Good Morning! It’s great to see you this morning! It’s obvious some of you didn’t realize Edgar wouldn’t be here today. You may have stayed at home instead. For those of you I haven’t met, I’m Sondra Townsend the Lay Leader for New World. If you don’t know what that position means, it means I go to a lot of meetings. My position is to serve as the laity representative for New World not only within this church but at the North Texas Annual Conference. That’s just a lot more meetings. For the past 9 weeks a great many of us have been participating in the Wesleyan Roots study, about the theological basis of the United Methodist Church. We’ve learned … Read More
Refuse the Shackles
The ideals of Life and Liberty are at the core of Christian teaching. God created human beings, breathed life into them, and gave them the power of free will. Jesus echoed this when he said he came to give us life in abundance and to give us freedom, “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.” (John 8:36) In many ways, these ideals are universal and have been sought after throughout human history. Often, people have had to fight for them against tyranny. This is how this country came to be: fighting an oppressing monarchy that denied Life and Liberty to many. This week we celebrate that occasion by commemorating Independence Day, also called the Fourth of … Read More
Encanto-Let’s Talk About It
A few years ago, there was a commercial by Verizon wireless to promote their cellular service as the best in the market. The commercial was straightforward, just a guy walking around from place to place, talking into his cellphone, and asking, “Can you hear me now?” He was making the point that he had a good cellular reception wherever he went. (Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPwPo-IAQ-E) Most people today use cell phones and they know what it is to have lousy reception when talking with someone over the phone. Having an on and off cellular reception when talking with someone over the phone is annoying. It makes it very difficult to have a conversation and communicate effectively, hence the question, “Can you … Read More
Encanto – No Pressure
Last week, we learned how a family could sometimes be aggravating and feel more like a curse than a gift. Some of the questions we addressed were: How are you treating your familia? How are you nurturing it? We asked these questions because if family is one of the most precious gifts we will ever have, it matters how we treat and care for each other. Our second message today on this Encanto Series is about how many people suffer due to unhealthy expectations. Think of it as if you always must prove yourself as a worthy person through your intelligence, strength, or any other ability. But hardly anyone acknowledges and appreciates you for who you are regardless of your … Read More
Encanto – The Gift
Today, I want to speak about the gift of family (familia in Spanish). I am not speaking only to husbands or wives or children or what some of us may consider the traditional family. You may be a single parent, have children, siblings or not. So, when I say family, it should apply to you, whatever your current reality may be. Have you thought about your family as a gift? “Depending on the time of the day or what they are doing or not doing,” you may be thinking. I won’t argue with that, fair thought. I know family can sometimes be aggravating and feel more like a curse than a gift. In the family, we can feel all the … Read More
