“His Eye Is On The Sparrow”
God said, “Let the earth produce every kind of living thing: livestock, crawling things, and wildlife.” And that’s what happened. God made every kind of wildlife, every kind of livestock, and every kind of creature that crawls on the ground. God saw how good it was.” Genesis 1:24-25
As I write this, I’m sitting next to our 12-week-old puppy who is sleeping (one of her favorite pastimes, right after chewing on things she’s not supposed to). Just looking at her can bring a smile to my face. It doesn’t matter if she is serenely snoozing or getting into trouble, her sass, cuteness, and funny little personality just make me happy.
I often wonder if, when God created animals, he had any idea how much joy they would bring into our lives. Genesis tells us that when livestock, crawling things, and wildlife were created, God saw how good they were. A strictly literal reading of creation could conclude that all these animals were only made for utilitarian purposes – for food and work. In fact, in Genesis 2, God sees Adam alone with the animals and worries that Adam doesn’t have a suitable companion (even then God knew men should not be left alone).
But the thing about animals is that they do become companions to us. They are more than creatures that exist to feed us, lighten our workload, or protect us. It isn’t cliché to say that our pets become like members of our family. We love them, care for them, find joy in them, delight in them, and our lives are better off for their presence. God gave us a wonderful gift when he created the animals of the earth with whom we are to share in his creation.
Coming up in a couple of weeks, we are going to spend some time thanking God for our wonderful companions. On October 1, we will gather at 1:00 p.m. on our church lawn to participate in a time of thanking God for our animals and to offer a special blessing on them as well. This simple service will provide an opportunity to bring our four-legged companions together, to give thanks over them, and to ask God for a special blessing on this part of his good creation.
I encourage you to make plans to join us for this special service and to invite others to attend. This is one of those offerings of the church we have created that might be a non-threatening opportunity for those who are skeptical about organized religion or church in general to “dip their toe in the water.” I look forward to this time to give God thanks for our pets and all the animals of creation, and I hope you will join us.
Blessings, Chris
Mission
To make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
Vision
Nelson Memorial UMC seeks to be a place where all God’s broken, hurting, and imperfect children discover wholeness and community while experiencing the warm and welcoming love of Jesus Christ. We seek to connect with one another to grow in our knowledge and love of God, to encourage each person to live out their unique calling to serve God, and to make a difference in the Boonville community and throughout the world.
Priorities
Developing and Nurturing Faith in Children and Youth
Fostering Growth and Community in Worship and Small Groups
Provide Opportunities to Serve God in Boonville and Beyond
Worship This Week
This Sunday we continue our message series titled “Modern Wisdom: Biblical Truths From Modern-Day Proverbs. Each week we will look at a popular saying and see what Biblical truths we can find in them. This week we will look at the phrase “No Man Is An Island.” Our Scripture focus will be from the Book of Exodus, Chapter 18, verses 13 through 18:
The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, “What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?”
Moses answered him, “Because the people come to me to seek God’s will. Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God’s decrees and instructions.”
Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.“
Our services will begin with the Gathering Song In The Room by Matt Maher. Our Opening Hymn for the 8:00 service will be Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty, and God Really Loves Us in the 10:20 service. Our Praise Song will be As The Deer, and our Closing Hymn will be Bind Us Together.
Virtual Worship Information
In addition to in-person worship, our service will be live-streamed. The service can be viewed on our Facebook Page. The service will start at approximately 10:20 am with our Gathering Song. Additionally, we post a recording of our messages to our website by early Sunday afternoon.
Announcements
Are You Ready to Rock?!?– The band Rend Collective (Build Your Kingdom Here, My Lighthouse) is coming to the Missouri Theater in Columbia on Sunday, October 8. (The show begins at 7:00 pm, with the doors opening at 6:15.) Tickets are $23/each if we take a group of 10 or more. If you are interested in attending, please sign up on the sheet in the East Wing or in the back of the Sanctuary. Please contact Pastor Chris if you have any questions.
Blessing of the Animals – On Sunday, October 1, we will host a “Blessing of the Animals” event on our west lawn. We will begin at 1:00 pm with a short time of prayer giving God thanks for the creatures we share this world with and the difference they make in our lives. There will be a time for individual blessings of animals following the short service. You are invited to bring your animals (pets, livestock, service animals, etc.) to receive a blessing. Also, please feel free to invite any family, friends, neighbors, or others who might want to come and give thanks with us for the companions God has given to us. Please contact Pastor Chris if you have any questions.
