Worrying... Unburdened

Nehemiah 8: 9-12; Matt. 11: 25-30 

Years ago, my friends and I decided to go horseback riding. We thought, as Kentuckians, this would be a wonderful thing given the horse industry association with the state. It was, by some measure, one of the most abjectly awful experiences of all of our lives. The trek in the mountains was steep and rocky meaning we had to walk half of it and guide the horses instead of riding. It was hot. It was long. One horse got annoyed and kept heaving loudly.  

And one of my friends got a particularly untrained horse. When we got within a half mile of the stables, the horse decided to unburden himself and get home. He ran at full gallop to the barn. My friend lost his camera, hat, wallet, and the horse nearly unburdened himself of my friend altogether. There are times in life where we are the burden. There are times in life where we become weighed down by burdens. What do we have weighing on us, holding us down, stressing us, worrying us, burdening us with pain and trouble?  

The people of Jesus’s day were no strangers to being burdened. Jesus references the burdens the pharisees placed on people’s ability to be present with God. A life of faith was a life of rules and constant mistakes. There was a barrier with direct communication with God. The religious leaders had the power not only over your worship but to also punish you up to and including death for violating their religious rules. When Jesus speaks of an easy burden, it’s a slap in the face to the religious rulers. Not only is Jesus saying he lessens the burden of faith and life because Jesus doesn’t condemn or chastise; he also adds that he is gentle and humble. The implication is that the religious leaders are arrogant and proud.  

Jesus gives a “yoke” that is easy. Years ago, I had someone ask whether that meant the yellow inside of the egg. A yoke was the harness used on an animal to pull the plow in the garden. Over the years, it has become another way to talk about oppression. We say “under the yoke of slavery,” or “under the yoke of tyranny.” It was a burden on the animal to hold and pull for most of the day. For us, yoke can be considered God’s will, God’s plan for us. Instead of a heavy burden that weighs us down, oppresses us, or causes more suffering, God’s yoke is easy. God’s yoke, God’s will, is something holy, not heavy. Jesus says that the yoke of faith is easy to bear, and the burden is light. Indeed, in following God, we have done all we need to do because God will give strength for the rest.  

We see this echoed in the Nehemiah lesson. This was after the people had returned to their home from their captivity in Babylon. They had forgotten many of their laws and traditions. This was the point where Nehemiah reads the law and re-instructs the people in how to live rightly. Because they were so in the wrong, the people weep in fear and sadness. They feel burdened, worried, and like failures. But Nehemiah tells them that this is a day of celebration, of feasting, and not of sorrow. They have heard God’s words and understood them. They again had this right relationship with God. We cannot burden ourselves by neglecting our spiritual well-being in this life.  

What we see from Nehemiah is that God is a God of restoration. God didn’t want to punish, to subjugate, to oppress the people. God wanted to restore and lift them up. It was not a time to mourn their failures and be burdened by what they have done wrong. It was a time to celebrate, for restoration, and to remember that the joy of the Lord is their strength.  

What we must remember is that our walk of faith is not a calling or invitation to a life of ease. Jesus delivers us from the oppression of human action, not all struggle in life. We do not have to worry about all the evil, the cruelty, the punishments, and control of the religious leaders of Jesus’s day. That behavior may still exist. Heaven knows you’ve met them in some churches. But it doesn’t affect our ability to have a relationship with God. Humans can create burdens, messes, trials, and troubles all day. None of that needs affect your life of faith unless you let it. Life may not be easy, but life is best lived with Jesus at our side.  

Some of us live very burdened lives, and those cause us to worry day in and day out. What things do we carry around that still bring us guilt even from 20, 30, or more years ago? Some of us still have old wounds that cause pain and hurt in our lives. Some of us are very fearful but we cover it over well. Some of us are just plain tired, but we dare not speak of it. I was watching a video the other day of this table in someone’s living room. A family got home from a trip, and they dropped one suitcase on it, then another, and finally, after third big duffle bag, the table collapsed. How many of us are that close to giving out from the stresses and burdens we carry on a daily basis like giant bags on our backs?  

In some ways, the church is also exhausted. I saw a study the other day that said around 48% of Gen Z won’t go to church because of so many churches’ vocal support of a particular politician. Another study showed how different demographics struggle with church because they, “don’t identify with that particular church’s political stances on issues.” And I have a question. Why do churches have political stances? 

A House of God stands and speaks what is faithful, truthful, and biblically grounded. If a church is preaching politics, it has lost its way. But also, if church members find a truthful word politically offensive, that’s a faith problem within themselves. The job of the church is to grow a life of faith and speak the truth of what Jesus said to us. Because when we focus on what Jesus said to the church, we can remember that his yoke is easy and his burden is light. What we have to ask ourselves on a daily basis is this: do we consume more political news or more words of faith and Christ on a daily basis? One is a burden, the other reminds us that the joy of the Lord is our strength.  

True Sabbath, true rest is found in Jesus. The demands of humans placed in charge of things will weigh us down. Just like the table piled with suitcases, we may collapse under the weight. If we listen to other people instead of Jesus, or if we politicize all of life, we will drive ourselves crazy. It’s a burden we don’t have to bear. We are called to follow Jesus, love as Jesus loved, and speak the truth we find in God’s word to us. In doing these things, we find joy instead of worry, dread, fear, guilt, anger, or any other negative and burdensome emotions in life.  

A writer discussing the Nehemiah passage penned a very wise observation. The whole job of the law is to accuse. It’s intended to point out faults, shortcomings, and bring guilt and punishment to those who stand in violation. But God restores, redeems, gives freedom, and offers love and joy. We are invited to do the same when we come into a life of faith.  

The church has a mission in this world. And if almost half of a young generation don’t trust or want to come to church, we are failing. And perhaps that is a burden we need to sit with for a minute. But if we stand on redeeming, restoring love of Jesus, and teach God’s truth of what it means to live in a life of grace following the one who loved so much that it cost him his very life, then we can remove even that burden. And we can show younger generations how to be filled with the Spirit of God instead of doubts and burdens.  

