Sugar Land Methodist Church: Recent Episodes
Sugar Land Methodist Church
When we set aside Sundays for worship and rest, we follow the cadences of God’s rhythm for life and for living. Sabbath keeping is not something we do in order to please God, but rather something we do because God knows it will make us whole, restore our spirits, and renew our lives. The Sabbath is a day blessed by God and set aside for rest and worship. One of the most important practices of Jesus was finding rest and making time for Sabbath. We must model the restfulness of Jesus, which is more than just a day, but is a spirit we live by all week long.
We know from Scripture that Jesus valued prayer in solitude. “And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray” (Mark 6:46). Jesus recognized that time with God is necessary and he habitually withdrew to spend time in prayer. Jesus teaches and models the priority and the place of prayer and solitude in our lives. So must we. Start by seeking at least a few minutes of time alone with God daily, and seek extended times as well. If you are like most, solitude with God won’t consistently occur without intentionality but it’s a pursuit worth the discipline. So when will you start?
In order to understand who we are as a people, we must look at the Person we are to be formed into. Jesus shows us who God is and what true humanity looks like. He was a part of a community of practice—he honored and participated in the life of faith of the people of Israel. During Lent we are going to attend to the habits, the rhythm, the way of Jesus because in these habits we see who we ought to be.
We are not here to survive as a Church but to thrive in ministry to each other and the world around us. This is accomplished through a community of generosity. A community with a cause can be inspiring, which makes a larger impact for God’s Kingdom. While it is sometimes necessary or desirable to give anonymously, when we give together in community there can be amazing joy that becomes infectious to those around you. Giving generously and openly can catalyze an abundance of generosity throughout a whole community.
Everything we have belongs to God and is ours only in stewardship under his direction. Jesus, always advancing radical devotion to his father, commended the poor woman who gave everything she had. He told the rich young man, obsessed with his wealth, to give up everything in order to follow Jesus. His parable of the talents taught us that we are stewards who should be multiplying what we are given, not for ourselves, but for our master and for the advancement of his kingdom.
Worship is celebration—a celebration to be experienced and shared. So come. Celebrate! Lay aside your troubles, your anxieties, your fears, and your cares. Celebrate God's gift of mercy and grace; God's touch of forgiveness; God's power to lift you out of the slimy pits of life; God's provision to set you on firm footing. Come see the spectacular hand of God. Come witness something beyond yourself. Be in awe, spellbound, mesmerized by the life-giving, life-flowing, power of God. Worship him!
Happy New Year! Are you growing in your faith? Is your trust in God increasing? Walking with Jesus is the most exciting life a person can live. Your eternity is assured; the opportunities ahead are full of hope and you have the very best Companion on the path of life anyone could desire—the living God. You have entered into a relationship with the Lord that is continuous. God’s plan is that we mature in our knowledge and understanding of his ways—living vibrant lives in obedience to him.
As a New Year draws near, I am reminded that we are one year closer to the day of our death, or the day the Lord returns. So, let me use this opportunity to suggest some resolutions for the coming year. Resolve to draw near to Christ by daily reading his word. Resolve to be diligent in prayer, telling God what you need and thanking him for all he has done. Resolve to become closer to your Sugar Land Methodist Church family. Join a Sunday school class or small group. Resolve to get to know more people who don’t know Christ. Meet your neighbors or co-workers, build meaningful relationships in which opportunities are created to share the Good News. These resolutions may sound simplistic; but if implemented, they will go a long way to bless your life and bring glory to God. Happy New Year!
Hallelujah! It is in the joyous season of Christmas that people everywhere are brought into remembrance of the greatest gift of all, the gift of God’s only begotten Son. God’s gift to the world is a gift of love and a gift of life—a life of hope, joy and purpose. At just the right time, God gave his Son, knowing that his Son would one day give himself for us all. Such a marvelous, unspeakable gift! Yet what makes this gift even more fantastic is that it was given “unto us.” This precious gift was not reserved for a people that loved and honored God as he deserves to be loved and honored. No, unto us, such ungodly sinners, a child is born. Unto us, a people so utterly without merit, a Son is given. This is a great reality, a cornerstone of truth. God did not give us his gift because we are good. God gave us his gift because He is good. This is what Christmas is all about.
