From the Community Spiritual Director...

The Holy Spirit frequently reminds me that we are created in the image of God. I believe that one of the chief qualities of being made in His image is the capacity to give – and not just to give, but to give as God gives, selflessly and from a motivation of pure love. As some wise soul once said, “You can give without loving, but you can’t love without giving.”

Some giving is easy. Giving money or “stuff” can be done without much thought or effort. But giving of the self can be a bit harder, requiring real thought and self-sacrifice. Giving ourselves in love to our heavenly Father involves three areas of effort. We learn about God and His will through scripture reading and study. We grow to know Him and love Him through prayer, worship and devotion. And we respond in love by giving ourselves in service. Hey, wait a minute. This sounds familiar – something about a three legged stool and piety, study and action!

Unfortunately we tend to get out of balance on these three points, depending disproportionately on one or two of these areas of self-giving to the neglect of the others. The reason farmers use three-legged milking stools is that they are stable on uneven ground. (In math three points define a plane.) This is also why we need a balance between the three areas of self-giving. These three point give us stability and define us a disciples. On the uneven ground of a broken world we need that stability.

As we enter this new year of 2018 let’s think seriously about how well we are conforming to the image of God. Are we truly giving ourselves to Him, and to the world, in piety, study and action? As for me, I want this to be a growing edge in the coming year.

De Colores! - Alan Jackson

From the Community Lay Director...

Hello my friends!

It is hard to believe that we are so deep into summer already. Tomatoes are really starting to come on in the garden.

I was thinking the other day that we missed the heavy weather that often comes to Kentucky in the spring time. Looks like it was just waiting for when we weren’t looking. On Friday the wind blew and the rain fell, but we never lost power at our house. Many at church were still out of power on Sunday.

Looking forward to seeing you at the next Gathering on August 3. The Board of Directors will be preparing dinner, so come on to Centenary UMC, relax, enjoy a meal together and catch up.

De Colores! - Michael Watts