There are songs we have listened to for years. They become common place enough that we can sing the words without missing a beat. My grands bounce around down in the basement singing I am a C! It was my favorite song in VBS and Mrs.C continues to teach the kids this song during music in Sunday School and VBS. The 5 yr old can’t read but can spell ETERNALLY!

Years ago, Heidi Hackett and I went to see Billy Joel and Elton John at Citizens Bank Park. There is something about watching these 2 performers behind the piano keys in a full blown dual of the fingers and voices. I can’t listen to either performer today without remembering that amazing night. Every single song had us singing at the top of our lungs. Benny and the Jets was epic! Piano Man even more so! I have chills just thinking of that night. If you get the chance to sing with 50,000 people, do it!

Have you ever stopped and listened to a song you are familiar with and really let the words crawl into your heart? So many times we know them but we don’t let them speak to us? Sunday during the pageant, I stood in the doorway and watched everyone sing the beautiful songs of Christmas. Kileen McNeill began to sing Mary Did You Know. We all are familiar with this song.  I watched people with smiles on their faces, singing and listening to Kileen. I looked over and was stopped dead in my tracks.  My script fell to the floor and I began to cry. Maddy as Mary was standing, rocking Elouise as Baby Jesus. The moment I realized this was happening was when the words Kileen sang were “When you kiss your little Baby you kissed the face of God?” As a Mother, knowing what Mary knew at that point and not knowing what this world had in store for her son, that HE was the Savior of the world, what was in her head? That she as a mother would protect the Son of God until he could protect us? That her baby boy would one day rule the nations, that he’s heaven’s perfect lamb?  That the sleeping Child you’re holding is the Great, I Am? What a heavy load as a mother but what an absolute blessing to be the one to bring Him into this world. Seeing our Mary rocking our baby Jesus just took the words to a whole new level for me. I will never ever listen to this song and not think of Mary and her sacrifices and joys raising our King.

Close your eyes while the Praise band sings at 9am or Christmas Eve. Open your ears and heart during the cantata. Let the words in their songs crawl into your heart. Listen to the words and their depth. Let them show you the reason for the season and that music is a gift from the Lord.

- Liz Sabath

Ephesians 5:19
Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord

Matthew 11:15
He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Today’s devotion comes to us from Linda Babcock.  Linda, together with Sue Reitmeyer, started AUMC’s “Faithful Fingers” group, hoping to have a small group of knitters/crocheters/crafty people to gather with on occasion.  Through the years, this has turned into a thriving ministry.  To date, nearly 25,000 lovingly handmade items have been given to those who need a little extra warmth, encouragement, and hope.

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“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you:  Take your everyday, ordinary life – your sleeping, eating, going-to-work and walking-around life and place it before God as an offering.  Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for God.”  Romans 12:1 (The Message translation)

Has there been one person in your life who has influenced what you’ve chosen to do – your job, your hobbies and other interests?  As I look back, I’ve had many such encouraging people.   Besides family, along the way there were many school teachers, Sunday School teachers, pastors, camp counselors and friends to lead by example.  I’d like to focus on what a difference one of those people made for me.  (There are lots of stories to tell about the others, too, another day.)

My mother was an avid, life-long knitter. (Pictured here, circa 1949.)  During high school, she knit socks for soldiers and bandages for the American Red Cross.  Years later, after having children and grandchildren, she used to plan her projects months ahead of time, so that not one of us was left out in the cycle of her sweater-knitting.  Sweaters take a long time to make and Mom had a husband, four children and eight grandchildren in the queue for their own personalized color and design.  We looked forward to our turn coming around and being able to browse through all her knitting magazines to find a style we liked and then picking out our favorite color yarn.  (The more complicated, the better – she really didn’t like it when one of us chose an ”easy” pattern!)  Then the stitching began and her love was in every single stitch.  Besides passing down the sweaters through the generations, my mother also passed along her crafting influence and her quiet, steady faith.  

This one faithful person taught me how to knit and showed by example how important it is to love one another by our actions as well as our words.  As a result, I’ve made connections with other people who love crafting as much as I do.  We’ve enjoyed the fellowship of knitting and crocheting together.  Each one of us is connected not only with one another, but also with a network of other people who love the same thing and suggest places where a need for our made-with-love items will be welcomed. Facebook has actually made us a global community of likeminded folks.  

Over the years since our crafting group started at AUMC, we’ve been blessed to give away nearly 25,000 things…and all thanks to the quiet faith of one person > who taught another > who encouraged more > who joined with a group > who all wanted to help others.  Who’s your one – and how can you be one to someone else?

Never underestimate the influence your life has on others.  Take your everyday, ordinary life and place it before God as an offering.  If you love to knit like I do, or if you love to cook meals or sing or bake or care for children or the elderly or read to someone or rake leaves or fix cars or teach Sunday school or talk on the phone helping people connect with one another, you’ll be amazed at what God will do with your precious everyday life!!

- Linda Babcock

“Make My Life an Offering”
Use this link to listen:  https://youtu.be/IwP12_O9dRE

Today’s devotion is by Holly Lebowitz Rossi and was originally published by Guideposts.

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Many years ago, at the convocation that began my time in divinity school, I heard a sermon that I’ve never forgotten. The preacher shared the story of a woman who was walking along the beach on a cloudy day, lost in thought and enjoying the solitude.

Her reverie was interrupted by the sound of someone shouting just up the beach from where she stood. It was a man, just visible through the mist. His arms wide, he shouted, “Come, blessings!” He turned toward the water, then away from the woman, again shouting, “Come, blessings, come!”

