions said, “Clear the way! Unclutter the aisles! For the Bristol city mayor is coming.” Behind the mace bearer came the decorated Bristol mayor.

John the Baptist was the mace bearer. He called out, “Clear the way!” Your Lord comes!” John announced the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy:

“Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low.” Your Lord Messiah comes. Creation must be readied. “Make his paths straight,” says the Baptist. So make your human hearts. This was the call then. This is the call now.

This Advent, are the poor and helpless in your heart? Are the idols out? Have you given up the choice places for the last? Is your faith in Jesus Christ alone? Is your heart clearing the way and making ready for the coming Lord Messiah?

“Clear the way!” Make straight and be ready. Your Lord comes!

Prayer: Dear Father, clear away the sin which keeps the Messiah from inhabiting my heart. Amen.

– Tom Thomas – Forest, VA

COVID-19 – Beaver County Metrics – 11-25-2022

COVID-19 Integrated County View:

Here are the weekly COVID-19 statistics for Beaver County, PA as of November 25, 2022, showing Beaver County moving down into the SUBSTANTIAL category.

 

• The Incidence Rate decreased from 81.7 to 65.2 (a decrease of 16.5 , or 20.1%), in the SUBSTANTIAL category.
• The PCR Positivity Rate decreased from 14.0 to 9.9, in the HIGH category.

(Allegheny County’s figures continued in the SUBSTANTIAL category during the past week, at 63.6 and 8.4%.)

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The new “COVID-19 COMMUNITY LEVEL” index:

Starting on March 3, 2022, for hospitals and healthcare systems, the CDC is also issuing a new “COVID-19 Community Level“ index that measures the “current potential for strain on the health system” (in other words, the ability of hospitals to take in and treat additional folks with COVID-19.)  

This new index is in addition to the CDC’s “COVID-19 Integrated County View” which they continue to publish each week.

The CDC currently reports that current “COVID-19 Community Level” moved up into the LOW category.  This metric was adopted on March 3, 2022, reflecting on the potential availability of hospital beds for new COVID-19 cases. 

CDC-Recommended actions when in the HIGH level:

• Wear a mask indoors in public and on public transportation.
• Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines.
• Get tested if you have symptoms.
• If you are at high risk for severe illness, consider taking additional precautions.

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The “Triple Threat”:

Recently, health officials have begun referring to the combination of RSV, COVID-19 and flu as a “triple threat” because they are all circulating simultaneously — and could all fuel a spike in respiratory illnesses in the coming months.

Respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, is a respiratory virus that usually causes cold-like symptoms, including a runny nose, poor appetite, coughing, sneezing, fever and wheezing, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. 

The virus can spread via coughs, sneezes, surfaces and direct contact, according to the CDC. Most people who get infected experience mild symptoms and recover within a week or two, but the virus can be serious, especially for infants and older adults.

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• At Central Church, in order to look out for our older folks, as well as the unvaccinated or immunocompromised, we are continuing to look to the CDC’s“COVID-19 Integrated County View” to evaluate which protective measures and protocols that we should observe to protect all of the folks who come through our doors for in-person worship or for other reasons, such as to participate in our community feeding ministry outreach.

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• 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 9.3, so resuming small group meetings may not be feasible for the immediate future.

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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 have significantly expanded our new medical-grade HEPA-13 air filtration equipment in our Sanctuary, which is rated to remove COVID-19 from the air, which now provides 10.7 complete air changes every hour in our Sanctuary (every 6 minutes)!

• In addition, our Parlor, Church Office, Pastor’s Office, UMYF Meeting Room, Fellowship Hall, and Nursery all offer even higher levels of air changes per hour using HEPA-13 or HEPA-14 filtration.

• (5 air changes per hour is the EPA’s general recommended standard, and the EPA now recommends 8-15 air changes per hour in Churches. )  
  

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Air Filtering at Central Church – The Latest Measurements

Here is some good news!

We have had our Sanctuary air filters in place for some time now to reduce our potential COVID-19 exposure during worship services.

In order to continuously monitor how effectively our air filters are scrubbing the Sanctuary air for us, our Trustees have added an air filter meter it in the Sanctuary.

The actual COVID-19 virus measures about 1.5 microns in size, but it usually hitchhikes on air-borne droplets exhaled from infected humans to spread throughout a room.  The size of those droplets (classified as fine particulates) is 2.5 microns, so we are measuring for that level of particulates.

Our Sanctuary is disinfected prior to every worship service, so any particulates that are floating around are mainly routine dust and pollen.   (The Medify air filtration equipment that we have in place are rated to remove air-borne contaminants down to 1 micron.)

• During the week, the air filters are not in use, and the Sanctuary air reading averaged around 2 ppm (parts per million).  When we opened the Church up early last Sunday morning, the level was still at a relatively low .  We turned on the Sanctuary air filters, and then watched that level hover between zero and 1, except for when we were singing hymns, when it briefly increased a few points before resuming its steady decrease down to 1 ppm.

• At the end of the worship service, the reading was just 1 ppm, so our air filters are definitely doing their job of effectively scrubbing our air!

It’s always nice to get a confirmation that we are on the right track!

Since our objective is to reduce any air-borne COVID-19 virus (or cold or flu viruses) exhaled by an infected person during a worship service, we are definitely protecting our folks as best we can.

Our thanks to our dedicated Trustees for tirelessly working during the COVID-19 pandemic to help protect anyone who comes through our doors.

Central Church

Where the Buck Really Stops – Spiritual Growth

In 539 B.C., a Persian king named Cyrus marched his army on Babylon and conquered its empire.

God—who rarely reveals his plans—had tipped off Isaiah 150 years earlier.

Cyrus never became a worshiper of God, but God used him (Ezra 1:2-4; 6:3-5) to allow more than 42,000 Israelites to return to their homeland and rebuild the Temple.

Interact with God’s Word:  Isaiah 44:28-45:13

1. How could Isaiah call Cyrus God’s “shepherd” (44:28) and “anointed one” (45:1)?
2. What verbs (in 45:1, 2, 5, & 13) sum up how God would shape Cyrus’s fortunes?
3. What does understanding God’s rule do to the concepts of luck, chance, and coincidence?
4. How do you react to God’s assertion (45:7) that he sends both good and bad times?
5. Judging from 45:8, what are God’s primary objectives in both the good and bad times he sends?
6. When have you been tempted to tell God (45:9), “Stop, you are doing it wrong”? Which do you think Isaiah is condemning: questions about how to understand God’s actions or a challenging of his right to take them?
7. Why do humans arch their backs when God declares (45:13), “I, the Lord Almighty, have spoken”?

Spend Time in Prayer:  Ask God for the trust to embrace your life situation as something that God, according to his good purpose, has sovereignly allowed.

Isaiah 44:28-45:13

44:28 When I say of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd,’ he will certainly do as I say. He will command, ‘Rebuild Jerusalem’; he will say, ‘Restore the Temple.'”

Isaiah 45

1 This is what the Lord says to Cyrus, his anointed one, whose right hand he will empower. Before him, mighty kings will be paralyzed with fear. Their fortress gates will be opened, never to shut again. 2 This is what the Lord says:

“I will go before you, Cyrus, and level the mountains. I will smash down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. 3 And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness— secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name.

4 “And why have I called you for this work? Why did I call you by name when you did not know me? It is for the sake of Jacob my servant, Israel my chosen one. 5 I am the Lord; there is no other God. I have equipped you for battle, though you don’t even know me, 6 so all the world from east to west will know there is no other God. I am the Lord, and there is no other. 7 I create the light and make the darkness. I send good times and bad times. I, the Lord, am the one who does these things.

Prayer for the Week: Deliver me, sovereign Lord, from attempting to manage You. Help me to honor You by trusting and submitting to Your control.

 

 

Central Church’s 2022 Advent Daily Devotionals

Greetings to you this wonderful Advent season as we complete a third pandemic year!

Throughout three years of the pandemic, we know we can look forward to the season of Advent, the preparation, the waiting, and the anticipation of the coming of our Lord and Savior’s birth! The joy to come!

How do we prepare though? We prepare our homes with lighted trees and decorations, delicious food and colorful presents, but how do we prepare our spiritual hearts?  What does it mean to prepare our hearts?  What does it mean to prepare the way of the Lord?

Central Church’s daily Advent devotional this year is “Prepare the Way of the Lord”, by the Society of St. Andrew. Starting Sunday, November 27, and continuing each day during Advent, a daily devotional will appear on Central Church’s website under the “Food for Thought” tab at:  http://www.centralumchurch.org.

This year’s Advent devotional shares devotions written by volunteers about their personal experiences of preparing the way. Many prepare the way by gleaning fields, farmer’s markets, and feeding others. Many prepare the way by writing these devotions. Many prepare the way by volunteering their sewing skills! Still others prepare the way by praying and giving a portion of their treasure to Central Church to feed hungry brothers and sisters in Christ in the downtown Beaver Falls area, physically as well as spiritually.

• As your spiritual hungers are fed by these devotions, please consider giving back to help Central Church meet the physical needs of others with a monetary contribution that will provide healthy, nourishing food for people in greatest need, right here in Beaver Falls.

Perhaps you will give an amount equal to what you would spend on a gift for a coworker or your child’s teacher.  You could possibly set aside a tithe of your Christmas budget to provide healthy food for our hungry neighbors through Central Church’s free Community Feeding Ministry.

Either way, thank you for using and sharing these “Prepare the Way of the Lord” devotional materials, for telling others about Central Church’s feeding ministries, and for making a generous gift.  Together, let’s prepare the way of the Lord this Advent for those less fortunate and put a healthy Christmas dinner on the tables of our hungry neighbors!

