The Church That Offers New Life
/The Church across America is facing much criticism these days. It goes like this: The church is full of judgmental, rigid, superstitious, ill-informed, stuck-in-the-past, do-gooders who know little about the ways of the world and how things really work in modern society.
I know I am exaggerating to some extent. But if this statement were true I would not want to be part of a church like that. The problem is there are so many people in our communities who know little about the church and they believe these criticisms.
The time has come for us to address these misconceptions and put them to rest. At Stonebridge UMC we are the church that empowers others by preaching and living Christ’s love and forgiveness instead of judging and condemning. We are the church that meets people where they are in a world of contradictions, to let them know how much God loves them. We are the church where we can discuss the most difficult issues and still love each other. We are the church who is constantly applying the holy and sacred Bible in such a way that speaks to the 21st century.
We are the church that offers new life… through hope, love, acceptance and seeing the world in new and transforming ways. We are the church that is bringing people into a positive, life giving relationship with Jesus Christ.
This Sunday, we continue our journey through the Lord’s Prayer by looking at “Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). In these words, Jesus is looking forward to the Kingdom of God as it will be so that in as many ways as possible, we might through Jesus Christ bring God’s Kingdom into our daily lives today.
Come join us and bring a friend, co-worker, family or neighbor as we celebrate the Good News of God’s love through Jesus Christ. Come experience the family we call Stonebridge United Methodist Church.
Those on the outside are missing out… do you know someone who might have a misconception about the church? Offer them a smile, an invite, and a come and see something different than any church you have ever experienced before.
Pastor John Allen