Jackie Gleason, the famous comic of the 1960s and 1970s, used to begin his Saturday evening television program with the phrase, “And away we go!”  It reminds me of the hecticness (is there such a word?) of our lives.  Busy, busy, busy! There seems to be no easing down through life anymore. It’s always go, go, go!  I talk to so many folks as pastor whose complaint is, “I don’t have time for anything these days!”  And I whole-heartedly agree. It seems to be the same at the parsonage.

I remember when I was just a lad, and I thought that time surely did pass slowly. My next older brother Nelson, who passed away four years ago this past February, was over seven years older than me.  I can distinctly remember when he was getting ready to graduate eighth grade at Bondecroft Elementary School. Back then, they made a big “to-do” about the eighth grade graduation. Graduates were expected to really “dress up” in the best suits, ties, dresses and formal wear for the graduation ceremony itself. So that has always been a fond remembrance for me, as by the time I got a little older, the powers-that-be had moved the seventh and eighth grades to town to the new middle school. So, our ”graduation”, if you could even call it that, was from the sixth grade. We didn’t even have a graduation ceremony, much less a big “to-do”.

Anyway, getting back to the story, I remember when Nelson was graduating from the eighth grade. I was just coming out of the first grade. And, yes, I do remember that, even though it has been many years ago. I remember thinking, “I’ll never get to eighth grade graduation. Of course, at that time, I never even thought about there not even being a graduation. It seemed so far away…so many years away. And then, next thing I knew, he was graduating from high school in the Class of 1970.  I was coming out of fifth grade by then. And again, I’m thinking, “high school graduation is so far away”.  Out of the six brothers, I was now the only one still in school. And I’d be there another seven years. Of course, little did I know, that six more years of college and grad school lay out there in the future, too.

Fast forward to today!  Wow, time sure doesn’t poke along now, does it?  It seems like only yesterday I was still in school, still at home with Mom and Dad, and still enjoying the innocence of youth. I look in the mirror, and sometimes I’m shocked! Who is that old guy? Where did the time go?  How has time flown by so quickly?

The Bible advises us to use our time wisely because God knows that there are many things in life that can distract us from what truly matters. We shouldn’t waste our time so that we look back with regret – we don’t know what tomorrow holds, but as the old beloved hymn says, “I know who holds tomorrow!” The psalmist wrote in Psalm 31:15, “My times are in Your hands”.  Our best course of action moving forward, be it moving fast or moving slow, is to remember that God’s got everything under control.  And He definitely holds tomorrow.

We are now in the middle of an incredibly special and important part of our church year – the Season of Lent which runs from Ash Wednesday through Holy Week leading us to the annual Easter celebration. In many ways, this season of the year has become increasingly commercialized and secularized – much like the annual Advent and Christmas season. Even among those who are believers in Jesus as Savior and Lord, there are trends away from the sacred message of the Season of Lent and Easter and more emphasis on commercialized and secularized observances of this season.

This season of the year is one in which we recall and prayerfully consider the passion and crucifixion of Jesus Christ on the “Old Rugged Cross” at Golgotha – and then the celebration of the Good News that the tomb was empty – and that Jesus Christ arose from the dead! Let us never forget the message of the Cross and the Resurrection as the foundation of our Christian faith. Without the Cross, there is no Resurrection. Without the Resurrection, the Cross is nothing more than the story of the death of one among many enemies of the Roman state and a would-be Messiah of the Jews.

Let’s be reminded of how we’ll wind up the season of Lent. Please note that we will have our annual Seder Meal one week earlier than normal due to the busyness of Holy Week. It will be held Thursday evening, April 10^th at 6:00 at Homestead Church.

This year, Holy Week begins on April 13th with Palm Sunday. We will be waving our palm branches in the morning services. It marks the beginning of Holy Week and all that unfolds in the story of the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ. For all the kiddies, there will be an Egg Hunt for Dorton, Homestead, and First Church (at Dorton) on Palm Sunday afternoon beginning at 3:00 pm.

