Today is the third message in the series “Godly or Wicked.” This series aims to help us distinguish between what is good and what might be evil. The purpose is to warn against what leads to evil and encourage to follow what leads to goodliness. This series is not about becoming judgmental (far from it!) but wise in discerning behaviors that may be inclined to evil and behaviors that lead to godliness—whether in other people or us. In the first message, I defined what evil looks like by quoting Psalms 10, where wickedness is described through specific behaviors: The wicked persecute, scheme, and ambush, they boast of the evil desires of their heart and are greedy and arrogant. Verse 9 … Read More
If I Can Help Somebody
Good morning! My name is Michele Sisson, and I serve as church secretary here at New World United Methodist Church. I have placed the altar arrangements to honor the memories of my grandmothers, Mary Jones Russell and Harriet Garrett Sisson. Those two precious women had the biggest hearts and the most generous spirits of anyone I have ever known. I have very fond memories of them sharing the need to be generous and kind with me while a very young girl. This passage of scripture reminds me of those teachings: “For we are what He has made us, created by Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life”. Ephesians 2:10 (NRSV) As Pastor … Read More
Godly or Wicked
Today we start a new series of messages talking about Godly or Wicked. I chose this topic because it is my opinion that often we don’t know how to distinguish between what is good and what might be evil. Sometimes we are naïve and trust people who may not be good for us, and other times we are quick to judge others as bad because we simply don’t like them or agree with them. As a father, I want my children to be wise enough to know the difference between good and evil for the sake of themselves and those around them. And as a pastor, I want the same for us as a congregation. Therefore, the purpose of this … Read More
The Way Of Salvation
Today’s message is about how we understand the way or process of salvation in the Wesleyan tradition. Different Christian traditions emphasize various aspects of this process. In some, you must say a particular prayer; in others, you must be baptized by the Holy Spirit and have a sign that demonstrates it. And, in some others, you must pay the price, either through suffering or good works. While all of them try to understand and explain how we are saved, the differences in interpretation may be very significant—even to the point of being quite opposing. The Scripture we are studying to help us understand the process of salvation is Acts 8: 1, 26-38, “Now those who were scattered went from place … Read More
All the Joys
As many of you know, my family and I were on vacation the last couple of weeks. We had a great and joyful time with our children. They will remember this vacation for a long time, and we are grateful for that. Nevertheless, I must also tell you that the days leading up to our departure were highly stressful. So, we were going on a cruise, and in order to board the ship, we needed to provide a negative covid test for each of us. If one of us had a positive result, no one would board the ship. Can you imagine that? You plan for this time for months, and suddenly, everything can be shut down without you being … Read More