Years ago, my friends and I went horseback riding. The experience was, shall we say, a worrisome burden? One of my friends was nearly chucked off his horse as the horse galloped to the stables for food and to be home and at rest. Friends, we need to be like the horse, running to God like the horse getting to the stable home. What we cannot be is the rider, the burden, that the horse was trying to toss. May we never be the burden in life. May we also never be overwhelmed by our burdens when God is waiting with love and joy for us. But most of all, may we rest our lives in Jesus, who gives peace and joy, for it is the joy of the Lord that is our strength.  

Worship Service Video : https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/28285494227734860/

Worrying—Just Don’t

Psalm 130; Matthew 6: 25-34 

I was at Jekyll Island for conference this week, we experienced a bit of a storm. I have learned that down on the Georgia coast, the weather can change from bright and sunny to an all out severe thunderstorm in a matter of minutes. It starts with one small dark cloud, then in seconds there’s a whole lot of them brooding over the far side of the water. Everything turns dark. Visibility drops in the clouds and the torrential rain. Thunder and lightning crack loudly overhead, and everything in the storm’s path becomes drenched in the blink of an eye. Interestingly enough, however, just as quickly as the storm came, it disappears. The sun returns and everything steams like the seafood at the restaurant.  

This kind of storm formulating over the ocean waters is a perfect analogy for worry in our lives. It comes out of nowhere. It hits us quick and hard. Then just as fast as the problem resolves, things clear up, and we are left with the aftermath of all the worry in our lives. Worry can be immediate and acute—such as when we worry we forgot something. But worry can also be long-lasting and settle into everyday life such as when a loved one is sick for a long time. For some of us, worry becomes this never-ending sense of dread that seeps into all aspects of our lives. My Granny was much like this. She worried constantly about everything: burglars, kidnappers, choking, accidents that never happened, flying, driving, death, life…everything to her was a reason to worry.  

Jesus talks about worrying in the scripture for today. There’s not a real 3-step plan, guidebook, or anything else found in this Matthew text. Jesus simply says, “Don’t do it.” He starts out right to the point, “I tell you not to worry about everyday life.” Jesus tells the disciples that everything we can worry about, we see God providing in life around us. He makes the comparison to lilies and birds noting that God provides for their needs. Likewise, God will provide for us.  

Now, I want to make a caveat here. I say this from Matthew’s Gospel, and I hear the response of people saying, “But there’s starvation, poverty, suffering…all these things are rampant in our world!” Here’s the catch. Just because God provides all we need does not mean we use it wisely. There is more than enough in this world for the people in this world, but there are some bad stewards who hoard up God’s blessings and turn a blind eye to those who suffer as a result. In that sense, God doesn’t create worry. We do. As an example—when COVID hit, there was no toilet paper available—people hoarded it up and left many without. Less than 5% of COVID types have bathroom issues associated. But all the toilet paper was gone and was often sold on the black market for higher prices.  

 Worry comes from situations that are self-inflicted. But worry is also a very different experience for humans than other emotions. Grief is a direct response to pain, hurting, and many times loss, especially of a loved one. Grief comes from a real and painful event in our lives. Anger responds to injustice, to bad behavior, or something done to hurt us by others. Anger is often a direct response to some triggering event in our lives. Worry, however, responds to nothing. The vast majority of things we worry about are “what if’s.” Worry most often stems from situations, problems, difficulties, and pains we anticipate facing, not that we have already faced.  

In that sense, worry is a thief. It steals from us the joy we should be feeling and replaces it with this intangible fear about anything and everything that COULD happen. I am worried about getting a presentation done for Tuesday. I am worried about court coming up in the next couple of weeks. I’m worried about getting my bills paid. I am worried about whether my elderly cat will get sick. My friend worries about whether aliens would like us if they existed or not. None of these things have happened or will happen for some time, and when they do, they will be handled.  

But what if we have family that is sick? What if they could die? Jesus says to us, “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” When we worry about everything in the future, worry about sickness, pain and death, we lose out on the time we have today. A friend of mine several years ago had terminal cancer. It was miserable because she had beaten it 3 previous times. Her death was going to orphan her 16-year-old daughter. I asked her what she needed, and she responded, “Everybody treats me like I’m dying. Can I please just have today? One normal interaction for today? We can worry about tomorrow, tomorrow. Don’t let worry rob you of all the beauty you can find in being present in the present.  

Living in worry will cripple your life physically, mentally, and spiritually. Physically, worry can cause muscle contractions, headache, dizziness, lack of sleep, long-term heart and blood pressure issues, diabetes, weakened immune system, loss of memory, and constant digestive issues. Living in a constant state of worry can destroy physical health. But also, worry can lead to memory loss, fatigue, mood disorders, anxiety issues, and suffering. Jesus says, “Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?” No, they rob you of those moments. Spiritually, worry and faith are direct opposites. The greater the worry, the less the faith. Over time, letting worry win over faith will be destructive to faith. Jesus said right in the middle of this discussion, “Why do you have so little faith?”  

The remedy for worry is a combination of trusting and seeking. Our Psalm says, “I am counting on the Lord; yes, I am counting on him…hope in the Lord, for with the Lord there is unfailing love.” The Gospel says, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and [God] will give you everything you need.” This is no guarantee against hard times. But it is a promise that God’s unfailing love is with us, that we can trust in God, and we can seek God in all circumstances whether it’s a storm off the coast or calm waters.  

It’s very hard to find this space to live in. We understand that troubles exist in this life, but we find enough trust and hope to not constantly worry about those troubles we will endure. Yet worry is a thief. Worry will steal every bit of joy in your life, every tidbit of happiness, and every peaceful moment. God, however, is a restorer and redeemer. God is the giver of peace. God is the author of unfailing love. God is the keeper of all promises. God is the source of joy. For us, the choice is how and where we want to live our lives—in the never-ending pain of worry or the strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow found in trusting God.  

In life, we are going to face troubles. We are going to experience grief. We are going to experience anger. But what we don’t have to live with constantly is the suffering of worry. Worry creates a fear in us about things that have not happened or may happen. And that will rob us of our peace and joy. This week I watched the storms engulf the land and water between Saint Simons Island and Jekyll Island. Visibility came to zero. Thunder, lightning, wind, and pelting rain took over terrorizing those who were wandering around downtown. But in just a short time, the rains stopped, the clouds lifted, and you could see the sun coming up in the distance.  

Friends, let us live our lives in light of God’s love, God’s peace, and God’s grace. There is no need to fill our lives with unnecessary pain and struggle, for in all of life’s circumstances, God is with us, and God’s love is unfailing.