We’ll begin worship on Easter Sunday with our annual Easter Sunrise Service and Breakfast. This year, it will take place at Dorton Church. Let’s all support this early morning celebration by attending and participating. He is Risen! Easter service at Dorton will take place at 9:00 am. Another Egg Hunt will take place after this service for all the kiddies. The Homestead Easter service will take place at 11:00 am. Our Homestead kiddies are invited to participate in an Egg Hunt immediately after the service.

In addition, we’ll have several “special” Sundays throughout the month celebrating our churches and our people. Such events as “Friends and Family Day”, Easter “Hat Day”, and others should be lots of fun and a wonderful encouragement.

That’s a busy week and a busy month! 

I like to spend the days of Holy Week preparing for the worship services that come on Easter Sunday. When I say prepare, it’s so much more than just finalizing plans for the services, it’s preparing ME for what is to come. How will the suffering, death, and resurrection stir my soul this year? Will I hear something different? Will it affect me in new ways? How will this move from a story to a journey within me? May God bless our Holy Week – Sunday to Sunday. God be with us in our prayers, God be with us in our work, God be with us in our rest, God be with us as we prepare to be transformed.

Let’s make the month of April 2025 a period in which we place emphasis upon the Cross and the Resurrection. On the Cross, Jesus paid the price of our sins. In the Resurrection, Jesus has conquered death. What a powerful and wonderful message we must share with our community and world. As I say every Sunday before you walk out the door, “SHARE JESUS”! Yes, let’s be about the business of our faith – sharing Jesus Christ with others – and ministering to the “lost and least” in the name of the Resurrected Jesus. Amen.

In my devotional the other day, I was reading about the life of Gideon in the book of Judges. You’ll find his story in chapter 6. If you need a refresher on the timeline, the book of Judges is continuing the story of the Israelites, the nation who God began to develop through leaders like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses. Later, Israel would have leaders in the form of kings, like Saul and David. But, in between those two seasons the nation of Israel was led by Judges.

And when you hear “Judge”, don’t think of a judge in a courtroom today, instead think of military leaders ruling over specific portions of land and people. One of those judges was named Gideon. And while Gideon is often known for his courageous and miraculous military victory, you may not know that earlier in Gideon’s story, he is hiding and afraid. In fact, in Judges 6, God, through an angel, declares two profound truths to Gideon:

1. The Lord is with you!

2. The Lord is going to use you!

And get this! Gideon disagrees with the angel on both! You see, at this point in Gideon’s life, he was experiencing real brokenness, pain, and isolation. And in his perspective, God wasn’t with him and his people. Instead, He had abandoned them. In Gideon’s perspective, God couldn’t use a broken and weak person like him. Gideon thought God needed someone else who was strong according to the world’s standards.

What we see with Gideon is often what we experience today. We tend to shape our perspective according to our circumstances instead of God’s character. We tend to measure our potential for impact according to our current predicament, instead of God’s eternal promises.

How about we make a concerted effort in our lives to remember that we serve a Big God, a God who knows our circumstances and holds the solutions to all of life’s problems. There is NOTHING too big for our God!

Way back in the year 1967, which was before many of you were even born, a well-known British rock band by the name of The Beatles recorded a song called “All You Need Is Love”.  As I sit here in the church office on this cold January morning in the year 2025, I think back on that song and all the different levels of meanings we could take from it.

What has brought this on, Pastor Tim, you may ask? Well, it’s February after all, the “month of love”.  It is the month of Valentine’s Day.  Did you know that Valentine’s Day spending is one of the highest amounts for any holiday of the year.  In the year 2023, which was the most recent year for which I could find statistics, very nearly twenty-six billion dollars was spent. That came out to an average per person spending, according to those statistics, of $274.00 per person. Wow!

Here is some info from a website called lendingtree.com. It is very interesting to say the least. This info was projected for the past year 2024.

