2022 Hands-On Mission Project- Zimbabwe Holston Annual Conference

2022 Hands-On Mission Project- Zimbabwe

Unlike school supplies, food items have expiration dates. Be sure and check the dates and make sure they do not expire until 2023 in order to cover transport time and having a useful life for the people in Zimbabwe.

The Smoky Mountain District has been asked to put together 400 Food Buckets for the 2022 Holston Annual Conference Hands-On Mission Project. Note: A $5.00 donation for packing and shipping is to accompany each bucket. Each church is asked to bring ONE check for the total donation amount. Make checks out to Smoky Mountain District and put 2022

Hands-On in the memo line. * Do not put money in the bucket!

  • 1-Bag Corn Meal (4-5 lb.)

  • 1-bag grits, butter flavor

  • 1-bag rice (2 lb.)

  • 1 bag dried beans (2 lb.)

  • 1-powdered milk (10 oz. or less)

  • 1 box quick/instant oats (18 oz. or less)

  • 1 bottle cooking oil (48 oz. or less)

  • 1 box Splenda/sucralose (50 ct. or less)

  • Canned Ham (2 lb. total)

  • Pack in a NEW 5-gallon bucket with lid


Your buckets need to be delivered to Fairview UMC, 2508 Old Niles Ferry Road, Maryville, TN 37803: Please deliver your buckets to Fairview UMC, Wednesday, June 1, 2022, between 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

 

October 6, 2021

October 6, 2021

2 He said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. – Luke 10:2

Jesus sends his followers out into the towns in which he intended to visit ahead of him. These seventy disciples, or scouts, by two were sent to find places of hospitality, openness, and peace.

In the context of the gospel of Luke this event occurs after the transfiguration and one of the predictions Jesus makes of his own death. Several of his followers have already walked away, and Jesus knows that there is a great harvest ahead, but now fewer workers of that harvest.

Within this context, we so often may have misinterpreted the meaning of the verse that the harvest was plentiful but laborers (workers) few. So often we feel the urge to pray for the harvest. We pray for people to come to know the Lord, we pray that the churches will be filled with new life, we pray for our young to come into the faith. We pray that God would bring our community, city, nation to a time of revival. All of these are admirable thing for which to pray. We desperately need to see the change of heart new disciples could bring. Yet, sometimes we forget to pray for the workers.

Every day, the few who diligently do the work of the kingdom struggle to keep going. They need help, they need to know that there are other faithful ones working alongside of them for the kingdom that is to come. The lesson we learn from the seventy sent out by 2 is that we need to partner with one another to be laborers for the kingdom’s work.

The task ahead, the campaign to Revitalize for New Growth is too great for anyone to do alone. It will take all of us working together to do the work, to build relationships, and to share in the ministry of Christ now and into the future.

Prayer: Lord, help me to see the vast lostness and need around me... grow my burden for the harvest of meeting needs and the harvest of souls that would cause me to respond in faith. Amen.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

October 3, 2021

October 3, 2021

…for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man. You take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow….- Luke 19:21

As we enter into the month of October, we will be focusing on prayer. Specifically, I hope you will all begin to pray about the projects and campaign that will begin today with our Town Hall Meeting, and an emphasis to “Revitalize for New Growth.”

We will begin our prayer focus with an unfamiliar version of a common story in the Bible. We may very well be accustomed to the story in Matthew, the Parable of the 10 talents.  In Luke’s gospel (Luke 19:11-27) We here a similar yet vastly different idea on the story. In this particular telling, Jesus is about to enter into Jerusalem, the be coordinated, as King, though not in a worldly sense. Before entering Jesus tells those who are following him, the story of 10 servants each receiving a Mina, or sum of the master’s wealth. The master is on his way to become king, but some already do not like this man who is to become king. Still, this wealthy man becomes king, then returns and calls in the servants to show what they had done with this gift, this blessing given to them by the master.

One servant has brought back 10 fold (10 times) from his master’s gift. One has brought back 5 fold, and then there is the servant who did nothing more but keep this gift of the mina safe.

The emphasis of this parable with Jesus about to enter Jerusalem is that if we are to believe and accept that Jesus is King, we are expected to take risks with the blessings we have received. We are expected to believe in the Master’s authority that if we work with what we have, and work to enhance and grow it, we will be blessed even more.