Worship Service Video : https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1697239581553734/

In Hard Times—Be Ready

Sermon : “In Hard Times—Be Ready”  Rev. Darrell Vandervort

Worship Service Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1031366786338842/

Time to Plant

Isaiah 55: 10-13; Matthew 13: 1-9, 18-23 

Gardening and farming runs extensively in my family. Every year, on my dad’s side, they would plant a large garden of fruits and vegetables including beans, corn, pumpkins, watermelons, peppers, cucumbers, and potatoes. It was almost always an incredible harvest followed by canning things for winter. On my mother’s side, my grandmother had tons of flowers on her porch, and my grandfather could do a great garden as well, though on a smaller scale.  

I had long hoped to inherit this skill. I had dreams of growing my own tomatoes, veggies, and having a small garden, especially when I owned a house and land. But alas, I have learned a hard lesson. Not only can I not raise plants, I could kill silk and plastic flowers. A green thumb, I do NOT have.  

I think Jesus has a soft spot for those of us without a green thumb when he tells us this parable. Many preach on this parable and simply reiterate the conclusion he shares later on in Matthew. But that tends to just repeat Jesus and not fully explain his meaning of what it means to plant and sow in this world. We know Jesus speaks in the form of a parable here. It’s one of his earliest parables in the Gospel of Matthew. Now, a parable is essentially a comparison, or “using something else to explain” your ultimate meaning. But more importantly, a parable doesn’t communicate a life lesson, a moral, or a note of encouragement. A parable communicates something to us about Jesus and his work in our lives.  

In this parable we get a comparison of the Word of God and planting of seeds. It’s a story about the Good News and how ready hearts may be to receive it. The parable talks about those who are too shallow to understand and receive the Good News. It talks about those who don’t have the depth to maintain their faith and commitment. It talks about those who let all the worst parts of life choke out the goodness of God’s word, and all of God’s blessings. And finally, the parable tells us of fertile soil, warm and open hearts ready to receive what God says and follow God in all ways. But a parable is more particular than the life lesson that we need ot have open hearts and minds to listen to God.  

A parable, remember, teaches us something about Jesus and his work in our lives. So, what more can we glean from this parable? There are three characters at work here in the story. First is the farmer or sower of the seeds. Second is the seeds themselves, and third is this unseen power. A farmer can toss out seeds all day, and seeds can land on ground till the cows come home, but there is something we don’t see and experience and do that makes those seeds sprout and grow. They cannot grow without a farmer to sow the seed. Nothing will grow without seeds themselves. Seeds also usually need some tending—water, fertilizer, weeding—but it’s not completely necessary. But ultimately it is this unseen power that brings some kind of life out of this seed that is most important. This new life can burst forth from a seed with or without our help and influence. It is something unseen and powerful within the seed itself.  

The important part of this parable is this mysterious, concealed working of God who miraculously brings the harvest. Isaiah tells us the same thing in God’s own voice: “It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.” God’s work and God’s plans work in and above and sometimes against human pretentions and expectations. This word is a prophecy to the people. Where there were once thorns and briars, there will be trees and gentle vegetation.  

Thorns, briars, and nettles signify judgment, and the removal of those is a story of restoration and hope. But, God warns there must be repentant and willing hearts, eager to listen. Isaiah emphasizes for us that repentant hearts make for willing ears. Perhaps that gives us a better explanation of the parable when we think of infertile and bad soil as a judgment, unresolved issue, or pent up anger, often imposed by us and independent of all the goodness God wants to do in our lives. Those who have been hurt by church or church folks often become the foot path. They don’t want the seeds to take root because the last time it ended in hurt and brokenness.  

Those who have rocky soil want a quick fix and easy life, and learning that faith is a road of commitment and not a quick medicine to life’s troubles is not going to work for them. Those who are the thorns and briars have something in their lives that they love more than God. As much as they want to have faith, they are stuck in something here that stands in between: pride, old angers, addiction, a deep-rooted love of something that’s thrilling but ends in harm, the way they want things done and control. When God says no, or when God’s call comes into contact with one of their carefully manicured thorns, it dies.  

That is because the fertile soil, the germination and growth of the seed is something we cannot control. It is something that happens unseen and outside of our best abilities. We cannot go down in the dirt and make it happen. We can only plant the seed, nurture it, and pray with all our being that it miraculously sprouts forth into new life. We are told in the parable that where there is fertile soil and this unseen work of God, the harvest will be incredible.  

Ten to fifteen times harvest to planted seeds was considered huge. For Jesus to say 30, 60, or 100 is an unbelievable number to the crowd. So, here’s the hard part of the lesson for us: what we plant today doesn’t immediately sprout up. Planting a garden or a flower bed is an investment in the future. It may take months for the harvest to come in, or it may take one year for the flowers to truly reach their own. Sometimes you may not see the fullness of what you plant in your lifetime. As an example, Macon is full of Yoshino cherry trees. That didn’t happen overnight. A cherry tree of that variety takes 10-20 years to fully grow.  

It is the same with the seeds we plant in faith. I remember growing up in church we always had a long prayer time. Folks would request prayer for the same family members over and over to find faith and trust in God. It took years, and in some cases decades, but eventually every single person on that list was inspired to know the love and grace of Jesus for themselves.  

What you do today in faith is an investment in the harvest of tomorrow. You teach your children about faith and living like Jesus, so they can live into that goodness in adulthood. You give generously and lovingly to those in need because it plants a seed of God’s love in their hearts. You work to better yourself and overcome old habits and the bad places of life, so that you can live for God each day thereafter. Any teacher will tell you that the fruit of that labor is seen years down the road. Planting seeds is an investment in the future not an act of immediate return here and now.  

Whether or not we are blessed with a green thumb, whether or not we could kill plastic flowers, we can all plant seeds of faith and hope. For our part, we must plant the seeds and pray for a fertile soil. Then we wait. The other part of this equation is that God will work in miraculous and powerful ways to take that seed and call out life from it. A good garden of faith and hope need both of these things: willing planters and a little bit of trust in God. Don’t give up planting the seeds of God’s love and faith. We may not know when, but one day, the harvest will come, and it will be more incredible than we can ever imagine.  

