Polk's Paragraphs

"Welcome back!"

Those were words I heard several times as our family went back to Minnesota a couple of weeks ago to attend the funeral of Patty’s father. We had been there only a month before, so in some ways it seemed we had hardly left. We knew everyone there and didn’t really need to catch up on the news of people’s lives. Nevertheless, it was good to hear people say, "Welcome back!" It sounded like family, and it felt like coming home.

"Welcome back!" As summer comes to an end and we enter into a new season and activities, that is what I want to say to you. Welcome back! I hope that this summer you have had at least some time to get away, some time to get refreshed, some time to do things you had been putting off. Now it is time to get back into the familiar and important routines of church life, and as you do I hope it will sound like family and feel like coming home.

This summer Brittany and I preached a sermon series on the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), and we had a chance to talk at length about what it means to be a mature, Spirit-filled Christian. This Fall we want to go another step and explore what it means to be a mature, Spirit-filled United Methodist. All people live in a context, and for us that is the United Methodist Church. With membership in our denomination comes certain beliefs and expectations, a certain way of thinking about our faith and living it out in the world. I want you to be both excited and proud not only to be Christian, but to be United Methodist as well.

On September 12 Brittany and I will begin a six-week sermon series entitled, "What is a United Methodist?" during which we will explore what it means to live our faith out in this context. To help us prepare, I’d like to invite you to respond to three sets of questions:

• Why are you a United Methodist? What do you like about the UMC?
• What do you wish other people knew about the UMC?
• What questions do you have about the UMC? What would you like to learn more about concerning the UMC?

You can email your responses to me at fumcedsr@suddenlinkmail.com or drop them by my office any time. We will use those responses to help us know how best to tailor the series.

I will also be starting a six-week study of the UMC, beginning on Wednesday evening, September 1, from 6:15-7:00 pm and continuing each Wednesday night thereafter. This will be part of our new Wednesday night schedule. You will find more information about it elsewhere in this newsletter.

Friends, I am excited about living my faith out as a United Methodist, and I hope you are as well. Come on and get involved with your church family.

Welcome back!