Weekly Roundup: Sunday, May 25, 2025
Twenty years ago, David Foster Wallace gave a commencement speech entitled “This Is Water.” In the speech, he tells the story of two men sitting at a bar in Alaska: An atheist prays in a blizzard. He survives. The other man says, “See? God saved you.” The atheist scoffs, “Nah, two Eskimos showed up.”
Same event. Two people. Two interpretations. Wallace calls it blind certainty—a prison so total we don’t even know we’re in it.
Pete Enns calls it the sin of certainty—clinging to being right instead of learning to trust.
Scripture says: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5).
For faith to be genuine, we need to check our arrogance at the door and ask, “Where might I be wrong?”
Wisdom for a meaningful life doesn’t come from certainty but humility.
Pastor Jamey
(Click Here to Watch the Worship Service from Gainesville First United Methodist Church, Gainesville, Georgia)
Weekend Prayer
God of Truth and Mercy, Forgive us when we confuse being right with being faithful.
Forgive us when our confidence becomes a cage and when we close our minds to wonder, and our hearts to Your whisper. Amen.
Wisdom Nugget: Certainty can be a prison with invisible bars.
Wisdom asks a different question: “Where might I be wrong?”
A Question to Consider: Where am I relying more on my understanding than on trusting God?
Meme of the week
Dad Jokes
What kind of shoes to frogs wear? Open-toad sandals!
Why do melons have weddings? They cantelope!
Leadership Reflection:
Every leader hits a moment when they have to ask: Am I doing this for the likes, the numbers, the spotlight—or for something that’ll still matter when I’m gone?
It’s easy to chase what feels like success right now. Growth, attention, and affirmation are loud and addictive. But they’re also short-lived. That’s the finite game, as Simon Sinek puts it. It’s about winning, being the best, or proving something.
But the best leaders play the infinite game. They’re not obsessed with winning—they’re committed to lasting. They know the real goal is legacy: building people, shaping culture, making disciples, and handing off something more substantial than what they started with.
So, are you chasing applause? Or are you building something that’ll echo after you’re gone? Choose the long game. Choose legacy.
Pastor Jamey
Photo Taken By Me
Podcast Worth Listening to
What I Am Reading This Week
Front Porch Tales: Warm Hearted Stories of Family, Faith, Laughter and Love by Philip Gulley
Articles that caught my eye
Why Do Women Live Longer Than Men?
The Man Who Knew When to Step Down
‘We Are the Most Rejected Generation’
The Beauty That Moral Courage Creates
No more pennies: In big change, Treasury will stop minting them
Pope Leo XIV is having a big, unexpected impact on Protestants
Something Alarming Is Happening to the Job Market
Found Interesting on Social Media
Happening at Gainesville First United Methodist Church, Gainesville, Georgia
Saturday, May 31 / 4-7pm / Courtyard
GFUMC is kicking off the summer with our 2nd annual Church-Wide Block Party in the courtyard! Bring your own lawn chair or picnic blanket and come ready for hot dogs, ice cream, and yard games as we build community and cheer on the Braves! Rain plans = cancelled. Email Ginnie with questions.
North Georgia Nonprofit Highlight
On Friday, June 6th, Center Point will bring the fundraising event Over the Edge to downtown Gainesville, Georgia, with a unique adventure experience of safely rappelling down the Main Street Parking Garage.
From its beginning over 50 years ago, Gainesville First United Methodist Church has been a mission partner with Center Point. We believe in its mission to meet the mental health and personal development needs of young people and their families.
Our goal is to raise $5,000.00 for Center Point.
John Barbour-Hoffman, the Lighting Director for GFUMC, will repel down the Main Street Parking Garage wearing a costume that we’ll vote on.
About Center Point:
Center Point's mission is partnering with schools and community organizations to meet the mental health and personal development needs of young people and their families. Center Point has served the citizens of Gainesville City and Hall County for over 50 years. The Center has slowly transformed into arguably Hall County’s most successful and diverse student-and-family-centered non-profit. Our purpose is simple: enhance, strengthen, and change lives. This is what we are doing and what we will continue to do for years to come.
Weekly Blessing and/or Quotes
“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view.” — Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird
“It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so.” — Mark Twain (attributed)
May you walk not with the need to be right,
but with the courage to be humble.
Not leaning on your own understanding,
but trusting deeply in the One who knows the way.
When the world demands certainty,
may you respond with curiosity.
When your heart longs for control,
may you choose faith instead.
