“The squeaky wheel gets the grease.” You’ve likely heard this American proverb at some point in your life. No one is certain from whence this little nugget of wisdom came. The truth the phrase is intended to communicate, however, is widely understood and accepted: The loudest problems and most noticeable problems are the most likely to get the most attention. In many areas of my own life, I have...
Certain sights, smells, and sounds seem to hold supernatural powers. They have the ability to transport us back through time to the good old days, to simpler times. And, while the sensations that trigger this experience are different for each of us, I am fairly certain we all have them. Whenever I smell freshly cut grass or hear the rustling of leaves, I am immediately transported to a cross...
Over the last several weeks, the weather in southern Indiana has been nothing short of depressing. Save a few anomalous days of warmth and sunshine, it has been cold, cloudy, and often extremely wet. I feel like Morgan Freeman’s character in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves when he looked to the sky and screamed, “IS THERE NO SUN IN THIS CURSED COUNTRY!” The dark, damp, drear of recent days has a...
A new worship song was released a few weeks ago that has been running on repeat on my Spotify account. The title of the song is Wait On You. It is a collaboration between Maverick City Music and Elevation Worship. The song is a masterful mix of musical styles, bringing together the best of African American church choirs, modern contemporary worship bands, and the basic truth of Scripture. The...
Over the last several weeks, several memories have popped up on my social media feeds, reminding me of the emergence of the coronavirus and the cascade of developments that quickly followed. I can still remember where I was sitting, what I was wearing, and how I was feeling as I typed the first message to the people of First Baptist Church. I’m somewhat of a germaphobe, so certain aspects of our...
If you join us for worship at First Baptist Church on any given Sunday morning, whether online or in-person, you will notice a coffee mug on the podium next to my Bible. It is usually filled with coffee, which I pour into said mug right before the service begins. I wait until the last possible moment in hopes that when we are done singing and I begin preaching the contents of the mug will be at a...
Is it fair to consider “2020” a four-letter word? I am fully aware that it is actually four numbers that, when fully spelled out, has twelve letters. It feels appropriate to classify 2020 with the other “bad words” of the English language. If we’re being honest, it sure feels like a bad word. You sort of have to gag it out of your mouth and, once you do, you feel a little dirty for having said it...
The First Baptist Church of Seymour, Indiana was established in 1839. We are just under two decades from celebrating 200 years as a church. During that time, we have gone through one name change (originally it was Liberty Baptist Church) and we have been housed in five different buildings at five different locations. We have a rich and robust history of community involvement and engagement...
Just before the apocalypse began and COVID-19 took over the world, I had an interesting interaction with one of my neighbors. We both pulled into our driveways and exited our vehicles at approximately the same time, so it only seemed polite to ask him how he was doing. I yelled the standard neighborly greeting; “Hey buddy, how’s life?” At the moment, his response was humorous, if not a tad cliché...
The last several months have been a continuous exercise in adaptability for all of us. As we all now understand all too well, it is not an easy exercise. It continues to stretch and mold us in ways we can’t fully comprehend or appreciate in the now. Generally, change ebbs and flows like the tide, rising and falling with some level of predictability over time. Recently, it feels a lot more like a...
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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