West End Umc Video Podcast Audio Podcast

Redirecting Obedience – Today is the fourth Sunday of Advent, and the third Advent candle symbolizes love. The Rev. Will McLeane, our Pastor of Spiritual Formation is delivering the sermon, and the text from Matthew about the revelation to Joseph that his pregnant fiancé, Mary would bear a son conceived by the Holy Spirit. Rev. Will points out that this is certainly the season for decisions, such as what gift to get for whom, how to spend our seasonal time, but also, for some of us, there are serious decisions such as whether to take a different direction in our vocation. If we feel distressed with decision-making Joseph must have been stressed, having a fiancé who is pregnant, but not by him. The legal requirement in that time was divorce, but in a dream Joseph is told that the father is the Holy Spirit and the baby to be born is to be called Jesus. So Joseph and Mary make the decision to follow God’s guidance. We need to recognize where, in our own lives, we resist God’s call and understand that obedi

Today’s Advent Podcast is led by Kay Gray and Allen Patton, two members of West End UMC’s “Seasoned Seniors,” an Older Adult fellowship and connection group. ...

Today’s Advent Podcast is led by Mackenzie Rice and Lu Johns-De La Garza, two undergraduate students at Vanderbilt and participants in Vanderbilt Wesley. ...

All in the Family – Today is the second Sunday of Advent, and, as the first Sunday of the month, it is also Communion Sunday. We are not only in Advent, awaiting the birth of the Christ child, but we are also beginning a study of the New Testament, and today’s reading is from the first verses of the first Gospel, Matthew, verses that give the genealogy of Jesus back to Abraham, as the writer of the first Gospel is addressing Jews. In our time, many people explore their ancestry with various methods of tracing their origins. But, as with the ancestors of Jesus listed in these verses, a lot of people find some messy episodes in their ancestry. Carol points out several such episodes in Jesus’s ancestry, and that underscores his humanity. Nevertheless, as the birth of Jesus is evidenced as divine in the first Gospel, we find that we are no longer bound by any shortcomings in our lineage but are free to follow Jesus.

The Day Is Coming – Today is the first Sunday of Advent, the Christian season of waiting. Carol asks us to ponder what we, personally, are waiting for. She gives some examples of things people are waiting for, both as individuals and as groups, and says that waiting can be difficult. And we now not only await the celebration of the birth of Jesus, but we also await the second coming of Jesus. We have recently spent a series of Sundays with Jeremiah’s words before Israel’s impending exile and then enduring that Babylonian exile, today’s scripture is from Malachi to the post-exilic Israelites who were waiting for God’s control to resume and for their return to normalcy. Malachi’s words of deep hope from God, the last words in our Old Testament, promise a return of God’s justice and point to a day when God is coming. Throughout Advent we will await the birth of the Christ child, and then beyond Advent we will turn to the Gospels to look at the life of Jesus as the model for God’s return as leader on earth.

Investing in Hope – Today is “Reign of Christ Sunday” when we acknowledge and celebrate the centrality of God and Jesus as the overarching focus of our faith. Also today we are ending our series of readings and sermons based on the Book of Jeremiah. Today’s passage from Jeremiah is quite odd and surprising. Jerusalem is about to be conquered by the Babylonians, and they know that’s coming because of the Babylonian troops that are amassed close to the city. Jeremiah is in custody, placed there by King Josiah because of Jeremiah’s frequent and urgent criticisms of the king and the people. But in this passage, Jeremiah is instructed by God to buy a plot of farmland in Anathoth, just outside Jerusalem, and he does so in a very public manner. That action goes against all reason because it is clear that inevitably and soon Jerusalem will be conquered and burned. Yet through this purchase Jeremiah and God make a statement that one day God will restore the people and the kingdom, and thus hope is not lost at a

Bloom Where You Are Planted – Today is “College Sunday” when we celebrate the college students worshipping among us. As part of that, college students are taking part in much of the service, and Daniel Cantrell, a graduate student at Belmont University, is preaching. We have been in a series of Sundays during which we are exploring the Book of Jeremiah, and in today’s passage, the Lord, through Jeremiah, assures the Israelites in Babylonian captivity that they will return from exile and God will attend to their calls. In his message to us, Daniel cites some periods of his own life when he had lost community and was, in some measure, in exile. We, too, experience exile when we lose community, but in surrendering to God’s control, we can return from exile into community under God. No matter our age or our condition, God is not through working through us, and God can turn our exile into purpose if we are willing.