The woman stopped in her tracks, taking in the scene. Her pensive mood deepening, she thought about the pure, direct spiritual appeal she was witnessing. Here was a man, she thought, who had made his way to the quiet, enduring presence of nature to call blessings into his life, to literally shout into the wind for the blessings he yearned for.

She started walking again, hoping to speak to the man and thank him for the much-needed inspiration she had gleaned from his spiritual practice. As she walked, the wind continued to carry his voice. “Come, blessings! Come, blessings, come!” She started to speak the simple, powerful words along with him, feeling buoyed and increasingly freed each time.

Then, just as suddenly as when she first heard him, the man stopped shouting. And just as suddenly as when she first noticed him, the woman stopped walking.

A big, floppy-eared dog bounded joyfully toward the man, seeming to have emerged mystically from the mist. The woman was close enough to the man to hear him, as he tousled the dog’s fur, exclaim, “Blessings! There you are! I thought I had lost you!”

At first the woman felt silly, having confused a dog named Blessings for a profound moment of communion with the divine. But as she continued on her walk, she smiled contentedly. The message she had received, the inspiration to ask clearly and plainly for the goodness, hope, peace and other blessings she yearned for, was real, even if the bearer of the message had four legs and a tail.

Perhaps, she thought, it was not a coincidence that the man had named his dog Blessings. And perhaps the dog had not been lost at all.

How do you call blessings into your life?

- Holly Lebowitz Rossi

Today’s devotion was written by John Roedel.

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You are somebody’s front porch to God.
You are someone’s doorway to mercy.
You are the world’s threshold to kindness.
You are my entrance to letting go of regret.

No pressure, but…
Your life is a gateway to peace
for both strangers and friends alike.

Whether you realize it or not…
Empathy has chosen you to turn your
heart into a welcome mat for the rest of us.

This is purpose of your life…
To let your existence become a candlelit
veranda of hope for the rest of us to
gather on during the long night.

- John Roedel

Today’s devotion comes to us from HomeTouch.

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Are you, or were you ever, a list-maker?

Generally, once a list-maker, always a list-maker.  These lists are reminders. They ensure that we don’t forget to do something important.

The list might be arranged in order of importance, so that the urgent items are dealt with first. If we don’t get to all the items on our list, well, we will get to them tomorrow.

In Luke 17 we read the familiar story of the 10 lepers healed by Jesus and restored to perfect health, with skin flawlessly smooth and pure. It is the story of nine Jewish men who then ran from Jesus without so much as a “how-do-you-do!” The 10th leper — “this foreigner,” (v. 18) as Jesus puts it (he was a Samaritan) — also took off.

But when he saw that he’d been healed, unlike his companions, he paused after a few paces and returned to throw himself at the feet of Jesus. There, he praised God for his healing.

Jesus was amazed on several levels and was clearly impressed with this Samaritan and tells him to “Get up and go on ...” (v. 19). Another version puts it: “Rise and go.” Jesus has this guy on the move.

So leper No. 10 has a to-do list. Go back and thank this Healer, he told himself. “Rise and go,” Jesus said. “Show and tell,” he thought. “I am going to show the priests. I am going to tell my parents, my aunts and uncles, my brothers and sisters, my friends and neighbors and anyone who will listen what Jesus has done for me — how he has changed my life forever!”

What’s on your “To-Do List” today? Do we need to “get up and go on”? What keeps us — who are so blessed, healed, as it were — from sharing this good news?

And, do we need to make a list of people — friends, family, caregivers — who would be thrilled to accept some words of gratitude and encouragement from you?
 

Prayer:
O God, thank you for making me whole. Thank you for the many people in my life who contribute every day to my spiritual and physical health. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Today’s devotion comes to us from Leigh McLeroy.

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“Let Your Silhouette Be Your Legacy.”

That's what the feeder-road-facing, electronic sign advised. I passed it with no time to do more than guess at its likely connection to some high-end spa treatment. But even in that fleeting instant, I was struck by the message's utter incongruity:

Silhouette: (noun) Outline, contour, shape, form.

Legacy: (noun) Inheritance, heritage, endowment, gift.

So, let your outline be your inheritance. Your contour, your heritage. Your shape, your endowment. Your form, your gift. Let your external configuration (I envisioned here the chalk-traced perimeter of a body at a crime scene) be the thing you strive to bestow to others, and so be remembered by.

Then, there's the obvious disconnect (but who thinks this through at the blink of an ad?): My legacy is bestowed when I am...dead. So I'm being asked to leave behind nothing but an empty form when I am gone, in the hopes that it will be said of me, "She had such a great shape."

Later, when I remembered the phrase, I did some digging. It was connected to a trademarked portfolio of "medical aesthetics" claiming to "reshape and tighten without surgery or downtime," through "cellulite reduction, skin tightening and wrinkle reduction." In other words, let my legacy be that I was tight, wrinkle-free and reduced!

I'm glad I saw the sign. It reminded me that the legacy I am aiming for is not a legacy of form or outline. It is an endowment of content, a heritage of meaning, an inheritance of love.

Father, let me bequeath—when I take leave of this imperfect and very temporary form—thousands of acts of kindness, countless whispered prayers, hours of listening, scores of words upon scores of pages that point to You and Your infinite goodness. Let me leave with others the memory of being seen and heard, loved and cherished, in Your name and by your grace. Don't, I beg of You, let my silhouette be my legacy!