Worship Service Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1325724126211757

Can’t Win for Losing

Psalm 145: 8-14; Matthew 11: 16-19, 25-30 

My grandfather had a lot of old sayings he’d offer to us at what could be both the most opportune and inopportune time. Some of these I’ll share with you this morning. Others I can’t say from a pulpit or in polite company. He’d often say “You can’t cool all outdoors,” when it was hot and the door was open. He’d quote the country song, “Here’s a quarter, call someone who cares.” Occasionally he would offer that we should wish in one hand and do a bodily function in the other to see which gets full first. And never will I forget him singing along to “At the Cross” with these words, “It was there by chance I tore my Sunday pants, and now I have to wear them everyday.” But I often remember when things would go wrong, he’d say one of two things. It was either, “If it weren’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all,” or “Can’t win for losing.”  

It seems like Jesus is saying much the same thing in our Gospel lesson for today. He’s telling the disciples and the followers of John the Baptist that they are disagreeable to everything. John didn’t eat or drink at fancy tables, and he was called demon-possessed. Jesus dined with anyone who invited, and he was accused of being a glutton, drunkard, and in cahoots with the tax collectors and sinners. It seems like…can’t win for losing. One of the hardest places to be is in the presence of someone or a group where nothing you do is right, and everything you say and do is negatively critiqued.  

Jesus often found himself in this place: speak the truth, and they hate him; dine with sinners whose lives change dramatically, and he’s hated again; keep to himself, and they hunt him down. For Jesus, the toxicity of a fickle crowd of naysayers is constant and overwhelming. He offers them a pointed prayer calling them proud and self-righteous. Then he reminds them to be childlike, inquisitive, and eager to learn and grow.  

Perhaps as we celebrate Independence Day weekend this year and recognize the 250th anniversary of our country, life feels to us much like it did to Jesus. Everywhere we turn and everything we do and say is wrong. It doesn’t matter what crowd you are in, it’s wrong. We hear a lot about polarization and pastoring “purple churches.” And now in a country founded partly on religious freedom, we find ourselves, and especially preachers, constrained because anything we say is filtered through a political lens and not a Biblical lens.  

There are certain things in the Bible and in faith that are simply an unchanged truth which many feel become political. These things cannot be changed even when it feels harsh to us. I, as the pastor, cannot change what is uncomfortable as much as I would like to. What Jesus said about marriage and divorce cannot be changed. That women were property, and slavery was commonplace in ancient Judea cannot be changed. And for those who like to summon up Deuteronomy and Leviticus from time to time, it cannot be changed that they both say to welcome the foreigner as if they were your own. There are many places where the Bible records hard lessons and truths which to a modern audience sound political, but that polarized political lens is our problem, not the Bible’s problem.  

We have politicized too much in life in an unhealthy and disruptive way. I saw a quote this week from Bishop C. Andrew Doyle from the Episcopal Diocese of Texas. It says, “Our citizenship is baptismal before it is national.” Never forget in a world that is turbulent, polarized, and angry who you belong to first and foremost. We can debate, discuss, and shout until we are blue in the face, but fundamental change in the heart and soul of another person does not happen until they meet God and let God work in their life. Our job is not to win every political and social battle here on earth, because the ultimate victory over all that is wrong here is already spoken for.  

Our mission, should you choose to accept it, is to tell the story of Jesus over and over again until politics, Christian Nationalism, anger, division, and all these toxic things are shut down in the light and life of a faith based on sacrifice, love, and redeeming grace. An old hymn, “Redeemed How I Love to Proclaim It,” reminds us, “I think of my blessed Redeemer. I speak of him all the day long. I sing, for I cannot be silent. His love is the theme of my song.”  

And why is Christ at the heart and theme of our words, our songs, and our lives? We see it in those last verses of the Gospel. “Then Jesus said, ‘Come to me all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke up on you…and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.’” In a world where we are tired of being inundated by bad news all day, it is refreshing and restoring to hear that Jesus offers us rest.  

The other day my friend used a new phrase I’ve never heard before: “exhausterwhelmulated.” It means over-exhausted, overwhelmed, and over-stimulated all at once. Many of us have been feeling that for years as the anger, division, and disgruntled feelings of our entire nation and world continue to rage on. Whatever little bit of good news we get is swallowed up when we are inundated with all the bad news. We can’t win for losing.  

But this sense of can’t win for losing is not an eternal problem. We may not be able to fix the exhaustion, the obnoxious political ads all the time, and the vitriol that we see in our society and even homes, or the ugliness and hatred in some of humanity. But we can remember that Jesus gives us rest for our souls. Here’s the thing—we may still struggle with all of the bad things and problems in life. They may become overwhelming. We may still have days of being “exhausterwhelmulated.” We never, though, have to worry about the outcome. Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection remind us that God is over all, in all, and will work out all that happens. That is why the burden is easy, and that is why we can find rest for our souls.  

We may deal with problems on a fairly regular basis, but we don’t have to fear about the ultimate outcome, for God is in control. The same God who was with Israel through their good and bad times, their good and bad leaders is still with us today as we endeavor to serve and follow the One who created us and loves us so very much.  

But most importantly, if we ever want to change the society we live in, we must introduce everyone to this loving, redeeming, and generous Christ, who gave of himself and still pours his goodness into us this very day. Everything we do, everything we say, every word we write, every moment, every breath should testify to the goodness and love of God within us. Remember that Jesus doesn’t give us the opening to have enemies. We are to bless those who curse us and turn the other cheek to those who wish us harm.  

In the Kingdom of God with Jesus as our guide, every person is an opportunity to demonstrate the true and unending love of God. If you live every moment in that love, in that peace, and in that presence of Jesus, you will be able to overcome the misery, exhaustion, and politicization of life. For Jesus said told us that if we carry a heavy burden, if we have a heavy load to carry, he will give us rest. In Jesus, we will find rest for our souls.  

In life, we may often feel like we can’t win for losing, or like all the world around us has gone a bit crazy or mean. You may rest assured, though, that Jesus is still at work. May we give thanks for 250 years of blessings for our nation though we are still imperfect in many ways. May we also remember that God’s love still has power beyond anything we know and understand to change hearts and minds, and if we fully trust and live in this faith in Jesus, we will find rest for our souls.  

