Reflection and Meditation on the Covenant Prayer

A Covenant Prayer in the Wesleyan Tradition (UM Hymnal 607)

I am no longer my own, but thine.

Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt.

Put me to doing, put me to suffering.

Let me be employed by thee or laid aside by thee,

Exalted for thee or brought low by thee.

Let me be full, let me be empty.

Let me have all things, let me have nothing.

I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal.

And now, O glorious and blessed God,

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,

Thou art mine and I am thine.  So be it.

And the covenant which I have made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven.  Amen.

A Meditation on the Covenant Prayer

(written in my own words; what it means to me today, July 1, 2020)

My time is not my own, but yours.  Call me to do and to be what you need me to do and be.

May I be associated with whomever you need me to be, not as their teacher or student, but as their neighbor.  If I am to walk with the poor, the despondent, the frustrated, the tired, the weak, so be it; and may I be a presence of contentment, encouragement, patience, listening, and sustenance in their midst.  If I am to walk with the wealthy, the unrepentant, the bad examples, the insensitive, the powerful, so be it; and may I be a presence of humility, of contrition, of integrity, and compassion in their midst.

May I overcome my own lethargy and overwhelmedness by taking small simple steps that spread your love, and may I refuse to let my desires for perfection and control be the enemies and obstacles to participation and trying, however imperfect they may be.  If sharing what you have given means I must make do with less or with nothing, may you be my strength to continue.  If, in allying myself with the powerless, I suffer as they do, may my suffering deepen my love for them and for you. 

May you call me to work if work is what is needed, may you call me to speak if speech is needed, may you call me to rest if rest is needed, may you call me to silently pray behind a closed door if silent prayer is needed, may you call me to step aside if you need room for others to work and speak.  May you grant me the wisdom to know what is needed.

If others can be encouraged by your light shining through me, then shine that light.  If I must lose the reputation I have so carefully crafted so that others may see your strength in my weakness and your glory in my inadequacy, so be it. 

Provide for my every need, provide blessings to overflowing, and I will give you praise and glory.  If all my provisions are lost or given away, and I am wandering through the world’s desert in search of the next oasis, may my search be first and only for you, and may my desire be to trust that you will provide enough for my daily bread.  If I experience the bliss of constant communion and the blessed assurance of your grace, may I share you as the source.  If my spirit feels lost in the fog and cacophony of society, and my mind is filled with doubts and longing, may you be the ocean on which my small boat drifts – all around me and upholding me, always.

May you provide every resource at my fingertips to accomplish what you have set before me; but if those supplies are nowhere to be found, may you be a lamp to light my feet and the patience to quiet my discontent on the quest to gather what is needed.

All that I am, and all that I have, I offer it to you.  Whether I am in the midst of the storm, or in view of the peaceful sunset, I want to praise you.  You are the Three in One, always in relationship with yourself.  May I be in relationship with you and with my neighbor.

Words are easy to speak, letters are easy to write, but a life serving you is a challenge to live.  Remind me of your grace, when my efforts fall short or when your voice seems far away.  Remind me that you are with us always, and that we are yours; remind us that your communion is best of all and your mercy never fails. Amen.

-Pastor Ed

Who Am I?

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

This message to you is a little longer than usual, since I haven’t had much time with you (so I have a lot to say!) and since many of us have more time on our hands than usual (so you have a lot of time to read!).  I hope you won’t mind.

“And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them.  So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”  But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”  And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you[b] will worship God on this mountain.”  Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”  God said to Moses, “I am who I am.  This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3:9-14)

“Let us make humankind in our image” (Genesis 1:26)

Way back when, when I was a boy, my brother and the neighbor kids and I would play up and down the street, running around, playing cops and robbers, hide and seek, football and baseball, riding bikes;  I haven’t played those games in a long time and would quickly need an oxygen tank if I tried!.  Not quite as long ago, when I was in college, I learned to solve partial differential equations and the basics of quantum mechanics; now I can’t remember how to solve those complex math and physics problems.  Like most parents, I have fond memories of reading to my children, snuggled up on my lap two at a time; my kids don’t fit on my lap anymore, and they ask for money instead of time reading a book. 

When I entered the workforce, I learned to program on a mainframe computer and troubleshoot problems for an airline, at times flying across the country every week; It’s been a few years since I’ve been on a plane or walked into a business meeting.  Which era of my life was really me?

