Legacies

1 Peter 2:9-10

The Purpose of United Methodist Women

United Methodist Women shall be a community of women whose purpose is to know God and to experience freedom as whole persons through Jesus Christ; to develop a creative, supportive fellowship; and to expand concepts of mission through participation in the global ministries of the church.

2018 UMW Calendar of Events

Feb. 8th—UMW Luncheon
Feb. 17th—CalPac Conference Mid-Winter Events
Feb. 23rd-25th—Women’s Retreat, Aldersgate Retreat Center
Mar. 8th—UMW Luncheon
Mar. 10th—South District Mission u Study, La Mesa Foothills UMC
Apr. 12th—UMW Luncheon
Apr. 21st—South District Mission u Study, Vista UMC
May 12th—Mother/Daughter/Friend Luncheon
May 18th-20th—UMW’s Assembly, Columbus, OH
June 2nd—Quiet Day Apart, Santa Ana UMC
June 14th—UMW Luncheon
June 28th-July 1st—Mission u, Biola University
July 30th-August 4th—Annual Rummage Sale
Sept. 13th—UMW Luncheon
Sept. 22nd—South District Celebration—San Carlos UMC
Oct. 11th—UMW Luncheon
Oct. 27th—CalPac Annual Celebration
Nov. 3rd—Cranberry Tea
Dec. 13th—UMW Luncheon Christmas Program

Putting Down Our Nets to Follow Christ

Mark 1:14-20

A Call…an invitation…a summons…an overture that demands a response.  If the scriptures are clear about one thing, it is that God does not sit idly somewhere on the far side of eternity, distant and detached from creation. The witness of our scriptures is that God gets involved in the world.  Suddenly, surprisingly, often startlingly, God intervenes in history and works to bring about his purpose and will. Most often, the intervention of God in creation involves human agents, who work and witness on God’s behalf.

Another thing about which scriptures seem clear is that to be called by God will rattle you a bit.  Those whom God calls are portrayed in the scriptures as reluctant, dismayed, even on occasion initially disobedient.  It is no easy thing to be called by God, even when—as is the case with the first people Jesus encountered in his public ministry—we are asked to simply put down our current projects and follow. The call to follow Jesus is a call away from fame and fortune…it is a call to servanthood, sacrifice, sweat…a call to become like Christ Jesus himself.

Difficult or not, follow we must if we are to know the peace of God. And so this Sunday, a call is being issued to serve God for the coming year by serving God’s congregation at First UMC of Orange, as an Associate In Ministry.  Many who worship this day are called, or will be, to other mission fields and other endeavors.  But for a handful, today is a powerful day of invitation, of summons…of call.

Sharing the Christ We Know

John 1:43-51

The mission of the United Methodist Church is “to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the the transformation of the world.” But how, exactly, does a person become a disciple of Jesus? It turns out to be a question that was as important to the early readers of John’s gospel as it is today. The answer is as rich in complexity and diversity as the human race. Some people seek the path of God aggressively, and others are surprised to stumble upon the truth. Some believe with little more than a nudge, and others “will not believe until they see the Lord for themselves.“ In the midst of such diversity a pattern does emerge, however. People with good news end up sharing that news on a person-to-person level…and those with whom it is shared have an personal encounter with Jesus that is transformative.

These encounters with Jesus are the essential piece in sustaining the Christian movement for over 200 years.  So much so, that from the standpoint of evangelism, our task as Christians is not to “prove” the truth of the Christian faith to others, (though libraries and bookstores are filled with the excellent scholarly writing of Christian “apologists”). Nor is our task to persuade others to become Christian. Our task is to simply say, “Come and see.”

Jesus himself will take it from there.

The Ocean Lies Ahead

Mark 1:4-11

This sermon was not supplemented with a written reflection.

Looking Forward: How Shall We Respond?

Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11, John 1:6-8, 19-28

We are celebrating Advent, but the world around us is racing into Christmas and the “holiday season.” With all the trimmings and decorations, a person’s heart inevitably takes time to reminisce; to look back and remember with fond nostalgia the warm and wonderful memories from Christmases past, or to else struggle to overcome hard memories from troubled times. In our own way, even as Christians, the looking back becomes a way of shaping our lives, telling our story in a way that comforts us. The trouble with such nostalgia is that it doesn’t look far enough back.  We are meant to tell God’s story, not our own. When we look far enough back—even to creation itself—we see a mighty God whose hand can remove any obstacle, and whose love can overcome any pain.  This creates a longing…a stirring of the heart…a desire to see God move again.

