A tiny seed growing to great stature! That is what we can all be! Through our actions we can be the wind that gusts upon the calm waters of the pond, stirring up a ripple effect for Christian good in our community.

The editorial notations in my Bible indicate that the book of Mark is one of action! Forty two times the Greek word for hurry up is used across Mark. This gospel is imploring us to hurry up! Make a difference for Jesus!

So let’s follow Mark’s example and let’s hurry up and grow our own faith. Let’s hurry up and get out there in the world and make a difference modeling the love that God has for us.

There are so many things that can grow as the mustard seed does. This podcast originated as an idea, a discussion among three Christians that I know of, and they hurried up and got busy!

In my own experience at the food pantry, local middle schoolers hurried up and collected bags and bags of canned goods that were donated. Well, all those cans upon arrival at the pantry had to be organized into flats and moved onto the shelves. We hurried up and got busy!

For some reason those students were focused on peas! With their own creativity, I am told that they created a “leaning tower of Peasahhh”! They hurried up and got busy, and we had plenty of peas on flats, on shelves to share with those in need, to share God’s love, as those students and their teachers did!

Heavenly Father, give us the energy and conviction to hurry up as Mark urges us to model our lives after Jesus! Amen.

This devotion was written and read by Sam Barto.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.

Adam

Jesus Christ

Dust and breathe to dust

The Word incarnate, eternal

Sin

Grace

Broken

Unbreakable

Selfish sin

Grace-filled sacrifice and forgiveness

Take and take and take

Freely given in boundless measure

The gift given through Jesus Christ is so fundamentally different from any sin committed by Adam or any other person that there is no comparison to be made. No strength I have, no love I share, no forgiveness I offer, no sin I commit, no anger I feel compares with God’s act of love, sacrifice, and forgiveness.

Nothing I do—absolutely nothing—good or bad will ever be greater than the love and forgiveness shared through the gift of Jesus Christ.

Friend, if you take one thing today, let it be the grace of God. Take it humbly. Take it with thanksgiving. Take it to share with all you encounter today and become one in the body of Christ.

Merciful God, whose immeasurable grace always exceeds our greatest trespass, may we receive your gift of grace with joy, that it may, indeed, overflow to many. Amen.

Today’s devotional was written by Jill Pope, and read by Greta Smith.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.

It long has been recognized that the more clearly an organization understands its mission and the more nearly it operates by that mission, the more effective it is. This is true of corporations, non-profits, athletic teams, and other organized groups, including churches. So the fundamental question for any group to ask is: what is our mission?

It likewise is true that individuals who discover a personal mission and build vision and behavior around it likely live highly productive and rewarding lives. Therefore, all of us would do well to ask ourselves: what is my mission in life?

As Jesus began his ministry he announced his mission when he preached his very first sermon in his home synagogue in Nazareth. It’s worth noting that this came after he had: 1) Been baptized, and in effect, commissioned; 2) Spent 40 days of preparation and discernment in the Judean wilderness. The mission statement of Jesus, which we read a moment ago, is followed by his declaration, “The scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day.” In other words, Jesus was saying of the Isaiah prophecy, “This is me. This is what I came to do. This is my Mission!”

Those of us who have pledged our allegiance to Jesus as Lord and Savior, who have committed to follow in his steps, should see that his mission must become our own, and we are called to the very people he identified in his inaugural public message. Notice again, who these people are:

1. The poor
2. The captives
3. The blind
4. The oppressed

It is easy to forget that our Lord saw his mission to the marginalized of society. And Christians, when we understand Jesus, know these are the very people we are to be lifting up. It was his mission. And it’s ours.

Dear God, Forgive us when we limit Jesus to what he means to us and what he has done for us. Remind us again that belonging to him means that he sends us out to where there is brokenness and darkness. Help us to make his work our work, and his people our people. Amen.

Today’s devotional was written and read by Herb Sadler.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the...