Even in Exile – In an exchange of preachers, today the Rev. Sam McGlothlin, the senior pastor at Belle Meade United Methodist Church, is preaching for us, while Rev. Dr. Carol Cavin-Dillon is preaching there. We have been in a series of Sundays during which we are exploring the Book of Jeremiah, and to prepare us for today’s passage, Rev. McGlothlin reviewed the Book of Jeremiah we have explored to this point, his being called as a young person by God to remind God’s people of their relationship with God in the past and to urge them to give up the things that have caused them to stray. Now, however, they are in exile in Babylon, and today’s passage is a message to those in exile that they need to seek and enable the welfare of others, including their captors, in that foreign land. Rev. McGlothlin interweaves family stories to illustrate that sometimes one’s frustration and anger can prevent our reaching out to others, and perhaps there were some in Babylonian captivity who could reach out, but others could

Living by Heart – Today is All Saints Sunday, an annual celebration of the lives of those who have gone before us, whether they be in the faith, in the history of our church, among our own families and friends, but, especially, honoring the lives of those West End UMC members who have died since last year’s All Saints Sunday. Their names are printed on the bulletin covers, and, as part of the Prayer for the Whole State of Christ’s Church, their names are read aloud and a candle is lit honoring each one. It is also a communion service, and the liturgy is largely from Thomas Cranmer, written nearly 500 years ago, and used through the history of the Methodist Church. Rev. Dr. Carol Cavin-Dillon, in delivering the Communion Meditation, reminds us of the eternal love of God, felt by those before us through the centuries. We have been in a series of Sundays during which we are exploring the Book of Jeremiah, and in today’s scripture, God is holding out a new covenant for the people of Israel if they will return

A walking (or sitting) meditation that you can use to pray and give God thanks for your pet

The Potter’s Hands – We are in a series of Sundays during which we are exploring the Book of Jeremiah, and in today’s scripture, God tells Jeremiah to go to a potter’s house where he witnesses the potter re-working a clay vessel whose clay had spoiled. God uses this to illustrate to Jeremiah God’s intent to re-work Israel, possibly destroying it if Israel doesn’t listen to his word and turn from its evil ways. God had initially brought these people out of Egypt and to the Promised Land, living as a community in the kingdom of God. But in the intervening time they had turned to their own rulers, set up kings, and the people had split into Judah and the Northern Kingdom. God wants them to return to being a beloved community with God at the center and nobody left out. What might Jeremiah call us to be and do in our day? Are we not to be the church with everyone having a place at the table? Are we not called to be kind and generous to everyone? Jesus said that when we do these things to the least of these

First, the Bad News – We are in a series of Sundays during which we are exploring the Book of Jeremiah. Last week the scripture and sermon were about the call of Jeremiah to be a prophet when he was but a child. This week the reading is from a section in Jeremiah 2 wherein God’s word delivered by Jeremiah denounces the idolatry and faithlessness of God’s people, thus giving the bad news before giving the good news. This section is very much the language of litigation in which God, through Jeremiah, first lays out what God had done for the people through history and then accuses them of abandoning God. These words are first delivered to people in power: priests, kings, and other leaders. But Jeremiah’s words challenge us to evaluate our own allegiances, whether we focus on ideologies or on ourselves more than on God. Although these words are harsh and challenging, there is always good news in that God has not abandoned the people but is urging them to turn around. Likewise, God is ever hoping we will tu

Stop Making Excuses – Today we welcome Toi King, lead pastor at Clark Memorial UMC, as our guest preacher. We are beginning a series on the prophet, Jeremiah, and today’s scripture is the first part of the book wherein Jeremiah receives a call from God. Rev. King begins by asking if we’ve made excuses when someone asks us to do something we don’t want to do, or when someone asks us to do something we don’t feel like we can do. The call of Jeremiah is like that as Jeremiah offers some excuses. Rev. King gives us some historical setting for Jeremiah as the kingdom had been split into Israel and Judah, their kings had, through some years, become evil, and many of the people had either rejected or ignored God. God selects Jeremiah to preach God’s word to these two nations that are about to fall as nations with Jerusalem destroyed and many people taken to Babylon in captivity. Being a prophet, especially in that era, was not an easy job. Rev. King cites her own call to ministry, the excuses she posed when G

Jesus Beyond the Border – Today is World Communion Sunday, and the scripture is the story in Luke of Jesus traveling, and, on his way, healing ten lepers, only one of whom returns to praise God and thank Jesus, and that fellow was a Samaritan. Carol told of an experience she had some years ago visiting a children’s hospital in Israel where staff members were from various countries and the patients, children, were from various places as well. But together the atmosphere at the hospital was inclusive and focused on healing. In Jesus’ time, Samaritans and Jews did not get along, but in this specific story, Jesus was inclusive of the ten lepers, no matter their origins. At the end of the healing he instructs them to go see a priest to get clearance that they are healed. Most do, focused on getting back to the lives they led before coming down with leprosy. But the one who turned back to Jesus came not only to thank him but to become a follower. It is an example for us on World Communion Sunday, following t

