United Christian Ministries is in need of cereal.
To donate items, please drop them off at UCM’s building at 191 Skyland Drive. Thank you!
Mission Moment 8.20.25
Greg and Sue Smith
CBF Field Personnel, Carthage, Ark.
But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.” –Ruth 1:16
Have you ever found yourself staring at something—or someone—so intently that, without realizing it, you were crying? It could be a beautiful landscape vista that created in you an amazing sense of awe. Or a masterful painting that penetrated your soul more deeply than anything ever had before. Or an act of kindness so genuine and compassionate that it reminded you, despite humanity’s waywardness, that God did pronounce our creation to be “very good.”
I have. I recently found myself brushing away a tear. It happened when I beheld, as if for the first time, the gift of my grandchild. Just the thought of that moment even now brings tremendous life, joy and peace to my soul.
Sue and I have six grandchildren, each a gift of salvation. Together, a gift more wonderful than words can describe. A gift that saves me time and again.
Whether my gift comes…
When one of my grandchildren cries out “Pappa” or “Abuelo” (I go by both!); or
When I kneel next to the younger grandchildren and watch the helicopters and airplanes take off and land at the local airport; or
When I hang a picture on our wall or a drawing created with care on our refrigerator; or
When I toss a ball or shoot hoops and we talk about the day; or
When I watch them play with their friends with such joy and enthusiasm; or
When I hold our youngest in my arms and gaze at a big, toothless smile looking back…
It’s all the same. Each is a precious, wonderful and joyful gift from a loving and saving God.
The biblical Ruth couldn’t contemplate life without her family. That is the essence of her plea to her mother-in-law Naomi not to send her away. While I cannot “cling to” my grandchildren as Ruth clung to Naomi, I share her sentiment of life as unbearable apart from the ones who give meaning and joy to our own.
If I had enough space here, I would also include Sue, my children, my parents, my sister and her family and others as God’s gifts of salvation in my life.
But the faces, smiles, laughter, silliness—even the mischievousness—of my grandchildren signify at this stage of my life a vital, yea critical, way God is saving me.
¡A Dios sea la gloria!
Pray, Practice, Ponder
Who or what brings so much joy to your life that imaging it moves you to tears? Today, ponder how God might be using this gift as a part of God’s salvation, your restoration and your wholeness.
Pray. . .Give. . .Go.
First Explorers After School
Mission Moment 8.13.25
Jessica Hearne
CBF Field Personnel, Danville, Va.
“The sun shines not on us but in us. The rivers flow not past, but through us. Thrilling, tingling, vibrating every fiber and cell of the substance of our bodies, making them glide and sing. The trees wave and the flowers bloom in our bodies as well as our souls, and every bird song, wind song, and tremendous storm song of the rocks in the heart of the mountains is our song, our very own, and sings our love.”
—John Muir
I don’t sit still well and never really have. I have always gravitated toward work that would keep me on my feet and constantly moving. In my work with the church at Grace and Main, I am out and about all the time—managing the Urban Farm, helping people with transportation, picking up and delivering donated items. By the time I finally sit down in the evening, I am often surprised by how sore my feet are. I love to be moving and doing!
When it comes to the parts of my work that are less active, it is sometimes difficult to convince my mind and body to stop moving. Whether it’s returning phone calls, submitting financial statements or sending quick emails, the transition to stillness is jarring, and I find myself making an excuse to get up and move around every so often to try to clear my head. During these times when the need to be still is too overwhelming, I take some time to go outside.
Recently, I learned the term “forest bathing,” which I find very intriguing. The idea comes from Japan, where people started practicing it in the 1980s as a way to fight burnout in a society that was increasingly technology and achievement oriented. The term describes a practice of immersing oneself in a forest, connecting with creation through mindfulness practice while surrounded by greenery. I didn’t know the term until recently, but as soon as I learned about this practice, I immediately believed in the validity of it. After all, I believe that my own desire to go outside comes from the need to connect with my Creator by being among creation.
So, when I am feeling overwhelmed—when my thoughts are jumbled and my body can’t be still—I step outside. Even just five minutes among the flowers and birds in my own front yard will help me feel grounded and clear my head. When life and work are overwhelming and I need to take time to listen for the voice of God, I take a walk on a nature trail or along the river that winds through our city. The smell of honeysuckle, the sight of deer and groundhogs, the sounds of rushing water, all proclaim the glory of God. They are a reminder of the words of the prophet Isaiah: “For you shall go out in joy, and be led back in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall burst into song, and the trees of the fields shall clap their hands.” (Is. 55:12 NRSV).