New Studies:
Be Still: A Simple Guide to Quiet Times – This book by Brian Heasley is a practical approach to establishing the rhythms of prayer and devotion in our lives. It includes discussions on practicing imaginative prayer, finding wonder, and cultivating contentment. Heasley’s message is that we don’t need to be static for our hearts to be still.
Interested in participating? – Order the book Be Still: A Simple Guide to Quiet Times by Brian Heasley at any book outlet. Meet in the church lounge Monday, October 9 at 6 PM.
Jesus and Justice Small Group: – As Jesus people, we are called to engage in seeking justice. But what does God’s justice look like? In this new small group, we will take a look at Biblical justice and explore ways we can be a people of justice in our families, workspaces, local community, and the world by following in the footsteps of Jesus.
Interested in participating? – Order the book God of Justice by Abraham George and Nikki A. Toyama-Szeto at any book outlet. Meet in the church lounge on Saturday, October 14 at 9:30 AM. Pastries and coffee provided!!
Mission Trip Opportunity – We are tentatively planning an adult mission work team to again travel to Fulton First United Methodist Church (Fulton, Tennessee) beginning the first weekend in November into the following week to complete home repairs in N/W Tennessee and S/W Kentucky. You may remember that a year ago this area was hit by a very large tornado which destroyed or damaged many homes and buildings. Recently, this area was hit again by one of the largest rainfalls in recorded history, flooding many of the homes, some that were repaired just a year ago. If you would like information to join us on this mission, please see Bill Salyer, Tim VonEngeln or Larry Long for details.
Save the Date – On Saturday, November 4, the Outreach Team will host a church-wide MISSION EXTRAVAGANZA!! We will have a variety of mission projects for people of all ages and abilities. These include: leaf raking, cooking baking, flood-kit assembling, and even some sewing! There will also be projects you can do from the comfort of your own home. So mark November 4 on the calendar and share it with a friend. Together, we will work to build God’s kingdom here!! More details to follow…
Growth Opportunity – Have you ever wanted to be one of those “chapter and verse people” – one of those folks who can recite important and meaningful verse of Scripture? We have a group for you. There are many reasons for memorization of scriptures where it increases your knowledge of God: of who he is, what he’s promised, and who I am in Christ (2 Peter 3:18). It will give you knowledge, wisdom, and understanding (Proverbs 2:1-6). It will help you remember God’s Word. Cindy Koch is putting together a group that will focus on learning and reciting Scriptures. If you’d like to be a part of this group, please contact Cindy Koch (660-888-5408) for more information.
Attention Walkers – A group is forming to walk the Katy Trail once a week. We will meet on Tuesday mornings, gathering in the lounge at 10:00 am. If you have any questions please contact Cindy Koch at (660) 888-5408.
Church Library News – Cindy Koch is our own famous author for the month of September. The title of Cindy’s book is Come September. It is a story about a young woman named Carrie who is in her last year of journalism college. She was raised by grandparents who would not talk about her parents. Any information she learned had to be hunted down. On her 21st birthday, she is surprised with something that will help her find out the crucial missing pieces. She finds much more than just answers along the way. Check with Cindy if you want to purchase her book. All proceeds go to our Baby Grace program.
Christian Movie Night – Our next movie night will be Sunday, September 17 in the Fellowship Hall beginning at 6:30 pm. We will be watching “Ruth” of Sight and Sound production. On September 24 we will watch Sight and Sound’s production of “Esther.” Come join us for popcorn and a movie, and bring your own soda.
Events this week:
Sunday, September 17: Christian Movie Group, 5:00 pm, Fellowship Hall
Youth Group, 6:00 pm, Jackson’s Home
Monday, September 18: TOPS, 9:30 am, Lounge
Al-Anon, 8:00 pm, Fellowship Hall
Tuesday, September 19: Administrative Board, 6:00 pm, Fellowship Hall
Wednesday, September 20: Women’s Bible Study, 10:15 am, Lounge
Al-Anon, Noon, Fellowship Hall
Thursday, September 21: Baby Grace Distribution, 5:00 pm, Annex
Friday, September 22: Al-Anon Meeting, 8:00 pm, Fellowship Hall
Closing Words of Wisdom:
If you have men who will exclude any of God’s creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men.” – St. Francis Of Assisi Quotes: Patron Saint of Animals