Worship Service Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1323706576609787/

Appalachian Supper

Jeremiah 28: 5-9; Matthew 10: 40-42 

Growing up in Appalachia, I lived what I would describe as “holler adjacent.” Bob’s Creek was a holler next to where we lived. Now, a holler is a small valley or depression between two mountains, usually with a creek, where people would build their homes. Some of the foods to come out of the hollers include soup beans and cornbread, often with hot chow-chow, fried taters, hominy, and Sauer kraut with hot dog wieners. My grandparents often had soup beans and cornbread almost every single night for supper.  

But there is a long tradition in the mountains. There’s always a little extra food fixed, and an extra place held open just in case. As The Lost Mountain, which documents Appalachian traditions and folklore notes, “You never knew who might come up the holler hungry, and you never turned anyone away from your table…neighbor or stranger didn’t matter.” A full table is not about how much food you have, but about how wide you are willing to set it.  

That ties into our scripture in Matthew. The Gospel lesson talks about the importance of receiving those who need shelter. Some of the nuances of this scripture tend to be lost on modern audiences. Matthew was written for a more Jewish audience as opposed to Gentile. Matthew was also written during a time of great persecution. This writing would have coincided with the destruction of the Temple and war between Judea and Rome in a Jewish uprising. Matthew, per many scholars, was an attempt by second generation Christians to provide a written recording of the recollections of the first-generation Christians before they died off. This Gospel was written during a time of great tribulation and persecution.  

Many even describe Matthew’s church as a Martyr church where fear and destruction were part of the daily life. For us that is a bit foreign of an idea. We live in a time where there is comfort, and we don’t face daily persecution and poverty holding us at the brink of life and death. When we read this Gospel scripture, we read it as a lesson in grace, kindness, and hospitality. It is from your abundance of kindness that you receive a prophet, a righteous one, or even the least of the followers.  

I’ve even heard this connected to inviting the preacher over to dinner after church or one evening as receiving the prophet or pastor. But for Matthew’s writer, this was not a question of grace or kindness. This was a question of life and death. If you are receiving a prophet or a righteous one, you are receiving them to provide shelter and care away from the potential destruction that could come their way. Giving a cup of water to the least of the followers could prevent death. But it also put the host in harm’s way.  

In Roman law, a person who harbored a Christian could face charges of high treason or unlawful assembly. Those charges carried punishments of possible fines, prison, confiscation of property, or even death. This was not a question of providing a little bit of food, water, and refuge. This was a question of risking your own life and well-being for the good of the kingdom of God, to harbor God’s prophets, to safeguard God’s righteous ones, and to care for all even the least of those in the kingdom of God.  

The same was true living up in an Appalachian holler. There’s a lot of wilderness land, a lot of scary things in the mountains, and for those who believe in it, if the bears don’t get you the “haints” will. Welcoming someone into your home for a meal or some water could mean the difference in their safety. Wandering onto the wrong property could get you killed. Wandering too far in the mountains could get you lost for good. It’s easy at dusk to miss the bobcat, the bear, and the den of rattlesnakes. This sense of welcome and hospitality, of receiving someone, protected them from the dangers that lurked in the mountains around them.  

One author calls this the “decommercialization of evangelism.” It is simply receiving and showing God’s love and grace without photographs, a social media post, or well-funded outreach drive. It’s a bit counter-cultural, the circumstances are often more dire, and there is a greater sense of life and death. One of the best-known modern examples is those who hid Jews and other targets during the prelude to World War II. When the Nazis came for those they wanted to send to the camps, many folks facilitated escapes or hid out Jews in secret parts of their houses.  

We, too, are called to this same sense of first century receiving. When we welcome refugees who have lived in war-torn countries, when we welcome those who are suffering, hungry, and escaping from suffering, when we protect someone from an unjust suffering or unjust death, we are doing what Jesus said here. When you help victims of a major earthquake as well. If you even give a cup of water to the least of these followers, you will be rewarded.  

This type of receiving is a hard calling for us. We are trained to be wary of strangers. We listen to podcasts and watch shows of people being murdered by strange travelers. We are, by all accounts, a suspicious society. And in many ways that is justified. Yet we must also find how we can practice the kind of hospitality that Jesus calls on us to do. Jesus picks three complicated people for the righteous to receive here in this Gospel lesson.  

The first is a prophet. As we hear from Jeremiah, no one really liked prophets. Most of them came to predict doom and gloom. If you saw a prophet in Jeremiah’s day, rarely were you going to get good news. And those who did bring good news were often tasked with offering proof of their prophecy. Jeremiah offers a measured response knowing that the prophet’s words of peace and hope come from a “royal theology” or from a nationalistic hope as opposed to what was actual reality. Prophets were heard, but very uncomfortable guests and presences.  

The righteous were also problematic because sometimes you didn’t know whether you were getting the holy righteous or the self-righteous. The Gospel of Luke calls this out when the righteous ones walk past the injured man while the Samaritan helps him. This plays into our own fear that you never know what kind of person may show up for your good graces. And finally, there’s the least of all the followers, who only get a cup of water. We’re not told who this could be. But the implication is that you may not want them staying at your house. Yet we are called to give them a cold cup of water because receiving someone in the name of Jesus is important in the Gospel lesson.  

It is also hard for us to be this hospitality oriented. Safety is a concern. We never know who or what version of whom may show up to our home. Yet we care called to receive with generosity just the same. You don’t have to give someone the spare bedroom, but even a cold cup of water is important. To really bring this home, let me give you an illustration.  

In 2017, a mentally ill man, who by all accounts was not violent, knocked on doors in Deepstep, Georgia, asking for some water. He was on foot from Milledgeville to Sandersville. A concerned resident called police, who encountered the man, attempted to detain him for a crime they couldn’t actually articulate happening subsequently tasered him till he was dead in the ensuing back and forth. Most legal scholars say he was improperly detained and lawfully could leave the officers’ presence. How different would this have been if the man had just been given a cold cup of water as he was the least of these, God’s children and followers.  

In an Appalachian supper, a little bit of extra food is fixed, whether it’s beans, taters, cornbread, or something out of the garden, because you never know who is going to wander up the holler in need of some grace and generosity. Likewise, in the kingdom of God, we are called to give generously to all, whether prophet, righteous, or the very least, for in each we see Jesus on our doorstep.  