As a pastor for the past 17 years, up until just two months ago (with the exception of a snow day about every two years), each week I would put on a black robe and greet folks that shared my faith as they streamed into a beautiful sanctuary.  We would pray and sing and hug and shake hands, laugh and sometimes cry, and pray some more.  I would spend the weeks dividing my time between administration and visitation and teaching and preparation for the coming week’s sermon.  In this pandemic, those routines have now changed significantly, as now most of the visits are over the phone.  Some of my pastor friends have encountered tragic situations, trying to do pastoral care and perform funerals in this time of isolation, when family members can’t gather to comfort one another, because they are trying to protect one another out of love and compassion.  We’ve all been experiencing the changing of our routines, the loss of regular contact with friends and family, the introduction of new anxieties.  We are dealing with much greater uncertainty about how the future will unfold.  Employment, education, finances, travel, health, it’s all less defined than it was just a few months ago.  How will we know what to do?

These uncertainties have us questioning our identities.  I remember, after my first son was born, that I was working and Amy was able to stay home.  After a few years and two more children were born, my wife went back to work.  It was a huge change!  I loved my family, but I was very accustomed to a pattern of life where I would work during the day and spend family time on weekends and evenings.  When I had to start arranging my schedule around school drop off and pickup, I thought, “How can I be a good worker when I’m sitting in car line?”  “How can I get this project done for my boss if I’m changing diapers?”  I laugh about it now, but at the time it was stressful!  That transition to different parental-duty-sharing took a long time!  When I entered seminary, I experienced a similar shift.  As an undergraduate, I was a focused student and my grades were my top priority.  In seminary, I had a student pastorate to tend and a family to raise, and I simply didn’t have enough time in the day to do all the reading and writing to be at the top of my academic game.  “Dear God, Who do you want me to be?” 

Some of the changes and anxieties throughout my life occurred as a result of major crises in our society.  The fear of societal shakeup with the Y2K computer bug, and the attacks on New York and Washington DC, the popping of the housing bubble.  What if society collapsed?  What if the banks lost our savings?  What if, what if, what if?  Should I clear my suburban backyard of trees and learn to plant wheat and vegetables?  I don’t know how to be a subsistence farmer!

I remember asking God some of those questions at my breakfast table one morning shortly before the Y2K computer bug was predicted to hit.  That particular morning, in the midst of my worry, God more or less replied, almost audibly:  “If you think what you have accumulated is only your doing, Ed, well, good luck.  I’ll leave you to your own devices.  But I hope you remember that I am the giver of every good gift – your job, your home, your relationships, everything good comes from me, and I have given you what you need.  I will continue to give you what you need.  I hope you trust ME, but the choice is yours.”  God hasn’t often, or really ever before or since, spoken in that way to me; but the message sunk into my heart.  I decided to let go of the worry, and to trust that God would see us through, even if the circumstances changed negatively and life looked different than it had.  I decided to trust that God would provide enough, and that was good enough.

Teenagers moving into adulthood often embark on a journey of identity – to “find themselves,” to “discover who they are.”  It’s an important question.  Often, though, it is tied to some notion of achievement.  “I am somebody” if I (fill in the blank: get this job, get a good grade, get into this college, graduate on time, never have to ask someone to help, make my daddy proud).  Times of uncertainty, like the ones we are currently in with this pandemic, make us question that identity:  “If I have to have a job to be somebody, and now I’ve lost my job, who am I?  Am I worthy of love?  Am I a failure?” 

The answer to the question, “Who am I”, I believe, is partially found in our scripture this morning.  We are made in God’s image, it says in Genesis.  “Who is God?” we ask.  “Who shall I tell the Israelites is sending me?” Moses asks.  God says, “Tell them, “I am.”” “Tell them I have heard their cries of suffering.”  God did not say “I do” or “I’m good at creating stuff.”  God said, “I am,”  We are made in that very image of God.  As God’s children, we find our ultimate identity as Beings.  We are.  Period.  Not ultimately “We do,” or “we are good widget-makers.”  Those statements might be true, we might be good or not good at making widgets, but ultimately, our worth is found in the truth that God dreamed us up and created us just as we are, and that is enough for God.  That is enough to be loved supremely.  It was enough for God to say, “Tell them my name is I am,” and it is enough for us to know that God takes delight in us just as we are.  And God feels the same about our neighbors; every one of them.