• And while you are enjoying these special Advent daily devotionals, please plan on attending our in-person morning worship services at 11 am each Sunday.  Our dedicated Trustees have extensive safeguards and precautions in place in our Sanctuary to make venturing out as safe as reasonably possible during this pandemic age.

If you need to exercise extra caution in venturing out, please join us in our weekly online worship services later in the afternoon afternoon each Sunday. You can find them on both Central’s Facebook page and on our YouTube page.  A note will be posted each week with the specific login coordinates for each of these online worship services.

Blessings for a holy Advent season and a joyous Christmas!

Where the Buck Really Stops – Wrong Question

Key Bible Verse: No wisdom, no insight, no plan … can succeed against the Lord. The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.  – Proverbs 21:30-31 NIV

Bonus Reading: Psalm 73:1-2, 13-26

Today’s Key Bible Verses have become a sort of North Star that I use to keep me on track. Whether I’m working on a small project, a large initiative, or my life mission, they’ve helped me to keep focused, and not to run away every time the weeds get deep, or puff up with self-important pride whenever success shows up.

Final outcomes are in the Lord’s hands. It’s his will that prevails. No wisdom, insight, or plan can thwart it, whether mine or my enemy’s.

But these verses pointed out the one thing I could control and also, by inference, the one thing I’ll be held responsible for: How well was I preparing my horse for battle?

It caused me to realize that during my apprehensive years

I was asking the wrong question. I asked, “How are things going?” I should have asked, “Am I doing the right things? Am I preparing my horse for victory?” What God wants for me is to simply focus my energy and efforts on the one and only thing I can control. That’s the only thing he will hold me accountable for: How well have I prepared the horse for battle?

After that, I’ve learned, it’s God’s call—not mine.

—Larry Osborne in A Contrarian’s Guide to Knowing God

My Response: Am I taking too much credit for successes, too much blame for setbacks?

Thought to Apply: Man drives, but it is God who holds the reins.—Jewish proverb

Adapted from A Contrarian’s Guide to Knowing God (Multnomah, 2007)

Prayer for the Week: Deliver me, sovereign Lord, from attempting to manage You. Help me to honor You by trusting and submitting to Your control.

 

Beaver Valley Choral Society – 2022 Christmas Concerts

A Thanksgiving Prayer

Father in Heaven!  You have loved us first, help us never to forget that You are love so that this sure conviction might triumph in our hearts over the seduction of the world, over the inquietude of the soul, over the anxiety for the future, over the fright of the past, over the distress of the moment.

But grant also that this conviction might discipline our soul so that our heart might remain faithful and sincere in the love which we bear to all those whom You have commanded us to love as we love ourselves.

                                                               – Soren Kierkegaard

From the friendly folks at Central Church, may you have a blessed Thanksgiving holiday!

 As part of our Thanksgiving, we thank God for the opportunity to provide free warm and nutritious food for body and soul to many people in the City of Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania.

 This holiday, let us cultivate a Thanksgiving for the people God has placed in our lives.

Thanksgiving Day

Key Bible Verse: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”  – Philippians 4:6, NASB

Dig Deeper:  Psalm 100

Thanksgiving is definitely one of my favorite holidays, especially considering the five “f’s” it includes: faith, family, food, football, and the four-day weekend.  As far as I’m concerned, that’s a tough combination to beat.

And talk about positive and upbeat!  Pausing to express gratitude for one’s blessings breathes life into anyone’s soul.  Even in times of trial and heartache, when it’s most difficult to see life’s glass as half full instead of half empty, stopping to give thanks makes a difference.

Thanksgiving’s such a great holiday—it’s a shame we celebrate it only once a year.  Maybe we should change that fact.

Consider again Paul’s words in today’s Key Bible Verse: I see the phrase “with thanksgiving” as a secret that Paul has learned, enabling him to find contentment in spite of his circumstances.  Thanksgiving is a critical ingredient.

When we humbly bring ourselves and our requests before God (supplication), we should do that “with thanksgiving.”  What a privilege to be able to bring our requests to him, and what a benefit to know that he’ll answer in a way and in a time that are perfect for us.  These truths provide us with good reason to give thanks.

—Don Cousins in Unexplainable

 

My Response: During my prayer times over the next several days, I will consciously thank God for at least one blessing in my life.

 

Thought to Apply: All our discontents about what we want appear to me to spring from the want of thankfulness for what we have.—Daniel Defoe (British writer, journalist)

Adapted from Unexplainable (Cook, 2009).

 

Thanksgiving Prayer:  Dear heavenly Father, thank you for providing for my daily needs; help me to find my contentment in you and you alone, so that I might experience the kind of peace that’s unexplainable apart from you.

Where the Buck Really Stops – Wrong Direction?

Key Bible Verse: “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”  – Jeremiah 29:11

Bonus Reading: Romans 8:29-32

In 1990, I’d been a pastor outside of Dallas, Texas, for eight years, and knew God was up to something new in our future. I prayed he’d send us east, closer to family and support, as one of my teenage sons was beginning a rebellious streak.

God’s call came, and it was west! Theresa and all four kids were crying as we pulled out for the 2,000-mile drive to our new life. They didn’t stop crying until Amarillo. We were obeying the clear orders of the King, but taking my family away from friends, family, and all that was familiar felt terrible. The adjustments were hard, the new church presented challenges I’d never faced, and my son became more rebellious. I felt alone, confused, and often deeply discouraged.

Fast-forward ten years. The new church developed skills, character, and ministry beyond my wildest dreams. The adversity brought a deeper unity into our family and took our marriage to a whole new level. With opportunities in music that were nonexistent in Texas, the rebellious son did “a one-eighty,” becoming a Christian songwriter and worship leader. God grew a church and launched a radio ministry. What felt like disaster was the hand of a sovereign God working out his highest, best purposes for us.

—Chip Ingram in God: As He Longs for You to See Him

My Response: Am I resisting or trusting my Father’s control?

Thought to Apply: Doing the will of God leaves me no time for disputing about his plans.—George MacDonald

Adapted from God: As He Longs for You to See Him (Baker, 2004)

Prayer for the Week: Deliver me, sovereign Lord, from attempting to manage You. Help me to honor You by trusting and submitting to Your control.

 

Thanksgiving – A Prayer

Where the Buck Really Stops – Faith or Fantasy?

Key Bible Verse: I know, O Lord, that your decisions are fair; you disciplined me because I needed it.  – Psalm 119:75

Bonus Reading: Job 9:4-7, 12

The missionary aircraft piloted by Jim Bowers was blown out of the sky by a Peruvian jet in April 2001, killing his wife Roni and their infant daughter Charity. Humanly speaking, it was a tragedy that never should have happened. Many bullets sprayed the tiny plane, but a single one took the life of his wife and daughter. Looking back, Jim Bowers called it a “sovereign bullet.”

Only a man who knows God can say a thing like that. But that’s exactly what the psalmist is saying in the Key Bible Verse above. As he looks back over his life—the good times and bad, the happy days and sad nights—he knows that all that has happened to him isn’t by chance, fate, or some cosmic roulette. Nothing can happen to him that God has not faithfully planned for his own glory and his children’s ultimate benefit.

Jim Bowers declared his total faith in God’s sovereignty in the death of his wife and daughter. “Nothing bad happened to them,” he said. “They got to heaven quicker than we did.” Those are the words of a man who, out of great personal loss, has rested his faith in the promises of God. Even the worst tragedy doesn’t appear as such when viewed from heaven’s perspective.

—Ray Pritchard in The God You Can Trust

My Response: Could I rest my faith in God’s promises while undergoing great personal loss?

Thought to Apply: Either I’m going to get bent and eventually bitter, or I’m going to allow God to be God.—James MacDonald (Illinois pastor)

Adapted from The God You Can Trust (Harvest, 2003)

Prayer for the Week: Deliver me, sovereign Lord, from attempting to manage You. Help me to honor You by trusting and submitting to Your control.

 

The True Story of Thanksgiving

On the fourth Thursday of this month citizens of the United States will celebrate the much-beloved holiday of Thanksgiving.  It’s supposed to be an occasion for grateful reflection upon how blessed we are as a people, but how many American Christians, let alone Americans in general, understand the true origin and meaning of this annual day on the calendar?

The majority of Americans, which likely includes a large number of Christians, may well think the origin of the celebration of Thanksgiving is all about the first pilgrims to the New World (later to be named America) celebrating that they had arrived safely here.  While that may be a worthy reason, it’s not the real the story.

Had it not been for the grace of God providing help for them through the gracious contributions of the indigenous people living around them they all might have died.  As it was, a sizable number of their small community had died from illness anyway during that difficult first winter.

Therefore, after harvesting a bountiful crop of various produce and getting better established in their new homeland during the next year, the pilgrims felt especially grateful to God for their survival.  Because they were all very devout Christians, setting aside a feast day to thank God for His goodness was a natural expression of their gratitude.  However, it would be 168 years later on November 26, 1789, before George Washington proclaimed it as a national day of observance for the new nation.

President Lincoln made it an annual observance beginning on the last Thursday of November in 1863, but to support retailers by extending the shopping season between Thanksgiving and Christmas, President Franklin Roosevelt changed the annual date to the fourth Thursday in November in 1939, and it has remained unchanged from that date since then.

In America’s politically correct educational environment today where anything even hinting at Christian influence in America’s past or present is eschewed by the anti-Christian establishment, precious few people (including Christians) have even the slightest idea of America’s Christian heritage.

In fact, the day may come in the not-too-distant future when writing or hosting these facts may be forbidden and even dangerous.  So-called “hate speech” laws have already been enacted around the world in parts of Europe, Canada and even America prohibiting critical speech against certain groups such as homosexuals and Muslims which may be labeled as hate speech.  Unfortunately, the definition of “hate” by these laws is so ambiguous that anything negative may be identified as hateful, thus putting Bible-believing Christians, in particular, in a very precarious position.