16 Valentine’s Day Spending Statistics

• 82% of Americans in relationships — whether dating, engaged or married — planned to buy Valentine’s Day gifts for their significant others in 2024.
• These Americans in relationships planned to spend an average of $180 on their significant others for Valentine’s Day in 2024.
• That $180 average was lower than in 2023 ($187) and 2022 ($208) but higher than in 2021 ($144) and 2020 ($142).
• Men expected to spend 116% more on their valentines in 2024 than women — $248 versus $115.
• Millennials planned to spend the most on their significant others among the age groups for Valentine’s Day in 2024, shelling out an average of $262. That’s followed by Gen Z’ers ($201), Gen Xers ($138) and baby boomers ($81).
• 33% of consumers in relationships said they may take on credit card debt due to Valentine’s Day spending this year.
• 24% planned to gift their partner an experience, such as travel, tickets or a dinner out, in 2024. Experiences were also the top gift significant others hoped to receive.
• 61% of Americans expected to celebrate Valentine’s Day in 2024 — up four percentage points from 2023. That’s tied with New Year’s Eve for the biggest expected jump between 2023 and 2024.
• 11% of Americans typically prepare more than three months before Valentine’s Day. Another 17% prepare only one to two days in advance.
• Only 12% of Americans gather with friends and family for Valentine’s Day — the lowest among 14 tracked holidays. The next closest is Halloween, at 28%.
• 39% of Americans go out to eat for Valentine’s Day — the highest among those same tracked holidays. An additional 13% order food for takeout or delivery.
• 40% of Valentine’s Day celebrators planned to buy gifts at big-box stores like Walmart and Target — the highest category. They also planned to shop at grocery stores (33%), online retailers (27%) and discount or dollar stores (23%).
• Consumers were expected to spend $25.8 billion on Valentine’s Day in 2024, down from $25.9 billion in 2023.
• Consumers were expected to spend $14.2 billion on their significant others this Valentine’s Day, up from $13.5 billion in 2023.
• 58 million pounds of chocolate are purchased during Valentine’s Day week.
• About 145 million Valentine’s Day cards are exchanged every year, making it the second-largest holiday for doing so.

All well and good, I suppose.  But what about the greatest love of all (another song title, I believe)? John 3:16 says, “”For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life”. The fact that God gave to mankind the very best that he had, His only Son, speaks volumes about love. The Bible is crammed full of reminders about God’s love for us through Jesus Christ His Son.

And what about the cost? We listed all those financial statistics about the cost of Valentine’s Day in the United States. But the price of our salvation has been paid by the very blood Jesus Himself. One cannot place a monetary cost on His sacrifice!

So, during this “month of love” including Valentine’s Day, let’s remember the love of our Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus!

Ho Ho Ho! Oops, I’m a little late for that. In all seriousness, our hope and prayer is that your Christmas season was a glorious time of sharing in the blessings of God with your family and church family. With Christmas now in the rear view mirror, so to speak, remembrances and reflections indicate that we were all very busy with all the get-togethers and activities. But we know that we wouldn’t have it any other way. After all, that’s one of the things that makes it Christmas, isn’t it? That said, I hope that we continue to remember though that Jesus is and always will be the reason for the season! And speaking of Christmas, Mrs. Preacher and I want to thank you all for the many expressions of love shown to us during the season. The cards, letters, gifts, and food, were so appreciated and reminded us once again of how much we love and appreciate each of you and know that you love and appreciate us!

What do we say now? Oh! HAPPY NEW YEAR! I was thinking about where we all were 25 years ago about this time. Do you remember? Do you remember a little thing called Y2K? Some of you weren’t even around on December 31, 1999. You were born after that date. After all, 25 years? That’s a quarter of a century. Amazing, isn’t it?