- Leigh McLeroy


What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable.  It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.  (I Corinthians 15:42-44, 49)

Today we have a message from Liz Sabath’s garden.  From her garden, we can learn a gospel truth!

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Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist. With the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the Gospel of Peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit, which is the Word of God.  (Ephesians 6: 14-17)


My garden is a ratchet mess now that we are coming to the end of the growing season.  It actually hurts my heart walking outside to that area of our farm.  

Our herb garden became a temporary rooster hang out recently.  Those buggers took a liking to my lavender and basil.  Who knew?  

Our tomatoes are done; they look like a drooping, leafless stalk of nothing.  They did provide tons of fruit (yes, a tomato is a fruit).  Joe made some amazing fried green tomatoes after the storm with all that fell off the plants.  

Our cucumbers already mulched themselves to compost.

Our watermelons should be called softball melons because they never got bigger than one.  We wound up using some of the tiny ones as treats for the chickens.

Our peppers are going strong and as well as our beans, providing us veggies through the winter with the freezer stash we have.

We bought ever bearing strawberry plants a few years ago.  They give you berries more than once during the growing season.  They are the sweetest most amazing tasting strawberry you will ever have.  We have them in 2 spots outside.  Chipmunks have tried their hardest to make off with the sweet berries.  I call those little rodents -- well never mind what I call them.  

I had to figure out a way to save the berries.  I had the grandkids paint rocks red.  Big ones and little ones, bright red rocks.  We placed them around the boxes the strawberries are planted in.  Within 1 hour of putting the rocks outside, 1 was gone and another had a chunk of red paint missing.  They had already tried to get the “new berries.”  The grands were amazed!  It became a mission to protect the berries.  The rocks became their armor.  Surrounding them so they could grow bigger, sweeter, brighter.  

God’s armor is like that.  If you surround yourself with the Armor of God, you can grow bigger in your faith, sweeter in your life and brighter in this world.  God’s armor can protect you from little enemies or big hurdles.  Knowing that protection is ours can and will get you through all that comes your way both good and bad.  Embrace it.  

- Liz Sabath

Rachel Field was an uncommonly versatile writer, winner of both the National Book Award and the Newbery Medal for Children’s Literature (the first woman to receive a Newbery).  The daughter of a New England clergyman, Field often wove theological themes into her work, both explicitly and implicitly.  Much of her writing — such as this beloved poem — can be enjoyed by all ages, a remarkable and rare virtue.

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Something told the wild geese
It was time to go.
Though the fields lay golden
Something whispered,—‘Snow.’
Leaves were green and stirring,
Berries, luster-glossed,
But beneath warm feathers
Something cautioned,—‘Frost.’
All the sagging orchards
Steamed with amber spice,
But each wild breast stiffened
At remembered ice.
Something told the wild geese
It was time to fly,—
Summer sun was on their wings,
Winter in their cry.

- Rachel Field

Today’s Prayer
Creator God, you made all of the birds of the air.  You give them specific guidance as to when to stay and when to go.  When to eat and when to fly.  When to rest and when to move.  Help us to follow your leading for us as well.  For as certainly as you lovingly guide the birds of the air, you also lovingly guide us.  With thanksgiving for your love and care, Amen.

Today's devotion was written by Donna Hill.  Donna grew up here at AUMC and has worn many, many hats throughout the years.  Currently she serves on the Board of Trustees, and Church Council (representing Witness Ministries).  

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After hearing Reverend Dave’s message on Sunday, October 9, I took away 4 points: Planting Seeds of Hope, Bringing the Kingdom of God to All, Putting Words into Action and Discerning What We Can do to be a part of the Transformation.

God’s plan was dovetailing right into what I was planning to do after church, delivering 6 “Welcome to the Neighborhood” bags. Even though I am a very outgoing person, I still get butterflies and experience anxiety going to a new neighborhood and knocking on a stranger’s door. I am Donna “Directionally Dysfunctional” and must rely on GPS not my own instinct which leads me in the wrong direction.

So with my GPS loaded with the first address, I must trust God Placing me in the Situation – GPS with where He wants me to be.

I use the Ring doorbell, standing there with a nervous smile and the bag, knowing they can see me and are deciding whether or not to open the door. Anxiety builds, words tumble in my brain. The door opens with a new mother and a very new baby! I am transformed. God gives me the words. I am the one changed by the visit.

Next stop –relying on God Putting me in the Situation (GPS) I get to the next address and knock. I am met with the sound of very large dogs announcing me. They make conversation challenging with the new homeowner but he hears “Absecon United Methodist Church.” He remembers attending as child. I respond “we’d love to have you bring your family.”

I am transformed and encouraged by these visits. The people are pleased at being “Welcomed to the Neighborhood.” Information about the church and its activities is given along with an invitation to join us in worship.

God is calling each of us to use our gifts and talents in different ways. Let’s put our faith into action and be open to using GPS.

- Donna Hill

Today’s Prayer
Encourage and empower us, O Lord, to recognize our talents and then to put them to good use.  May we use them to reach out to others in your loving name.  Amen.

Today’s devotion was originally published in The Upper Room.

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Jesus said, “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”  - Matthew 28:19

Every year I return to my family’s beach house for a time of rest and relaxation. While there, I visit the park where my family and friends planted trees years ago. What completes the scene are the natural inhabitants of this area — ovenbirds, woodpeckers, and larks.