Worship Service Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/2698148657247963/

A Dose of Courage

A Dose of Courage

Joshua 1: 1-9; Ephesians 6: 1-4 

One of the highlights…or greatest misfortunes of my childhood, depending on how you see it, was the annual family vacation to Gatlinburg and Dollywood.  The grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins…everybody came on this trip, and we all stayed together in one large chalet in the mountains. It was like a National Lampoons movie on a good day. I would not say, “A good time was had by all.”  

One year, the house we were all staying at was particularly far up in the mountains on winding, narrow roads with very little signage. There was no GPS in 1992, so we were hunting for our best. It was a true test of my father’s leadership and navigational capabilities, and we definitely found what is NOT in his skillset. With GPS, it would have been about 3.5 miles and 15 minutes. Without, we wandered all over the Smoky Mountains for 15 miles and well over an hour trying to find this place. Had it not been for my mother, I don’t think we would have made it out of the Smoky Mountains.  

Leadership in our society is often vested in the males. Most societies on earth tend to be patriarchal where the male is viewed as the leader. Some societies, such as African ones, will see women as the societal matriarch as she is where life is born. Today we celebrate the gifts of leadership found in men, as it is Father’s Day. Woman also have many gifts, but we look at that in May. Today is for those with a Fathering spirit.  There are three qualities of leadership we see today: be strong and courageous, listen and study, and be worthy of respect.  

First leadership is strong and courageous. The Israelites in our Hebrew lesson had only ever known the leadership of Moses outside of the cruelty of slavery. They had no idea what it was like to be led by anyone other than Moses. And now they have the fearfulness from Moses being dead. God addresses the fear clearly and with finality. “Moses, my servant, is dead. Therefore, the time has come for you [Joshua] to lead these people.” But Joshua didn’t go alone. God’s promises were not just tied to Moses. God’s promises are never ending and without fail.  

Courage and confidence come from trusting in an outcome. In faith, we trust in the outcome of God’s promises and God’s plan. The journey ahead proved that the Israelites would face hardship and trial. But in every struggle, they had God’s promises with them. The same is true of father-figures, leaders, and decision makers in our time. God’s promises never fail, and neither should our courage to step out in faith.  

A few years ago I was sitting on a meeting for the Regional Office. When asked why things were handled in a certain manner, I answered before I could stop myself. I blurted out, “Well, we’ve always done it this way.” That is the death knell of courage, of risk, and of faith. If we never break our patterns of doing and patiently try new ways of being followers of Jesus, we won’t need faith. If nothing challenges or changes, why do you need faith to follow, faith to trust?  

God calls on us to be strong and courageous followers, willing to try and experience new things, willing to journey to new ideas and new places. At one time, all that Jesus taught was a new and risky idea. But every challenge is an opportunity to have the courage found in faith in God. Be strong and courageous. Do not be discouraged.  

As leaders, father-figures, and people of faith, we must listen and study. God says to Joshua, as a new leader, “Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them…Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it.” Good leaders study and know what they are doing and talking about. When I was working in Macon, we had a judge who would read every single thing on every single case. She would say, “I may not be able to be the smartest in the room, but I can be the best prepared.”  

I couldn’t stand here unless I read and prepared for this sermon. A music leader cannot sing unless they’ve looked over the music. God calls us as leaders to be studied and prepared. In and of himself, Joshua did not know how to lead the Hebrew people. But he had God’s promises, and he had words of wisdom and instruction to follow. Joshua became a good leader because he listened to God, and he was well prepared. The scripture is filled with examples of leaders who did not do this, and it tells how their time of leadership ranged from a struggle to catastrophic.  

Leadership and fathering are hard because there is an expectation in our society of knowing every answer, making all the right decisions, and having strength beyond what is often humanly possible. Part of listening and study is being vulnerable to listen to different viewpoints, different ideas. History is too full of father-figures, leaders, and let’s be honest, men, who are unwilling to be humbled enough to listen and understand when they need to. God told Joshua to listen, to read, to understand the instructions and follow them. We are called to the same.  

Lastly, father figures who are leaders are called to be worthy of respect. As a child in a Christian school, We were ALWAYS taught the first part of this Ephesians chapter—Children obey your parents for that is what is right. Remember to honor your father and mother.  I almost never remember hearing us read the second part of this instruction, “Father’s do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them.” The two go hand in hand.  

It is impossible to honor a father figure, a leader, if they live in a way that is unworthy of respect and honor. I have a friend whose father was a strict disciplinarian. He ran the house with precision, toughness, and sometimes cruelty and terror. He believed his sole job was to discipline his children into obedience and submission. He ended up alienating them all because there was no warmth, no love, no kindness in his relationship with them. He wasn’t exactly abusive. He was just generally mean and unkind.  

If we think of God as a father figure, promises are kept, comfort and grace are offered, redemption is part and parcel. God can be tough on us, but it is always tempered by kindness, love, and support. That is exactly how the leadership of a father should be—clarity, boundaries, and an overwhelming love.  

In many ways, Moses ended up being like a father to the Israelites. He was all they had known because of the desert wanderings while waiting to come to the promised land. Moses had led them out of slavery in Egypt. Moses had parted the sea in front of them. Moses gave them instruction from God. Moses led them all the way to the very entrance of their new home. He cared for them, disciplined them, and stayed with them all the way home.  

In our society, fathers tend to be seen as the leaders. We live in a generally patriarchic society, which is simply a fact, not a commentary. This leadership must be strong and courageous, must be based on study and willing ears and hearts to learn, and must be worthy of respect. Not everything will be smooth or perfect. It can be a hard learning curve sometimes. But the same God who gives us the calling as leaders and as fathers gives us the strength and wisdom to know how to live and act. So be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid. Do not be discouraged. For God is with you. And that’s a promise. 

Worship Service video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1513573309670428/

Still Sent

Psalm 116: 1-2, 12-19; Matthew 9: 35-10:14 

There are some Sundays that I just really like to step in it and see how much trouble I can get into. So, let’s go full force today. This week, the Southern Baptist Convention held their annual conference. One of the most prominent and important topics was making sure there was a sufficient ban on female preachers. It is already in their doctrine and policy that this is excluded, and they in fact remove churches that place women in roles of pastoral authority. However, this new prohibition would go in their constitution. It also goes a step further in banning women from both the office and functions of pastoral roles.  

