28
Jul 2020
I’m about to turn forty. For some that seems old. For others that’s still very young. The truth is not a single one of us knows how long we will get to live on this earth. We don’t know when we reach our midway point. I lost a close friend in December to colon cancer in her early forties, three kids, a great husband, and successful career. I have another dear friend diagnosed with a brain tumor this week. Life is fragile, unpredictable, and doesn’t seem fair. We must live every day......
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24
Jul 2020
Woodmont just celebrated its 77th birthday. Our church was planted on July 18, 1943. I am glad to report that we finished last fiscal year (ending June 30th) in a healthy financial position, in the black. This is certainly a tribute to the generosity of Woodmont during this ongoing pandemic. We are maintaining a flat operating budget moving into the new year and are asking everybody to continue supporting the church at the same level as this past year. So far, our new church year (began July 1st) is off to a......
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22
Jul 2020
Woodmont has many opportunities for you to connect with classes and groups online during this time of social distancing. Several of these are listed below. If you’d like more information on one of these online meetings, email the listed contact person or [email protected]. Sunday Challenge Class, @ Noon • Meets for a devotional, prayer, news of the class and individual check-ins from each member. Email Susan Hammonds-White at [email protected] • https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88615061089?pwd=VnY4c3dTWXN3U3hjbVRmQkRlOFdFZz09 Christian Response to the 21st Century, @ 10 am • This class looks at current events and how scripture guides a......
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14
Jul 2020
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13
Jul 2020
In this age of moral outrage, polarization, and contempt, how can we strive to live a life of humility that seeks to heal deep pain and division? How can we heed Micah’s timeless words to “do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God?” How can we keep from developing an overly exalted opinion of ourselves in a culture continuously marked by argument, protest, finger-pointing, and self-righteousness? Former Roxbury Latin headmaster Tony Jarvis once gave a powerful homily in which he identified three meaningful phrases we should all say more often. First,......
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03
Jul 2020
In the spring of 2016, I published a book titled “Preaching Politics: Proclaiming Jesus in an Age of Money, Power, and Partisanship.” The book resulted from significant research on the intersection of faith and politics, paying special attention to the moral foundations of liberals and conservatives, the spiritual challenges of unbridled consumerism, and asking whether the love of Christ has the ability to overcome deep partisan and ideological divides. I concluded that it does because I have seen it happen often, although there are days when I grow discouraged. The current political......
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25
Jun 2020
Our church has now unanimously approved the nominating slate and 2020-2021 operating budget. Thank you to everybody who submitted their vote online. We will install our new leaders this coming Sunday, June 28th, at the 9:15 drive-in service. I am grateful to those who are rolling out of leadership positions. Thank you for serving the church faithfully during a very challenging and unprecedented season. I want to specifically thank two very special people for their strong leadership this past year, Billy Crawford and John Stauffer. Billy has been on the Woodmont board......
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22
Jun 2020
The tragic murder of George Floyd on Memorial Day while in the custody of Minneapolis police officers set off a firestorm in this country. Truth be told, this storm was already brewing and Floyd’s death blew the lid off. The protests that we are now witnessing locally, nationally, and globally, as well as the violence, looting, and lawlessness, is the direct result of racial tension, economic frustration, a global pandemic, a shutdown economy, and political chaos. There has been a clear differentiation between the peaceful protesters and the bad actors who have......
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12
Jun 2020
The Woodmont Board met on Monday night, June 8, and approved a 2020-21 operating budget that is now being presented to the congregation. The details are in this Inspire. The budget is essentially a flat budget from this current fiscal year. There will be a Congregational Meeting following the drive-in worship service on Sunday, June 21, at 10 AM. At that time, the congregation will vote on both the leadership slate and the operating budget. Please reach out beforehand if you have any questions, concerns, or need clarification. Installation of the new......
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03
Jun 2020
On Memorial Day, May 25, an unarmed African American man named George Floyd was taken into police custody in Minneapolis, MN. We have all now seen the horrific video footage of the officer who did not remove his knee from Floyd’s neck for over eight minutes, causing him to tragically lose his life. This has led to justifiable outrage and anger across our nation. It has led to mass protests, demonstrations, riots, looting, and now the burning of American cities. This is all very sad and hard to watch. I want to......
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