Tag: God’s will

Posted on

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Be inspired by this quote, which highlights one of our everyday problems that need solving. On Sunday, August 8, 2021, the Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost, Pastora Ashley Gonzales, Kingston United Methodist Church pastor, was our guest preacher and preached on the theme, “Food In A Famine,” based on Scripture from 1 Kings 19:4-8.  Elijah, feeling overwhelmed, told God he had had enough. Pastora Gonzales admonished us, saying, “sometimes, when you feel like you’re going to die, all you need is a snack and a nap.” 

We’re delighted to have had Pastora Ashley Gonzales here with us. Thanks to the new partnership that PUMC has with KUMC, she is now part of our clergy team. On behalf of PUMC, we welcome her on board! It was an enjoyable service, with many of our Kingston UMC siblings worshipping with us in person.

We invite you to come worship with us on Sunday. “When you’re isolated and lonely and have nothing more to give, God listens and responds to your cries,” says Pastora Gonzales. “Elijah was not alone, after all, and neither are you,” she also noted. To watch Pastora Ashley Gonzales preach, Click here.

Written by Isabella Dougan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted on

Rev. Jana Purkis-Brash: Spiritual and Religious

Did you know that more and more people are declaring themselves as spiritual but not religious (SBNR)?  In her sermon on November 15, Reverend Jana Purkis-Brash said that 70 percent of millennials describe themselves as more spiritual than religious. Yet some 55 percent of individuals rarely or never pray to God or attend service, don’t read the Bible or gather together. Religion and spirituality are not separate, says Pastor Jana, but are one and it is hard to have one without the other.

Gathering together is an important part of who we are and that is why people feel alone in difficult times in life when there is no community to gather with. Gathering with the community can be a place that offers us hope. In church we also receive the gift of a congregation that we embrace so we do not have to face our grief alone. It is God putting on flesh to walk that journey with us, she adds.

Pastor Jana reminds us in 1 Samuel 1: 4-20 that Hannah is not an SBNR but a member of an organized religion highly committed to spiritual practices who needs that help to continue on her journey. She goes to the temple, deeply distressed and weeping bitterly, pours out her soul to the Lord and feels God’s presence right there in the sanctuary.  As we seek to grow in spirit, Hannah is an example of a role model for us, as she says, “I have asked him of the Lord.” So also, we deepen our faith when we follow Hannah to the sanctuary.

Prayers are offered not just as a request for help but as an indication of people telling the truth about their needs. However, we must also remember that while God will answer our prayer, it is God’s will that is done, not ours.

Tags:

SBNR, religion, spirituality, Millennials, congregation, community, sanctuary, Hannah, faith, childless, grief, vow, prayer, Elkanah, God’s will, needs, sermon.