New Book Published

(I have received a free copy of this book for the purpose of this review)

The book in question is heavy reading and you will need to be prepared to do some work.  I was interested in the subject matter as I have come through a denomination that still fits it to the description of victorian ethics and lifestyle practices.  What you wear, who you associate with and the grape juice in the cup are still important.  Once I got through the heavy reading, I really appreciated the historical journey which brought me up until the modern day.  I would have appreciated some more commentary than was given on the last 50-100 years on this issue in the UMC.  Many of the congregations I have experienced still live with the struggles lifted up in this book.  I would encourage any serious scholar or student of the church to give this book a shot, just don't use it for bed-time reading.  If I am able, I will go into more detail on my critique in my next post.

Tim Edin writing from Sandyville, WV

The Great Fifty Days of Easter

Christians mark out the time between Easter and Pentecost, culminating in the great birthday celebration of the church on June 12 this year.  I want to encourage you to think of one area of your life that is out of balance and give it over to God.  My area is certain time wasters and spending the time in prayer or other valuable work rather than frittering away time with them.  What's yours?  You want to share or send me an e-mail, sandyumc@yahoo.com

Rev. Tim

Tell me about your coach

We are looking at working with a coach in the area of worship here in some of my churches.  I wanted to find out what role coaches have played in your development, in any area over your life?

Rev. Tim

Commission Possible 2 is finally here

I can't wait to gather with those from throughout the state for this powerful event at the Clay Center.  It is not too late for you to join the caravan.  If you need help getting there, call me ASAP.  I wish our whole church could attend.  It will be life-changing!

Your Pastor,

Tim Edin

moving toward the cross

I am impressed that as we move toward the cross that so many other distractions will pop up.  There are many opportunities for you and I during this season of lent, to grow in our faith, I pray that we will take up the opportunities that come for us individually and in our churches.  The kingdom will show forth the fruits of the seeds we plant today.  If they are never planted, nothing will happen.  If we don't water when they grow, then they will be wasted and needed to be re-sown.  I pray God's richest blessing on you and yours this holy season!

Rev. Tim

A brand new week

I have officially been in WV for six years.  It has been a great and life-changing season of my life.  Turning 30, getting married, having our first child, moving seveal times, being ordained, finishing seminary twice, wow, the list goes on.  I am thankful to call WV home and raise our daughter here in Jackson Co. currently.  Blessings,

Rev. Tim

CalltoAction: How to get the word out?

CalltoAction: How to get the word out?

How to get the word out?

If anyone out there has the advice on how I can better publicize this blog, please drop me a line.  I want to get the word out to send the message and believe this is an worthy cause.  Today looks to be another busy day but with good things happening in all of the churches for which I am responsible.  May God richly and deeply bless his people of the Sandyville-area United Methodist Churches!!

Rev. Tim

It's been a week

Life has kicked up lately and I am loving it.  There is so much wonder in serving God through the church!  Where will all of this take us?  What is God up to next!?  I pray that my sisters and brothers are experiencing God in a new way and that it will show... How are your spiritual practices and how is your heart this day?  Share with someone that you have entrusted your deepest secrets and know that God will keep that which He has entrusted against that day.  Blessings and glad to be back,

Rev. Tim

Your kingdom come

This is the phrase I choose to meditate on today.  What does it mean?  How will it transform my life, as I allow it too?  It has been a few days since my last blog post.  Yes, it has been that kind of week.  I pray as we move through Lent, you and I will both experience God's presence in the desert.

Rev. Tim

Does life for you ever get a little muddy?

This is only my second time creating ashes and my wife is the chief cook in the kitchen for this every-year project.  I was so blessed at the faithful reception by God's children to the message of the cross and the reality of our sin in the face of God's amazing grace.  I pray that you have been marked with the brand of Jesus which is the cross!  Blessings on a faithful and faith-filled lent.

Rev. Tim

new traditions

Ash Wednesday is not something I grew up with.  In came later in life while in catholic high school that I observed and than participated in this ancient practice.  I have since led several methodist churches in this observance and it has been an uplifting experience.  Tonight is our Ash Wednesday service between my three churches here and I am getting ready

Rev. Tim

brand new

This week our churches will observe the holy day called Ash Wednesday.  We will be marked with the sign of the cross and remember the day of our own baptism.  I pray that this day will fill your heart with thanksgiving for sacrifices made so that we could come.  See you at church!

