As you can tell from the last entry from January 2015, it has been a while since I have posted anything here on the blog. It is time to reboot and go at it again.
Recently, the church staff and the leadership here at Tomball United Methodist Church, where I now serve as Senior Pastor, made a decision to have the focus of 2017 rest on discipleship. Simply put, we want to learn more about Jesus and grow to be better reflections of the One we claim to follow. To put it in the words of our new episcopal leader, Bishop Scott Jones, "we want to keep the main thing, the main thing."
Our goal is to provide a variety of tools to help maintain this focus. If you were in service yesterday morning, you noticed that we made some subtle changes to the bulletin that include a space for notes and a weekly challenge. Additionally, one of the many things that we are doing to fulfill this focus, is that we are returning to a predominately Lectionary driven sermon schedule for our Sunday morning services during the 2017 calendar year (Woven, our 5:30 Sunday evening service will not follow the Lectionary). The Revised Common Lectionary is a resource that provides multiple scripture passages each week and is used by many as a guide for preaching. This resource has three years of material organized in a way that you can work through the majority of the Bible (both old and new testaments) during that time if it is followed. Each week provides you with an Old Testament reading, a psalter reading, a gospel reading and an epistle reading. So in your bulletin, you will also see that we are printing each of the Lectionary readings for the upcoming Sunday and some questions related to those passages so that you might read ahead and come to worship prepared in a different way to encounter God's word.
Additionally, I've committed to posting something here about each of the readings throughout the week. I will post about the readings (addressing only one reading per day) on Monday through Thursday and I'll blog prayers, and other tidbits as I feel moved to do. The Lectionary related articles will be posted (after today) at 6:00 a.m. Monday thru Thursday. I will post non-related topics at varying times on other days.
As with any blog, you are welcome to join into the conversation through the comments section. If there is a particular topic or idea you want explored more deeply, leave a comment and perhaps we can look at it in a future post.
I hope and pray that this work we will do together will deepen the conversations we have and will help us all to grow closer in likeness and in deed to our Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer.
Blessings,
Russell
Recently, the church staff and the leadership here at Tomball United Methodist Church, where I now serve as Senior Pastor, made a decision to have the focus of 2017 rest on discipleship. Simply put, we want to learn more about Jesus and grow to be better reflections of the One we claim to follow. To put it in the words of our new episcopal leader, Bishop Scott Jones, "we want to keep the main thing, the main thing."
Our goal is to provide a variety of tools to help maintain this focus. If you were in service yesterday morning, you noticed that we made some subtle changes to the bulletin that include a space for notes and a weekly challenge. Additionally, one of the many things that we are doing to fulfill this focus, is that we are returning to a predominately Lectionary driven sermon schedule for our Sunday morning services during the 2017 calendar year (Woven, our 5:30 Sunday evening service will not follow the Lectionary). The Revised Common Lectionary is a resource that provides multiple scripture passages each week and is used by many as a guide for preaching. This resource has three years of material organized in a way that you can work through the majority of the Bible (both old and new testaments) during that time if it is followed. Each week provides you with an Old Testament reading, a psalter reading, a gospel reading and an epistle reading. So in your bulletin, you will also see that we are printing each of the Lectionary readings for the upcoming Sunday and some questions related to those passages so that you might read ahead and come to worship prepared in a different way to encounter God's word.
Additionally, I've committed to posting something here about each of the readings throughout the week. I will post about the readings (addressing only one reading per day) on Monday through Thursday and I'll blog prayers, and other tidbits as I feel moved to do. The Lectionary related articles will be posted (after today) at 6:00 a.m. Monday thru Thursday. I will post non-related topics at varying times on other days.
As with any blog, you are welcome to join into the conversation through the comments section. If there is a particular topic or idea you want explored more deeply, leave a comment and perhaps we can look at it in a future post.
I hope and pray that this work we will do together will deepen the conversations we have and will help us all to grow closer in likeness and in deed to our Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer.
Blessings,
Russell
No comments:
Post a Comment