July 16, 2018 - Sunday was the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time. The topic of conversation this morning was the electrical outage around Tenaha and the really hot dry weather. Being without air conditioning for just a short while is no fun, and five or six hours makes for an uncomfortable day. Fannie handed off the baton to Joe, and he taught our Sunday school lesson. He did a fine job. The lesson was the parable about the widow and the unjust judge. The scripture was Luke 18: 1-8. The judge was not only unjust: In Jesus’ parable he did not fear God or have respect for his fellow human beings. The widow was determined to get justice from this dishonest man; her relentless demands forced the judge to give her what was fair. Jesus is telling his listeners that God will provide justice for his people without the prodding needed for the judge.
We had a small crowd this morning, which isn’t unusual for Paxton Methodist. The Epistle Lesson for this Sunday was Ephesians 1: 3-14, filled with some of the most awe-inspiring language found in the New Testament. These twelve verses are classified as a eulogy—but not one for a funeral. The word “eulogy” is from the Greek, meaning “a blessing from God.” The writer of Ephesians says we are the focus of God’s love. We are part of his family. That is something to feel really good about. The word “Gospel” means good news, and that’s what this passage gives us. Joe and Hilda teamed up to bring us our music this morning, with traditional songs we know and enjoy singing.
Hilda said they had a good program at Focused Care and that Minnie, Nora, Fannie, and Pastor Matt joined her. I was under the weather that Tuesday. Next month we plan to start our program at 10:00 instead of 10:15. This month we will collect cans of spaghetti and ravioli for Community Christian Services. Sue gave a report about the goods we have donated and really bragged on how well all the CCS volunteers have things running. This Tuesday our ministry will be at Holiday Nursing Center at 2:00.
“Whoever you are, in whatever faith you were born, whatever creed you profess; if you come to this house to find God you are welcome here.” Paxton United Methodist Church is an inviting church that takes to heart the idea of “Open Doors, Open Hearts, Open Minds.” Sunday School starts at 9:30 and Worship begins at 10:00. Our email address is paxtonumc@yahoo.com. If you would like the weekly email newsletter about Paxton Methodist you can send me your email address to the Paxton email address and I will add you to the list. Godspeed.