Lost and Found – Today’s scripture involves the familiar parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin, but of critical importance is the setting for them. Jesus is having dinner with tax collectors and “sinners,” but the Pharisees and scribes were not happy that he was gathering with such people. The parables challenge their objections and demonstrate God’s willingness to seek out any who are lost and rejoice greatly when they return to the fold. In laying this out for us, Carol gives an example of our Methodist ancestor, John Wesley, who, in an era when it was not at all proper to preach anywhere but in a church building, went to the mines and preached to the miners, who, having been on the outskirts of society, were drawn in by God’s invitation through Wesley’s preaching. This evolved into Wesley’s later setting up weekly meetings of such people, the ancestors of our Sunday school gatherings. This message is important for each of us if/when we are feeling lost. God is active in seeking us out, and if

Today’s scripture is a scene from Luke wherein Jesus tells his disciples a story about a rich man and another man named Lazarus who is covered in sores and frequently lies on the steps of the rich man’s house, hoping for food scraps. But the rich man pays no attention to Lazarus, failing to see him as a human sibling. Jesus frequently in parables and in the beatitudes, for example, calls on people to love and care for others, calling on us to mind the gap between ourselves and others. In our current day and time, doing so can be a great challenge, but we are all members of God’s family, challenged to embrace those whom we might not have considered before.

A Shrewd Investment – Today’s scripture is a scene from Luke wherein Jesus tells his disciples a parable about a rich man who finds out that his manager has been squandering his property and confronts that manager, This parable can evoke questions and can be confusing because the manager, to save himself, does some things we might have expected from someone who is conniving and not honest. It can be puzzling that Jesus would have told this example of the rich and dishonest to his listeners who were likely not wealthy. The manager is clearly looking out for himself, and perhaps Jesus is encouraging his followers to be creative and clever in the economy of God, where, in Luke’s gospel, there is an emphasis that the last shall be first. Is Jesus encouraging us to cancel debts and exhibit forgiveness and grace creatively where people who have been pushed out are, by our creativity and cleverness, pulled in and embraced? Carol offers some real-life examples of people who used shrewdness to advance faith and fu

Scripture Reflections – Today is Children’s Sabbath, and children are leading many parts of the service, including the sermon. Emilia Fazio and Caroline Thompson deliver the sermon consisting of reflections on the very familiar Parable of the Mustard Seed in Luke 13. Small things can make big differences, so they encourage us to do kind deeds every day that can grow into amazing things. One example given was Greta Thunberg, a young Swedish activist who made great strides in raising awareness of climate change across the world.

From Big Fan to True Disciple – Today’s scripture is a scene from Luke where Jesus is addressing the crowds and challenges them in a number of ways, some of which seem very harsh. Carol begins by talking about Taylor Swift and the hordes of her fans. This story in Luke has Jesus surrounded by hordes of people, fans, who travel with Jesus. In the Gospel of Luke there are concentric circles of people with Jesus, the closest of which is his group of disciples. This story distinguishes what it means to be a disciple as opposed to being a fan of Jesus, and the question for us is whether we are fans or disciples. Carol refers to a sermon of John Wesley called, “Almost Christian.” This challenge by Jesus in Luke for people to be disciples can seem very challenging for us. In the story, Jesus doesn’t reject or condemn those who aren’t disciples but is inviting them to become disciples. This comparison is also hyperbole, telling them/us that to become a disciple we have to be all-in and live a life of full com

Lifted – Today’s scripture is a story about Jesus healing a crippled woman, a story that is found only in the Gospel of Luke. There is little detail about the scene in the text, so Carol asks us to imagine what it must have involved. According to the writer of the gospel, Jesus frequently taught in the synagogue, and this crippled woman came in late on this day. Some probably knew her and were used to this. In that time, many believed that someone crippled was suffering that condition because of some sin. Jesus, however, had compassion, reached out and touched her, thus healing her. For the first time in eighteen years, the woman rose up to look into the eyes of Jesus. She was now free, rejoicing, and praising God. A lesson in this is that God wants to liberate us from anything that is binding us. But in the story the leader of the synagogue then rose up to hijack the whole scene because this was done on the Sabbath, blaming the woman for coming to be healed on the Sabbath, which represents the conde