The implications are that women will likely be banned from holding any positions of power, authority, or decision-making capacity, nor will they be able to speak to assemblies outside of children. The quiet effect is that people like Beth Moore and Joyce Meyer can no longer speak in Southern Baptist congregations, except in limited circumstances. Now juxtapose that with the words of their newly elected president, who said he is glad they are moving away from these social justice experiments gone wrong. The social justice experiment referenced had nothing to do with women. It was three years ago when they discovered rampant child sexual abuse in churches, and the leadership made much more stringent rules punishing clergy and laity for this misconduct. Perhaps the new president was still unhappy over the fact that he was not elected in 2023 because one of his own deacons was accused of child abuse.  

The problem with this theology about women is that it does not advance the Gospel message, nor is it’s not exactly Biblical. Numerically the SBC is suffering. In the last 5-10 years, they have lost over 4 million members. Jesus says in our Gospel lesson, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few.” Constricting who is authorized to preach and teach the good news shortens the reach in who hears that good news. In an era where only 30% of Americans attend church regularly, one would think it is imperative to have as many people preaching the good news as possible.  

Jesus also called and sent the disciples with a purpose. We hear of the call Jesus gave to the original twelve disciples: announce and preach the Kingdom of Heaven, heal those in need, cast out evil, and offer generosity. That, in a nutshell, is what Jesus did in his ministry. He told the good news of redeeming love. He healed the sick and afflicted, raise the dead, cast out evil, and was generous to all who came to him. His love and generosity led him to a cross, and in turn, the disciples were led out into the world to do these same things.  

So, does the Bible support that only men can do this? Not exactly. Of course, this work is more male heavy in Jesus and Paul’s day. It was a patriarchal society, and men were more expected to do the harsh travels and present in the Temple. There were extra safety risks to women. But it is also true that the church relied heavily on women, especially Paul, contrary to popular belief.  

Here are a few examples. Lois and Eunice raised Timothy and taught him in the faith. Priscilla and Aquilla are mentioned in Acts as leaders and missionaries closely working with Paul. Priscilla is a woman, and in almost every instance her name comes first in the lead position. In Romans, Paul references Phoebe as a deacon and leader of the church in Cenchrea. Paul also references Junia as the leader of the home church in Rome. Euodia and Syntyche, both women, were church leaders referenced in Philippians. Nympha was a woman who helped lead the church in Colossae. Chloe led a branch of the church in Corinth in her home. Apphia is referenced as a church leader in Philemon.  

While I’m at it, it was the women, after Jesus’s death and burial, who came to the tomb to take care of the body. The men were cowering in the upstairs apartment with the doors and windows shut. They didn’t even accompany the women to the tomb to make sure they were safe. It was Mary who first saw the risen Jesus and went back to tell others. The early church heavily relied on women to organize and keep the churches going. And just as each of those women were called by God to serve, and called apostles and deacons by Paul, so today is the Gospel not a message for one race, one ethnicity, one gender, or one specific sect of people. God is not willing that any should perish, and to accomplish that, God wants everyone to share the good news of grace and love with everyone.  

Teaching and sharing the Gospel is imperative in our society. As our faith, our churches, and our understanding of our faith is declining, we need everyone who feels called and led by God to go out and share the good news. Sharing the Gospel vitally important. Who preaches it is not, so long as they speak truth. Imagine in our church if we said Pam, Doris, Christie, and our other incredible teachers could no longer teach. Imagine if Laura, Joy, and Doris were told they could no longer be elders. Imagine if Carla, Barbara, Angela, and Amanda could no longer be deacons. Imagine if the women here could not share the good news of what God has done in their lives or speak from the pulpit about Disciples Women. If not for women, I don’t think any church would have survived. From the first century, it was their homes, their influence, their skills that nurtured and grew the church.  

I have been particularly blessed by the women ministers in my life. Beginning with Wendy Miles, to Denise Bell, Joan Bell-Haynes, my friend Katie Griffis, whose sermon podcast I listen to on my way down here every Sunday morning. That’s just a sampling of the many women of faith who profoundly encourage my faith, and our faith. I have heard God speak to me in each one of them. We are all still sent by Jesus to preach the good news, and to teach the world how to have a good relationship with God and one another.  

We must keep our minds and spirits focused on the main thing, Jesus, and the message of life-saving grace for the world. Churches need good governance—committees, officers, a bit of decorum and order are all necessary for such an institution to function. We cannot, however, as people of the living God and followers of the risen Savior, let ourselves become obsessed with religious rules. I saw a joke the other day that a bar opened next door to a church. Every week, the church prayed against the bar’s business. One day lighting hit and burned the bar down, and the owner sued the church saying the prayers caused it. The church denied any and all role or liability. The perplexed judge said, “This is a tough case because I have a bar owner who believes in the power of prayer and an entire church that denies it.”  

When we got caught up in rules, particulars, do’s and do not’s, the legalism of faith, we forget the heart of what we believe: that we are called to teach and preach a right relationship with the God who created and loves all of humanity. We are called to go and make disciples in the faith, and to live as Jesus in this world—with love, welcome, and helping in whatever ways we can to ease the suffering in this world.  

I cannot presume to know who God calls to be a pastor or why. If I were to be honest with you, if I were in charge, I would have never called myself. It was the last thing I ever expected in life. I’d planned to be a fancy and rich lawyer. But this September will be 15 years serving this church, and in retrospect, God was far, far wiser than I ever could have been. I am honored every day to serve in this role.  

For many who are pastors, the men and the women, the words of the Psalm resonate like a prayer of hope. “I love the Lord because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy. Because [God] bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath!” And most importantly, “I will fulfil my vows to the Lord, in the presence of all [God’s] people—in the house of the Lord.” May this be a prayer and a promise from every pastor called to share a faith which has both saved us and inspired us. 

Worship Service Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1595377548817639/

GRACE AT THE TABLE

Genesis 12: 1-9; Matthew 9: 9-13, 18-26 

As one can imagine, the institutional food at a college or university is not exactly the most appetizing. You might get the mystery grey meat or the potato slurry that looks like it slid off a containment pond at a chemical plant. But there are a few hacks to overcoming the food fails. When I was in college, I signed up for the “table manners” class where you got a delicious multi-course meal while learning the lost art of high society table manners. In fact, I signed up for it three times, till the teacher got wise to my shenanigans. The good news is that I can now discern between 20 pieces of silverware and figure out what to do with my napkin if ever I’m invited to a state dinner in D.C.  

