Pastor’s Ponderings

Not so very long ago, we would often see Deacon Julie Wilson at the church, assisting with worship, leading a time with the children on the chancel steps or organizing the volunteers for the Emergency Family Shelter. Since leaving Calvary Church in September 2019, she...

Since September, I have participated in a group of pastors working on cultivating playfulness. Each time we come together, we start off with a prayer and then some kind of silly game intended to get us laughing. We have played holiday BINGO, done a scavenger hunt and...

As we celebrate Thanksgiving Day, may your hearts be filled with love and gratitude for the goodness and blessings in your life. I offer these prayers as a way to put that appreciation into words. (I am boldly borrowing and sharing these two prayers that I recently...

I have had a few requests recently about joining the church. While churches have seen worship attendance and participation in church life drop, there are still many good reasons to connect with others in a congregation. Here’s a few: The church is a place where we can...

News from the larger church Last week I mentioned some of the work being done by the Baltimore Washington Conference. I want to follow up on this with mention of some of resolutions that were passed that will impact us here at Calvary United Methodist Church First,...

Some of you may have seen or shared a post that was on Facebook over the weekend. I am not sure who originally wrote the words, but I saw Bishop David Epps’s name attached. I will offer the words here:   “As church attendance numbers fade across the nation on...

I am so pleased that the Calvary Weekday School is up and running once again! It is wonderful to hear and see the children lining up in the parking lot, running and playing on the playground  and learning and making friends in the classrooms. All last school year, the...

Mention the word “stewardship” to the average person, and the first thing that comes to mind is money. Somehow, most Christians equate “stewardship” with money or with giving to the church. But its more than that.   Certainly, money is an important part of what...

This week, as I am digging deeper into the Book of Job, I am learning more about lament.  That is one way to respond to difficulties and troubles that come our way.   All of us are used to grumbling, to complaining, to protest. We grumble about the traffic, we...