Early one morning, I noticed the larks flying down to the park with their chicks to teach them to find food. Each day for several weeks, I observed the larks searching the grass for insects while their chicks chirped, eager to be fed. Under the watchful eye of the parents, the chicks gradually ventured farther and farther away.

While watching these birds, I saw a similarity with my faith journey. Early in my journey, I relied on more mature believers to teach me the word of God. Over time I learned the importance of prayer and maintaining a strong bond with God. Even as I continue to grow in my faith, I wonder: Do I move forward, confidently taking flight to carry the message of salvation to others? Or do I remain close to the nest because I am not yet ready to fly?

God calls us to active discipleship and to preach the gospel to all creation. With God’s help, we can answer this call.
 
- Ana M. Buela (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
 
Today's Prayer
God of creation, grant us the wisdom and strength to grow in our faith and become more like Jesus, earnest in sharing the gospel with others. Amen.

Today's devotion is written by Liz Sabath.  Liz wears many hats in our church, and most of them have to do with ministry to children and youth.  Please take a moment to read what Liz would like to share with us about last weekeend.

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Running around, trying to get myself and everything together for Youth weekend in Wildwood, I was stopped dead in my tracks in my backyard Friday afternoon.  I had let the dogs out, grands are climbing in their cars to head home, and I walk around the house to feed the animals.  There, standing smack in the middle of the yard, is Chicago, my oldest sheep.

I texted Brian Dunn saying I just had a sheep escape, setting me back 10 minutes.  (I laugh at that time frame now, how many other leaders headed to Ignite got that message!!)  Brian responded he’d be there by 5:30 (at church) and let him know what I needed.  

I yell “Alicia! Get the dogs!”  Rowen yells at the top of her lungs, what I’m not even sure anymore and Maddy screams “THIS IS GONNA BE FUN!”  I had to think fast, but I really didn’t.  Chicago came walking up to me, I scratched the top of her head and said “Come on, follow me!”  She did, first to the lean-to to get grain.  She didn’t startle when I opened the grain bin, she didn’t startle when the metal bowl scraped the metal food bucket.  I turned around, told the grandgirls to stay behind her, looked at Chicago and said  “Come on old girl, follow me.”  We walked to her pen, I opened the gate and she looked up at me.  I said “It’s ok, come with me.”  She walked in, the girls closed the gate behind us.  I poured the grain in the trough yet she stayed by my side.  I walked the perimeter, becoming angry because I was wasting precious time.  I needed to get to Shoprite to get lunch for the kids for Saturday.  I had to get paper products from the old kitchen at church for the house we stayed at.  Here I am, climbing in the dirt, fixing the fence 45 minutes before I’m supposed to be at the church.

While her sisters were munching away, Chicago stayed with me, walking from panel to panel.  She seemed to be saying “I’ll help you find the places and fix them.”  I fixed two potential escape spots but she started to walk towards the section I hadn’t been to yet.  Rowen yelled, “check the whole thing.”  I walk, checking panels, getting more frustrated.  Couldn’t she pick another time to play escape artist!?  Chicago stopped, I look down and here is a large panel completely unhinged.  How all 4 ewes didn’t get out is beyond me.  I fixed the panels.  Chicago walked up and bowed her head so I could scratch the top of her head.  I said “Its ok, I got you old girl.”  She went over to the grain trough, looking back like “Ok, you can feed me now.”  I cleaned up my supplies and closed the gate behind me.  Maddy said “Wayla, she helped you.”

I was forced to slow down because Chicago found a portal to freedom but realized she needed help getting back home.  Fast forward, I picked up lunch, grabbed the supplies from church and forgot the trash bags and toilet paper, of course!  I prayed while driving, for God to be with us every step of the way, to speak to the kids and for an amazing weekend.  I thanked him for my little helpers who kept me somewhat calm during our fence escape and for amazing co-leaders, holding down the fort while I gathered myself back up.  10 teens, 3 adults and lots of memories and emotions were headed on our way.

Sunday morning, we are all sitting in the convention center, listening to the most amazing speaker I’ve ever heard.  She changed my life the night before as well as a couple of our kids.  (That’s another devotional for another day.)  Aqueelah referenced one of my favorite movies, Avengers: End Game.  She talked about the scene where Captain America is just about toast.  Thanos has the upper hand and was about to squash the world.  All of a sudden, a portal opens up, Cap hears Sam say “on your left” and Black Panther comes walking out, followed by all the Avengers who had disappeared the movie before (that’s another devotional, too).  They had each other’s back, they helped each other overcome something that looked like would crush them again.  They conquered Thanos together.

What do you need to conquer?  Who can help?  Are you letting God in and following his lead?

A broken sheep pen is small potatoes considering all life throws at us.  Chicago found an opening but needed help getting back to safety.  Life can bring Ant Man-sized or Thanos-sized problems.  Our church family is filled with Avengers, ready to pick you up and fight with you and help you anytime.  But remember, you have the portal on your left, and our Savior is standing there, waiting for you to let him help you conquer your Thanos.

- Liz Sabath

Isaiah 58:11
The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring who’s water never fail.

Today’s devotion comes to us from Leigh McLeroy.

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You've kept track of my every toss and turn through the sleepless nights, each tear entered in your ledger, each ache written in your book.  (Psalm 56:8, The Message)

You think serious, high level negotiations can't happen in your own backyard on a Tuesday afternoon? Think again.

On this particular Tuesday, the five year old son of my west side neighbor called out to me from their 8-foot high side porch, which overlooks my fence. He'd been greeting my dogs on an outside run (as he often does) but wanted me to know that his toy plane had likely flown into my yard.