Sometimes finding grace at the table can be a little difficult. You might have the kid that picks his nose or sneezes all over the table, or the uncle who picks his teeth and lays down chunks of food. Or after hours of preparing a delicious pot roast, you discover without warning that part of the family is now vegan. Gathering at the table can be one of the most irritating yet grace-filled things we do. As the Christian Church, Disciples of Christ, this, God’s table, is central to our faith, for it is where we see, experience, and understand the grace of Christ for us.  

In our Gospel lesson for today, Jesus calls Matthew, the tax collector, as his disciple, then later goes over to Matthew’s home for dinner with the other disciples. At the table is Jesus, his disciples, Matthew, and a host of tax collectors and disreputable people. The Pharisees see this and ask why Jesus is eating with such scum. Likely, because of the pettiness and hatefulness of the Pharisees and very religious folks, the so-called “scum” were the only people Matthew had to associate with, except for Jesus, who saw something in Matthew the Pharisees refused to see, calling him to a life of discipleship.  

Jesus did not see scum. Jesus saw an opportunity to make disciples. It wasn’t the Pharisees who listened to Jesus and followed. It was the tax collector, the “scum.” Jesus begins a series of direct confrontations from this position of sitting at the table for dinner. At the table, he finds grace for the rejected, and he goes from there to show what grace, and the kingdom of God truly mean.  

What Jesus ultimately sought was people whose hearts and minds would be changed. He replied to the Pharisees, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor, sick people do…I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices. For I have come not to call those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.” A friend and minister once said of this scripture, “Be careful you don’t find yourself as the one in the hallway looking in while Jesus is seated at the table.” Though Jesus’s mercy and grace are wide and welcoming, bad behavior and darkened hearts must be changed. Matthew gave up his tax collector ways and followed Jesus. Grace implies the necessity of a changed heart.  

Yet all throughout this Gospel lesson, we see Jesus confronting the doubters, naysayers, and critics with the true power of his grace. We learn next that Jesus is begged by a religious leader to come heal his dead daughter. How ironic that the same religious leaders who critiqued Jesus for his dinner companions now want his help when it’s their turn to be in desperate need.   

On the way, a woman with an illness touches the fringe of his garment with the faith to be healed. And, indeed, Jesus heals her for her faith made her well. Yet again, we see this back and forth of hatefulness and grace. She had a bleeding condition. That made her unclean, and by inference, we know the religious leaders would have avoided her at all costs. That’s why she snuck up to touch the hem of the robe instead of coming directly to Jesus. She feared being rejected again for being unclean. Jesus, though, offered grace and healing.  

When Jesus gets to the religious official’s home, he finds a noisy crowd engaged in a funeral. The scene is chaotic, disrespectful, and undercuts the faith this man had in Jesus to restore life to the dead child. They are all certain of one thing—the girl is dead, and she is not coming back. When Jesus tells them to stop, they turn the chaos into a circus of disrespect and begin laughing at Jesus.  

They are disruptive in the middle of the religious leader’s grief. They laugh at the idea of hope. They insult and mock Jesus in their thoughts and behaviors. Jesus is still ready with grace for them, for the family, and for this sleeping child. In seconds, Jesus ends the chaos, silences the crowd, and raises the dead child to life. Chaos and foolishness are instantly turned to faith as they see the power of Jesus to heal and raise the dead to life.  

What it comes down to is whether we listen for Jesus’s call to come out from the outskirts and sidelines and sit at the table with Jesus. Abraham is a great example of this. In his seventies, Abraham heard God calling him to leave his home and come to the promised land of Canaan. Listening to God helps us to live in grace. Abraham listened and responded by gathering things up and moving to Canaan at the Lord’s instruction. The disciples listened to Jesus and left behind everything they had. When Jesus called, they followed. Though it’s not said, I fully believe the “scum” at that dinner table also found grace that day. There was a reason Matthew invited them. He knew them. And he knew they needed to be in the presence and grace of Jesus as well.  

The grace of Jesus is much like a big dinner party in that we must send invitations. If we do not invite others to know and experience God’s grace, we will soon find our tables empty. We must invite people to experience God’s grace, and to be given grace at the table. And sometimes that means inviting those whom the Pharisees would call scum. A friend of mine was sharing some church gossip with me the other day, oh, I mean a prayer request, not gossip. *Wink and nod. He said the biggest crook and cheat in town came to church that Sunday. (Yes, he’s a lawyer). He was moved, filled with repentance, and dedicated himself to God that very day. My friend said, “Well, I guess he’s our crook, now.” Sometimes it’s hard to set extra places at the table. But that’s exactly what Jesus calls us to do because Jesus did it for us.  

Jesus knew the risk of dining with a tax collector and his friends. Yet not only did he do it here with Matthew, he does it a second time with Zacchaeus in another Gospel story. To their credit, the disciples have the faith to trust and follow Jesus’s lead, though I’m sure they’d rather be anywhere else than a tax collector’s house getting ridiculed by religious leaders.  

While in college, I decided that to get some edible food, I would take the manners classes three times. I learned what fork matches which dish, napkin placement, the proper form for slurping soup, and other little fancy tidbits. But from Jesus, we can learn what it means to show grace at the table. For those whom the religious leaders labeled “scum,” Jesus saw them as children of God. For the tax collector whom others called a crook and a cheat, Jesus saw a disciple. For an old man settled in his home and his ways, God saw the father of many nations. 

Never underestimate the magnificence of what God sees in you and me, and the incredible work of faith God calls us to do. In God’s house and at God’s table, everyone is welcome, and everyone is called. But we are all called to have a change of heart and mind, just like Matthew, just like the “scum” he brought to the table with Jesus. Grace is something that we all need in our lives both for ourselves and for others, just as Jesus is filled with grace. So the question is there for us today, will you come to the table or will you stand in the hallway?  

Worship Service Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1606598380437931/

Hymn Sing Service

Join us this Sunday, May 31 at 10:45 AM at FCC for a special worship service of unity and hymns of praise.

Come together as brothers and sisters in Christ to lift our voices and worship God through song.

“How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!” Psalm 133:1

Everyone is welcome!

Worship Service Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1012102324673351/