As beings, to be sure, we will have moments and even days of anxiety and challenge and even some measure of failure.  We might not know what move to make next.  We might have to get reoriented after major disappointments.  We might need to heal after suffering a great injury.  We might have to experience humility and beg forgiveness after harming another.  We might even have to come to terms with our own limitation and mortality, if our business struggles or fails, or if a health condition takes away our dreams for travel and leisure or even comfort.  But that doesn’t change the truth that “We are.”  Our worth comes from being, not doing. 

So the next time you start thinking, “Why is this happening to me?  Who am I if I’m not a (fill in the blank),”  I wonder what would happen if you asked God, “God, what are you up to?  What will you do in or around me as we journey through this circumstance?  Continue to reveal to me who you are, and who I am.”  “I will trust in you, this day, and forevermore, because you are the great “I am” and I am made in your image.  I am wondrously made, and that is enough.”  No matter what today may bring, may we not worry about it; may we instead direct our attention to God to walk with us all the way through it, delighting in God’s company as we go.

Amen.

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Ed

A Poem of Hope

Friends,

A few years ago I was preparing for a sermon, and the only thing that came to my heart was the words that I share with you below.  That was long before any hint of coronavirus, but there were plenty of global fears and local worries then too.  It is a poem of hope, inspired by Isaiah 35.  It was a most unusual sermon (the only poetic sermon I've ever written) and I'm quite sure the congregation was glad that I didn't often write my own poetry.  Nonetheless, one of that day's hearers of the sermon requested a copy to share with the men in a prison ministry that he visited with each week, so I pray God was present that day.  I don't know what else God might have done with it, if anything, and I don't know what God might do with it now.  It's been on my heart, however, so I offer it to you with the belief that God might speak to someone through God's word recorded in Isaiah and now proclaimed in this way.  Maybe as we find ourselves isolated with no definitive end to the restrictions on our lives, we too might hear a whisper of God's grace.

Some notes about the poem: I've never studied poetry.  Technical poetry folks will find deviations from proper meter and punctuation.  Please ignore those.  The repeated refrain seems alternately too much repetition, but then I think it's also necessary, calling to mind the loud and persistent chorus of discouragement and cynicism that so often fills the world.  If you find yourself starting to skip over the refrain, in the same way that we stop listening to things we think we don't need to heed, pay attention near the end to where the refrain starts to change. 

Blessings.

Isaiah 35

1 The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, 2 it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. 

The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God. 

3 Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; 

4 say to those with fearful hearts, "Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you." 

5 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. 6 Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert. 

7 The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs. In the haunts where jackals once lay, grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here.

Aint nothing gonna grow here.

Aint nothing gonna grow here,

That’s what people say.

I’ve been here some fifty years; 

seen some good days but mostly tears.

Folks talk big, but mostly fears 

beneath the surface lay.

Aint nothing gonna grow here.

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

That’s what people say.

We tried sharin’, it didn’t work out.

We tried givin’, it didn’t amount

To much more than a withering sprout:

Couldn’t break this hard dry clay.

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

That’s what people say.

So long ago they had a dream:

"Build a church for the kids to see

How God’s provided for you and me!"

But old dreams are child’s play.

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

That’s what people say.

Grandma used to run this place

With God and Grandpa they could face

Any changes to time or space!

but that was a different day.

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

That’s what people say.

"Oh how I wish that it weren’t true!"

"Been on my knees like you told me to do!"

"Prayed so many words till my face is blue!"

I beg, “Is God hearing what I pray?”

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

That’s what people say.

My hands are weak, my knees won’t stand.

The people don’t care for God’s commands.

Neither do I see much of God’s plan,

And my soul so dry it lay.

But then in the distant scorching blue

A faint aberration, then I see two

Small gray wisps on the horizon!They move

dust slightly stirred from its place.

The smallest gray hint a bit closer grows

Taller, too, and wider it flows.

From a distant cloud a breeze hot blows

Some air moving against my face

But too early aloud to name.

The breeze, if you can call it that, does grow.

Now it’s more of a wind as feigns to blow.

Still not enough for hope to flow

From a dry heart and two legs lame.

The wisps now clouds are towering high.

No longer distant, they fill the sky,

And raindrops three, then four then five

Tap and splatter on hard baked clay.

Aint nothing’ gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

That’s what people say

The parched ground first rejects the gift.

It shrugs off the water, which runs into rifts.

“Depart from me!” But it’s as if

The rain is here to stay.