Had I seen it, he wanted to know? I told him I hadn't. Was I sure it wasn't there, though? Well I couldn't be sure, because I hadn't really searched for it, had I? I had my bag on my shoulder and my laptop case under my arm, trying to loop the dogs in so I could leave for a meeting. But none of that was obvious to him. What was obvious was that the lady next door had been alerted to his dilemma and was in a position to do something about it.

So, while he suggested places I might check (the tall Canna lillies next to the fence, or the vine-covered overgrowth behind the garage, maybe?) I dutifully searched. No plane. He appeared to be thinking of still more places for me to look, but I was running late.

"Tell you what," I suggested. "When I get home later I'll bring the boys out and we'll look again, okay?" He agreed, and explained again why he was sure it had to be there. And for the record, I'm still looking.

Why? Because he's my neighbor. Because he asked. Because he believes I'm in a position to help him. And in my backyard, I am. It didn't occur to him even once that what he was asking might be a bother to me, or that I didn't have all the time in the world for a guided search. He'd lost his plane, and was pretty sure he knew where it went down.

Do you ever imagine that God is uninterested in what interests you? That he weights your concerns on some relative scale with world peace on the heavy end and your stuff on the other? That your smallish heartaches aren't enough to merit his attention? Oh friend, think again!

He has loved you with an everlasting love. He has promised to never leave or forsake you. He is as tender with you as a mother with her needy child. He has called himself a good shepherd who cares for his sheep, and he alone is in a position to save and secure you, should you ask.

Is there any reason why you wouldn't?

- Leigh McLeroy

Today’s devotion was originally published in The Upper Room.

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Jesus said, “I pray they will be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. I pray that they also will be in us, so that the world will believe that you sent me.”  John 17:21

Seeing a huge, disorganized group of ducks flying overhead, I pulled to the side of the road to get a better look. I witnessed three groups merge into a giant V formation. The newly formed flock then stayed together, at times changing positions but keeping in formation. When one bird fell behind, two others fell back with it until they were able to rejoin the group and return to their original positions. What a sight to behold!

This kind of unity doesn’t always come so naturally for brothers and sisters in Christ. But imagine what could be accomplished if all the members of God’s flock embraced their role, knowing that everyone is critical to the success of the flock arriving at its destination. Imagine if all joined in unity, striving and surrendering themselves to God’s purpose.

Being in unity isn’t just possible; it’s God’s desire and plan. Jesus prayed for his disciples to be one as Jesus and his Father were one and later sent the Holy Spirit to empower and bond us. God wants us to embrace our place in the flock. If brothers or sisters in Christ fall behind, God calls us to help restore them to their place.

When Christians lay aside differences and focus on being one in Christ, working together for God’s purpose, the possibilities are endless!

- Therese Marszalek (Minnesota, USA)

Today's Prayer
Father God, help us to walk in unity with our brothers and sisters in Christ. Amen.

Today’s devotion comes to us via Leigh McLeroy.

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A friend told me that her son, about to enter kindergarten, was anxious about his first day at a new school. He'd had a great time in preschool with friends--but this was a new routine and a place where he knew no one.
 
On a Sunday morning I walked by his Sunday school class and ducked in to say hello.
 
"Hey B.," I said, I hear your new school starts tomorrow." He nodded in the affirmative, but not too enthusiastically.
 
"Did you know your new school is just around the corner from my house?" I asked him. He did.  
 
 "Well," I said, "Now every time I go past your school I'm going to be thinking of you and hoping that you're having a good day." He smiled a little and continued putting away toys. I didn't give it another thought. Until his mom texted me to say that he'd told her later "Miss Leigh said every time she passes by my school she will wish I have a good day," and that it made him happy.
 
I thought she was just being sweet, because that's the way she is. But it turns out her little guy actually listened, and took me at my word. In fact, on the evening of his first day of school, B. asked his mom what color my car was. When she asked why he wanted to know he told her: "In case she is passing by wishing me a good day while I am outside at recess, I want to wave to her."
 
You know what I love about that? I made a simple promise, and the recipient of that promise took me at my word. He believed me. I'm not sure what I've done to earn that trust, but you can bet I'm not about to squander it. B.'s school is not exactly on my normal "route" when I leave my house, but I've already driven the few blocks out of the way to see it and prayed that he was, indeed, having a good day, along with his little sister at her brand-new preschool. After all, I gave my word.
 
I love, too, that it didn't seem unreasonable to B. that I would think of him often, remember him. After all, I'm a grown up, and I said that I would.
 
So I've been thinking about B., and about me, too. My heavenly Father has promised to remember me. He's engraved my name on the palms of his hands, He saves my tears in a bottle, He's called me His own and adopted me forever through the blood-bought sacrifice of His only Son.
 
He's as good as His word, and I can be sure, so sure, of Him.

- Leigh McLeroy

Today’s devotion was originally published in The Upper Room.

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Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”  (John 16:33)

I taught first grade for more than 30 years. One day, one of my students brought a caterpillar to the classroom. We placed it in a glass jar, along with some leaves and dried twigs. For several days, we watched the caterpillar. One morning, the children were upset because the caterpillar was gone. Instead, resting on a dry twig was a prepupa. I took that moment to explain the metamorphosis: the prepupa hardens to form a chrysalis and inside the chrysalis, the pupa changes into an adult butterfly. The students kept watch for almost two weeks, but there was no apparent change.