It is true that when God moves—when the Holy Spirit truly moves among God’s people—it is like seeing the sky riven and hearing the thunderous roar of a cyclone. It is like a powerful earthquake shaking the foundations beneath.  When God moves, our comfortable personal histories are disrupted, and the world itself is changed.  Throughout the history of the church, faithful men and women have undertaken countless endeavors in the name of God. Many of these have accomplished untold good in the world, and yet all them combined pale in comparison with the awesome hand of God’s own self when he moves among us.

Looking Forward: When God Appears

Isaiah 40:1-11, Mark 1:1-8

We are celebrating Advent, but the world around us is racing into Christmas and the “holiday season.” With all the trimmings and decorations, a person’s heart inevitably takes time to reminisce; to look back and remember with fond nostalgia the warm and wonderful memories from Christmases past, or to else struggle to overcome hard memories from troubled times. In our own way, even as Christians, the looking back becomes a way of shaping our lives, telling our story in a way that comforts us. The trouble with such nostalgia is that it doesn’t look far enough back.  We are meant to tell God’s story, not our own. When we look far enough back—even to creation itself—we see a mighty God whose hand can remove any obstacle, and whose love can overcome any pain.  This creates a longing…a stirring of the heart…a desire to see God move again.

It is true that when God moves—when the Holy Spirit truly moves among God’s people—it is like seeing the sky riven and hearing the thunderous roar of a cyclone. It is like a powerful earthquake shaking the foundations beneath.  When God moves, our comfortable personal histories are disrupted, and the world itself is changed.  Throughout the history of the church, faithful men and women have undertaken countless endeavors in the name of God. Many of these have accomplished untold good in the world, and yet all them combined pale in comparison with the awesome hand of God’s own self when he moves among us.

Looking Forward: Longing for God

Isaiah 64:1-9, Mark 13:24-35

We are celebrating Advent, but the world around us is racing into Christmas and the “holiday season.” With all the trimmings and decorations, a person’s heart inevitably takes time to reminisce; to look back and remember with fond nostalgia the warm and wonderful memories from Christmases past, or to else struggle to overcome hard memories from troubled times. In our own way, even as Christians, the looking back becomes a way of shaping our lives, telling our story in a way that comforts us. The trouble with such nostalgia is that it doesn’t look far enough back.  We are meant to tell God’s story, not our own. When we look far enough back—even to creation itself—we see a mighty God whose hand can remove any obstacle, and whose love can overcome any pain.  This creates a longing…a stirring of the heart…a desire to see God move again.

It is true that when God moves—when the Holy Spirit truly moves among God’s people—it is like seeing the sky riven and hearing the thunderous roar of a cyclone. It is like a powerful earthquake shaking the foundations beneath.  When God moves, our comfortable personal histories are disrupted, and the world itself is changed.  Throughout the history of the church, faithful men and women have undertaken countless endeavors in the name of God. Many of these have accomplished untold good in the world, and yet all them combined pale in comparison with the awesome hand of God’s own self when he moves among us.

Moment by Moment We Rise With Christ

Matthew 25:31-46

We call him our Lord and we call him King, for that is what he is. But never in the history of humanity has there been a king like Jesus.

There is no earthly scepter and crown for this ruler.  Instead he takes up the towel and the basin, washes the tired feet of his friends, and sets for them an example of servant-love that is world-changing. There is likewise no public office for this ruler. Jesus cared little for governments, even less for the intrigue and politics of empire-building. When all the kingdoms of the world were offered to him, Jesus flatly rebuked the tempter. He then took refuge in a lifetime of humble, Godly obedience (obedience is a cleft in the rock where all faithful persons may hide, and from which all doubts flee in the night).

His Kingdom is literally not of this world, though many of his subjects are in the world.  He is “Immanuel”—God with us. He brings the promised fulfillment of long-held hopes, and at the same time a revelation of “what no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor mind conceived.”

We call him Lord and King…for that is what he is.