While much runs off, still more sinks down

Between the cracks below the ground;

And hopelessness begins to drown

As the dry earth feels water play.

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here,

IS THAT what people say?

Just beneath the surface, long

Dry and parched, without a song,

Now awakened now among

A multitude asleep did lay.

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Words that had their day!

Seeds once dormant once encased

Now break their shells and in their place

A transformation with great haste

Is happening today.

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

"Empty words!" the people say.

The hard packed earth now wet with rain

Makes way for green chutes shooting plain

Up from the earth no longer chained

By dry, parched, hopeless clay.

The chutes rich green, they climb, they grow

And out come leaves and flowers show.

(And with the sun and rain) to know

The purpose for which they were made

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Aint nothing gonna grow here

Never again proclaimed!

For God has promised and come through

That life would come again anew

All that was hopeless now is through

For God is sending rain.

Aint nothing gonna grow here?

Watch what God can grow here!

Yes watch what God can grow here:

You’ll never be the same.

---

Holy Week and Easter as a Long Memorial Family

We are an Easter People

A pastor friend told me yesterday, "This is the Lentiest Lent ever!"  I couldn't agree more.  Rather than gathering together for the celebration of Palm Sunday, we find ourselves gathering in living rooms watching services on computer screens.  We are a day away from Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.  Church families usually gather together in worship experiences that serve to express the sober gravity, anxiety, and grief that accompanied the Last Supper with Jesus, and the fullness of his suffering and crucifixion.  This year, however, every day is filled with some measure of that disorienting sadness, that uncertainty of the future.  We will not be able to gather in one place for Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, or even Easter Sunday morning.  

This year, we will be joining together with our brothers and sisters across the Conference to worship God like we never have before.  Here is the link to the Conference web page with the resources for this Holy Week, and with the link to the Easter morning services that you will be able to stream live.  Before you click on this link, I invite you to read my introduction below.  After you click on the link, you can scroll down to find the documents on the conference web page and save them to your device or print them out for your use.  I encourage you to share your experiences of these worship service on social media as a testimony to the grace of our risen Lord and savior!

https://nccumc.org/hw2020/  

This is a Holy Week like no other.

As United Methodists, we often talk about our Connection to the rest of the denomination.  This year, our North Carolina Conference is helping us with Holy Week and Easter worship.  You can save and pull up on your electronic device during these observances, or print out them out for your use at home.  

Maundy Thursday we will observe a service in our own homes, a service that incorporates an actual meal that you have prepared, as a part of the service. If you are alone, you can celebrate the service remembering that God is with you and we are united in a communion of the saints.  If you are living out your stay-at-home order with others, the meal and liturgy are shared together.  You may also wish to connect with others via social media and participate together.  Traditionally Maundy Thursday also remembers that Jesus washed the disciples' feet, and so a washing ritual is included in the service too.

Good Friday is a similar idea, but without the meal.  This day commemorates Jesus death on the cross and the placing of his body in a tomb.  The worship service is patterned around an evening Tenebrae service that involves a stripping of the place of worship of its decorations and a darkening through the extinguishing of candles.  We usually do this in our sanctuary, but the resources we are sharing are modified to help us do this in our own homes. 

Easter Vigil.  I have heard many people share that the anxiety and stress of this pandemic are causing them to wake up in the middle of the night.  Did you know that many churches throughout the world observe an Easter Vigil on Saturday Night/Sunday morning?  In some places, this vigil is very long - it lasts from Midnight until sunrise.  The conference has provided a resource for a Vigil - not long enough to last all through the night, but certainly filled with many scriptures and prayers for an extended service to be used sometime before the Easter celebration, perhaps on Saturday.  Perhaps such an extended time of scripture and prayer would be a welcome oasis in this dark time.  

Easter Celebration.  On Easter morning, we invite you to tune in to a conference-wide live-streamed Easter service led by our Bishop Hope Morgan Ward.  The conference is providing two live events - one at 9am and one at 11am.  We believe that it will be a joyous occasion, to help us through this time when we cannot yet gather in our sanctuary together.  

Finally, I want to plant in your imagination the seed of an idea - that when these quarantines and shelter-in-place orders are finally and eventually lifted, and when we can gather safely in our sanctuary again to worship God, Oh what an Easter Celebration we will have!  We will praise God with a joy that perhaps we have never experienced together as we celebrate that our Savior has seen us through the storm, has delivered us from the disease, has filled our church family with good things!  

