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Monthly Archives: November 2025
Jesus Is Lord: Claiming Christ’s Reign in Our Lives
Friday’s Word
Christ the King Sunday
This Sunday is Christ the King Sunday. And yes—I know it’s also the Sunday before Thanksgiving. And yes—we’ll feast together with a big Thanksgiving meal after worship. (A very good Sunday to visit us!)
But my sermon will lift up Christ the King. This is the big shoutin’ day before the quiet beauty of Advent. Everything from Easter forward builds to this moment. It’s as big as Christmas!
It’s just that… nobody really knows it.
So I’m here to tell you.
This is the day we declare who Jesus is:
King of the universe.
Lord of lords.
Savior of this world—and any others that may exist.
And here’s something interesting—about time, right?
This exalted status I assign to Jesus is backed up by human experience.
Some people meet Jesus—literally, personally, unmistakably. And when they do, he is exactly the Exalted One the church proclaims.
Heidi Barr was a 16-year-old Jewish girl whose heart stopped when she was thrown from a horse. Suddenly, Jesus was there. He took her to see “the Father.”
The singer “Maya,” known worldwide as M.I.A., was raised Hindu. In a moment of deep crisis in 2017, Jesus appeared to her in a vision. She said simply, “He saved me.”
Jesus has been appearing to people for 2,000 years. I know thousands of these stories.
Why do people keep seeing him?
Because he is the Christ.
Christ the King Sunday.
Come sing Majesty with us.
Worship at 11:00 AM.
Max’s Corner
THE BIG DINNER!
Don’t forget it, especially if you are bringing food! We are celebrating both Thanksgiving and Christ the King Sunday.
I’ll be brief here. It is late, and I (of course) have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow morning. (One every day this week but Monday. I had one that day—the dentist—but I canceled it to eat out with Jim Bailey and nephew Chris Bailey. I can get cleaned later.)
My life will get easier after the knee surgery on Dec. 3. Fewer doctors for a while (I hope).
I have two more Sundays at the church before surgery. Only one more when I will preach. I’ll be in church on the first Sunday of Advent, but Mary will begin her Advent series.
(Someone—remember to get out the Advent wreath.)
I hope I get back to church soon after surgery. But I will not preach again until Christmas Eve.
Pastor’s Class
We continue to discuss where we are theologically after this journey we have been on. Some old beliefs have gone by the wayside—like the idea of an angry God. Join us at 9:45.
NO!!! Breakfast This Sunday
We will not have breakfast this Sunday. No place to put the food.
This Sunday
Sermon: Jesus Is Lord
We proclaim who Jesus is—and why we believe it.
A day of celebration. We will sing “Majesty,” “O Worship the King,” and “He Is Lord.”
Blake will share a solo.
We—shall—rejoice!
(And eat.)
God Bless — MB
REMEMBER: Blake’s school choir concert will be on Friday evening—Dec. 5—at 6:30. Mark your calendar!
Mary’s Corner
Greetings, dear friends and family of Saint Matthew UMC!
Our services on Sunday were just lovely and made even more special by the breakfast food and fellowship before they started. My only regret is that I did not get time to talk to all of you. Choir practice and pre-service duties, plus my addiction to Mark and Winston’s breakfast, kept me running before the service. I always want to make certain that I get your prayer requests before the service so that I can announce them during prayer time. It is extremely helpful if I have a written prayer request to refer to during the services. To help with this, there are small pieces of paper on the music stand that sits at the back of the auditorium. Just fill out the paper with the name of the person and the words “prayer request.”
We had some electronic gremlins with us on Sunday, as well as all of you. The lights in the Sanctuary stopped working in the middle of choir practice, and then during the live stream, YouTube crashed, and Facebook became very sluggish. If you are looking for the service to watch, please be patient as we work to get the recording added to these two internet services.
We have collected over 50 bags of food for the Thanksgiving collection with Eastside Community Assistance. Thanks to all of you who participated. It is not too late to take part. We will be collecting food through Christmas for the same type of giveaway. Your support of ECA is always appreciated. While you are out shopping in the coming weeks, please consider donating new packages of men’s socks and underwear. And if you see any larger men’s shoes lying about, there is always a need for those as well. Gently used men’s clothing, and all sizes of coats are also appreciated.
Please join me daily in prayer for our upcoming Advent season. This year has gone by quickly, and the Advent season is only days away. Prepare our hearts, Lord, for the birth of God made flesh. Prepare our hearts for quiet and the chaos, for the fellowship and the loneliness. Make us ready to welcome a new season of possibilities for hope, peace, joy, and love. And all the people said, AMEN.
Love to all, Mary