Rev. Tim

personal revival

I encourage you to seek God for a personal deepening and revival of faith.  There is no more time to waste.  We must live under a sense of urgency that today matters, it matters for eternity!  This means we are to allow God to discipline us so that revival will come super-naturally and not always need to be programmed or spoon-fed for us.  Will you press in for this type of personal revival?

Rev. Tim

God is timeless

When I lose myself in the fire of God's love, then I am lost in revival.  I can only see the face of God and in seeing that wondrous face I am change and made finally able to see my sister and brother more clearly.  I need another touch and I am waiting that God would take us deeper and never, ever, ever be the same again!  Are you with me?

Rev. Tim

will revival come to us?

Revival is already here.  It is in the heart of God and those who have entered in to the waves of His presence.  You may be standing on the edge watching and the waves haven't touched you yet.  Come into the water... ankle deep, knee deep, waist deep and overflowing beyond that which you can touch the bottom.  God's riches are bottomless and those that will enter in will be changed.  My prayer for you is that tonight will be a night of great harvesting for the kingdom of God.  Will you assist to reap the harvest by bringing God's missing sons and daughters into the sanctuary.  Pre-service prayer in the fellowship hall starts at 6:50 PM.

Pastor Tim Edin

small group dna

What does it require to live in small group community with other people?

*A stated covenant agreed upon by all members
*A long-term commitment to uphold one another in prayer and practical ways
*A common vision for the group to grow beyond itself
*No more business as usual!

I want to be a part of this type of group!  Do you?  If so, please let me know and I would like to help you, maybe you can help me.  These types of groups can be in every neighborhood, workplace or social gathering spot/watering hole.  Do you see it, can you capture this age-old vision for small group ministry where people live?

Rev. Tim

he only shouted louder

Mark 10:46-52

As Jesus left Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting at the side of the road. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout and cry out: Son of David, have pity on me! And many of them scolded him and told him to keep quiet, but he only shouted all the louder: Son of David, have pity on me! Jesus stopped and said: Call him here. So they called the blind man over: Courage, they said, get up. He is calling you. So throwing off his cloak, he jumped up and went to Jesus. Then Jesus spoke: What do you want me to do for you? The blind man said to him, Rabbuni, let me see again. Jesus said to him: Go, your faith has saved you. And at once his sight returned and he followed him along the road.

This was today's scripture on www.sacredspace.ie and I wanted to share it with you

-Rev. Tim

when we work together

We accomplish so much more in the kingdom when we work together, in united spirit and willingness to do what needs to be done to get the job done.  I am learning this everyday as I serve in my current context.  I thank my God and Savior for the wonderful saints here in Sandyville at each of our congregations.

Rev. Tim

the power of testimony

Text:  Revelation 12:11 (key verse)

"This is how we overcome!"

*the blood of the lamb applied to our lives
*the word of our testimony spoken in the boldness of the Spirit
*the willingness to abandon our own lives even to the point of death (Today, I only got kicked out of one place for peddling or soliciting the Gospel!)

Peace,

Tim

on the eve of greatness

I feel something in the air.  There is so much going on in our world today, it is hard to remain calm.  We are in a season of revival now at the churches I pastor.  We don't want to miss a day of what the Lord has planned for us and what He could do through us in the world if we remain yielded to the Spirit.  Can you feel it too?  I pray so.  Please share here stories of personal revival in your own life. . .

Rev. Tim

communication or should I say miscommunication

So much of communication is about listening.  Listening involves being truly present and available to hear what the other is saying, not what we want to hear.  I confess that this does not come easy for me and takes work to pull off.  What are your experiences with communication or 'miss communication'?

Rev. Tim

prayer vigil

Thank-you for all those who have committed themselves to this week's revival services here in Sandyville, WV.  We are hopeful together for a great move of God that our churches would never, ever be the same again.  Would you join the prayer team?  If you can be present in person, you should come at 6:50 nightly starting wednesday or pray at least 15 minutes a day from wherever you are.

Blessings,

Rev. Tim

jordan

having a daughter changes your life.  you will have someone always to look into your eyes and you wonder what they're thinking.  It is fun, exciting and a challenge all at the same time.  She needs safety but also teaches so much.  I am thankful.  We are thankful, pray for us

Rev. Tim

John Chrysostom on Loving your wife

John Chrysostom on Loving your wife

anonymous followers

It has come to my attention that at least two of you are "following" this anonymously.  You need not do this by choice.  If you would like to quickly sign up for a google screen name then you could follow and post comments to your hear'ts content.  But you are welcome to follow at a distance or share these thoughts with others and I will rejoice that you are along for the ride. 

