Manna for your Soul

Scripture: Leviticus 25: 1-19

In this message, we will reflect on how embracing the gift of rest allows us to be people of restoration, renewal, and wholeness. The Year of Jubilee teaches us about balance, equity, and kinship, celebrating that rest is a gift for all of God’s creation. 

Scripture: Genesis 2: 1-3

This four-week series explores the profound importance of rest in our lives. As we continue, we will learn how to find a healthy balance of rest, work, and play, understand the rhythm of rest modeled by God, and affirm that God has given everyone the gift of rest to be embraced.

This message reflects the natural ebb and flow of our minds, bodies, and spirits, which God has modeled for us. 

This four-week series explores the profound importance of rest in our lives. As we continue the series, we will learn how to find a healthy balance of rest, work, and play, understand the rhythm of rest modeled by God, and affirm that God has given everyone the gift of rest to be embraced.

This message help us reflect on how to cultivate a healthy rhythm of rest, work, and play, recognizing that balance is essential for our well-being and spiritual growth.

This four-week series explores the profound importance of rest in our lives. We start with Elijah's experience of divine rest, learn how to find a healthy balance of rest, work, and play, understand the rhythm of rest modeled by God, and affirm that God has given everyone the gift of rest to be embraced.

This message uses the story of Elijah to reflect on how God might help us be released into rest rather than stretching us to do more.

Worship Series: “Created for Connection”

God created us for connection and community. 

Drawing on the experiences of the early church in scripture, let us relearn how God leads us into lives of meaningful relationship with Godself and one another.

The message: “Connection with Community”

Scripture Lesson: Hebrews 10: 23-25 CEB

In our loneliness, we often retreat from church and community.  We are called, as believers, to prioritize the time for worship and small groups to encourage each other in the faith.

Scripture: John 11: 1-7; 17-26

Today’s question is: “Will Purpose make me happy?”

In a world that prioritizes “happiness,” God calls us into a more expansive vision of faith and flourishing. 

When we don’t have the answer to where we are going, we often feel like we are wandering and “wasting time.” 

But with God, no time is wasted. In our wandering, God offers us an opportunity to explore new possibilities through acts of creativity, wonder, and play.

Scripture: Exodus 16

Purpose is what we can do today. We must not only focus on the future but also the present. What do we have to offer right now, and who needs it? When we offer what we have now, we find – often to our surprise – that our purpose begins to come into focus.

Who Am I? That is today’s focus. We may feel like we are defined by our highs and lows, but first and foremost, we are defined by God’s love for us. God’s love promises to redeem our whole stories. It allows us to look back over our lives and see how all our experiences—good, bad, and in-between—can shape and clarify our purpose.

Scripture: Matthew 5: 13-16

Finding our purpose is discovering who God has uniquely created us to be and how our gifts can serve others at any moment.

Message preached at Tuckerton United Methodist Church on Sunday, July 14, 2024.

Scripture: John 3: 1-9

Have you ever asked this question: Why am I here? Trying to discover the purpose of our lives can lead to a lot of questions: Who am I? Do I have a “calling”? What am I supposed to do with my life? What does purposeful living look like? Often, the world is all too ready to give us answers to these questions – promising that finding the perfect job or achieving the next milestone will make us happy. But in this series, we will embrace these questions as an invitation to discover what it is that God wants to do with the story of our lives right now.

Why Am I Here? That is today’s focus. Asking this question opens us up to God’s purpose for our lives.

Scripture: Jonah 1: 1-17

Jonah, called by God to share a message of grace and mercy, decided to run away from that calling. Still, God shared grace and mercy with Jonah, the same message God wanted him to share with Nineveh. Jonah thought he might run away from sharing the message, but in the end, he was running to God’s message of grace and mercy—the same way you and I are embraced by God’s love.

Scripture: Matthew 8: 23-27

In the face of a storm, Jesus is sleeping while his disciples are struggling to keep the boat afloat. The storm is hammering the fishing boat, the disciples are screaming, the boat is rocking hard, and Jesus is sleeping. Not bothered by all the commotion happening around him. He was in a deep sleep. The same happens to many of us who have a deep sleep. Things can happen around us, and we don’t even notice it. Who keeps on sleeping through screams like that? Who sleeps through a storm of that magnitude? We will meditate more about this in today's message.

Scripture: Matthew 7: 7-12

Scripture: Exodus 14: 15-16, 21-22

God makes a way for you to walk in faith and continue to serve with hope. 