Pray, Practice, Ponder
This week, try on the spiritual practice of forest bathing. You can do this in a park near your home, in your yard if you have one or even on a tree-lined city street. Step outside and immerse yourself in the world around you with all of your senses. Take off your shoes, if you are able, and walk through grass. Touch your hands to the trunk of a tree. Smell a leaf or flower. Soak up the energy of the natural world.
Pray. . .Give. . .Go.
Giving the Jesus Way
United Christian Ministries is in need of cereal.
To donate items, please drop them off at UCM’s building at 191 Skyland Drive. Thank you!
First Explorers After School
Summer Picnic
Let’s invite everyone— EVERYONE—to join us at Deep Creek on Sunday, August 17, from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. for a wonderful time of friendship and feasting (covered dish). This is a terrific way to introduce people to our congregation. Please note: we are planning on having a baptism for Stephanie Dickerson on this day. Please leave all cell phones in your car during this time.
A parking pass is required for each vehicle. The cost is $5. The pass must be displayed in the vehicle window. Passes may be purchased at kiosks, visitor centers, or online at recreation.gov, then select "buy a pass.”
We will restart our WEEKLY meals on Wednesday, September 3 (which is the Wednesday following Labor Day).
Giving the Jesus Way
United Christian Ministries is in need of cereal.
To donate items, please drop them off at UCM’s building at 191 Skyland Drive. Thank you!
Summer Picnic
Let’s invite everyone— EVERYONE—to join us at Deep Creek on Sunday, August 17, from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. for a wonderful time of friendship and feasting (covered dish). This is a terrific way to introduce people to our congregation. We will restart our WEEKLY meals on Wednesday, September 3 (which is the Wednesday following Labor Day).
Mission Moment 8.6.25
Alice Tremaine
Chaplain and Advance Care Planning Coordinator, Baptist Health, Kentucky and Indiana
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. –Psalm 23:4-5a
I’ve always been struck by the contrasts depicted in the 23rd Psalm: A prepared table and an overflowing cup, in the presence of danger, or enemies. Who has the gumption to enjoy an extravagant meal while staring at one’s mortal enemy?
There’s nothing I enjoy more than sitting at a table and sharing a meal with dear friends. I love a beautifully decorated table, generous portions of food and the merry sound of laughter among friends. It is this kind of table that I imagine when I read this psalm—an abundantly and artfully prepared table, situated among friends whose hearts overflow with joy, just as their cups overflow.
Yet, in that same image, I am suddenly aware that a threat looms just across the table, in the figure of a present enemy. Surprisingly, the party doesn’t stop. The guests feel the tension, the juxtaposition between joy and fear, celebration and the threat of loss, and continue to allow their cups to be filled.
Like the psalmist, I am all too aware that life is full of contradictions and unpredictable changes. One moment, we are lying down in green pastures and resting beside quiet waters, and the next moment, we are walking through the valley of the shadow of death. In both my ministerial calling as a chaplain and in my personal life, I have experienced the complex truth that life can be beautiful, rich, exhilarating and also extremely painful, sometimes all at once.
When my father was diagnosed with ALS, a terminal illness, many years ago, I felt that all the easiness and joy I had experienced in life were over. Life as I knew it would never be the same. All the color had drained from my life; from then on, my life would be forever divided between before and after the diagnosis, and the associated losses that would follow.
I was surprised to find that, eventually, my heart was still able to hold both joy and pain, sometimes at the same time. While my life has indeed changed, it is not without color.
What saved my life then and is saving my life now is the community around the table—filling each other’s cups, passing the bread around, allowing conversation and laughter to flow easily, all while having the courage to look fear in the face together.
The table is always set before us, lavishly prepared by God, even in the presence of danger or loss. May we dare to enter into community, experiencing the fullness of God’s goodness and mercy our whole lives long.
Pray, Practice, Ponder
This week, consider gathering with friends or family around the table, sharing one another’s stories of pain and loss, and “filling each other’s cups”—both physically and spiritually.
Pray. . .Give. . .Go.