Last week, we got started on a 4-week worship series called “God Blesses,” asking the question: Are we the kind of church that God blesses? We looked to the Early Church (first 5 centuries) to find out what they were doing that God blessed so much; we did that through looking at the first couple of chapters of the Book of Acts in the New Testament. And today, we continue on that path… Let me ask you a question, as we begin this time today: How in the world is...
Jesus absolutely loved the Sea of Galilee! Did you know that? It’s mentioned in the Gospels more than forty times! And Jesus gets in and out of boats nearly as many times… Then again, at other times, we’ll see Jesus walking on the lake shore. It’s not hard to imagine why this is. The Sea of Galilee is absolutely captivating… When I have a day off—in good weather—one of Jane’s and my favorite things to do is to take our lawn chairs, a picnic lunch, and some reading material …...
It is my contention that commitment to the local church—at least in my lifetime and in our western society—has digressed to become an afterthought even in the lives of most believers! It’s kind of the attitude that we can give God the leftovers of our lives … and that’s O.K…. What this has done to the Church is this: The result is lackadaisical Christians that are not held accountable to be living out the Gospel in community and on mission. Instead of having and holding a high view of ecclesiology...
So … who do I belong to? That’s the question you were asked last week—still applicable today. And if I say I belong to Jesus Christ, then what does that mean? What does it mean to truly be a disciple of Jesus Christ? The most practical and powerful way to get believers headed in the direction of spiritual maturity (becoming a disciple) is to help them establish habits in their lives that promote spiritual growth. [We here at DUMC are very serious about this!] Sometimes these habits are called ‘spiritual...
Folks, as we begin today, ask yourself this question: What does the Bible mean to me? What difference does the Word of God make in my life? As was mentioned in the ‘Intro to Worship’ today, my Jewish brother from Jerusalem always says of Israel, “We are a people of God’s Word. If we’re not, we have no business being here.” We feel the same here at the Dodgeville United Methodist Church. If we are not a people of God’s Word, we have no business being here … because that...
