Mount Olivet UMC

God continues to call and equip the prophets today in the same way God calls and equips disciples – calling upon imperfect, untrained, unprepared people like Amos to go to new places and lead the people of God to God’s will. It sounds like an impossible task, and it would be if not for the grace of the One doing the calling and equipping.

God is always up to something — surprising us in the margins, working within the "gaps" in our life. It's this sneaky, transformational power that creates something new within us every day.

This week we journey with Paul to discover how our freedom in Christ and the fruit of the Holy Spirit work together to create new things — new things in us, new things in the world.

We all need a walk-up song — something to encourage us through life. Pastor Jeff's chosen walk-up song is one that we could all benefit from humming time to time.

Dismantling racism is hard work. Emancipation is hard work. We often prefer the Jesus that does not disrupt our lives or the Jesus that does not require too much of us. The good news is we don’t have to do it alone. Jesus has promised that he will give us the Holy Spirit to teach us the lessons we are unable to learn on our own and remind us of the truth we are inclined to forget.

"Let anyone who is thirsty come to Me." When we reach out in the name of Jesus, we are not only inviting but we are actively seeking the thirsty, regardless of their status in life, so they may find the Living Water.

Be. Go. Do. This is the heart of what it means to be a disciple. Be disciples. Go into the world. Be the hands and feet of Christ.

The state of our world often leaves us asking, "Lord, is this the time? Can it be time for all things to be made right?"

When have you given something your all, only for it to fall through? When have you felt like you weren't good enough? Today's scripture show's us that even when our path isn't straight forward, we're usually right where we're supposed to be.

We find all kinds of ways to create division among ourselves — but there is a voice, the Holy Spirit, asking us to evaluate these dividing lines.