Back in the fall of the year 2000, I was asked to go on a mission trip with my daughter's youth group at Ennis FUMC. I was asked because someone knew I had done some construction work in the past. Well, I had been a trim carpenter and cabinetmaker for quite a few years as well as doing various remodeling and countertop work. I had held several management positions for various manufacturing companies but keep coming back to work in which I was physically part of building something. At the time I was self-employed, striking a balance between management consultation, technical drafting, and running a small shop. I figured I could take whatever time I needed, and so I said yes.

That trip the next summer changed my understanding of how faith can work. I was pretty new to finding what I would call real faith or my own true faith. For the first time, I was actively pursuing my relationship with God and seeking His will and plan for my life. Following God can take you different directions pretty quickly. After skipping church that morning to finish up a project, I threw my tools and clothes into a trailer hooked to a church van and then climbed into the driver's seat. Knowing nothing about our destination other than it was somewhere in Oklahoma, I told the other driver, "I'm following you."

I probably had heard all the details of the trip, but was so busy with work that none of it had registered with me. I didn't know we were staying at a church in Sunday School classrooms. I didn't know we were combining with several other churches to make work teams with a bunch of new people. I didn't know we were going to be playing together and sharing worship every night. I didn't know that we were going to do some relatively simple projects that were going to dramatically change the lives for some people. I didn't realize how important what we were doing was going to turn out to be as I drove to Owasso, Oklahoma outside of Tulsa.

By the next year I was our inexperienced new youth minister. In planning the trip, I signed my wife Sherri up just to hold a place for another adult. She was not interested in, and had no intention of going on the trip. Long story short, she went, she loved it, and she has been going every summer since then, trying out roles on a work team, Program Director, Cook, and settling into her calling as a Center Director. Our kids Brooke and Alex have grown up going on these trips and are now moving into leadership roles for them. Between the four of us, including some additional trips to Mexico, this summer will bring us up to 40 weeks of mission trips.

These weeks are not what I would call comfortable. We live with a large group in close quarters. We do work that can be quite challenging. By the end of the week, everyone is usually exhausted. But they are immensely satisfying and I look forward to them every year. Jesus never told us that following Him would be easy. He in fact warned us that it would be difficult and would cost us our lives. But as I told the other driver on that first trip, my desire is to tell Christ, "I'm following You."

Be Blessed!
Michael

If you have spent much time at all in a community of faith, you have probably heard something, sometime about faith and action. This is another one of those times. In the second chapter of James, we are told very explicitly that "faith by itself, if not accompanied by action, is dead." Jesus often explained to his followers the connection of faith and action, especially in the case of new believers making a change, coming forward, asking for healing, doing something different.

We are creatures of habit. It is very easy to get into routines that can last even decades. If they are good habits, then great. But more often the word "bad" seems to be associated with habits. This can be tragic when we let empty or bad habits define our faith. They may technically be actions, but if they don't move us in our faith, they really are not doing us any good.

Last Sunday we celebrated two groups that took some action. One group, our newly confirmed class of congregation members, have just spent months doing something. They have been learning about and trying out new ways to experience their faith. As they spoke their vows, it marked not an end, but a beginning. This group of young people has changed our congregation as they have changed their own understanding of faith.

The other group was our 50-year members. They have literally been a part of this congregation from the beginning. When the groundbreaking for our first building took place, we changed the community of Woodway. These people could have comfortably stayed where they were. But that was not where they were called to stay.

There are times when our faith may wear thin and we struggle with the meaning behind it all. Following through with the actions of our faith can help us through those times. There are times when our actions don't seem to make a difference and we feel like we are wasting our time. Focusing back on our faith, the reason that drives our actions can help us power through when we are not seeing or feeling results.

Being in a community of faith helps with both faith and action. Choose to connect and spend time with people that can help you focus on each of these things. When I feel like my faith is lagging, I have friends that can boost me with a new focus for my thoughts or my action. When I feel like my actions aren't doing enough, I can always find someone that shows me how they are finding connection.

Though faith and actions ultimately come down to the choices we make as individuals, experiencing both in community is how Jesus showed us that it works best. We've got plenty of ways to connect to both faith and action here at Woodway FUMC. Make a commitment to yourself TODAY to more closely follow Christ and to help others to more closely follow Him as well.

Be Blessed!
Michael