Simply quoting the Bible’s statements against homosexuality or pointing out the moral and theological inconsistencies of Islam with Biblical Christianity (such as loving your enemies and rejecting both murder and vengeance) can bring on the wrath of either of these constituencies or their various sympathizers. It appears that it’s socially sanctioned for anyone in either of these groups to blaspheme God or Jesus’ saving work or to spew hate-filled epithets at Bible-believing Christians, but it’s not allowed for Christians to espouse their strong beliefs in the Bible as God’s final Word on anything.

Maybe we American Christians had better be especially thankful to God for our dearly-held freedoms of speech and religion as we observe this year’s Thanksgiving Day, since we have no real assurance that we will still have these same freedoms in the future.

What about you?  What do you have to be thankful for, and have you taken the opportunity to thank God both in prayer and in an open pronouncement to others for His goodness to you?

Expressing gratitude is very important to God, as we can learn from a careful reading of His holy Word. One  excellent example is the story of Jesus’ healing of the ten lepers which prompted the thankful response from the apparently lone Samaritan in the group (see Luke 17:11-19).  To quote another of Jesus’ statements in another  context – “Go and do likewise” (Luke 10:37 NKJV).

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

 

Where the Buck Really Stops – Orthodox Creed, Deist Actions

Key Bible Verse: How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who … say to Zion, “Your God reigns!”  – Isaiah 52:7 NIV

Bonus Reading: Exodus 19:3-6

Every Christian believes that God—the all-powerful Creator of Genesis 1—used to be in charge of this world.

And all agree that God will be in charge at the end. On that fateful day our eternal destiny will rest in the hands of our Judge.

But what about the interim? Is God in charge here and now, or has he momentarily lost his grip? Has our continent spun off into a renegade orbit he’s unaware of or powerless to correct?

I don’t believe that, and neither do you.

So why do we act that way? In thousands of churches every week, Christians stand and sing the chorus “Our God Reigns.” They may raise their hands, swaying back and forth to words based on the above Key Bible Verse. But they go right on worrying and “stressing” about what the local school board did the previous week or what the latest tax reform bill failed to include.

I call this the” New Evangelical Deism”, after the eighteenth-century philosophy that said that God perhaps created the universe in the beginning but then wound it up like a clock and left it to run on its own.

It’s time once again to hear the thunderous voice from Sinai: “All the earth belongs to me” (Exodus 19:5).

—Dean Merrill in Sinners in the Hands of an Angry Church

My Response: To bring my actions into line with my beliefs about God’s control, I need to …

Thought to Apply: God’s calling the shots. He’s running the show. Either he’s in full control or he’s off his throne.—Charles Swindoll (pastor, educator, & author)

Adapted from Sinners in the Hands of an Angry Church (Zondervan, 1997)

Prayer for the Week: Deliver me, sovereign Lord, from attempting to manage You. Help me to honor You by trusting and submitting to Your control.

100 Remarkable Reasons to Give Thanks

By Andrew Hess  Andrew Hess is a Sr. Communications Specialist at Compassion International.

Can you count to 100? How about considering 100 remarkable reasons to give thanks to God this Thanksgiving!

100 Remarkable Reasons to Give Thanks

Reasons to Give Thanks: The Place and Timing of Your Birth

1. Thank God for your conception.
2. Thank God for knitting you together in your mother’s womb.
3. If you survived your mother’s pregnancy, thank God.
4. If you survived your birth, thank God.
5. If you were born in a free country, thank God.
6. If you were born to parents who loved you and provided for you, thank God (and thank them).
7. If you enjoyed growing up with siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents, thank God.

Reasons to Give Thanks: Life Before You Can Remember

1. If someone changed your diapers, thank God.
2. If someone woke up with you in the middle of the night to feed and hold you, thank God.
3. If someone cared for you when you were sick, thank God.
4. If someone read to you and played with you, thank God.
5. If someone taught you how to crawl, walk and ride a bike, thank God.

Reasons to Give Thanks: Protection

1. If you were ever almost severely hurt or killed, thank God.
2. If you ever survived a car accident, thank God.
3. If you were ever seriously sick and lived, thank God.
4. If someone ever protected you from harm, thank God.
5. If you’ve ever survived an earthquake, hurricane or other severe weather event, thank God.
6. If you’ve ever been kept from an addiction, thank God.
7. If you’ve ever overcome an addiction, thank God.
8. Thank God for all the times he has protected you when you were unaware.

Reasons to Give Thanks: Health

1. For diseases, disorders or cancers you’ve never had, thank God.
2. For diseases, disorders or cancers you’ve had and overcome, thank God.
3. If you’ve never needed an ambulance, thank God.
4. If you’ve never had a broken bone, thank God.
5. If you’ve never had a mental/emotional disorder, thank God.
6. If you enjoy each of the five senses, thank God.
7. If you can walk, run, jump and climb, thank God.
8. For every automatic bodily process keeping you alive at this very moment, thank God.
9. Estimate the number of days you’ve enjoyed a clean bill of health and thank God. (20 years = 7,300 days)

Reasons to Give Thanks: Food

1. If you enjoy three meals a day, thank God.
2. If you can’t remember the last time you went to bed hungry, thank God.
3. If food rarely makes you sick, thank God.
4. If you don’t have any food allergies, thank God.
5. If you have access to a variety of foods, thank God.
6. If you’ve ever received food as a gift, thank God.

Reasons to Give Thanks: Faith

1. If you’ve come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, thank God.
2. If you’ve grown in faith, grace, holiness, joy, love, hope, wisdom or obedience, thank God.
3. If you’ve ever enjoyed times of fellowship with brothers and sisters in Christ, thank God.
4. If you’ve ever been threatened because of your faith, thank God.
5. If you regularly pray or fast secretly, thank God.
6. If you’ve ever grown through the ministry of God’s Word, thank God.
7. If you’ve ever been protected or corrected from error, thank God.
8. If other people regularly pray for you, thank God.

Reasons to Give Thanks: Peace

1. If you’ve never woken up in a war zone, thank God.
2. If you’ve never hid for your life, thank God.
3. If people you don’t know (and some you do) fight to protect your freedom, thank God.
4. If you’ve never lost a loved one to war, thank God.

Reasons to Give Thanks: Utilities

1. If you have running water in your home, thank God.
2. If that water is clean (hasn’t made you sick or killed you), thank God.
3. If you can take a hot shower whenever you want, thank God.
4. If you have indoor plumbing, thank God.
5. Thank God for electricity.
6. If you breath fresh air, thank God.
7. If you can heat your home in the winter and cool it in the summer, thank God.
8. If people regularly come to your house and take away your trash, thank God.
9. If people bring your mail six days a week, thank God.

Reasons to Give Thanks: Education

1. Remember as many elementary teachers as you can and thank God.
2. Remember as many middle/high school teachers and coaches as you can and thank God.
3. Remember as many college professors and professional mentors as you can and thank God.
4. For every time you made it to graduation, thank God.
5. If you had the talent or ability to participate in a sport, choir, band, club, etc., thank God.
6. Estimate how many books you’ve read and learned from, and thank God.

Reasons to Give Thanks: Relationships

1. If you’ve ever enjoyed laughing with a friend, thank God.
2. If you’ve ever had someone hold you while you cried, thank God.
3. If you’ve ever had a friend unexpectedly meet a need, thank God.
4. If you’ve ever had someone tell you they love you, thank God.
5. If you’ve ever gotten married, thank God.
6. If God has blessed you with children, thank God.
7. Thank God for every member of your family.
8. Thank God for every member of your extended family.
9. Thank God for strangers who have blessed you.

Reasons to Give Thanks: Work

1. If you’ve ever had a job, thank God.
2. If you’ve ever had a great boss, thank God.
3. If you have a retirement fund, thank God.
4. If your work has been helpful to other people, thank God.
5. If you’ve ever been promoted or received a bonus, thank God.
6. If you’ve ever been paid to travel, thank God.
7. If you’ve ever been paid for freelance work, thank God.
8. Estimate your lifetime gross income and thank God.
9. If you have a measure of financial wisdom, thank God.

Reasons to Give Thanks: Leisure

1. If you have a favorite book, movie, show, artist, song, painting, etc., thank God.
2. If you’ve ever been to a live show, thank God.
3. If you don’t have to work on weekends, thank God.
4. Thank God for paid holidays.
5. If you enjoy your pets, thank God.
6. If you have a soft bed, thank God.
7. Thank God for all the natural beauty available in the place you live.
8. If you enjoy regular times of rest and relaxation, thank God.
9. If you have time for hobbies and games, thank God.
10. If you have people with whom you enjoy spending your free time, thank God.

Reasons to Give Thanks: Trials

1. If you’ve ever gone through a trial and haven’t lost hope, thank God.
2. If the Lord has ever used difficulty for your good, thank God.
3. If you’ve ever brought fears, worries, anxieties and sadness to Christ and been helped, thank God.
4. Thank God for every time you’ve worshiped him in the midst of great loss, unrealized dreams or chronic pain.
5. If you’ve ever waited a long time for something, thank God.
6. Thank God for his purposes in your pain.
7. Thank God that he promises to work all things for your good.
8. Thank God that our every trial, temptation and difficulty is temporary.
9. Thank God that his grace is sufficient for you.
10. Thank God for the blessed hope and all our Lord is preparing for you if you belong to Christ.

Where the Buck Really Stops – Your Move – Or Is It?

Key Bible Verse: “The Lord Almighty has spoken—who can change his plans?  When his hand moves, who can stop him?”  –  Isaiah 14:27

Bonus Reading: Isa. 14:24-27

A few years ago I was in Indonesia and got to play against a chess master. It was brutal. There were ten of us, each with a chessboard setup, and he played us all at once. He’d walk down the row of boards, crushing each of us with his speed and incredibly insightful moves. In 15 minutes, we were all out of the game!

