Central UMC Blog

“Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you”—Ephesians 5:14, NIV. A couple of years ago, Dr. Jan Davis and I were invited to be a part of the Seedbed New Room Summit at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky. One of the outcomes of this...

I look up to the mountains—does my help come from there? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. … The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever. Psalm 121 : 1 - 2 (NLT) Psalm 121 has long been one of my favorite Psalms. It's one of...

On the first day of Lent, Ash Wednesday, followers of Christ were invited to join in a forty-day season of spiritual preparation before the celebration of Easter. The invitation to observe a holy Lent includes self-examination, repentance, prayer, fasting, self-denial, and reading and...

Celibacy - A Holy Calling In previous blog entries in the Standing Firm, Moving Forward series, Dr. Jan Davis and I have been intentional about lifting up what we are “for.” We truly believe that the church, as a whole, should do a better job of defining what we are for rather than...

Making Sense of the Law Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill—Jesus (Matthew 5:17, NRSV). For Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes—The Apostle Paul (Romans...

Standing Firm, Moving Forward: Marriage as a Holy Covenant In her last blog, Dr. Jan Davis, stated that the church must do a better job of not taking marriage for granted. I couldn’t agree more. I’ve heard some misguided voices say that the threat to marriage and families today is...

Standing Firm Moving Forward – The Debate Over Same Gender Marriage and the Church In the current roiling United Methodist Church’s denominational debate over same gender marriage and the church, we are faced with a great deal of uncertainty as to what the future holds.  I want...

February 23-26, 2019 looms large for the future of the United Methodist Church. Delegates from around the world will travel to St. Louis, Missouri for the convening of a special called session of General Conference to decide the future of the United Methodist Church. The need for a called...

A Good Voice from a Good Heart “Today is the day,” my dad said as Linda from housekeeping entered the room on her early morning cleaning rounds. Linda clarified, “You’re having your surgery today, Mr. Dennis?” “Yes. They are about to come get me and take me...

It seems to me that we do a lot of searching these days. Most of what we search for is at our fingertips. Recently my daughter needed a dress altered. How does one find a good alteration place? I asked a friend who told me about a place but didn’t have the name. How would I find it? Easy!...