Good morning…
I woke yesterday to an email from our pastor announcing changes in the United Methodist Church. “In what was a solemn day, members of the 2023 North Georgia Annual Conference ratified the disaffiliation agreements of 261 churches at a Special Called Session,” begins the article recounting Saturday’s important gathering. Later we learn “…approximately 440 North Georgia Conference churches will continue the work of fulfilling the mission of the United Methodist church in our communities and beyond.” Solemn. Disaffiliation. Continue the work.
After reading and pondering, I hopped in the car to attend the 8:30 am service. A woman in our Wednesday night young mom’s class, who recently joined the church, was having their baby baptized. What joy to see the work of God’s church continue!
Our church received an award for outstanding service, as together we address the ongoing crisis of food insecurity for many families in our Atlanta community. By name we prayed for people in our church family celebrating births and grieving deaths, journeying with cancer and adjusting to Alzheimers, serving in the military and gathering at home for the holidays. Hands-on serving and the power of prayer. What joy to see the work of God’s church continue!
To kick off this Thanksgiving week, our pastor preached on the words of the familiar hymn “Come Ye Thankful People Come” while the choir and orchestra brought the words to vibrant life. Before and after the service, I hugged old friends, connected with a new church member and felt with every fiber of my being, “What joy to see the work of God’s church continue!”
God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us. Glory to God in the church! Glory to God in the Messiah, in Jesus! Glory down all the generations! Glory through all millennia! Oh, yes! (Ephesians 3:20-21, MSG).
…Sue…
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