There is a fine line we must walk between taking risk and being good stewards, we want to see the blessings of God increase, and we desire to do what pleases the Lord, but we must weigh the cost with our faithful prayers. We learn from the parable that the servants are held accountable, yet all investments made in faithful service to God should be seen as pleasing to God. It is a call to believe in God’s faithfulness in the trying. In believing with faith that if we invest in God’s work, God will lead us to success for the building of his kingdom, now and always.

Let us begin our prayers for the future of St. Mark, prepared to have faith, and prepared to invest for a great tomorrow for the glory of God.

Prayer: Lord, help me to understand that because I am a steward of all your resources that are entrusted to me, I am also accountable for how I share them. Amen.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

September 29, 2021

September 29, 2021

Written by David Petty

Remember your leaders, those who spoke the word of God to you; consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. — Hebrews 13:7

Neuroscientists have discovered in recent decades that humans have a great capacity for imitation.  Neurologist and historian William Bernstein gives the following illustration.  Native people in the arctic are very skilled  at building (and using) kayaks.  Natives of the Amazon do not have this ability, but can construct and use blowguns well, which arctic people cannot.  It is not that one group has a bigger “kayak-building part” or “blowgun-building part” of the brain.  Instead, both have a well-developed “imitating part” of the brain.  Once these inventions were developed, probably through a long process of trial and error, it became relatively easy for succeeding generations to imitate the skills.

It’s an important ability for native peoples, and it turns out to be important for us as well, given the almost constant introduction of new technologies for us to learn.  Certainly there are people and behaviors we ought not imitate.  You can come up with plenty of examples of these yourself — I am reminded especially of a couple of investment fraudsters (both now deceased) who destroyed the fortunes of thousands of people a few decades ago.

And there are, on the other hand, people that we do want to imitate.  So it seems to me that a useful trick to improving our behavior would be to identify those people in our lives whom we admire and then work diligently to be like them.  “What would Jesus do?” and “What would Paul do?” can be useful questions, but it might be more practical sometimes to ask, “What would Nancy do?” or “What would Jim do?”

Who knows?  If we work at it perhaps some day people will want to imitate us.

Gracefully submitted,
David Petty

September 26, 2021

September 26, 2021

Join us live for worship at 10 am in person or on YouTube.
Service will be uploaded at smarkknox.org/sermons later on Sunday.

And the Lord said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples born of you shall be divided; the one shall be stronger than the other, the elder shall serve the younger.”
– Genesis 25:23

Today we hear of an interesting story in the formation of the people known as Israel; the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It is often believed that in the patriarchal system that the eldest son has the most right to inherit the Father’s blessing. However, scripture often turns our inclinations upon themselves when we read who and how God chooses to lead his people. One such instances is the birth of Isaac’s sons Jacob and Esau. Esau is the first born, he is strong, a skillful hunter, a man of the field. His younger twin brother Jacob is a quiet man, living in nature, but often seen as cunning in mind.

As the boys grew in their own right, there is a point, in which Esau, out from a hunt is famished, and smells a stew his brother, Jacob is cooking.  Esau desires to eat of the stew, but Jacob bamboozles Esau to sell his birthright to the Father’s blessing in order to receive something to eat.

The story might make us wonder if God’s plan was always to see Jacob blessed, or if it his own cunning that allows this to happen? We know from the verse above that God has spoken to their mother, Rachel, that younger would be master over the elder, and that one shall be stronger. Then notion of strength, again would be presumed to be the one who was physically strong, but that may not be the case, for God looks upon all people differently than we do. So perhaps it is Jacob who is stronger because he ultimately receives the blessing form Isaac and the blessing to be the line for the people of God.

Many modern societies are slowly waking up to the fact that various benefits once thought of as deserved have in fact been the products of unearned privilege all along. In light of these realities, election in the Bible may be read not as a prescription for the way things ought to be, but as a description for the way things so often are. Schemers like Jacob really do get ahead sometimes.

