October 26, 2020 - Grace and peace from our brother Jesus, Amen. Sunday was the 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time. We had a good rain in Joaquin Friday, and Saturday morning was nice and cool. My two dog companions, Gunter and Sam, along with our grand-dog Stella, went to the park with me Saturday morning. They had such a good time running and chasing each other. The cool morning air also put an extra step into my walking.
Paxton Methodist Church is meeting each Sunday wearing masks and practicing social distancing. Shelby County has had a big increase in Covid cases just as the nation as a whole has seen a huge spike in cases and deaths. Our music is only on piano and CD—no singing to spread germs. Mrs. Hilda played a lively special, “Sweetest Name I Know.” Our Hymn of Joy was “O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing,” the Methodist anthem.
In the month of October we collected peanut butter and jelly for Community Christian Services. Next month we will collect rice and beans. Community Christian Services has had several extra-large food giveaways recently, with long lines of vehicles coming for food boxes. This has really helped out during a very difficult time. The volunteers are such hard-working people doing good works! The pandemic has caused eight million more people to fall under the poverty line. Texas has the highest number of uninsured people in the United States, which has added to the burden of providing medical care to those in need. So CCS is definitely meeting an important demand.
Our Sunday School Lesson for Sunday was based on Luke 22: 14-20. The lesson talked about communion and how it became so important in the universal church over the centuries. Communion was very important in John Wesley’s theology because he saw the very act as a means of grace from God. Our author said that communion brings together the past, the present, and the future. This lesson was a good preparation for next Sunday, which is All Saints Day.
The Gospel lesson for Sunday was Matthew 22: 34-40, the most concise statement of what a follower of Jesus should believe, feel, and do. When asked by a group of Sadducees and Pharisees to name the most important commandment in the Torah, Jesus said it was to love God and then to love one’s fellow human beings. As theologian Marcus Borg would say, “This, the greatest commandment, strikes at the very heart of what it means to be a Christian.”
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, and Open Minds.” 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 your email address to the Paxton email address, and I will add you to the list. God’s Speed.
