Over the last few months, farmers have been harvesting the fields that were planted this past spring and summer. The fields near our house in Whorton Bend were planted with corn and cotton. The past few weeks, huge combines have been going through the fields scooping up thousands and thousands of ears of corn. Even after dark, bright lights mounted on the tractors and combines keep the process going into the night. I pulled over one night just to watch. Way deep in the field the lights from the combines looked like an eerie scene from an otherworldly SYFY movie. Truck load after truck load of corn and cotton have been produced from that which was planted only a few months earlier.

What have you planted in the fields of your life? What kind of harvest and produce come from your walk with Jesus?

Over the next few weeks our church will be emphasizing the planting of our service, time, money, talents, obedience, witness, etc. The Bible challenges us to consider the harvest that is produced in our lives. The Bible challenges us to invest and store up treasures in heaven.

2 Corinthians 9:10-12 (NIV) “10 Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.”

Matthew 6:19-21 (NKJV) 19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust (vermin – rats) destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Sermons for First United Methodist Church of Gadsden

Our passage for study this week is Luke 15. Luke 15 is made up of three teaching parables: The Lost Sheep and The Lost Coin, both of which are linked to the parable commonly known as The Prodigal Son, Luke 15:11-32. I want to encourage you to read the entire chapter either right now or sometime this week. Here are some verses to help remind you of the content in Luke 15.

Luke 15:4-7 (NKJV) 4 "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!' 7 I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.

Luke 15:31-32 (NKJV) 31 "And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. 32 It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.'"

The Bible makes it clear that repentance is an urgent necessity - "unless you repent you too will all perish." Jesus sets out to explain a substantial truth about repentance in these parables. What truth do you discover about repentance when you read these parables?

I ran across the following statement from an article in a lectionary study. (Many years ago there was a B class movie called The Henderson Monster. It was a terrible movie but it had one really good line. "Most noble motivations will not tolerate close inspection.") Read the line very slowly. What does this line have to do with Luke 15?

Does a person's "standing" in the sight of God rests solely on repentance?

Is there a "prodigal" in your family or in your circle of life that you need to pray for today?

Sermons for First United Methodist Church of Gadsden

“The Battle with Fear and Anxiety”

I found the following prayer in a devotion book. It has been helping me get through some personal battles with anxiety:

“Lord, sometimes this world is a difficult place, and, as a frail human being, I am fearful. When I am worried, restore my faith. When I am anxious, turn my thoughts to You. And, keep me mindful, Lord, that nothing, absolutely nothing, will happen this day that You and, I cannot handle together. Amen.”

Thoughts by C. S. Lewis:

“Some people feel guilty about their anxieties and regard them as a defect of faith, but they are afflictions, not sins. Like all afflictions, they are, if we so take them, our share in the passion of Christ.”

Sermons for First United Methodist Church of Gadsden

The first Sunday in October is designated "World Communion Sunday" on the Christian calendar. I personally like the fact that we can join millions of other Christians around the globe on this particular day to remember what Jesus did for us. Many nationalities, tribes, and denominations of all kinds will bow and honor what God Almighty has done for us through His Son, Jesus the Christ. Together we acknowledge that the forgiveness of our sins is found only in the body and blood of Jesus.

The Scriptures teach us that not only does the atonement and death of Christ provide forgiveness but that God in His grace also provides for us His very Spirit. Jesus said in John 16:7 "7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you." As you read Galatians 5:16-26 ask yourself; do I daily choose to (Walk in the Spirit)? Is it possible that you and I can walk in and fulfill the things of the flesh? Is the fruit of the Spirit evident in your life?

Have you ever been to Israel? Have you ever been to Jerusalem? Now when people ask me these questions I can answer, "Yes!" Lana and I along with 34 other passengers arrived in Tel Aviv Israel, on May 27, 2015. The temperature was 104 degrees. We stayed in Tiberias on the Sea of Galilee for three nights and then arrived in Jerusalem on May 30. We stayed in the "Olive Tree Hotel" in Jerusalem for the remainder of the tour. Many times on the trip I found myself wondering if my feet landed in the same place that Jesus' feet walked. It was an awesome trip and a wonderful learning experience. Emotional tears of joy and conviction came to my eyes on several occasions.

This coming Sunday, we will have a reunion of about half of those who went on the trip with us. Most of those are from the Gadsden area. Some will join us at the second service in the sanctuary and then we will have lunch together.

The sermon this Sunday will revolve around the Holy City of Jerusalem and the Western Wall. No Jewish shrine is holier than the Western Wall (Often called, "Wailing Wall"). The remains of the ancient Second Temple compound make up the wall and the stones. They are saturated with centuries of prayers and tears.

The following Scripture is about Jesus' final arrival into the city of Jerusalem. He weeps over the people within the city and then gives a startling prophecy about its future. Has or does Jesus ever weep over you and me?

Have you ever been to Israel? Have you ever been to Jerusalem? Now when people ask me these questions I can answer, "Yes!" Lana and I along with 34 other passengers arrived in Tel Aviv Israel, on May 27, 2015. The temperature was 104 degrees. We stayed in Tiberias on the Sea of Galilee for three nights and then arrived in Jerusalem on May 30. We stayed in the "Olive Tree Hotel" in Jerusalem for the remainder of the tour. Many times on the trip I found myself wondering if my feet landed in the same place that Jesus' feet walked. It was an awesome trip and a wonderful learning experience. Emotional tears of joy and conviction came to my eyes on several occasions.

This coming Sunday, we will have a reunion of about half of those who went on the trip with us. Most of those are from the Gadsden area. Some will join us at the second service in the sanctuary and then we will have lunch together.

The sermon this Sunday will revolve around the Holy City of Jerusalem and the Western Wall. No Jewish shrine is holier than the Western Wall (Often called, "Wailing Wall"). The remains of the ancient Second Temple compound make up the wall and the stones. They are saturated with centuries of prayers and tears.

The following Scripture is about Jesus' final arrival into the city of Jerusalem. He weeps over the people within the city and then gives a startling prophecy about its future. Has or does Jesus ever weep over you and me?

Today, we take most of our pictures on our phones. And we see the image instantly. Very few of us, if any, develop the pictures ourselves. However, if you did, you would discover the time-consuming and delicate process required to achieve the desired outcome - a perfectly developed picture.

The photographer takes his time when developing a picture. In the same way, it takes time for God to continue His work in developing one into the image of His Son.

Who are you during this time. Do you have the same patience.