Even though Jacob receives the blessing of his father, and becomes the patriarch of the people of God, Esau is not left without blessing. God blesses Esau with wealth, children, and a long life. Even though we may not receive the blessing we desire, or think we deserve, God is still blessing us today. Blessing us as we continue to do our part to live in community, to work as a people seeking after Christ, and a people building the kingdom of God. Because of this, we can give thanks to God, for his continued blessings on us.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

September 22, 2021

September 22, 2021

13 No one, when tempted, should say, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil and he himself tempts no one.  – James 1:13

Last Wednesday we began our Bible Study group working through the book of James. In our discussion an interesting thought comes up – does God test us? We started this discussion based on the verse above about God not tempting anyone.  Which leads us to ask of ourselves, what is the difference between a test and a temptation?

Often these words have been used interchangeably in our modern context, however there are so notable differences.  Just sticking to definition, a test would be defined as a procedure intended to establish the quality, performance, reliability, of something.  Whereas a temptation is leading to the desire to do something (presumably wrong or unwise, but not necessarily so).

Then we have the evidence in the Scriptures that when someone is tested, as in Abraham being tested for his faith, or Job being tested for his faithfulness it is God who either does or allows the testing.  Yet when temptation is involved, it is either the evil within one’s heart (think Job’s wife telling him to curse God and die) or the Evil One (think Jesus temptation in the desert).

Temptation is something, biblically speaking that want to draw our attention, our focus away from God or the community of believers; whereas a test may be to draw us deeper into our faith.  Either way, our calling is to trust and rely on the grace and goodness we have from God, that we perhaps receive from the community of faith, to draw us ever closer to God’s unending love for us and all humanity in Christ Jesus our Lord.

No matter what test we may be facing today, or what temptations strive to draw us away from our faith in God, we can be assured that God is present with us, drawing us always unto Him, and offering us comfort, consolation, and counsel as we seek to live abundantly and eternally in His grace and love.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

September 19, 2021

September 19, 2021

Live stream will be on YouTube at 10 am, or service can be viewed later on stmarkknox.org/sermons

And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in ever good work. – 2 Corinthians 9:8

What is the abundance of God?

So often we think about provision and abundance as monetary wealth in modern context. And there may be reason behind that. Even Paul, in writing these words was asking a church for an offering to continue the mission work of the saints.

However, when we talk about the abundance of God, there is so much more than the limited view of what can be purchased. Life, health, fresh air, family, friends, those relationships that matter most. These are things that, when genuine, aren’t purchased. They come from dedication, love of self and others. They come from sharing ourselves, and they are a gift from God.

So often we neglect the small gifts from God, seeking a different kind of abundance, but the truth is no other abundance is more lifegiving than these simple gifts. I hope that as we pause today, for rest and worship, that we give thanks to God, knowing we have already received in abundance, the divine blessings.  May God increase in us, that we might overflow in good works, in love, to all people.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

September 15, 2021

September 15, 2021

Written by David Petty

You shall live in booths for seven days; all that are citizens in Israel shall live in booths, so that your generations may know that I made the people of Israel live in booths when I brought them out of the Land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God. —Leviticus 23:42-43

I know that whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it; God has done this, so that all should stand in awe before him. —Ecclesiastes 3:14

In Judaism the “five scrolls” are a group of five small books of the Bible.  They are not considered a single book, but are a subgroup of the section known as the Writings, and are grouped together because of their liturgical use.  Traditionally, each of the books is read at one of five principal religious holidays.  For example, Ecclesiastes is read at Sukkot, the “Festival of Booths,” which this year is September 20-27.

In some cases the connection between a particular scroll and its holiday seems rather vague.  These pairings were established well over a thousand years ago, and we will never know the reasons for them with certainty.  For Ecclesiastes/Sukkot, though, one reasonable explanation involves  the idea of “transience“ or “impermanence.”  

Sukkot seems to have began as a harvest festival, to which an additional commemoration was attached.  The “booths” were huts made of plant materials such as branches, leaves and stems.  The idea was that, during  the Israelites’ time in the wilderness, whenever they moved the shelters could easily be dismantled, carried to the next location, and reassembled.  In reality, most of them lived in tents, which were made primarily of cloth or animal skins, but a symbol does not have to be an exact replica.  What’s important is the symbolism itself.  In this case the symbolic significance was that, in the absence of permanent homes, they were acutely aware of their dependence on God for food, water, and other basic necessities.  Once they settled in the promised land, it was easy to forget that transient life without a yearly reminder.

