Mt Clinton UMC

Worship Service - January 29, 2012

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 17:49:29 PST

The January 29, 2012 worship service is available online: download the audio, bulletin and insert.

Choir Practice - January 26, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:07:13 PST

The January 26, 2012 choir practice is available online: download the audio.

Worship Service - January 22, 2012

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 11:46:58 PST

The January 22, 2012 worship service is available online: download the audio, bulletin and insert.

Choir Practice - January 19, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 11:45:17 PST

The January 19, 2012 choir practice is available online: download the audio.

Worship Service - January 15, 2012

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 11:46:21 PST

The January 15, 2012 worship service is available online: download the audio, bulletin and insert.

Choir Practice - January 12, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 11:40:31 PST

The January 12, 2012 choir practice is available online: download the audio.

Worship Service - January 8, 2012

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:14:05 PST

The January 8, 2012 worship service is available online: download the audio, bulletin and insert.

Worship Service - January 1, 2012

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:14:15 PST

The January 1, 2012 worship service is available online: download the audio, bulletin and insert.

Worship Service - December 25, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:14:36 PST

The December 25, 2011 worship service is available online: download the audio and bulletin.

Christmas Eve Service

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 14:58:29 PST

The December 24, 2011 Christmas Eve service is available online: download the audio and bulletin.

Christmas Cantata

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 14:51:02 PST

The December 18, 2011 Christmas Cantata is available online: download the audio.

Worship Service - December 18, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 19:33:14 PST

The December 18, 2011 worship service is available online: download the audio, bulletin and announcements.

Choir Practice - December 15, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 08:30:41 PST

The December 15, 2011 choir practice is available online: download the audio.

2011 Christmas Program

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 14:37:08 PST

Christmas Program (click to view)

The December 8, 2011 choir practice is available online: download the audio.

Worship Service - December 11, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 18:43:51 PST

The December 11, 2011 worship service is available online: download the audio, bulletin and announcements.

Choir Practice - December 8, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 06:33:10 PST

The December 8, 2011 choir practice is available online: download the audio.

Wellness Wednesday - Gluttony

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 15:38:13 PST

It's that wonderful time of the year again as Christmas day rapidly approaches. With it comes many an opportunity to feast with family and snack at parties. With so much food around, it is easy to fall into the sin of gluttony.

Gluttony arises from the fear of not having something we could easily have. It's not so much that we are afraid we will not have enough (greed) or that we believe that one extra cookie is going fulfill our longings (lust). Nor is it that we are afraid someone else will have it and we will miss out (envy). With gluttony, it's the sheer abundance of something that leads us to consume it. It's easy to obtain, and taking it won't deprive anyone else, so there is seemingly no harm to consuming it. It is simply waiting to be consumed, so we take it without any thought to the consequence.

Gluttony is easiest to identify when it comes to food. We know when we are full that an extra piece of pie may taste good but will leave us feeling overstuffed and uncomfortable. It is harder to recognize gluttony with other things in our lives. Just a few years ago, gas prices were so low that there was very little reason to consider carpooling, combining errands into a single trip, or refraining from a weekend trip a couple hundred miles away. Only when gas prices doubled and then tripled did we recognize the true waste of our gluttonous use of gas that gave no thought to tomorrow.

Likewise, we may buy something in a store that we can easily afford even when we already have several like it. During this season, we often come across a beautiful Christmas decoration that seems so perfect for that spot on the end table in the living room. Why not go ahead and buy it? We have the money, and it won't hurt anyone. We buy on impulse without a thought to tomorrow. We do not care where we will store it the rest of the year or how we might better use that money another day.

That is gluttony - consuming something merely because it is there waiting to be taken without giving a thought to tomorrow.

Thoughts to ponder: What is it that you are tempted to have more of when you have enough? What is abundant around you? What would it feel like to refrain from having more of that when you could easily have it?

Worship Service - December 4, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 21:04:15 PST

The December 4, 2011 worship service is available online: download the audio, bulletin and announcements.

Choir Practice - December 1, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 09:34:13 PST

The December 1, 2011 choir practice is available online: download the audio.

Worship Service - November 27, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 13:41:08 PST

The November 27, 2011 worship service is available online: download the audio, bulletin and announcements.

Worship Service - November 20, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 07:30:01 PST

The November 20, 2011 worship service is available online: download the audio, bulletin and announcements.

Choir Practice - November 17, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 08:58:33 PST

The November 17, 2011 choir practice is available online: download the audio.

Wellness Wednesday - Sloth

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 17:14:30 PST

In Numbers 13, Moses sends out 12 spies to scout out the Promised Land that the people of Israel have been journeying toward. The spies complete their mission and report back. The spies tell tales of how enormous and powerful the people who occupy the Promised Land are - the spies say they felt like mere insects compared to these mighty people. Ten of the spies recommend abandoning the goal of living in the Promised Land. It is too difficult, they say. We will never win so we might as well give up. Two spies, Joshua and Caleb, remember God's promises to the people and speak convinced that with God all things are possible. The people nevertheless give into the fear of hopelessness and start making plans to return to bondage in Egypt. God then speaks to Moses, "How long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them?"

When we look closely at our lives, it is easy to see things we would like to improve. Lose weight. Stop smoking. Read the Bible. Pray more. Keep the house clean. Be more patient. We set a goal and hope we will make it. Sometimes we fail, later decide to try again, and then fail again. With each failed try, the goal seems ever more hopelessly unattainable. We forgot the promises that are out there. We do not see the signs of hope for a better future. Hopeless, we give up even trying anymore, and we return to bondage to our current state. It's no use, we say. I'll always be overweight. I can't stop smoking. The Bible and praying aren't for me. I'm just not the house-keeping kind. I'll never be patient. Not surprisingly, when we give up in despair, things only get worse. This is sloth - the despair that nothing is worth doing because we fear the situation is hopeless. This leads to the perceived laziness that is often thought of as sloth. When we succumb to the sin of sloth, we give up on hope. We give up on the promises that God has made for us and for our lives.

Thoughts to ponder: What things in your life have you made a concerted effort to change? Which have been successful? Which have met with failure repeatedly? What seems hopeless in your life today? Have you given up trying? What promise or sign would you need to try again in a new way?

Worship Service - November 13, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 11:41:33 PST

The November 13, 2011 worship service is available online: download the audio.

Worship Service - November 6, 2011

mtclintonumc@gmail.com (Mt Clinton UMC) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 09:16:10 PST

The November 6, 2011 worship service is available online: download the audio, bulletin and announcements.