That’s a bit how God works. We make our moves, but his purposes aren’t affected by them. If we make a good move, God knows the next move. If we make a bad move, God knows instantly what he’ll do. He’s always known both what we’d choose and what he’d do. But God isn’t playing a game with us. We’re stuck in time, while he made all his moves in eternity past!

In some twisted way, we think we’re more secure when we’ve got God figured out. He’s way beyond our figuring out. That’s not only okay, that’s how it needs to be. Imagine how small God would be if we could comprehend all he allows and why. If the smartest and wisest of all mankind ran the universe, can you imagine the cosmic mess we’d be in? It only makes sense that an element of mystery surrounds God’s person and ways.

—James MacDonald in Gripped by the Greatness of God

My Response: Is asking questions of God wrong? Must I be resigned to leave some unanswered?

Adapted from Gripped by the Greatness of God (Moody, 2005)

Prayer for the Week: Deliver me, sovereign Lord, from attempting to manage You. Help me to honor You by trusting and submitting to Your control.

 

Central Church – Online Worship Service – The Twenty-Fourth Sunday after Pentecost – UMW ThankOffering Service – 11-20-2022

On this cold, sunny 24th Sunday after Pentecost, which is designated “Christ the King Sunday” and is celebrated by Central Church as the UMW’s ThankOffering Service, when the coronavirus prevents many of us from gathering in Central Church’s Sanctuary to worship in body, let us join together in spirit with our online worship service. Today’s online worship service includes a favorite HYMN with lyrics so you can sing along! Our prior online worship services are available in our online library, and can be viewed on demand, and be sure to join us in worship, either online or in person, every week!    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.  Also, it takes a while to generate the captions after the videos are published, so if the captions are not available immediately after the video is published, just check back a little later. 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=1182556749320840 YouTube –   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnrBDIev838 (If the video doesn’t come up after clicking on the link, just copy and paste the address into your browser search bar.) Central Church

Where the Buck Really Stops – Cosmic Consultant?

Who Said It …Larry Osborne

Larry Osborne is an author who says, “I’ve always had a heart for the regular guy, the one who can’t imagine ever becoming a ‘super saint.’ I like starting where people are, not where they should be, and pointing them towards the path of growth.”

Larry is also the innovative lead pastor of North Coast Church in California’s San Diego County, which is credited with originating the concept of video venues.

What He Said…Cosmic Consultant?

When God gives advice or guidance, it’s not coming from a potentially fallible source. It’s not the mere advice of a pastor or friend; it’s the counsel of God!

When God speaks, it doesn’t make much sense to push back or give him ten reasons why it won’t work. That’s an argument we can’t win.

But who hasn’t done this? We’ve all had times when we knew exactly what God wanted us to do, but we still decided that in our particular case our wisdom was better than his.

Every time that happens, our relationship with him goes through a fundamental role-reversal. He stops being our God and becomes our cosmic consultant.

Now a consultant is someone whose wisdom we highly value and listen to, but at the end of the day, we make the final decision. That’s why they’re called consultants.

Here’s the problem: God doesn’t do consulting. Never has. Never will. He does God. When we treat him as a consultant, he simply stops showing up to the meetings. We may think he’s there. But he’s not.

Adapted from A Contrarian’s Guide to Knowing God (Multnomah, 2007)

Prayer for the Week: Deliver me, sovereign Lord, from attempting to manage You. Help me to honor You by trusting and submitting to Your control.

COVID-19 – Beaver County Metrics – 11-18-2022

COVID-19 Integrated County View:

Here are the weekly COVID-19 statistics for Beaver County, PA as of November 18, 2022, showing Beaver County continuing in the HIGH category.

• The Incidence Rate increased from 53.6 to 81.7 (an increase of 28.1, or 52.4%), in the SUBSTANTIAL category.
• The PCR Positivity Rate decreased from 16.9 to 14.0, in the HIGH category.

(Allegheny County’s figures moved down into the SUBSTANTIAL category during the past week, at 55.4 and 8.8%.)

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The new “COVID-19 COMMUNITY LEVEL” index:

Starting on March 3, 2022, for hospitals and healthcare systems, the CDC is also issuing a new “COVID-19 Community Level“ index that measures the “current potential for strain on the health system” (in other words, the ability of hospitals to take in and treat additional folks with COVID-19.)  

This new index is in addition to the CDC’s “COVID-19 Integrated County View” which they continue to publish each week.

The CDC currently reports that current “COVID-19 Community Level” moved up into the LOW category.  This metric was adopted on March 3, 2022, reflecting on the potential availability of hospital beds for new COVID-19 cases. 

CDC-Recommended actions when in the HIGH level:

• Wear a mask indoors in public and on public transportation.
• Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines.
• Get tested if you have symptoms.
• If you are at high risk for severe illness, consider taking additional precautions.

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The “Triple Threat”:

Recently, health officials have begun referring to the combination of RSV, COVID-19 and flu as a “triple threat” because they are all circulating simultaneously — and could all fuel a spike in respiratory illnesses in the coming months.

Respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, is a respiratory virus that usually causes cold-like symptoms, including a runny nose, poor appetite, coughing, sneezing, fever and wheezing, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. 

The virus can spread via coughs, sneezes, surfaces and direct contact, according to the CDC. Most people who get infected experience mild symptoms and recover within a week or two, but the virus can be serious, especially for infants and older adults.

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• At Central Church, in order to look out for our older folks, as well as the unvaccinated or immunocompromised, we are continuing to look to the CDC’s“COVID-19 Integrated County View” to evaluate which protective measures and protocols that we should observe to protect all of the folks who come through our doors for in-person worship or for other reasons, such as to participate in our community feeding ministry outreach.

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• 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 11.6, so resuming small group meetings may not be feasible for the immediate future.

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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 have significantly expanded our new medical-grade HEPA-13 air filtration equipment in our Sanctuary, which is rated to remove COVID-19 from the air, which now provides 10.7 complete air changes every hour in our Sanctuary (every 6 minutes)!

• In addition, our Parlor, Church Office, Pastor’s Office, UMYF Meeting Room, Fellowship Hall, and Nursery all offer even higher levels of air changes per hour using HEPA-13 or HEPA-14 filtration.

• (5 air changes per hour is the EPA’s general recommended standard, and the EPA now recommends 8-15 air changes per hour in Churches. )  
  

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Air Filtering at Central Church – The Latest Measurements

Here is some good news!

We have had our Sanctuary air filters in place for some time now to reduce our potential COVID-19 exposure during worship services.

Our Trustees have been curious about how effectively they are scrubbing the Sanctuary air for us, so they placed an air filter meter it in the Sanctuary last week to see what our readings would be.

The actual COVID-19 virus measures about 1.5 microns in size, but it usually hitchhikes on air-borne droplets exhaled from infected humans to spread throughout a room.  The size of those droplets (classified as fine particulates) is 2.5 microns, so I measured for that level of particulates.

Our Sanctuary is disinfected prior to every worship service, so the 20 ppm (parts per million) particulates that are floating around are mainly harmless dust and pollen.   (The Medify air filtration equipment that we have in place are rated to remove air-borne contaminants down to 1 micron.)

• During the week, the air filters are not in use, and the Sanctuary air reading averaged around 20 ppm (parts per million).  When we opened the Church up early last Sunday morning, the level was still at a relatively low .  We turned on the Sanctuary air filters, and then watched that level steadily decrease, except for when we were singing hymns, when it briefly increased a few points before resuming its steady decrease down to 1 ppm.

• At the end of the worship service, the reading was just 1 ppm, so our air filters are definitely doing their job of effectively scrubbing our air!

It’s always nice to get a confirmation that we are on the right track!

Since our objective is to reduce any air-borne COVID-19 virus (or cold or flu viruses) exhaled by an infected person during a worship service, we are definitely protecting our folks as best we can.

Our thanks to our dedicated Trustees for tirelessly working during the COVID-19 pandemic to help protect anyone who comes through our doors.

Central Church

Are You for Real? – Outclassed?

Key Bible Verse: You have been Christians a long time now, and you ought to be teaching others. Instead … you are like babies. – Hebrews 5:12-13.

Bonus Reading: Colossians 1:9b-10

I knew that I’d just married an incredibly principled, moral young woman. But after bringing Dawn to Fort Benning, I was seeing it on a daily basis.

This connected with what had happened with Kurt Smith, a close friend in our Ranger reconnaissance regiment. In the spring he’d gone home on leave—and returned radically changed. He’d turned his life over to Jesus Christ, and it clearly showed. Right away his language changed for the better, his music choices cleaned up, and his general attitude brightened. He began telling others in the detachment about Christ and what a difference he’d brought to his life. It was unmistakable.

I had to admit that although I’d been a declared Christian for nearly a decade, my daily life didn’t reflect it. I looked at the way Kurt acted and felt guilty. Then I went home at night to Dawn and sensed more of the same.

The two of them, without lecturing in any way, were shining a spotlight on my inconsistencies. I was definitely rough around the edges, behaving pretty much the way most young enlisted men in the army behave. I’d lie in bed at night and think, God, I’m not matching up to these two at all.[continued 1/29]

—Jeff Streucker in The Road to Unafraid

My Response: Here’s how my growth trajectory since becoming a disciple could graph:

Adapted from The Road to Unafraid (W Publishing, 2006).

Prayer for the Week: May you receive glory and praise, Father, because the faith I claim and the life I live square up.

 

 

Are You for Real? – Performance Appraisal

Who Said It… Lane McGullion

Lane McGullion manages projects for a power generating company in Georgia, and is a leader in his church’s men’s ministry. Its claim to fame is constructing an 80 percent scale model of the Tabernacle—that’s 12′ tall, 24′ wide, and 36′ long—with furnishings.

