“…lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called…” (Ephesians 4:1). In the book of Ephesians, the Greek word used by the author for worthy is AXIOS. Axios is a reference to a set of scales on which one would place a set of weights on one tray, and an item […]
Organist Bernie Foulk with Jacqueline Stilger featuring the Letourneau organ of First United Methodist Church of Kalamazoo Bernie Foulk joined the staff of First United Methodist Church in 2007 as organist. He holds a bachelor’s degree in trumpet performance as well as master’s degrees in library science and organ performance. Jacqueline Stilger has been the […]
For this final sermon in our summer preaching series The Renewing Work of God, we turn to the work of Doing Justice as Prayer. Throughout this series we have been encouraged to set the intention of prayer while doing everyday ordinary things such as planting seeds, going for walks, making music and art and eating. Today we […]
"Be still and know that I am God." As we pray, we are seeking love, we are drawn into God because we are called by love, we come out of prayer filled by love and ready to impart that love. Throughout this series we have explored the many adventurous ways to pray. Yet, it is […]
Join us for Sunday Morning Class after worship at 11:15am: In person in the Parlor at First United Methodist Church of Kalamazoo or online on Zoom Short Stories by Jesus: Led by John Clark Jesus knew how to tell a story. He knew that in order to get his message across he needed to relate […]
“Blow upon my garden that its fragrance may be wafted abroad.” Have you ever planted a garden and even though you know what you put into the ground, still you marvel at the way in which those seeds magically produce beans and squash and tomatoes and peppers and…all the amazing things? Of course it isn’t […]
“If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.” Today, we gather around the table of grace to receive the bread of life and the cup that overflows with blessing and love. It is a holy feast. What if by way of doing prayer we made every meal an extension […]
“Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications!” I spent a week at Wesley Woods High School Camp recently with a large group of teenagers and every morning and evening we sang. (Don’t worry, we were outside and a strong majority were vaccinated!) We sang contemporary worship songs by the fire with […]
We worship a creating God who calls us into this same creative, spiritual energy. Creativity comes from God and is expressed in a myriad of ways and means. Children have this distinctive sense that they are creative and will find ways to express themselves. The trouble is that as we age, we are often not […]
You're invited to join us for Coffeehouse Worship! So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new. Our theme for worship is this week is “Doing Prayer” with an emphasis on “Walking Prayer.” This is not praying while walking, rather, setting the intention […]
Join us on Sunday mornings in June at 11:15am! Class is available in person in the parlor or online via Zoom. We want to be a welcoming congregation, and we're pretty good at welcoming people like us. How do we extend the idea of Christ-like hospitality to people who aren't like us? Cultural competence means […]
You are invited to join us on Sunday mornings at 10am for worship in the sanctuary. We ask that those who join us wear a mask and arrive at least a few minutes early to sign in at the doors off the parking lot. Please keep space from one another in the sanctuary and, as […]