Then one day, a student pointed excitedly toward the glass jar, saying, “It’s moving!” The students gathered round to observe as a weak butterfly struggled to break through. It was hard work; the progress, difficult. I explained to the students that the difficult struggle is what strengthens its legs and wings so that it can fly.

In a similar way, the preparation for our metamorphosis lies in the struggles and pain that strengthen our faith. God is in our every struggle, working with us and for us. And with God’s help, we will take flight because God always works for our good.

- Zobeida Carrasquillo (Puerto Rico)

Today's Prayer
Creator God, we thank you for your constant presence — a loving reminder that you work within us in our struggles to help us grow and remain strong. Amen.

Today’s devotion was originally published on saltproject.org.

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Once, in the cool blue middle of a lake,
up to my neck in that most precious element of all,

I found a pale-gray, curled-upwards pigeon feather
floating on the tension of the water

at the very instant when a dragonfly,
like a blue-green iridescent bobby pin,

hovered over it, then lit, and rested.
That’s all.

I mention this in the same way
that I fold the corner of a page

in certain library books,
so that the next reader will know

where to look for the good parts.

- Tony Hoagland

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One way to think about a poem like this one is that it celebrates the commonplace, the ordinary moments of life: a dragonfly on a pigeon feather. And that’s all well and good — but Hoagland has another vision in mind.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote that if the stars came out only one night a century, that night would be considered an astounding spectacle, a wonder of the world, and all of us would stay up and behold them in breathless awe — and yet, there they are each cloudless night, no less miraculous for being so frequently visible.

What Hoagland calls “the good parts” are like that: they’re everywhere around us every day, and for that very reason, we tend to overlook them, or find them merely pleasant or charming. But in fact, they are sheer wonders, astonishments, glories to behold. Water really is “that most precious element of all.” A dragonfly really is a marvel, as is a feather, as is the tension on the still surface of a lake. As are you, and me, up to our necks in miracles, every moment of every day.

Today’s devotion was originally published in The Upper Room.

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Because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions — it is by grace you have been saved.  (Ephesians 2:4-5)

I sat with my daughter on the beach. Close by, a young girl and boy played in the sand. The children bickered a little and the boy ran to their caretaker yelling, “She’s using up all the sand!” My daughter and I stifled giggles at the statement as we surveyed the expansive sandy beach around us.

But as I reflected on this child’s statement, I realized that I have had thoughts just as absurd. During a dark time in my life, I once believed my poor choices and sin had exhausted God’s love for me. I struggled to believe otherwise. In time, I learned God’s love is limitless, more vast than even the sands on this beach.

The psalmist was so overcome with God’s boundless love that he repeats 26 times, “His love endures forever” in Psalm 136. God’s love has no limit or expiration date. It will not fail or diminish.

I am so grateful we can never use it up.

- Beverly Varnado (Georgia, USA)
 
 
Today's Prayer
Dear Lord, thank you for your limitless love which you demonstrated through Jesus, who died for us. Help us live in a way that others may know your love as we pray, “Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.”  Amen.

Today’s devotion comes to us from Mindful Christianity Today.

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At that moment the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Suddenly, the Lord’s words flashed through Peter’s mind: ‘Before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you even know me.’ And Peter left the courtyard, weeping bitterly.  (Luke 22:61-62)

We all live with the regrets of missed opportunities or decisions.  We all think about what we should have done differently in life.  It’s easy to look back and feel like we’ve wasted precious time with bad decisions:  staying too long in a relationship, working an unfulfilling job, hurting a loved one, or hurting ourselves.  Our regrets can become overwhelming when we choose to play them back on repeat.  It can be like choosing to see a bad movie repeatedly!

We must accept the grace for both ourselves and others.  It is vital to realize that hindsight is perfect, but we either did the best we could with what we knew at the time, or we made a mistake.  But it’s also important to realize that our regrets are seldom based on fact because our recall of the events isn’t perfect either.

If there are mistakes, we need to apologize or if we have hurt someone, regret never helps.  It only keeps us focused on the unchangeable.  In fact, no amount of self-punishment will help!  Guilt will only keep us from taking the actions like reconciliation and forgiveness needed to repair our relationships.

Today ask yourself is there something you need to make right.  Accept that the past is the past and cannot be changed.  Focus on what you can control in the here and now.  Then act:  do it and let it go.  Apologize, reconcile, forgive – whatever moving forward looks like – just take action!  Accept that you are not perfect (no one is!).  Acknowledge that you’re doing your best and accept that you can and will make mistakes.  Think of the regrets that continue to plague you.  Face it, acknowledge it, release them.

Today’s devotion comes to us from Carol McMahon!  Carol is a dedicated disciple of Christ who is a member here at the United Methodist Church at Absecon.  She serves as our Lay Member at Annual Conference, and she is a certified Lay Servant in the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference.  Carol also sings in our Senior Choir and takes care of our email prayer chain.

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I get asked that question all the time.  I also get asked why I constantly try to eat as healthy as possible. As it happens, I love working out. I love moving my body. I love physically challenging my body.  I love seeing gains in strength.  I love being able to do what people think that I can’t or shouldn’t be able to do.

I have always loved being outside riding my bike or going for walks.  Especially when we lived within three or four blocks of the beach growing up. I loved riding my bike up to the wall, parking my bike and then walking on the rocky beach.  High tide was the best.  There’s nothing like the sound of crashing waves on a rocky beach.