Scripture: Acts 27: 13-26

In the storms of life, our faith is the anchor that will keep us centered in God’s love and help us not to drift away from God’s love and hope. 

Scripture: John 15: 9-17

Friends, we continue our Eastertide journey. A 50-day celebration leading towards Pentecost, where we celebrate the good news that in Christ’s death and resurrection, we, and all creation, are continually being made new by God’s love and saving grace.

As we continue to reflect on Chapter 15 of John, we will listen to God’s calling to love one another. How we live and love in this world is the presentation of Christ to those who don’t know him yet. How we share and give does not just reflect on us, but it reflects on Jesus. Through acts of love, we share Christ.

Scripture: Isaiah 43: 18-19

Friends, we continue our Eastertide journey. A 50-day celebration leading towards Pentecost, where we celebrate the good news that in Christ’s death and resurrection, we, and all creation, are continually being made new by God’s love and saving grace.

Today, we continue reflecting on the new God is doing in and through our lives. God can transform the desert areas of your life into fields of blessing and abundance. God can transform a dried-up life into a life of purpose and grace.

Friends, welcome to our Lenten journey through the valley. Just as Jesus wandered in the wilderness for forty days, so too can we feel like we are wandering in the wilderness, as we face hardships, grief, temptations, and injustices. 

During our lenten journey, we will discover what it means to wander these parts of life in honesty with God through the practice of lament. We will learn how crying out to God in our need can help us to fully embrace what it means to be human beings held and loved by a God we can trust. We will learn that even through the darkest valleys, Jesus both goes ahead of us and walks with us.   

Today, we will focus on lament and surrender. Looking at Jesus’ story at Gethsemane, we will see how Jesus did not always love his options and in the midst of lament, he still freely chose to surrender to God.

Friends, welcome to our Lenten journey through the valley. Just as Jesus wandered in the wilderness for forty days, so too can we feel like we are wandering in the wilderness, as we face hardships, grief, temptations, and injustices. 

During our lenten journey, we will discover what it means to wander these parts of life in honesty with God through the practice of lament. We will learn how crying out to God in our need can help us to fully embrace what it means to be human beings held and loved by a God we can trust. We will learn that even through the darkest valleys, Jesus both goes ahead of us and walks with us.   

Today, we will focus on lament and honesty. Looking at Job’s story, we will see how Job’s response to his friends ensures us that we can be honest with God in even the most painful situations, trusting God to be God in the process.

Friends, welcome to our Lenten journey through the valley. Just as Jesus wandered in the wilderness for forty days, so can we feel like we are wandering in the wilderness as we face hardships, grief, temptations, and injustices. 

During our lenten journey, we will discover what it means to wander these parts of life honestly with God through the practice of lament. We will learn how crying out to God in our need can help us to fully embrace what it means to be human beings held and loved by a God we can trust. We will learn that even through the darkest valleys, Jesus goes ahead of us and walks with us.   

Today, we will focus on why Lament? Using Psalm 13 as the scripture lesson, we will see how lament invites us to face our humanity. Lament is a natural part of our faithful, loving response to a world of sin and brokenness.

Scripture: Judges 5: 1-9

Heroes do not just belong in comic books and blockbuster movies. We have them in real life too – people whose courage, strength, and resilience we can look up to as models for our own lives. In this summer series, we will meet three outstanding heroes from our faith story. Their readiness to listen to God’s voice in their lives and act on it inspires us to do the same.

Today we will focus on the story of Deborah. God is at work and calling us into partnership! Are you ready to do your part?

We celebrated Christmas in July!

Here is the message using John 3:16

The Bible is full of stories of redemption, change, and hope. Through four of those stories, we will discover how faith in a Risen Jesus can transform our lives for the better here and now. No matter how big or how small we fall, God outstretches God’s hand, ready to raise us up.

Today's story we find in the Gospel of John, chapter 21, verses 15 to 19, is the story of Peter. The love and forgiveness of God is what enables us to rise above our mistakes and become more faithful disciples.

The Bible is full of stories of redemption, change, and hope. Through four of those stories, we will discover how faith in a Risen Jesus can transform our lives for the better here and now. No matter how big or how small we fall, God outstretches God’s hand, ready to raise us up.

Today's story we find in the Gospel of John, chapter 20, verses 24 to 29, is the story of Thomas. The journey from unbelief to belief requires a grace-filled encounter with the Living Christ.