I pray God's blessing upon you.  As always, I invite you to contact me if you'd like to talk and pray about anything that is on your heart.

Again, here is the link to the Conference web page with the resources for this Holy Week, and with the link to the Easter morning services that you will be able to stream live.  Before you click on this link, I invite you to read my introduction below.  After you click on the link, you can scroll down to find the documents on the conference web page.

https://nccumc.org/hw2020/  

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Ed

So You Can Hear

This morning I listened to a portion of Durham Mayor Steve Schewel's address to the city, in which he described a "Stay At Home" order for the people of Durham.  We've been seeing similar efforts pop up around the country - in small counties and big cities, in states and whole countries, as leaders grapple with how best to protect the public. 

My daughter Grace tuned in to his address with me for a few minutes, and I was surprised when Mayor Schewel said (I'm paraphrasing), "I have a message for pastors: arrange to make regular voice to voice contact with every one of your congregants, so you can hear how they are doing and if they have any special needs that you can work to meet.  Of course, in some larger churches it may not be feasible for one person to contact everyone, but these churches will have congregational leaders who can help." 

Then, while I was sitting there with my daughter (who is studying for her art degree from home right now), Mayor Schewel said (I'm paraphrasing), "I have a message for artists: we need your art.  We need you poets to be sharing your poems every day.  We need you musicians to share your music - every day - to feed our spirits and souls and remind us of the beauty in the world." 

That makes six times and counting, in the past week alone, I have had the experience of wondering, or praying, about something very specific, and in the next moment, someone is calling me with a rather specific answer.  I sit down with my daughter, a pastor and an artist on a couch, and I happen to tune in to the 10 minute portion of the mayor of Durham talking to the city with a live update in which he says "Here is a message for pastors.  Here is a message for artists."  I have a feeling I'm about to lose count how many times these meaningful intersections occur.  I think about someone who I haven't heard from in awhile, and I call or email them, and they respond that "God must have told you we were just talking about you."  It seems to me that these are not coincidences.  I believe there is something spiritual, something relational, going on.

Maybe in the midst of this great global slowdown, our spiritual ears are becoming unclogged.  Maybe the great quiet which is settling in on the nations is enabling us to pay more attention to God's "still, small voice." 

There's a story in the Old Testament about the prophet Elijah.  Elijah has done a very extreme version of "social distancing", fearing not a virus but a very angry human enemy.  He runs off into the wilderness and is exhausted, hungry, and feels he may die alone.  (I think we might be able to relate - the bible doesn't say it but I don't think he had any toilet paper either!!)  1 Kings 19, verses 11 and following, say,

"Then God said, "Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord."  And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.
"So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance to the cave.  Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, "What are you doing here, Elijah?""

Elijah replies that he is afraid that he is about to be killed, even though he has been faithful to God.  God reveals to him that he can go back home, that he is not alone, that in addition to God's abiding presence, there are thousands of others who also have a heart for serving God.

In our current circumstance, we have a virus rather than an army.  And now, we are adjusting to a new normal.  The new quiet.  The impending fear.  The worry about isolation or not enough resources.  We can relate to this story!  In the midst of this pandemic, I encourage you to pause and turn off the news for a little while every day.  Turn up the sensitivity of your spiritual ears, to listen for the still small voice.  Ask God for the answers to your questions.  Listen for who comes to mind.  Pray for them - right then and there!  Give them a call!  Pour out your fears to God, and ask God to reassure you.  Lean on your friends.  Give your pastor a call!  Share a blessing with a neighbor (from a safe distance!).  May we learn a new appreciation for the new quietness, so we can hear. Take a moment to thank God for all of the blessings God has given.

"God, thank you for the many blessings you have given.  For homes and food, for phones and schools, for friends and family and our church.  Speak to us anew, and give us ears to hear your voice.  Grant us the courage, the creativity, to deepen our trust in you, to go where you call us to go and to stay where you call us to stay.  In Jesus name we pray, Amen."

From our Bishop: "These Challenging Times"

Grace and Peace,

In her March 23 email to the NC Conference churches, Bishop Ward, in consultation with public health, government, and religious leaders, directs North Carolina United Methodist Churches in the following way:

"I urge you to continue the compassionate practice of not gathering for worship, funerals, weddings, studies, and other groups for the next two months."  - Bishop Hope Morgan Ward

I encourage you to read the full letter: 
Click here for the full message from our bishop.