Lane’s wife, Sonya, serves as the children’s church coordinator. They have two girls and a boy. Lane likes to sing and is a die-hard Auburn University football fan.

What He Said… Performance Appraisal

Remember your first review at a new company? Have I lived up to the references’ glowing description of my abilities? you wondered. Or should I bring an empty box to pack my belongings?

As a Christ follower, you may never be called into a conference room, but you face a different kind of workplace appraisal. During a conversation about current events, politics, or what you did this weekend, your biblical worldview will surface (hopefully you’re not trying to hide it). Your words will challenge and possibly offend.

That’s when the performance appraisal begins. Your coworkers will begin watching with the zeal of a private detective to see if you measure up to the bar you’ve set so high. You’ll have the opportunity to share the words of life, but if you also tell off-color jokes, will anyone take you seriously?

You maintain that Christ gave himself up for others, but if you fail to lend a hand to a coworker who’s falling behind, your words will fall on deaf (and lost) ears. So make sure your deeds back up your words.

Adapted from Practical Justice (InterVarsity, 2006) by permission.

Prayer for the Week: May you receive glory and praise, Father, because the faith I claim and the life I live square up.

 

 

Are You for Real? – Pocket Book Probe

Key Bible Verse: “I know, my God, that you examine our hearts and rejoice when you find integrity there.”  –  1 Chronicles 29:17

Bonus Reading: Genesis 4:1-12

The phone rang. The owner of a large apartment complex had been referred to me by a mutual acquaintance. She’d had a pricing evaluation done on her property and wanted a second opinion before selling. Commercial real estate is viciously competitive. You only get paid when you close a deal. A “team mentality” isn’t taught. If I priced her property aggressively, she’d probably use me as her agent.

But another agent in my office, the woman disclosed, had done the first pricing analysis. For several months I’d been sharing Christ with him because he was in debt and looking for answers the world wasn’t providing. I could undermine his weeks of excellent effort by telling the caller that he was less experienced, and that I could get a higher price for the property. Or I could do what Jesus would want. I told the woman the agent was capable, and that his pricing conclusions were sound. She went with him.

Just this week, the building transaction closed, and he was able to pay off all his debts. “Nobody else in this office would have done that for me,” he confided. “You really live out your faith.” He invited me to lunch—another opportunity to share my Christian hope.

—Danny Kapic in Devotional Ventures

My Response: If Danny had snatched the listing for himself, what might have transpired?

Thought to Apply: Our task is to live our personal communion with Christ with such intensity as to make it contagious.—Paul Tournier (Swiss psychologist)

Adapted from Devotional Ventures (Regal, 2006)

Prayer for the Week: May you receive glory and praise, Father, because the faith I claim and the life I live square up.

 

 

Are You for Real? – …and Consequences

Key Bible Verse: May you always be filled with … those good things that are produced in your life by Jesus Christ—for this will bring much glory and praise to God.  –  Philippians 1:11.

Bonus Reading: 2 Peter 1:3-8

[continued from yesterday]   Linda and Jerry weren’t perfect, we discovered. But then again, they never claimed to be.

Primarily what we saw was a gentle spirit of acceptance toward us, a lot more humility than pride, a willingness to admit when they were wrong, an anxiousness to reconcile when there was conflict, a readiness to acknowledge the rough edges of their character and a sincere effort to smooth them out, a refusal to playact by pretending that the Christian life is always happy, an admission that they struggled with their faith from time to time, but most of all, undergirding everything, we saw an honest desire to become a little more like Jesus, bit by bit, as time went by.

In short, they were real. Leslie and I became citizens of God’s people largely through their example.

Now I don’t want to make you paranoid, but if you’re a Christ follower, you are being watched. Your friends, neighbors, and acquaintances are scanning your life with their hypocrisy radar, because they want to know whether you’re authentic. And what they observe will either stymie or propel them in their spiritual journey.

—Lee Strobel in God’s Outrageous Claims

My Response: Will others detect in me someone who approaches life with integrity?

Thought to Apply: How little people know who think that holiness is dull. When one meets the real thing … it is irresistible.—C.S. Lewis (British academic & author)

Adapted from God’s Outrageous Claims (Zondervan, 1997, 2005)

Prayer for the Week: May you receive glory and praise, Father, because the faith I claim and the life I live square up.

 

Are You for Real? – Truth…

Key Bible Verse: “Yes, the way to identify a tree or person is by the kind of fruit that is produced.”  –  Matthew 7:20.

Bonus Reading: Matthew 7:15-21

Years ago Linda and Jerry lived in the same condominium building as Leslie and I, and so we got to know each other well. Our daughter, Alison, became best friends with their daughter, Sara.

But what Linda and Jerry didn’t realize was how much we were scrutinizing their lifestyle. They were up-front about the fact that they were Christians, and we were curious to see whether they were real. Do you know what I mean by that?

We wanted to see whether we could detect a holier-than-thou attitude toward those who didn’t subscribe to their theology. We wanted to see how they’d handle conflict in their marriage. We wanted to see whether they’d put on a Christian happy face and pretend they never got angry, worried, or frustrated.

We wanted to see whether they’d be truth-tellers and whether they’d ask for forgiveness when they made a mistake. We wanted to see whether they’d hold a grudge if we did something to hurt them. We wanted to see if they were honest about the little things in life. We wanted to hear the comments they would make about people who weren’t around.

We watched over a long period of time, and guess what we found? [continued tomorrow]

—Lee Strobel in God’s Outrageous Claims

My Response: How do I distinguish the contrived from the genuine in another person?

Thought to Apply: Where one man reads the Bible, a hundred read you and me.—Dwight L. Moody (evangelist)

Adapted from God’s Outrageous Claims (Zondervan, 1997, 2005)

Prayer for the Week: May you receive glory and praise, Father, because the faith I claim and the life I live square up.

 

 

Upcoming Special Events at Central Church

Mark your calendars for these special upcoming events at Central Church!

• Sunday, November 20, 2022, 11 am – ThankOffering Worship Service
• Sunday, November 20, 2022, 12 Noon – UMW Mission Study & Luncheon
• Thursday, November 24, 2022, 11 am – 1 pm – Free Community Thanksgiving Dinner at Central

• Saturday, November 26, 2022, 11 am – Hanging of the Greens
• Sunday, November 27, 2022, 11 am – First Sunday in Advent Worship Service

• Saturday, December 24, 2019, 7 pm – Christmas Eve Candlelit Communion Worship Service

Are You for Real? – Barracks Shock Waves

Key Bible Verse: For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him.  – Philippians 2:13.

Bonus Reading: Phil. 2:12-15

I decided to clean up my act. I began disciplining myself to speak without the splatter of four-letter words epidemic in army talk. I could get my point across without them.

I stopped drinking. Alcohol was part of my family growing up, and everything we seven in my detachment did together—going to the movies, playing volleyball—included a couple of beers. I can still hang out and have a good time, I told myself, I’ll just have a Coke instead. But the six quickly asked, “Hey, what’s wrong with you, Streucker?”

I also excused myself from certain movies I would have seen before. Then I started cleaning out my music collection. I’d been raised on classic rock, and bought a lot of heavy metal too. But the lyrics started to bother me. I got a big garbage bag, loaded it up with hundreds of cassettes and CDs, and dropped them on our unit’s front desk. “Here you go,” I said, “They’re yours, free for the taking.”

“Streucker must have joined some cult!” they said. I’d already heard how they ridiculed Kurt Smith behind his back. When I told him about it, Kurt calmly said, “So? I’m not concerned about what they think.” That became my stance as well.

—Jeff Streucker in The Road to Unafraid

My Response: Where have I let what my peers might think inhibit clear-cut discipleship?

Thought to Apply: Once you get a taste of where you want to go, motivation takes care of itself.—Chuck Daly (basketball coach)

Adapted from The Road to Unafraid (W Publishing, 2006)

Prayer for the Week: May you receive glory and praise, Father, because the faith I claim and the life I live square up.

 

Thanksgiving Day Free Community Meal at Central Church

Central United Methodist Church will be serving free turkey dinners at Central Church (1127 Sixth Avenue in Beaver Falls) between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day.

Please see Pastor Jan for more information and/or to volunteer to help. 

Central Church

Central Church – Online Worship Service – The Twenty-Third Sunday after Pentecost – 11-13-2022

On this warm, sunny 23rd Sunday after Pentecost, when the coronavirus prevents many of us from gathering in Central Church’s Sanctuary to worship in body, let us join together in spirit with our online worship service. Today’s online worship service includes a favorite HYMN with lyrics so you can sing along! Our prior online worship services are available in our online library, and can be viewed on demand, and be sure to join us in worship, either online or in person, every week!    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.  Also, it takes a while to generate the captions after the videos are published, so if the captions are not available immediately after the video is published, just check back a little later. 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=1285085949001624 YouTube –   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j38hURFBN4o (If the video doesn’t come up after clicking on the link, just copy and paste the address into your browser search bar.) Central Church

Are You for Real? – Outclassed?

Key Bible Verse: You have been Christians a long time now, and you ought to be teaching others. Instead … you are like babies. – Hebrews 5:12-13.

Bonus Reading: Colossians 1:9b-10

I knew that I’d just married an incredibly principled, moral young woman. But after bringing Dawn to Fort Benning, I was seeing it on a daily basis.

This connected with what had happened with Kurt Smith, a close friend in our Ranger reconnaissance regiment. In the spring he’d gone home on leave—and returned radically changed. He’d turned his life over to Jesus Christ, and it clearly showed. Right away his language changed for the better, his music choices cleaned up, and his general attitude brightened. He began telling others in the detachment about Christ and what a difference he’d brought to his life. It was unmistakable.