Well, if you weren’t around yet, or if you’ve simply forgotten, let me remind you about Y2K. For months, and in some cases even years, we had been warned that the stroke of midnight on December 31, 1999, may be the ruination of our lives. Computers (yes, we had computers back then) were going to simply cease operating and anything digital would basically be fried. We got cash from our bank accounts because the banks would have to shut down. Many of us rushed around trying to prepare in whatever way possible, to get ready. Back home, we had and continue to have an underground well. We’ve been on “county water” for many years. But the well was still there. I even purchased a “well bucket” just in case the county water ceased flowing from the taps. Again, some of you kids probably don’t even know what a “well bucket” is. I’ll let you “google” that one. We tried our best to be ready, just in case, by doing everything we could think of to get ready. But, alas, it all seemed to be a giant waste of effort, time, and money. January 1, 2000 (Y2K) dawned with most everything working exactly as it was working the day before. As the old saying goes, “much ado about nothing”.

Were we wrong in trying to be prepared “just in case”? My answer would be no, not really. There is nothing wrong with being prepared. Even the Boy Scouts believe in being prepared, don’t they? And who knows, the day may come when all those fears about Y2K may come to pass. With the volatility in the world today, one never knows what calamity might bring about such an event.

Old Ben Franklin once said, “by failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail”. Solomon, the wise writer of the book of Proverbs, wrote the following in Chapter 6, verses 6-8, “Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.” So even the ant is prepared for the future. As we enter the new year 2025, let’s be reminded of what the Bible says in Jeremiah 29:11-13, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”

May we all continue to seek Him with all our hearts in this new year!

“Praise God, from whom all blessings flow!”

The words flow seamlessly from our mouths each Sunday after we receive the tithes and offerings. We sing the words every Sunday, many times without even giving much thought to the meaning of the words behind the hymn.

So, exactly what is a good definition of a Doxology?  The best online definition that really works for me is “…a short hymn or liturgical formula of praise to God. It typically expresses praise, glory, and honor to God, often invoking specific attributes of God. Doxologies are commonly recited or sung in religious services or as part of personal devotion”.

Kevin DeYoung, in an article from 2014, wrote “The Doxology is not necessary for our Christian faith. It is not an essential component of Christian worship. It is not indispensable to the Christian church. But it is old. It is good. It is true. The people of God have been singing it for close to 500 years for a reason. And we lose something when we lose it.”

But frankly, the Doxology that we sing each Sunday is not the ONLY Doxology. It makes sense, doesn’t it? Since it is “a short hymn or praise to God,” then couldn’t we say that there are many Doxologies? Some folks even go so far as to say a Doxology is a prayer, and I’m in total agreement with that thought. 

We have just celebrated the fourth Thursday of November as the designated Thanksgiving holiday.  And here comes Christmas right on time! Celebration is the word that comes to mind.  We’ve celebrated Thanksgiving, and we’ve immediately started celebrating Christmas. This is the way it should be. Thanksgiving was the absolute latest day in the calendar, thus making Thanksgiving and Christmas very close together this year.

With the celebrations of Thanksgiving and Christmas, it also helps us to remember the importance of the Doxology. We sing the Doxology every Sunday. The Thanksgiving and Christmas hymns are limited to the months of November and December. Let’s be thankful and celebrate our great God each Sunday as we remember and sing the Doxology!

From your parsonage family, we “Praise God, from whom all blessings flow” and wish for you and yours a very God-filled Christmas and a blessed New Year of 2025!

I want to thank both our Dorton and Homestead churches for the wonderful revival we experienced in the month of October. While the actual revival services were held at the Dorton Church building, we had all agreed that it would be a joint effort. In my opinion, a joint effort it was! I continue to receive positive comments about the revival, the fellowship, the evangelists, and the services in general. At least two people remarked that it was the greatest revival they had ever experienced. I have to say, I feel the same way. And this is coming from a preacher who has experienced many revivals as both a pastor and evangelist.

All three evangelists and the singers who kicked off the revival on Sunday evening, shared positive thoughts about the revival and the sweet spirit that they felt while visiting with us. In each case, I shared with them that this was not an isolated case, that every gathering we have of our congregations are sweet times of fellowship. And that the love they felt extended to them, during their visit, was definitely not the exception, but the norm.

