When talking to people, it is not uncommon to find that many…in fact, probably most…have annual Christmas traditions. It may involve opening one gift on Christmas Eve and saving the rest for the next morning, large family get togethers, or even going to an assisted living home to sing Christmas...

As I write this, it is still a bit early in the morning. The sun is only just beginning to wake up. I am sitting in what my wife and I call “the library” of our home. Across from me, in the center of the cabinetry that hold some of...

In the early 1870’s Josiah Holland penned these words: There’s a song in the air! There’s a star in the sky! There’s a mother’s deep prayer and a baby’s low cry! And the star rains its fire while the beautiful sing, For the manger of Bethlehem cradles a King! Josiah...

Tomorrow is the Holiday Festival. I remember the first Holiday Festival I attended. It was five years ago. I was not yet the pastor of this great Church. Instead, I was serving as the District Superintendent of the Atlanta- Roswell District. I had planned to take Carol to the mountains...

Each year, on the first Sunday in November the Church recognizes All Saints’ Sunday. Historically, All Saints’ Day actually falls on November 1st; the day immediately following Halloween. It is a day the Church has set aside to remember all the saints of the Church both living and those who...

Recently, I attended a meeting chaired by JoAnn Akers. JoAnn always begins her meetings with a short devotion. On this night, she shared with us a devotion entitled “Five-Finger Prayers.” The Five-Finger Prayer is simply one method to help with how we pray. Here’s the way it works. You fold...

Often, in a football game as the third quarter ends and the fourth quarter is about to begin, the fans will hold up four fingers as the band plays in the background. It is a reminder that the game is nearing the end, but it still isn’t over. There is...

One of the great joys of serving as the pastor of DUMC is to see all the different ministries in which this Church is involved. Each Sunday morning, somewhere between 1,100 – 1,500 people crowd their way into our buildings for Sunday School and Worship. On Wednesday nights hundreds of...