I had to admit that although I’d been a declared Christian for nearly a decade, my daily life didn’t reflect it. I looked at the way Kurt acted and felt guilty. Then I went home at night to Dawn and sensed more of the same.

The two of them, without lecturing in any way, were shining a spotlight on my inconsistencies. I was definitely rough around the edges, behaving pretty much the way most young enlisted men in the army behave. I’d lie in bed at night and think, God, I’m not matching up to these two at all.[continued 1/29]

—Jeff Streucker in The Road to Unafraid

My Response: Here’s how my growth trajectory since becoming a disciple could graph:

Adapted from The Road to Unafraid (W Publishing, 2006).

Prayer for the Week: May you receive glory and praise, Father, because the faith I claim and the life I live square up.

 

 

Make Your Talents Count – Generosity

God has given each one of us a unique combination of gifts and passions to be used for the good of others.

As the parable of the talents discussed in this week’s readings revealed, we have a choice to invest those gifts and reap a rich return or hoard them to ourselves to our own detriment.

In this week’s Key Study Passage, Paul encourages generosity. After all, our generosity flows from the generous heart of God and will be bountifully rewarded by him.

Key Study Passage:  2 Corinthians 9:6-15

1. Why do you think Paul gives the church the option whether or not to give rather than requiring it?
2. Do you think it’s okay to expect a blessing when you give? (See vv. 8-11.)
3. List and then reflect on the motivations for generosity from this passage.
4. Take a mental inventory of your gifts, talents, and resources. Are you cheerfully using each to the best of your ability and for the betterment of those around you and the advancement of God’s kingdom? Are there any areas where growth is needed?
5. If question 4 stirred your heart, commit to praying for and planning to make better use of what God has given you.

Spend Time in Prayer: Ask God to give you a cheerful, giving heart that looks to the needs of others ahead of your own; ask him to reveal to you the gifts that he’s given you and help you invest your talents well.

2 Corinthians 9:6-15

6 Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. 7 You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.” 8 And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. 9 As the Scriptures say,

“They share freely and give generously to the poor. Their good deeds will be remembered forever.”

10 For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you.

11 Yes, you will be enriched in every way so that you can always be generous. And when we take your gifts to those who need them, they will thank God. 12 So two good things will result from this ministry of giving—the needs of the believers in Jerusalem will be met, and they will joyfully express their thanks to God.

13 As a result of your ministry, they will give glory to God. For your generosity to them and to all believers will prove that you are obedient to the Good News of Christ. 14 And they will pray for you with deep affection because of the overflowing grace God has given to you. 15 Thank God for this gift too wonderful for words!

Prayer for the Week: Giver of all good gifts, help me to be aware of the talents with which you have equipped me; give me a vision for ways to use them for your

kingdom.

COVID-19 – Beaver County Metrics – 11-11-2022

COVID-19 Integrated County View:

Here are the weekly COVID-19 statistics for Beaver County, PA as of November 11, 2022, showing Beaver County continuing in the HIGH category.

 

The Incidence Rate decreased from 93.3 to 53.6 (a decrease of 39.7, or 42.5%), in the SUBSTANTIAL category.

• The PCR Positivity Rate decreased from 18.1 to 16.9, in the HIGH category.

(Allegheny County’s figures remained in the HIGH category during the past week, at 78.8 and 10.5%.)

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The new “COVID-19 COMMUNITY LEVEL” index:

Starting on March 3, 2022, for hospitals and healthcare systems, the CDC is also issuing a new “COVID-19 Community Level“ index that measures the “current potential for strain on the health system” (in other words, the ability of hospitals to take in and treat additional folks with COVID-19.)  

This new index is in addition to the CDC’s “COVID-19 Integrated County View” which they continue to publish each week.

The CDC currently reports that current “COVID-19 Community Level” moved up into the LOW category.  This metric was adopted on March 3, 2022, reflecting on the potential availability of hospital beds for new COVID-19 cases. 

CDC-Recommended actions when in the HIGH level:

• Wear a mask indoors in public and on public transportation.
• Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines.
• Get tested if you have symptoms.
• If you are at high risk for severe illness, consider taking additional precautions.

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The “Triple Threat”:

Recently, health officials have begun referring to the combination of RSV, COVID-19 and flu as a “triple threat” because they are all circulating simultaneously — and could all fuel a spike in respiratory illnesses in the coming months.

Respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, is a respiratory virus that usually causes cold-like symptoms, including a runny nose, poor appetite, coughing, sneezing, fever and wheezing, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. 

The virus can spread via coughs, sneezes, surfaces and direct contact, according to the CDC. Most people who get infected experience mild symptoms and recover within a week or two, but the virus can be serious, especially for infants and older adults.

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• At Central Church, in order to look out for our older folks, as well as the unvaccinated or immunocompromised, we are continuing to look to the CDC’s“COVID-19 Integrated County View” to evaluate which protective measures and protocols that we should observe to protect all of the folks who come through our doors for in-person worship or for other reasons, such as to participate in our community feeding ministry outreach.

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• 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 7.6, so resuming small group meetings may not be feasible for the immediate future.

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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 have significantly expanded our new medical-grade HEPA-13 air filtration equipment in our Sanctuary, which is rated to remove COVID-19 from the air, which now provides 10.7 complete air changes every hour in our Sanctuary (every 6 minutes)!

• In addition, our Parlor, Church Office, Pastor’s Office, UMYF Meeting Room, Fellowship Hall, and Nursery all offer even higher levels of air changes per hour using HEPA-13 or HEPA-14 filtration.

• (5 air changes per hour is the EPA’s general recommended standard, and the EPA now recommends 8-15 air changes per hour in Churches. )  
  

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Air Filtering at Central Church – The Latest Measurements

Here is some good news!

We have had our Sanctuary air filters in place for some time now to reduce our potential COVID-19 exposure during worship services.

Our Trustees have been curious about how effectively they are scrubbing the Sanctuary air for us, so they placed an air filter meter it in the Sanctuary last week to see what our readings would be.

The actual COVID-19 virus measures about 1.5 microns in size, but it usually hitchhikes on air-borne droplets exhaled from infected humans to spread throughout a room.  The size of those droplets (classified as fine particulates) is 2.5 microns, so I measured for that level of particulates.

Our Sanctuary is disinfected prior to every worship service, so the 20 ppm (parts per million) particulates that are floating around are mainly harmless dust and pollen.   (The Medify air filtration equipment that we have in place are rated to remove air-borne contaminants down to 1 micron.)

• During the week, the air filters are not in use, and the Sanctuary air reading averaged around 20 ppm (parts per million).  When we opened the Church up early last Sunday morning, the level was still at a relatively low .  We turned on the Sanctuary air filters, and then watched that level steadily decrease, except for when we were singing hymns, when it briefly increased a few points before resuming its steady decrease down to 1 ppm.

• At the end of the worship service, the reading was just 1 ppm, so our air filters are definitely doing their job of effectively scrubbing our air!

It’s always nice to get a confirmation that we are on the right track!

Since our objective is to reduce any air-borne COVID-19 virus (or cold or flu viruses) exhaled by an infected person during a worship service, we are definitely protecting our folks as best we can.

Our thanks to our dedicated Trustees for tirelessly working during the COVID-19 pandemic to help protect anyone who comes through our doors.

Central Church

Are You for Real? – Outclassed?

Key Bible Verse: You have been Christians a long time now, and you ought to be teaching others. Instead … you are like babies. – Hebrews 5:12-13.

Bonus Reading: Colossians 1:9b-10

I knew that I’d just married an incredibly principled, moral young woman. But after bringing Dawn to Fort Benning, I was seeing it on a daily basis.

This connected with what had happened with Kurt Smith, a close friend in our Ranger reconnaissance regiment. In the spring he’d gone home on leave—and returned radically changed. He’d turned his life over to Jesus Christ, and it clearly showed. Right away his language changed for the better, his music choices cleaned up, and his general attitude brightened. He began telling others in the detachment about Christ and what a difference he’d brought to his life. It was unmistakable.

I had to admit that although I’d been a declared Christian for nearly a decade, my daily life didn’t reflect it. I looked at the way Kurt acted and felt guilty. Then I went home at night to Dawn and sensed more of the same.

The two of them, without lecturing in any way, were shining a spotlight on my inconsistencies. I was definitely rough around the edges, behaving pretty much the way most young enlisted men in the army behave. I’d lie in bed at night and think, God, I’m not matching up to these two at all.[continued 1/29]

—Jeff Streucker in The Road to Unafraid

My Response: Here’s how my growth trajectory since becoming a disciple could graph:

Adapted from The Road to Unafraid (W Publishing, 2006).

Prayer for the Week: May you receive glory and praise, Father, because the faith I claim and the life I live square up.

 

 

Make Your Talents Count – Can’t Out-Give God

Key Bible Verse: “I am the LORD All-Powerful, and I challenge you to put me to the test. Bring the entire 10 percent into the storehouse. … Then I will open the windows of heaven and flood you with blessing after blessing.”  – Malachi 3:10, CEV

Dig Deeper: 2 Corinthians 9:6-15

I urge you—plumb the depths of the parable of the talents. Take a good, hard look at the context of your life—nothing happens by chance. You are where you are and the way you are for a reason, for God’s reason.

The master says that when you invest the talents he’s given you, when you are faithful to bear fruit from the little he’s given you, he will give you more. And you will enter into his joy. People around the world are searching for joy. Where is it? How can we find it?

Here’s the answer. Plain and simple. Straight from God: Invest what I’ve given you. Take a chance. Put it to work. Trust me. Make it multiply. Then I’ll give you more. And you’ll be happier and more content than ever fathomed. Don’t believe it? Think of investing your talents the way the Old Testament describes giving your tithe [in today’s Key Bible Verse].