So, I offer you a great big thank you, Dorton and Homestead Churches, for once again showing the love. My prayer is that we continue to be as sweet and loving as we are now. This speaks well of our churches! And it shows “God in Us!!!”

I also want to thank both churches for the wonderful outpouring of love and support for our campaign to provide relief supplies to the hurricane-ravaged areas of East Tennessee and Western North Carolina. I was pleasantly surprised at the amount given. All I can say is “wow!” You once again showed your love and concern for your extended neighbors. At this point, my thinking is that all we can do is send up some serious prayers for all the folks in these areas who have suffered loss from the hurricane. At some point, when we are made aware that it is needed, we may do another drive to provide supplies.

Finally, I also want to thank you all for the wonderful outpouring of love for Mrs. Preacher and me during the month of October. Many churches have a Pastor Appreciation SUNDAY during this month. Your dear ones provided a Pastor Appreciation MONTH. And what a month it was! Each Sunday during the month of October, you surprised us with various activities to celebrate our ministry with you. The cards, the gifts, the fellowships, and every act of love and kindness to us is very deeply appreciated! And we are reminded of just how blessed we are to be given the opportunity to pastor these wonderful churches! A heartfelt THANK YOU to one and ALL!

Thanksgiving is coming up the 28th of this month. Once again, let’s make a concerted effort to always, every day, be thankful for all the blessings God bestows upon us! As the good book says, “in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” I Thessalonians 5:18

Ah, the joys of Fall, or Autumn to some of you. I love spring. I think you know that. The early morning briskness in the air brings an awakening to the soul that is hard to beat in this old world in which we live. But Fall…I really believe it is my favorite time of the year. The heat of the summer is finally past. There are lots of activities in the two churches to participate in. It’s just a wonderful time of year. I hope that you take advantage of the things going on in both the Homestead Church AND the Dorton Church. Our two churches have a wonderful working relationship. And we can continue to foster that working relationship with a good fellowship, such as participating in one another’s activities.

We’re finally finished with September. It was a whirlwind, wasn’t it? Between the joint picnic fellowship, the Dorton Homecoming, the Homestead Apple Festival preparations, M&Ms trip, and other activities, we’ve had plenty to keep us busy. But we’re not letting up on the gas in October.

Let’s be reminded of some things taking place this coming month. We begin at Homestead with Membership Sunday on the first Sunday, October 6^th. If you are not a member of our Homestead Church, but you would like to be, just be ready to jump up when called upon by Pastor Tim. You will be welcomed!

Dorton is sponsoring revival services from Sunday, October 6^th through Wednesday October 9^th. As you may remember, we Homesteaders made the decision to support Dorton in their revival effort and not have a separate revival here. So, it’s very important that we back up that commitment with our attendance and support for the Dorton revival. The revival begins on Sunday evening at 5:00 with the wonderful Agee Family singing. Everyone loves the sweet Agee Family, and you don’t want to miss them. Monday through Wednesday evening services begin at 6:30 with special speakers and special singers each night. I believe you will enjoy these special services. Please be sure to come Wednesday evening as one of my former third grade students will be the speaker. Rev. Drew Eastes was in my math class some twenty plus years ago. Today, he is a graduate of Duke Divinity School and is the pastor at The Ministry Center, a large church located in Lebanon, Tennessee.

On October 13^th, we’ll have another special day. The Summer Singers (although by this time maybe they should be called the Fall Singers) will be singing in both the morning worship services. Two of our sweet Dorton ladies are a part of this group, and we look forward to their program. The Homestead worship service will be followed by our regularly scheduled fellowship meal.

We are hoping toward the end of the month to have an M&Ms trip to the Mennonite community of Muddy Pond scheduled. You don’t want to miss our fun trips with the M&Ms. And just a reminder, you don’t have to be a senior citizen to participate.

The month of October comes to an end with the annual famous Dorton Fish Fry on Sunday evening, the 27^th. If you have never been to a Dorton Fish Fry, let me give you a word of advice. DON’T MISS IT! So much food and good fellowship. And the fried fish is absolutely wonderful. And even better, this isn’t store bought fish. It’s fresh caught by some of our very own Dorton fishermen. If you’re not a fried fish fan, there’s always lots of other goodies to eat.