 I loved low tide as well.  My favorite low tides were on hot summer days.  I would breathe in deeply, the wonderful scent of the muddy salt flats.  To this day, I open my windows during low tide if there is a nice, strong bay breeze. And breathe, breathe very deeply!

People ask me why. Why do I listen? Why do I breathe so deeply? Why do I love working out and being in the gym? Why do I take such care of my body? Why? Because, God gifted me this body.  It’s the only one that I have. It’s the only that I will have for my journey on the planet. I can’t change which body I have.  But I can take good care of the body that I have. I can be committed to having the use of this body as long as possible. I can use and move it to do good for and in God’s name.

So yes, I love to work out. I love to stay strong. I love to eat as healthfully as possible. I do it to be able to do what needs to be done for others. It is very frustrating when I am unable to do what I have planned to help others. I can drive. I can lift heavy things. I can listen. I can be.

So, on a day that is a struggle. Struggle to move. Struggle to lift your arms or move your legs, struggle to fuel your body with healthy foods, remember whose you are. Do what you can and do it in God's honor. Take care of yourself so that when called upon to do so, you can take care of others. Be the face, hands, and feet of God for those in your life.

VBS was a great example of bodies allowing people to be the hands and feet of God. To do God's work and share his word and message with people of all ages. It was refreshing to watch the video snippets through the week and again on Sunday morning. We had youth and adults of all ages using the gifts, talents, and bodies that they were given to share God with others.
All joking aside, our bodies are temples. Gifts from God to be used to further his cause. Please take care and honor God!

- Carol McMahon

Dear God, thank you for our bodies. Each one is different just like all the unique snowflakes. but each one of us has a job to do with the bodies that we were given. May we honor you in all that we do and say.  In your son's name we pray. Amen!

1 Corinthians 6: 19-20
Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor god with your body.

Today’s devotion comes to us via HomeTouch.

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People are like stained-glass windows.  They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within. - Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

An eighth-grade teacher in New Jersey wore the same dress for 100 consecutive days to call attention to the need for sustainable fashion.

Meet Julia Mooney, an art teacher at William Allen Middle School in Moorestown, New Jersey.  At the beginning of the 2018 school year, she put on a simple gray button-down dress and then wore it every school day for 100 days straight.

Can you imagine that?  I can.  Let’s say you’re retired, and you don’t have a job to go to every day.  And let’s say, you see very few people these days, or that you live in a single room in an assisted-living home.  You don’t need to wear something different every day.

But if you are a teacher like Mooney, wearing the same dress for days on end doesn’t make sense.  Why would she do this?

It wasn’t about being weird.  For Mooney, it was important to teach her students about the growing “culture of excess” that has filled American closets to overflowing with cheap clothing that isn’t ethically sourced or manufactured and that, most of the time, eventually winds up in a landfill.

Instead, Julia advocates for what she calls “sustainable fashion”:  wearing the same clothes more often, and making sure they’re recycled when they are replaced or no longer needed.

The apostle Paul was an advocate for sustainable fashion, too.  He talks about clothing in Colossians 3:1-11.  He argues that we shouldn’t dress in tones of “anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language” (v. 8).  Instead, we should be “clothed … with the new self” (v. 10), by which he meant such virtues as love, joy, gentleness, peace, meekness and patience.

So, what are you going to wear today?

- Timothy Merrill

Prayer
O God, I know that there is nothing more attractive than to appear before others wearing the beautiful clothes of righteousness. Help me choose the right “wardrobe” for today. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

This Friday’s devotion comes from Liz Sabath.  Liz is our Sunday School Superintendent.  She has done an amazing job of keeping our young disciples connected in ministry, making sure they know the church loves them, and has been especially busy the past few months preparing for Vacation Bible School.

Today, Liz brings us a message about worship.

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For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20)

What’s your style service/worship?  Are you a Contemporary or Traditional person?  Are you a service by time person?  Are you still worshipping at home virtually?

Me?  I’m all of the above.  I could listen to Tonya sing for hours in the Great Hall.  To see in her eyes, the love she shares singing God’s word, is pure joy.  Then again, Mr. Cate’s voice carries through the Sanctuary, complimenting the pipe organ.  His version of On Eagles Wings brings me to tears immediately.

During the Sunday School year, I attend the 11 AM service.  In the Summer, I attend the 9 AM service.  On a Sunday I wake up and my morning has me running late, I can reset my day and worship virtually.  Do you know how blessed we are to have all these options at our church?  We have the best of all worship worlds.  We can meet the needs of all types of services.  Mix in our young disciples at both services and what a wonderful worship experience we have.
 
I have a challenge for you:  try a different service.  See through the eyes of those who attend that service, the joy it brings them.  Embrace the old hymns and let the pipe organ ring through your ears, lift your arms in praise as our own Praise Team transports you to your first Christian concert experience.  Feel how each service can fill your heart.  You will be able to share ALL our church has to offer with the world.

Our church is such a joy filled, soul filling home. Fill your heart with all it offers and sing praises to our King.
 
- Liz Sabath

Praise the Lord.  Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise in the assembly of his faithful people.  (Psalm 149:1)

This devotion comes to us from Leigh McLeroy (http://www.leighmcleroy.com/).

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Where I live, it's hot. And dry. In the month we typically see the most rainfall, my city has seen little to none. On Monday I heard thunder, but apparently, the clouds were empty. Yesterday morning's slightly damp, grey beginning—typically the harbinger of at least a brief gully washer—also yielded nothing.