We’ve all heard it said, “You can’t out-give God.” He’s made me a believer. My joy is worth more than all the money in a zillion banks. What about you? Are you ready to take a good, hard look at yourself and determine what talents God has knit together within you?

—Bob Westfall in The Fulfillment Principle

My Response: How is the Holy Spirit prompting me to respond to this reading?

Thought to Apply: God has a way of giving by the cartloads to those who give away by shovelfuls.—Charles Spurgeon (British preacher)

Adapted from The Fulfillment Principle (Leafwood, 2012)

Prayer for the Week: Giver of all good gifts, help me to be aware of the talents with which you have equipped me; give me a vision for ways to use them for your kingdom.

 

Make Your Talents Count – You’ve Got It Already

Key Bible Verses: “The master called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them … each according to his ability.”  – Matthew 25:14-15, NIV

Dig Deeper: Matthew 25:14-30

Let me make an essential point here: God has already given you the talent, ability, skill, money, or passion you need to fulfill his plan, to be entrusted with more, and to walk in pure joy. That’s one of the key truths of the parable of the talents that many people miss.

Remember? The master went on a journey. But before he left, he called his servants in and “entrusted his possessions to them” (Matt. 25:14, NASB et al.). He passed out five talents to one, two to another, and one to a third, “each according to his own ability,” (v. 15) and then he went on his way.

What I’m trying to show you is that you already have everything you need! The skill is within you. The dream is deep inside you. The plan is in place. The passion is there. The ability is woven into your DNA by the Creator himself.

Have you examined your life? The people within your circles? The possibilities within your realm? Will you be faithful in the little things?

Examine your life today. Don’t make the mistake of saying, “Someday, when I have this, I’ll do that,” or, “When I have more time, I’ll pursue that dream,” or, “When I have more money, I’ll give to this or that organization.”

—Bob Westfall in The Fulfillment Principle

My Response: Have I been making these kinds of excuses? If so, I will repent and make a plan of action.

Thought to Apply: He who waits to do a great deal of good at once, will never do anything.—Samuel Johnson (British writer)

Adapted from The Fulfillment Principle (Leafwood, 2012)

Prayer for the Week: Giver of all good gifts, help me to be aware of the talents with which you have equipped me; give me a vision for ways to use them for your kingdom.

 

 

Make Your Talents Count – Moving Mountains

Key Bible Verse: Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.  – 1 Timothy 4:12

Dig Deeper: John 14:12-14

Austin has a book out with a title that reiterates the point of today’s reading: Take Your Best Shot: Do Something Bigger Than Yourself. One of the Bible verses Austin reflects upon as he speaks about Hoops of Hope is today’s Key Bible Verse.

“I’m happy and I’m proud that kids are finally seeing that they can make a difference at a young age, that they don’t have to wait to be an adult,” Austin said. “At the same time, it’s hard to be proud of what we’ve done when you go to Africa and see how much more there is to do.”

Wow! The faith of a child—a child who saw a video about orphans in Africa, and refused to let the memory of it die. A child who felt a burden and realized, with God’s help, he could move mountains.

Maybe you’re a high school teacher who’s been entrusted with a classroom full of students. How will you steward the hearts and minds of those kids who’ve been placed in your care?

Say you’re a college student. You’ve been entrusted with an education. What will you do with that knowledge and experience? How will you invest it for the good of others?

—Bob Westfall in The Fulfillment Principle

My Response: What talents have I been given? How can I better use them to serve God and bless others?

Thought to Apply: The world asks, “What does a man own?” Christ asks, “How does he use it?”—Andrew Murray (South African writer, teacher, pastor)

Adapted from The Fulfillment Principle (Leafwood, 2012)

Prayer for the Week: Giver of all good gifts, help me to be aware of the talents with which you have equipped me; give me a vision for ways to use them for your kingdom.

 

Make Your Talents Count – Hoops of Hope

Key Bible Verse: Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress.  – James 1:27

Dig Deeper: Matthew 25:34-40

There is a young man in Arizona by the name of Austin Gutwein who, at the ripe old age of 10, saw a video about a girl in Africa who lost her parents to HIV/AIDS, and it gripped his heart. He learned that 5,700 children are orphaned each day because of HIV/AIDS, and that 15 million children have already lost one or both parents to the disease.

“That hit me hard,” recalls Austin, now 16. “I felt God calling me to go do something about it.”

A friend suggested Austin use his favorite sport, basketball, to make a difference. He got some friends involved in shooting free-throws to raise money for those children in Africa. God used the faith of that little kid from Arizona and he birthed Hoops of Hope (hoopsofhope.org), which has since become the world’s largest free-throw marathon.

Some 40,000 children have participated in Hoops of Hope, raising more than $2.5 million and allowing the organization to build a school in Zambia where there was no school for 70 miles. Not only that, Hoops of Hope has partnered with World Vision to build four dormitories for students of the school, two medical clinics, a computer lab, and more.

—Bob Westfall in The Fulfillment Principle

My Response: What gets me excited? How can I use that passion to serve others?

Thought to Apply: Not he who has much is rich, but he who gives much.—Erich Fromm (psychologist)

Adapted from The Fulfillment Principle (Leafwood, 2012)

Prayer for the Week: Giver of all good gifts, help me to be aware of the talents with which you have equipped me; give me a vision for ways to use them for your kingdom.

 

10 Proverbs for Consuming and Contributing on Social Media

Here is a helpful article by Eric Geiger regarding our use of social media.

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When I moved to my role as vice-president of LifeWay, my boss Thom Rainer encouraged me to use a blog and social media to connect with church leaders. It was the fall of 2011. I signed up for Twitter a month later. Several years later I signed up for Instagram.

Though I was not an early adopter on any platform, I have enjoyed using the them to connect with people, to share content, and to read other people’s thoughts. Some abandon social media because the cost is greater than the benefit for them, and I applaud the decision when one concludes that for himself and makes appropriate adjustments. For me, the benefit still outweighs the cost.

With that said, here are 10 Proverbs for wise social media use.

1. Don’t share everything in your life. That would be stupid.

A shrewd person conceals knowledge, but a foolish heart publicizes stupidity. (Proverbs 12:23)

2. The story you are tempted to be jealous of on social media is likely not the whole story.

One person pretends to be rich but has nothing; another pretends to be poor but has abundant wealth. (Proverbs 13:7)

3. Don’t waste time trying to correct trolls. That will only increase hate.

Don’t rebuke a mocker, or he will hate you; rebuke the wise, and he will love you. (Proverbs 9:8)

4. You should not talk about every issue or comment on every event.

When there are many words, sin is unavoidable, but the one who controls his lips is prudent. (Proverbs 10:19)

5. Stop following foolish people.

Stay away from a foolish person; you will gain no knowledge from his speech. (Proverbs 14:7)

6. Don’t build an audience on anger.

A quick-tempered person acts foolishly, and one who schemes is hated. (Proverbs 14:17)

7. Don’t get sucked into an echo chamber of fools.

The one who walks with the wise will become wise, but a companion of fools will suffer harm. (Proverbs 13:20)

8. People on social can turn on you quickly. Real friends stick with you online and off.

One with many friends may be harmed, but there is a friend who stays closer than a brother. (Proverbs 18:24)

9. You will find out who your real friends are when you share something you regret.

Wealth attracts many friends, but a poor person is separated from his friend. (Proverbs 19:4)

10. Tell the truth and only share things you know are true.

Lying lips are detestable to the Lord, but faithful people are his delight. (Proverbs 12:22)

This article originally appeared at: https://ericgeiger.com/2020/12/10-proverbs-for-consuming-and-contributing-on-social-media/

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Central Church

Make Your Talents Count – Man on a Mission

Key Bible Verse: Share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless.  – Isaiah 58:7

Dig Deeper: Isaiah 58:6-12

Sean Lambert is president of Youth With a Mission San Diego/Baja. While on a mission trip in Tijuana, Sean and his daughter, Andrea, joined a team of 15 people to build a house for a poverty-stricken family.

When the house was complete and the family moved in, Andrea pointed out another poor family living in an abandoned bus adjacent to the new home being built and said, “Daddy, are you going to build them a house?”

Andrea’s words moved Sean to build a second house and Homes of Hope was born.

Starting with this single house in Tijuana, Mexico, Homes of Hope has now built 3,482 homes for poor families in 10 different nations. One of the “talents” knitted into Sean’s make-up is his compassion for the poor. He was faithful with the one house God sent him to build and so God put him in charge of many.

Today, Homes of Hope impacts needy families in five key areas: economic, educational, health, social and emotional, and spiritual.

Sean is an excellent example of someone who took small, simple steps in obeying God, entering into all God wanted to do in and through his life in a ministry that is now impacting 10 other nations … and growing!

—Bob Westfall in The Fulfillment Principle

My Response: I will think about people who are less fortunate than I am, and consider ways I can help meet their needs.

Adapted from The Fulfillment Principle (Leafwood, 2012)

Prayer for the Week: Giver of all good gifts, help me to be aware of the talents with which you have equipped me; give me a vision for ways to use them for your kingdom.

 

Central Church – Online Worship Service – The Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost – All Saints Sunday – 11-6-2022

On this warm, sunny 22nd Sunday after Pentecost, when we celebrate All Saints Sunday, and when the coronavirus prevents many of us from gathering in Central Church’s Sanctuary to worship in body, let us join together in spirit with our online worship service. Today’s online worship service includes a favorite HYMN with lyrics so you can sing along! Our prior online worship services are available in our online library, and can be viewed on demand, and be sure to join us in worship, either online or in person, every week!    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.  Also, it takes a while to generate the captions after the videos are published, so if the captions are not available immediately after the video is published, just check back a little later. 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=492309769526271 YouTube –  https://youtu.be/4T6-9yjjekM (If the video doesn’t come up after clicking on the link, just copy and paste the address into your browser search bar.) Central Church

 

Effective Stewardship – November 2022 Theme

Our November 2022 Stewardship Theme:

General Norman Schwarzkopf once recalled when he was the Assistant Commander for Personnel at the Pentagon. He had been in this assignment for two weeks when his superior left for an eight-week trip to the Orient.  General Schwarzkopf expressed concern about his ability, even as a major general, to handle this new responsibility.