So, there’s lots of opportunities to enjoy good fellowship during this month of October. My prayer is that you will take advantage of these opportunities. Lots of planning and preparation goes into these various activities. Let’s show our support by participating, shall we?

By the time you are reading this, we’re past the Labor Day holiday. Summer
is winding down, and we’re looking forward to our Homestead and Dorton
Joint Fall Picnic. Cumberland Mountain State Park is a quiet gem located
right here beside us. And it is a wonderful place for our two churches to get
together for a time of fellowship and worship.

That said, my sermon for the picnic worship service speaks of unity. In
Psalm 133:1-3, the psalmist shares with us three things about living
together in unity. 1) It tells us about the goodness of living together in unity.
2) It tells us the source of living together in unity. And 3) It tells us the
blessing of living together in unity.

I use that scriptural reference to speak of how wonderful the worship and
working relationship is between our two churches. As a Methodist pastor for
the past 27 years, I have served multiple churches together at the same
time. Two different times during that period, I’ve served three churches
simultaneously. In both instances, before my arrival, the pastor had split the
sermons up, so that he was not preaching to all three churches every
Sunday. As I recall, two of the churches had preaching on the first and third
Sundays. The other church had preaching on the second and fourth
Sundays. Frankly, I can’t recall what a fifth Sunday service looked like. This
model, while quite Methodist in its format, caused quite a bit of
consternation and friction. Anyway, upon my arrival, we started having
service every Sunday. So, I preached three times on Sunday morning. I say
this, not to disparage the pastors who preceded me, but rather to tell you it
was pretty much normal on those days.

However, I noticed very quickly after changing the format to “every Sunday”
preaching, that the mood and demeanor of the churches as a whole, vastly
improved. They got much more enjoyment out of gathering together for
worship and fellowship.

That brings me back to Homestead and Dorton. If memory serves me
correctly, Homestead and Dorton came together as a charge back in 2016.
We arrived at the very beginning of 2019, some two and half years after the
merger took place. What I noticed almost immediately was how well the two
churches worked together. The food pantry is a wonderful example. Our
Homestead food pantry volunteers will quickly tell you that the food pantry,
as it is currently, could not be done without the help of our sister church
volunteers.

All of this reminds me of what the psalmist was saying about dwelling
together in unity. Let’s keep up the good work with our relationship. When
one of the churches has a special event, such as the upcoming Dorton
revival in October, let’s be sure to be active participants. That’s just one of
the ways that we can continue to show our love and respect for one another.
For God gives his blessing where believers live together in unity. Yes, it
truly is good and pleasant!

“Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name.” (I Chronicles 29:13 NKJV)

Our summer has been strange this year, hasn’t it? We’ve gone from rain, rain, and more rain, to weeks and weeks of hot and dry, and now back to rain, rain, and more rain. Still we want to take advantage of these months. As you read this August newsletter, summer is not over. Here are some possibilities to still consider:

When you’re on the lake, remember to look up and around and give God the creator praise for all the wonderful pieces of creation we have here in our corner of the world.

Consider visiting a relative or friend you haven’t seen in years.

Consider sharing the flowers or vegetables from your garden with someone who could use an act of kindness.

When you’re in the car traveling on vacation and the kids are fussy and anxious, remember to give God thanks for making you a parent.

When you’re golfing, biking, fishing, canoeing, kayaking, or jogging, remember to give God thanks for giving you the health to do such activities.

When you feel squeezed by economic circumstances, remember to give thanks for the roof over your head and the friends in your life.

When you think summer is a time to take a vacation from worshiping God, reconsider the gift that your presence represents to the whole church community.

When you are sitting on your porch listening to the birds sing, remember that God loves to hear you sing praises also.

Consider inviting someone to our church or to watch the services on Facebook if they cannot attend in person.

I suppose I’m just asking you to continue to have a blessed and thankful summer!