Just over a week ago, my nuclear family traveled to Puerto Rico to join with our family of faith for the Biennial Mission Summit of our denomination, the American Baptist Churches USA. It was an incredibly busy weekend of listening to reports from our missionaries and agencies, celebrating shared successes, recognizing areas that require improvement, and engaging in discussions to discern...
Have you ever taken the time to read Ecclesiastes? It’s in the Old Testament right after Psalms and Proverbs. It isn’t exactly one of those books that we go running to for encouraging reading material. It does contain a few passages with which many of us would be familiar, though. Allow me to provide a few examples… Ecclesiastes 1:2 reads, “Meaningless! Meaningless!’ says the Teacher...
It was a dark and stormy night. Rain beat against the window, the wind shook the house, and periodic bolts of lightning faintly and briefly illuminated the bedroom. In the bed at the center of the room lay a young boy with only his frightened eyes peeking out from under the covers. With every flash of light his eyes search the room with full certainty that, particularly on a night like this, evil...
In my junior year of high school I was cut from my high school basketball team. I can still remember where I was and how I felt when I learned that I didn’t make the cut. I was standing outside the office of the athletic director/coach of the boys’ team where the list was posted. All around me were other young men, celebrating their shared joy of finding their names on that white sheet of...
I recently started a Sunday sermon with two stories that sat in juxtaposition to one another. The first story was an old, corny joke, the second story comes from a personal experience, and both involve food. The intent was to create contrast to help us evaluate the true severity of the situations and struggles we face in our lives. I’d like to share those stories again. It is all too easy for us...
According to a limited Google search I just conducted (which, I confess, an expert does not make), between 3%-5% of the US population has some form of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). I am not a medical professional, so I don’t have the requisite education or understanding to really argue for or against those numbers. But, personal experience makes me feel like those numbers might be painfully...
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the...
I met Mr. Jim Cox sometime in 2005. As I reflect back, I can still see his face. His eyes were always filled with compassion and joy and he had a wildly contagious, if not a little mischievous, smile that could light up a room. I’m not 100% sure what the first words he spoke to me were, but I’m fairly certain that our first conversation after I joined the pastoral staff at the church he...
This past Sunday, sometime shortly before the ungodly hour of 4:30 AM, I was jolted out of my much needed beauty sleep by a loud and long roll of thunder. A spring storm was rapidly approaching and the thunder was just a precursor to the fun to come. Within moments of regaining consciousness, I began to hear the wind violently swirl outside. I listened as the siding, shutters, and gutters began...
Towards the end of every month I receive a “special” document in my church mailbox requiring my attention. It is a credit card statement for my church expense card. Various items on the document will have been highlighted by the church business manager, thus indicating that action is required on my part. Each highlighted item represents a receipt that I have, to that point, failed to submit to...
Jeremy Myers is the Lead Pastor of First Baptist Church of Seymour, Indiana, where he has served since 2017. He has over 25 years of experience in local church ministry and not-for-profit leadership. He has a passion for helping emerging and existing generations learn to make space for each other and caring for the under-served and marginalized. In 2016, he earned his Doctor of Ministry degree from Palmer Theological Seminary, with his thesis focusing on developing connections between senior adults and youth in the church. He is a passionate and gifted communicator and is regularly invited to speak at retreats, camps, conferences, and other events. He lives in Seymour, Indiana with his wife Robyn, their two children, Mikayla and JJ, and their Golden Doodle, Evie.
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