Open Circle Community Church

ALL of God's children are welcome to join us this Sunday at 10a in the chapel of Embry Hills United Methodist Church to worship and fellowship with us. 🙂

This week we will read Genesis 21:8-21 and consider the story of Hagar and Ishmael, and address the topic "Turning Jealousy into Hope."

As always, if you are unable to join us in person, you can click on the link below and join us online:

https://www.youtube.com/-atl-live

Grace & Peace!

"There is neither Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."
Galatians 3:28

Dear friends,

I think there are some scripture verses that we sometimes accept as familiar without truly realizing just how radical they were when they were first written. The verse above, from Paul's letter to the church in Galatia is one of them. When Paul wrote these words, the Galatian church was embroiled in a controversy as to whether new members of the church who were not Jews should be required to undergo a ritual to demonstrate that they were now identifying as Jews before they could be members of the church. Paul's words above obliterates the idea that followers of Jesus should identify first as members of other distinctive groups.

Of course the other distinctions didn't cease to exist. Jew were still Jews. Women were still women. But the importance of those identifying factors paled in importance in comparison to their identity as followers of Jesus.

Today there still many ways that people find to divide themselves up into different groups and categories. Some of them are inevitable, like the language/cultural group that people are born into, or national identity. But the point is, according to this powerful verse, those distinctions have little importance as compared to the mark of being a Christian. This is an extremely important thing to remember in a time when many seem to want to emphasize how we are different instead of what we have in common.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Jonathan

We're looking forward to seeing ALL of you on Sunday morning in the chapel of Embry Hills United Methodist Churchat 10a. Come as you are! 😊

This coming week we will read Romans 5:1-8 and consider the question, "What good is pain?"

If you are unable to join us in person, click on the link below for the online service:

https://www.youtube.com/-atl-live

Grace & Peace!

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end, they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22-23

Dear friends,

The verses above, from the Old Testament book of Lamentations, beautifully express some of the aspects of God's nature that are truly wonderful, and which we can all celebrate and appreciate with gratitude. (It's happily ironic that a such as an uplifting verse is found in a book that has as its title the word for crying out in grief or desperation!)

The first descriptive phrase in the verse is "steadfast love." The Hebrew word that is translated into this English phrase is hesed. It's a word that is found throughout the Bible, particularly in the Old Testament. Ever since I learned about this phrase, it's been very important to me.

Also in these verses we can see the root of the lyrics from the beautiful, classic hymn, "Great is Thy Faithfulness." "Morning by morning, new mercies I see." I love that line so much.

Today let us give thanks to a faithful, merciful God, a God who always wants good for us.

Grace & Peace!

Pastor Jonathan

Come one, come ALL and join us in the chapel of Embry Hills United Methodist Church on Sunday morning at 10 a.m. We look forward to worshipping with you!

This week we will read Matthew 9:9-13 and consider how the gospel is for imperfect people, as demonstrated by the company that Jesus often kept.

If you are unable to attend in person you can join us online:

https://www.youtube.com/-atl-live

Grace & Peace!

"The flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. The fig tree puts forth its figs, and the vines are in blossom; they give forth fragrance." Song of Solomon 2: 12-13.

Dear friends,

One of the greatest blessings from the hand of God to us is the earth that God created for us to inhabit. The changing seasons that we experience each year are a testament to the goodness and creativity of God. Blooming flowers, whether they're those that we have planted and cultivated or wildflowers growing naturally in the woods or a field, are a message from God about how much God loves us.

The temperatures and humidity have been lower this week. If you're able and have an opportunity, I encourage you to spend a little time outside. The birds and flowers are ready to greet you. :)

Grace & Peace!

Pastor Jonathan

Our annual "wearing o'the red" for Pentecost! ❤️

We're looking forward to seeing ALL of you on Sunday morning in the chapel of Embry Hills United Methodist Church at 10a.

Pastor Jonathan was taking a well deserved break with his family last weekend, so we are honoring the tradition of Pentecost this Sunday. Our Scripture will be Acts 2: 1-21. We hope all of you will join us. Come as you are, but make sure to wear red! 😉

If you are unable to join us in person, click on the link below for the online service:

https://www.youtube.com/-atl-live

Grace & Peace!

Happy Memorial Day weekend!

We hope ALL of you will join us for worship this Sunday at 10am in the chapel of Embry Hills United Methodist Church. Come as you are! 😊

Pastor Jonathan is enjoying some time away with his family this weekend, so we will be blessed by having his longtime friend, Rev. Lanny Peters with us to bring us God's message.

If you are unable to join us in person, you can join us online at:

https://www.youtube.com/-atl-live

We're looking forward to seeing you!

"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much." Luke 16:10
"Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth." 1 John 3:18

Dear friends,

Today you get a "two-fer" of scripture references. :)

The verses above, the first spoken by Jesus, and the second by the writer of First John, emphasize the importance of integrity and honesty, not so much with words, but with actions. There's an expression, "Words are cheap." To be sure, this expression is a bit of an exaggeration because words can and do have great and important meaning. But the point is, of course, that our actions must be consistent with our words, otherwise the words have little or no value. Once we lose a reputation for honest and integrity, it's hard to get it back. And as the verse spoken by Jesus says, it starts with how we do with the so-called "small things."

We live in an age where we witness a great deal of dishonesty, sometimes from people in positions of authority. This can be very disheartening to witness. Let us seek, with the help of the Spirit, to be people whose words and actions can be trusted. We can't control what other people do. We are only responsible for our own actions. And when we fall short (and we will) it's important to admit it, ask forgiveness, and carry on with the goal of doing better next time.

Grace & Peace!

Pastor Jonathan