Jamey's Newsletter: Sunday, September 3, 2023
When Jesus says, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5: 44 - 45), he is challenging us to love with the same love we have been shown when we were enemies of God. It is a challenge to take love to places where love is absent.
If life remains transactional for you, then your life is no better than the one who is living absent of God’s love. If you live only with an eye towards those that benefit you, what true benefit is that really? Jesus says, “If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that” (Matthew 5:47).
We are being asked to take love to places where love is absent. It means taking love to places where love has been abandoned. It means taking love to those who have given up on life. Because God loved first, love is already in the places where I am afraid to go.
Love is messy because people are messy. But it doesn’t have to be complicated. It is the simple act of simply showing up and being present in the lives of others. It is being active when everyone else is passive. It is walking with a friend when they feel abandoned.
Even when we are a mess, God loves us. My question is: Who do you need to love through their mess today? Who needs to be boldly loved today?
Jamey
Let's Talk About Love - Part One
Romans 13:10 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
(Together, What If is a conversation between Michelle Alexander, Ginnie Highsmith, and Jamey Prickett from Gainesville First UMC, Gainesville, Georgia.)
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Weekly Prayer
Loving God,
Please help us to see the humanity in those we perceive as enemies, to understand their struggles and pain, and to approach them with compassion and forgiveness. May your love, which knows no bounds, flow through us, softening our hearts and bridging the divides that separate us from those we consider adversaries.
Grant us the courage to extend a hand of peace, to speak words of kindness, and to act with love, even in the face of hostility. Let us be instruments of your love and reconciliation in a world often torn by hatred and conflict.
In Jesus' name, we pray, Amen!
Meme of the Week
Dad Jokes
What did the horse say after it tripped? Help! I’ve fallen, and I can’t giddyup!
Why do cows wear bells? Because their horns don’t work.
Wisdom Nugget: Time is a currency you only spend once. Spend it well!
A Question to Consider: Do I know the game I am playing? Do I want the prize for winning this game?
Photo Taken By Me
Articles worth reading, videos worth watching, and/or podcasts worth listening to
Podcast: Corporate Competitor Podcast with Don Yaeger (I have really enjoyed listening to this podcast. If you are in leadership, it is worth listening)
The Changing Room Illusion (This video is an example of what leadership psychologists call “graduate change blindness,” a phenomenon in which observers are unable to notice changes to the world around them when those changes occur gradually.
Instagram page to follow: Anthimos Ntagkas (He pays attention and takes interesting photos)
Best Times to See Fall Foliage in the Blue Ridge Mountains – 2023
Revelers hurl tomatoes at each other and streets awash in red pulp in Spanish town’s Tomatina party
Book I Am Reading This Week
Jesus the Jewish Theologian by Brad H. Young
MAKE A DIFFERENCE
First Baptist Church in Gainesville, Georgia
Click Here to Read More and Sign-Up
In 2007, a group of women at First Baptist Church in Gainesville, Georgia, came together with a desire to make a significant difference in the world around them. Their idea was to host an annual shopping event with a Bake Shoppe, hosted by the women’s ministry, to raise money for a beneficiary.
The beneficiary for the 2023 Emporium is Love Your Story, an organization whose mission is to “create spaces of belonging for families impacted by disabilities.” Led by God through her own personal experiences, Abby Burle, Founder and CEO of Love Your Story, operates a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home called “Molly’s House” in Gainesville, designed to be a home away from home for families who travel to our area to receive medical treatment and intensive therapies for their disabled children.
Money raised through the Emporium and Bake Shoppe will go directly to Love Your Story to assist with a custom build-out of Molly’s House. The families served require unique needs that cannot be met by a typical home. Abby hopes to modify the home to include easy access in and out of the house, accessible bathrooms, ramps in place of stairs, and wider doorways.
Click here to learn more about Love Your Story
Happening at Gainesville First United Methodist Church
Sunday, September 10 / 12 pm / Reception Hall
The Foster Care Ministry of Gainesville First United Methodist Church will host a lunch and learn event on Sunday, September 10, at noon in the Reception Hall.
If you are interested in learning how to be involved in a ministry that impacts children in Hall County, we invite you to join us. This is a free event. Email Misty Leach at mleach@gfumc.com to RSVP.
Why does foster care matter? Watch this video: Fostering Resilience
Weekly Blessing and/or Quotes
My own definition of leadership is this: The capacity and the will to rally men and women to a common purpose and the character that inspires confidence. —General Montgomery
I would love to have your feedback. Do you have a meme, dad joke, question to ponder, or wisdom nugget worth sharing? Have you come across an interesting article, podcast, or video that you found meaningful? Is there a quote or blessing that you are currently holding onto? If so, please share it. Let’s make this a community space where we connect with one another.
If you find encouragement in this newsletter, I would love for you to take the opportunity to share it with others. Thank you for reading.