Grace and peace,

Rev. Tim

best practices of worship

Today I attended a training event held by the annual conference during our regularly scheduled district clergy meeting in Lubeck, WV.  Many wonderful ideas were shared to enhanse the worship experience at our local churches.  We broke into small groups and discussed a range of things to do or think about.  I shared how I am using this blog to present some of my sermon nuggets ahead of time and solicit feedback from those "following" my blog along the way. 

Rev. Tim

Acts 5:12-16

v.13 "no one else dared join them" This sounds rare to my modern ears to think that people would not come because of some sense of fear or regard for what was happening in the believer's meeting.  Maybe they had heard the word on the street about Anna and Saphira.  This would send the genuine fear of God into any of us today.  We are preparing for those days when the believer's faith would be contagious and a subject of genuine, passionate seeking. . .

Rev. Tim

adam's return (rohr)

"Our religious institutions are not giving very many men access to credible encounters with the Holy or even with their own wholeness."  (x.)
"We are sons of Esau, having sold our birthright for fast-food religion (Genesis 25:29-34).  It does not deeply transform the self or the world."  (xi.)
"We do not choose what happens to us, but we can cooperate with grace and choose our response to it (Romans 8:28)."  (xiii.)
"A true God always liberates us, primarily from ourselves and for something bigger.  In that deep sense, God does save us, precisely by giving himself/herself to us and drawing us into the greater story."  (xiv.)

what's my motivation

I am working on a sermon now from 1 samuel 17.  In verse 25, David is given a proposition of great wealth and other treasures for taking the life of Goliath.  But he goes on in that same passage to assert that his higher motivation is the restoration of God's glory in the land.  Who does this uncircumcised philistine think that he is.  When you challenge the armies of the living God, you are messin with God!

Rev. Tim

sabbath

Luke 5 tells that Jesus took the time to separate from the crowds and be renewed.  When I try to do the same thing, I seem to be distracted by other things and end up weary from the battle.  Today I will rest and look for the same effect that Christ had when he took the time for this most important of ministries.

Rev. Tim

from my desk

I am discovering that relationships and leadership both come down to communication.  Relationships happen when we know (and want to know) another person intimately and leadership happens when we send a message that is understandable to our target audience.  There are so many parallels between these two levels of our everyday life.  What are your thoughts?

Rev. Tim

cross-generational ministries

It was a great day in the life of the ministries I am blessed to lead here in Sandyville, WV.  Men's breakfast kicked-off at 8 with 13 present.  There were four young adults including myself and the rest of the group made this day a great success.  Later in the day our membership small group finished its fifth and final session at Lance and Melissa Morrison's place.  We even got a special visit from Laura Allen, director of communications for the conference.  She is doing a story on our class and wants to share it with the other believers in this conference.  The conference even publishes two face-book pages, including one specifically for prayer.  Your prayers are really connecting, don't stop.

Rev. Tim

14 Prayer Partners received yesterday

Thanks for the support!

14 Prayer Partners received yesterday and 36 more to go.

1.  Please pray today for the vision God has given us here in Sandyville to expand beyond what we can do in our own strength.
2.  Pray that the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace will be maintained.
3.  Pray that the Word of God will go forth and accomplish that for which it was sent.
4.  Pray that I will continue to lead my family in personal holiness, where character counts more than anything else.
5.  May I give God and my family the best of me today.  Thanks,

Rev. Tim

Prayer partners needed

I shared with one of the congregations here a vision that I have for soliciting prayer partners.  Starting with 50, we are looking to enlist anyone willing to pray daily on our behalf and for the sake of the ministries based here in Sandyville, WV.  Contact me on facebook or at sandyumc@yahoo.com if you are so moved.

Rev. Tim, Jami & Jordan

What are you reading?

I am interested to find out what you have been reading lately?  I just finished a John Maxwell book published last year on connecting with people one on one, in small groups and in public speaking.  I am also reading The Power of a Praying Husband and Fathered by God.  Hope you are getting a lot of meat out of your reads.  Let's chat!

Rev. Tim

A little bit different

It's the same name but the blog will be a little different than the newsletter you have been used to.  I will work to post insightful and helpful materials that will enhance the value of your life.  Join in the conversation and see you very soon my friends.

Rev. Tim

My first post

I would like to try blogging again.  It has been years since I quit doing this, but I feel like it is time to give it another go.  Wish me luck and see you in cyberspace.

Rev. Tim