We at Long Memorial will prayerfully and compassionately join with our brothers and sisters in this practice, while we continue to seek ways to remain connected in care to our church family.

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Ed

Generosity from a Distance

Friends,

Grace and peace!  I have missed you all so very much!  Perhaps like many of you, I am a very relational person, and I need our connections just like we all do! I pray that God will show us new ways of being together, and will deepen our relationships with God and one another in ways that we have never imagined during this time of anxiety and physical separation.  

Our church is an organization which relies on the generosity of its friends.  We try our best to be good stewards of that with which God has entrusted us.  We know and affirm that "all good things come from you, O God" when we give of our tithes and offerings.  

We know that this outbreak has, is, and will affect the economy in very significant ways.  For many people, income during this COVID-19 crisis will significantly decline.  Others may be blessed to see no change in our income.  Some have nest-eggs to help weather the storm, but the stress of using what they had planned to use in other ways is real and feels traumatic!  Some may be moved by the Spirit to share possessions, time, or finances in ways they have never considered before.   For some, in order to survive, it seems that we must carefully ration the little that we have and trust that God will see us through.  Still others will need to depend on God working through the generosity of strangers.  We are all sharing in this great unknown; may we do so with faithfulness.  

It is on my heart to remind you of two principles of Christian sharing.  One is that God's direction for God's people in the Bible (and in millennia of Christian tradition) is based on proportionality and faithfulness: we strive to give a portion, a fraction of what God provides.  There is precedent for giving a tenth of income or harvest, but there are examples of many other proportions of giving (all the way up to 100%!).  The second principle is that offerings are always an act of faith. In times of plenty or times of seeming scarcity, sharing is an act of trust that we are participating in God's larger kingdom.  With all acts of trust, we are choosing to take a risks.  Our faith is that God will take care of us. 

It is good to remember that God works through so many faithful people in so many ways.  I believe God is at work in every teacher tasked with handing out drive-through lunches at public schools, every work team that helps hurricane victims, every EMT who rolls into unknown situations during every emergency call, every parent who is doing their best to teach their children at home, every elderly person who is staying home and praying for grandchildren and neighbors.  The church is but one (very important) way that God accomplishes God's purposes in the world.

We should pray, together, for God to show us how and how much we are to share.  We believe the Holy Spirit is who empowers every act of love and generosity, so we ask for the quietness to listen, the wisdom to discern, and the faith to follow where God leads us.  

As we continue to support the church, so that the church can continue to minister to its staff and through its staff to the community, I am aware of several possibilities for financial giving to the church that may be new to you, since we are not gathering in communal worship in the sanctuary for the time being.  Other people may have other ideas, which we welcome.

1) At present, our church office remains open as usual.  We are cleaning all of our public spaces regularly, and our staff is practicing physical distance.  You may choose to bring your gift to the church.  If you ring the doorbell while the office is open, we can come and collect your gift at the door.  Please call before you come so that you can make sure someone will be there.  The church office number is (336) 599-1193.

2) You may choose to mail a check to us. The church address is Long Memorial UMC, PO Box 310, Roxboro, NC 27573.  Many people have long chosen to use this means of regular giving.  

3) The church office can help you set up regular electronic drafts from a bank account.  We have offered this for a number of years, and a number of our members have long taken advantage of this method of church giving.  In order to do this, we need you to fill out and sign a form and return it to us.  You can pick up a form from the church, or we can mail you one. Please call or email the church office if you need assistance.

4) You can use the app on your smart phone called Church+.  It's a free app.  You find and download the app from the app store, then you can use the app as a guest, or you can create an account for recurring transactions.  The app allows you to search for and select Long Memorial in Roxboro as the designation for your gift.  This app allows you to enter a debit or credit card number, and the funds are sent directly to the church's operating account.  

5) The North Carolina Conference UMC has set up a service on its website where you can make donations directly to Long Memorial or any other church in the conference.  This service enables you to include a memo line with your donation if you wish to direct your gift to a specific cause within our church ministries (E.g. "Parsonage" or "Capital Projects."  The link is https://nccumc.org/giving/church/.  Donations made in this way will be collected by the conference, then forwarded on to the church via direct deposit twice a month.

May God bless all of us as we dwell in God's presence and seek God's direction.  We will all need to offer help to others, even if it is in the form of prayer; and we will all need to receive help from others, in ways that perhaps we have never needed help before.  May God be at the center of it all.

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Ed
(919) 274-8061