His superior told him to follow “Rule 13.”  When Schwarzkopf asked what “Rule 13” was, his superior told him, “When given command, take charge.”  “But what if I don’t know what to do?” asked Schwarzkopf.  The reply was that he should follow “Rule 14 – Do what is right.”

Sometimes Christians are in a similar predicament, especially concerning actions based on feelings.  We do many things in the Christian life because they are “right,” not because we necessarily want to do them or feel like doing them.  Nowhere is this more true than concerning our giving.  Even when perhaps we do not feel like giving, mature Christians give because doing so is “right” and because God has motivated our hearts to give.

Unfortunately, some people follow the life principle of giving only when they feel like it.  The problem is that they seldom feel like it.  Oh, they might give to a special project now and then or respond to a special need that appeals to them.  Otherwise, though, they usually fail to give unless they happen to feel like it.

In some ways, such individuals who give only when they feel like it fit Abraham Lincoln’s description of those who achieve financial success but little else in life.  “Financial success,” he once said, “is purely metallic.  The person who gains it has four metallic attributes: gold in his palm, silver on his tongue, brass in his face, and iron in his heart.”

“In contrast,” writes Randy Alcorn, “the Macedonian believers begged ‘us earnestly for the privilege of sharing in this ministry [giving] to the saints’ (2 Cor. 8:4).   When we catch a vision of God’s grace, we will give according to our duty, yes, but far more, we will give beyond our duty, voluntarily captivated by the grace of our ever-giving Lord.”

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Central Church

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Make Your Talents Count – Invest Your Talents

Key Study Passage: 2 Corinthians 9:6-15

Who Said It … Bob Westfall

Bob Westfall is president of the Westfall Group, which serves charities and Christian ministries in financial stewardship and communications. His company has helped charities raise more than $210 million in new income for their valuable work.

He frequently speaks at national conferences and to charity boards, philanthropists, churches, and other groups, and is the author of The Fulfillment Principle. He currently lives in Suwanee, Georgia, with his wife, Kim. They are the parents of four children.

What he Said … Invest Your Talents

The word “talent” spoken of in the parable of the talents (Matt. 25:14-30) is a measure of weight and, in this usage, means “money.” As in many of Christ’s parables, however, the story contains multiple layers of meaning and wisdom. God gives us something of his to invest—according to our ability.

Although God may have given you five talents and me two and someone else one, he views us each the same. Just because you have more does not mean God views you as more valuable or important. Indeed, God sees us all as equal; he values us the same.

And what he truly values most is the way you and I steward the talents he’s entrusted into our lives. How do we invest those talents? Are we fruitful? Do we get good return on the deposit he’s made in our lives?

What talent—be it treasure or ability or passion or skill—has God entrusted to you according to your unique ability? What passion has he woven into your heart, and only your heart?

Adapted from The Fulfillment Principle (Leafwood, 2012)

Prayer for the Week: Giver of all good gifts, help me to be aware of the talents with which you have equipped me; give me a vision for ways to use them for your kingdom.

COVID-19 – Beaver County Metrics – 11-4-2022

COVID-19 Integrated County View:

Here are the weekly COVID-19 statistics for Beaver County, PA as of November 4, 2022, showing Beaver County continuing in the HIGH category.

The Incidence Rate increased from 79.9 to 93.3 (an increase of 13.4, or 16.7%), in the MODERATE category for the secondt time in 19 weeks.

• The PCR Positivity Rate decreased from 18.9 to 18.1, in the HIGH category.

(Allegheny County’s figures remained in the HIGH category during the past week, at 98.4 and 11.3%.)

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The new “COVID-19 COMMUNITY LEVEL” index:

Starting on March 3, 2022, for hospitals and healthcare systems, the CDC is also issuing a new “COVID-19 Community Level“ index that measures the “current potential for strain on the health system” (in other words, the ability of hospitals to take in and treat additional folks with COVID-19.)  

This new index is in addition to the CDC’s “COVID-19 Integrated County View” which they continue to publish each week.

The CDC currently reports that current “COVID-19 Community Level” moved up into the LOW category.  This metric was adopted on March 3, 2022, reflecting on the potential availability of hospital beds for new COVID-19 cases. 

CDC-Recommended actions when in the HIGH level:

• Wear a mask indoors in public and on public transportation.
• Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines.
• Get tested if you have symptoms.
• If you are at high risk for severe illness, consider taking additional precautions.

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The “Triple Threat”:

Recently, health officials have begun referring to the combination of RSV, COVID-19 and flu as a “triple threat” because they are all circulating simultaneously — and could all fuel a spike in respiratory illnesses in the coming months.

Respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, is a respiratory virus that usually causes cold-like symptoms, including a runny nose, poor appetite, coughing, sneezing, fever and wheezing, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. 

The virus can spread via coughs, sneezes, surfaces and direct contact, according to the CDC. Most people who get infected experience mild symptoms and recover within a week or two, but the virus can be serious, especially for infants and older adults.

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• At Central Church, in order to look out for our older folks, as well as the unvaccinated or immunocompromised, we are continuing to look to the CDC’s“COVID-19 Integrated County View” to evaluate which protective measures and protocols that we should observe to protect all of the folks who come through our doors for in-person worship or for other reasons, such as to participate in our community feeding ministry outreach.

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• 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 13.3, so resuming small group meetings may not be feasible for the immediate future.

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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 have significantly expanded our new medical-grade HEPA-13 air filtration equipment in our Sanctuary, which is rated to remove COVID-19 from the air, which now provides 10.7 complete air changes every hour in our Sanctuary (every 6 minutes)!

• In addition, our Parlor, Church Office, Pastor’s Office, UMYF Meeting Room, Fellowship Hall, and Nursery all offer even higher levels of air changes per hour using HEPA-13 or HEPA-14 filtration.

• (5 air changes per hour is the EPA’s general recommended standard, and the EPA now recommends 8-15 air changes per hour in Churches. )  
  

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Air Filtering at Central Church – The Latest Measurements

Here is some good news!

We have had our Sanctuary air filters in place for some time now to reduce our potential COVID-19 exposure during worship services.

Our Trustees have been curious about how effectively they are scrubbing the Sanctuary air for us, so they placed an air filter meter it in the Sanctuary last week to see what our readings would be.

The actual COVID-19 virus measures about 1.5 microns in size, but it usually hitchhikes on air-borne droplets exhaled from infected humans to spread throughout a room.  The size of those droplets (classified as fine particulates) is 2.5 microns, so I measured for that level of particulates.

Our Sanctuary is disinfected prior to every worship service, so the 20 ppm (parts per million) particulates that are floating around are mainly harmless dust and pollen.   (The Medify air filtration equipment that we have in place are rated to remove air-borne contaminants down to 1 micron.)

• During the week, the air filters are not in use, and the Sanctuary air reading averaged around 20 ppm (parts per million).  When we opened the Church up early last Sunday morning, the level was still at a relatively low .  We turned on the Sanctuary air filters, and then watched that level steadily decrease, except for when we were singing hymns, when it briefly increased a few points before resuming its steady decrease down to 1 ppm.

• At the end of the worship service, the reading was just 1 ppm, so our air filters are definitely doing their job of effectively scrubbing our air!

It’s always nice to get a confirmation that we are on the right track!

Since our objective is to reduce any air-borne COVID-19 virus (or cold or flu viruses) exhaled by an infected person during a worship service, we are definitely protecting our folks as best we can.

Our thanks to our dedicated Trustees for tirelessly working during the COVID-19 pandemic to help protect anyone who comes through our doors.

Central Church

Turn Clocks Back Tonight!

If you are still irked about losing that hour of sleep last March when most of the country went on Daylight saving time, here’s some good news – you get it back this Sunday.

Daylight saving time (DST) ends at 2 a.m. on Nov. 5, and if you haven’t heard already, you need to set your clocks back (“fall back”) one hour before going to bed on Saturday.

If you forget to turn your clocks back tonight, don’t worry, it’ll just mean that you’ll be all talked out before the Prelude begins!

Central Church

The Difference One Can Make – Just Imagine!

Who Said It…Richard Land

Richard Land is president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, which works to keep the public informed on critical issues facing the family and the nation.

He was also appointed by President Bush to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.

Dr. Land has also served as pastor, professor, and adviser to a former Texas governor.

What He Said…Just Imagine!

What if just half of those Americans who claim to be evangelical Christians were truly to practice their faith in their local communities as responsible citizens?

Every volunteer social organization in the country seeking to meet the needs of less fortunate people would be transformed overnight.  There’d be so many volunteers they’d have to be put on waiting lists.

The databases of crisis pregnancy centers and prison transition ministries and foster-care agencies would be crammed with the names and numbers of families ready to take in young women and ex-cons and children who need hospitality, practical help, and loving care. Food pantry shelves would overflow.

Homebound senior citizens would never be isolated.  School children would have mentors for literacy programs and reading enrichment, and adults committed to staying involved in their lives. Nursing-home residents wouldn’t pass time in empty days, neglected by family and ignored by society.

Even those not influenced to accept Christ by such radical, positive changes in society would live better lives.

Adapted from Imagine! A God-Blessed America (Broadman & Holman, 2005)

Prayer for the Week: I’m available, Lord, for any assignment. Use me to make a difference in Your Kingdom.