Ecclesiastes is often considered the most depressing book in the Bible.  It speaks of the “futility” (that’s probably a better translation than “vanity”) of life.  Neither wisdom nor wealth nor virtue nor pleasure changes the fact that everyone dies and returns to dust.

But there is another interpretation of Ecclesiastes, one given by rabbis since ancient times and supported by verses both within and outside the book.  The impermanence of our existence on earth can be seen against the background of God’s permanence.  God is everlasting (Psalm 90:2, Habakkuk 1:12) and God’s kingdom is also (Psalm 145:13, Daniel 4:3.)  And there’s more: God’s righteousness is everlasting (Psalm 119:142, Daniel 9:24); God’s promises are everlasting (Psalm 105:8, Isaiah 55:3); most of all God’s love is everlasting (Jeremiah 31:3, Lamentations 3:22, many psalms.)  Our New Testament, of course, assures everlasting life to the faithful.

In our day where, no less than in ancient times, nothing seems to endure, it’s good to have lasting things onto which we can hold.

Gracefully submitted,
David Petty

TOWN HALL MEETING - OCT 3

Now as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in utmost eagerness, and in our love for you—so we want you to excel also in this generous undertaking. – 2 Corinthians 8:7

St. Mark Family,

The last couple of years have been quite a journey. We have survived lockdowns, and worked through new ways of doing ministry, we have adapted to changes, and all while continuing to strive towards our calling to be disciples of Jesus Christ for the glory of God. It is this calling to continue to be rooted in our relationship with Christ, while reaching out into our community and world to help build God’s kingdom in love.

In the background, the vision committee has been working on ways to move us forward, and enhance our current buildings to meet needs now, and provide opportunities to build forward toward and enduring future as we continue to live into our purpose of being a rooted and reaching church. The new steps of this journey will challenge us for the next few years, but I can primes that these challenges will be met with faith and preparation.

I’m excited for what the future holds for St. Mark. Today, I’m inviting you to mark your  calendar for our first “Town Hall Meeting” to help us all better understand the opportunity that stands before us related to some needed restorations and renovations in our sanctuary. We will meet after worship and Sunday School on October 3, 2021. Lunch will be provided, and we will hear from vision members who will show us the areas of renovation. Then we will be challenged by our consultant, Tim Guthrie, who will help us during this most important time in preparing for our church’s future.

Please plant to attend this important meeting. I look forward to sharing this time with you as we consider these plans, and work to excel in this new journey.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

September 8, 2021

September 8, 2021

Written by David Petty

But be doers of the word and not merely hearers who deceive themselves.
—James 1:22

Almost every summer for about 65 years, my wife’s family has had a reunion, usually around the Fourth of July; this year it was on Memorial Day.  As might be expected with a large group, many of whom are Methodists, there is always a lot of food.  Due to unforeseen circumstances, my brother-in-law had to cancel coming this time.  When he called to tell us, I asked if there was anything special that he wanted me to eat on his behalf.  Without hesitation he replied, “If Aunt Mary brings her chocolate pie, have a piece of that.”

Aunt Mary Is the oldest surviving member of the original family, and there was some question as to whether she would come, but she did and she brought several of the pies (her daughters may have helped with the cooking.)

I had a piece, and it was so good that I had another piece for myself.  I seriously considered canvassing the group to see whether anyone else needed me to eat a piece for them.

When I spoke to my brother-in-law later, he seemed to enjoy the report, but not as much as he would have enjoyed the pie.  You need to do some things yourself.  If you’re thirsty, it won’t help to watch someone drink a long cold glass of lemonade.  If you’re sleepy, you won’t benefit much from someone else’s nap.

This seems to be a simple idea, so simple that it isn’t worth the trouble for me to write it, or for you to read it.  But it appears that we forget the idea when it comes to church.  Church, as I have indicated before in this virtual place, is a participatory sport.  To really experience it, you have to be involved.

A few weeks ago we celebrated Vacation Bible School at St. Mark.  I believe the kids had a good time and perhaps learned something.  (Possibly, they began to learn exactly what I’m trying to say here.)  But the kids were not the ones who benefited the most.

No one can tell you how you should be involved — that’s another of the things you have to do yourself.  But I’m convinced that there is a role for everyone.

And by the way, if anyone would like me to eat a piece of pie for them next summer, please let me know. 

Gracefully submitted, 
David Petty