Yards that are typically lush and green this time of year are not. Not at all. Rivers and bayous are slowly receding from their banks. Weathercasters' reports of "lower-than-usual precipitation levels" have morphed to measured talk of drought, and talk of drought to warnings of possible shortages. Not enough water to water lawns. Feed crops. Hydrate livestock.

When it persists long enough, drought can mean going without. In drought, we want. In drought, we wonder how long we might thirst. In drought, we remember rain and long for it to come again. And in drought our thoughts turn God-ward—because who else can make it rain?
Who else can bring water from a rock? Who else can draw from a well that never runs dry? Who else promises living water and turns the ordinary kind of water to wine? And how—besides lack—do we become dependent upon this power?

When we have all that we need, when we are full, we bewitch ourselves into believing in our own self-sufficiency. We convince ourselves (at least I do) that what we need is within our reach, and that the power to grasp it is our own. But in drought, in lack, we look to a power greater than our own. We have to. We have no choice. Our own impotence has been proven beyond doubt.

It's hard to bless the drought. To be grateful for it when we're dying of thirst. But it can be a blessing, whether we call it one, or not. God can strike the rock at any time, and will. Oh, let us not forget Him when He does!

- Leigh McLeroy

It was I who knew you in the wilderness, in the land of drought; but when they had grazed, they became full, they were filled, and their heart was lifted up; therefore they forgot me.  (Hosea 13: 5-6. ESV)

This devotion was originally published in The Upper Room.

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As it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” — the things God has prepared for those who love him — these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.  (1 Corinthians 2:9-10)

The instructions for an unusual gardening project looked simple enough. I wedged a cut rose stem into a potato, buried the potato in a dirt-filled flowerpot, and fashioned a tiny greenhouse from an empty water bottle. In a few months, the directions proclaimed, I would have a lovely rosebush. All winter I watered that pot, but had to concede in May that my dry brown stem was dead. Imagine my surprise when a small green sprout eventually appeared — and grew into a thriving potato plant!

The Bible describes many surprises that resulted from following God’s instructions. Samuel went to anoint a king for Israel and discovered that God’s choice was David, a teenager and the youngest of many brothers (1 Sam. 16). Peter found a coin in a fish’s mouth (Matt. 17:24-27). Paul expected to preach in Bithynia but instead traveled to Macedonia (Acts 16:7-10). These and other stories tell us that God’s ways are infinitely surprising. We can’t imagine all that God has planned for us, both in this lifetime and in eternity.

- Linda P. Hamilton (Colorado, USA)

Prayer
Thank you, Father, for all the things you have prepared for us to be and do. Amen.

This devotion comes to us from Leigh McLeroy (http://www.leighmcleroy.com).

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I was on my way to church, stepping out the back door with keys and coffee in hand. Wearing a pair of wedge espadrilles that, given my balance issues and the unevenness of my back sidewalk, should have long been retired. But they were cute. And I was feeling kind of spry and invincible.

At least until I met said sidewalk with a thud, left knee first, keys and coffee flying. The fall was so unexpected and swift that it took my breath away. I rolled over, lifted the hem of my skirt to survey the damage, and groaned. After a hot minute I quit biting my lip and squeezing back the tears. I just sat there and cried.

Then I got up, retrieved my keys, washed the blood off my knee, found a super-sized Band Aid and applied it, refilled my coffee cup, changed my shoes and started over. But it hurt. I mean, all day. Even though I pretended it didn't.

Sometimes I remind myself of the ridiculous Black Knight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail: limbless, mortally wounded, spurting blood from the stump of every extremity and insisting, "'Tis only a scratch!"

Who am I kidding? Lately, I'm a walking "owie." I miss my Dad. I miss my balance. I miss cheap gas and kind exchanges with strangers. I long for understanding and deep connection; miss laughter and lightheartedness. Some days there's no Band Aid big enough for the hurt I feel. And you might never know it. But God does.

Even when I insist, "'Tis but a scratch," He knows better. He doesn't scorn my tears or try to shame me out of examining my wounds. He never makes me feel small for being weak. Or embarrassed for having fallen. And He won't ask me to pretend my hurts aren't real. Not ever.

He's the one place I can run when I'm done denying all is always well. Because sometimes it just isn't. He never said his own wounds were just scratches, and even in His resurrected beauty, bears them still.

- Leigh McLeroy

Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing...I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.  (Romans 8: 38-39, The Message)

This devotion was first published in The Upper Room.
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I praise you [Lord] because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.  (Psalm 139:14)
 
 
I enjoy walking around the block and taking in the many colors of the plants and flowers. It amazes me how effortlessly the flowers seem to blossom, each bringing their own uniqueness, splendor, and contribution to the garden. Together the plants form a majestic oasis amid the pavement.

In taking time to notice the intricate details of God’s creation, I realized that we all can learn from these wonderful plants. They come in different shapes, sizes, colors, and fragrances, yet they don’t compare or compete. They seem effortlessly content with how God has made them. I believe God intends for us to be this way as well.

God made each of us unique. When we embrace the way God made us and continues to shape us, we can stand with confidence, knowing that there will never be anyone exactly like us. Just as a garden needs many varieties of plants, the body of Christ needs many different members. We may not be perfect, but we are certainly precious. The more fully we believe that, the more God can use us as gifts and blessings to others.
 
- Gursimran Chhatwal (Haryana, India)
 
Today's Prayer
Heavenly Father, help us to see our beauty and to avoid comparisons. Remind us to embrace our unique role in the world so that we may bless others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.