Matthew 6:9-15

Forgiveness frees us from resentment and turmoil. God, who knows us inside out, sees where our mistakes and failings come from. God loves us through it all, offers forgiveness as a gift, and shows us how to extend it to others. 

Psalm 137 

It is difficult to understand how God could allow the pain and suffering we see in the world and in our own lives. Jesus is Emmanuel, “God with Us”. Jesus reminds us that a better question to ask ourselves is, “What can I do to help those who are suffering and in pain?”

Psalm 100
We might be able to believe in God, pray, and even worship alone, but in a community of faith, despite all its imperfections, we can connect, grow, and experience God’s love for us in ways we never could on our own.

Hebrews 4:12-14
As Christians, we must always remember the purpose of the Bible is to call us back to God by retelling the story of salvation that culminates in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We cheapen the Bible when we use it to promote our own agendas.

1 John 4:7-19
People often wonder who God is or if God even exists. Each time we give, receive, or witness love, we get closer and closer to our answer.

Isaiah 6:1-8; Matthew 6:1-6
Doubts about faith and life are normal. Unfortunately, Christians are often taught to view doubts as failing God. Isaiah teaches us that by bringing our doubts into the open, we allow God’s grace to fill us with peace and strength.

Scripture: Psalms 51

Our focus today is to prepare our hearts for the approaching season of Lent. We can come and find that God is waiting for us, waiting to receive us back into fellowship, waiting to be reconciled with us yet again.

Scripture: Genesis 37: 3-11

Dreams and hope can lead us to achieve God’s purpose in our lives, even in challenging times.

Luke 19:1-10
A bold act of inclusion changed the life of Zacchaeus the tax collector as well as the whole community. How many lives can we transform if we really devote ourselves to inclusion? A fresh start requires being open to Jesus’ invitation to us as well as to those who are not valued in our community – the outcasts or the marginalized.

Luke 17:11-19
Jesus has the power to change lives through God’s grace. Our own seemingly intractable flaws can be overcome, and we can change the world in response to the change offered to us. A fresh start begins with living in awe and gratitude of God’s gifts.

Luke 13:31-35
Jesus refused to be distracted from his divine mission by dangers or frustrations. We are called to follow his example of steadfast purpose in fulfilling our mission. A fresh start requires steadfast purpose and accepting God’s embrace.

Mark 8:27-38
“Taking up our crosses” to be disciples of Jesus means being willing to risk inconvenient demands on our time, lack of certainty, embarrassment, and sometimes even physical danger. But Jesus is the way to life, and he calls us to make fresh starts in faith. A fresh start requires courage, focus, and practice.

Isaiah 35: 1-10
God’s deliverance of Israel and of us is cause for joyful celebration, not just human celebration but the celebration of all creation!

This Advent season, as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus, we celebrate how he has made possible what once seemed impossible – peace, hope, joy and love!

Isaiah 11: 1-10
Emmanuel, God with us, gives us hope. When we know God through Jesus, we can have hope that one day all will be restored.

This Advent season, as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus, we celebrate how he has made possible what once seemed impossible – peace, hope, joy and love!

Isaiah 2: 1-5
Jesus invites us into a change of mindset, to be agents of peace, offering us a new possibility for relating to others, a way of peace.

Scripture: Genesis 18: 1-15

Laity Sunday is observed on the third Sunday in October (October 16, 2022). Each year The United Methodist Church celebrates the ministry and witness of laypersons everywhere through a special service.

Scripture: Acts 3: 1-10

Equipped | 1 Samuel 17:31-40
God gives us the tools we need to fulfill our call. It won’t necessarily look the way we expected or be the way others do it, but God will create our own way for us.

Supported | 1 Samuel 20:1-17
Answering a call is rarely easy. But with the support of good friends and a community, we don’t have to face the hardships alone.

Sunday after, we learned a dear friend, a faithful member of Tuckerton UMC passed away.

Scripture: I Samuel 16: 1-13

God has a (different) purpose for everyone, even if it seems unlikely or calls you away from the “norm.”

What are the possibilities when you release the blessings you have been given, and they overflow into the world?

When taking a road trip, the journey matters as much as the arrival at your destination. Every road trip should include a can’t miss stop along the route. It is just as important in our faith journeys not to miss the movement of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Today's Message: Celebrating new life is about embracing how God transforms us to thrive and experience joy.

Today's message: Embrace God’s calling for you, believe that God will do what God promises, and take courageous action in your life.

Today's message: As the body of Christ, we are called to celebrate the diverse ways God is reflected in each and every person.