We often approach the manger scene on Christmas and see not only shepherds, but also three wise men. Scripture calls the wise men to their rightful place, away from the stable, into a house where Jesus is likely to have been up to two years old. The wise men saw the star and followed it in search of truth. When they gazed upon the child and worshiped him their lives, as well as their journey home, were altered forever. The Christ Child is here to transform our lives too, to change our path. How will you open your heart and life to your Savior?
Christmas is a celebration of the birth of a tiny baby, the most miraculous birth in the history of the world. And it all begins with an angelic birth announcement. In simple and straightforward words, the angel declares the glorious announcement of God becoming flesh, the incarnation. The announcement is clearly designed to feature the divine character of the event. There is no more wonderful or compelling announcement in all of history than this one—the announcement of Jesus Christ.
Gratitude doesn’t just come because we receive something. Generosity also inspires thankfulness in the one who gives. That gratitude gets translated into more generosity. It’s cyclical and addictive. One of the keys to thankfulness and generosity is seeing that everything belongs to God. Sometimes we hold so tightly to our “stuff” we can’t obey what God is telling us to do. We don’t recognize that as we give to others, God blesses us with joy and thanksgiving. When we abound in our generosity, thankfulness is the natural response. We can’t internalize this truth though until we regularly practice generosity.
If God had wanted to, he could have taken you directly to heaven the moment you trusted Christ as Savior. But he didn’t, which means that he left you on the earth for a particular purpose. Read that last sentence again because it contains a vital truth you need to know. What is it that God left you on earth to do? When you think about it, there is one main thing you can do on earth that you will never have to do in heaven: You can tell a lost sinner about Jesus Christ. God uses people like us to convince other people like us to believe in him. We are God’s witnesses to convince an unbelieving world.
What holds the church together are the saints. I think church history bears this out. Before there was a Bible or creeds or orthodoxy or an authoritative teaching tradition there were the martyrs and the saints. The key apologetic for Christianity—far more important than knowing the right answers to hard questions—is love. Communities of faith that embody the kindness of God in ‘works of love’ are deeply attractive and are themselves evidence of the truth of the gospel. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer observed: The primary confession of the Christian before the world is the deed which interprets itself. The lives of the saints will always be our confession before the world.
Often when we read about the acts of the apostles, we are distracted by the miraculous events and great speeches, and we fail to see the consistent, continual, ordinary compassion and care for those in need. The foundation of our witness is not just the words we use but the compassion we live out every day.
Our God is an inviting God. He invites us into relationship and community with Him. As his people we are to invite people into meaningful relationships and compelling community. When we engage our culture and serve our community with sensitivity and love, offering them a compelling and alternative community, we become real and unexpected friends while still affirming our faith in Jesus and maintaining gracious convictions. By gracious engagement, we continue our gospel witness with authenticity, integrity, and winsomeness—and in humility, become inviting witnesses for God.
If you are a faithful Christian, you will share your faith. Christ commands it. Sharing our faith is simple—build meaningful relationships and tell others about our love for Christ. As Christians, we have received a great gift and we want others to experience the joy that comes from belonging to Christ. Ask God to give you the wisdom to give an answer to the world for the faith that is within you.
Touch My Heart to See Others Through Your Eyes: The depth and expanse of God’s love for each of his children is breathtaking—virtually incomprehensible to contemplate. As his disciples, we are to bear testimony of Jesus Christ and to love others rather than look at them through our own selfish eyes and judge them and their acts based on how they personally affect us. God sees each of us through eyes of love. As we strive to do the same, our respect for and treatment of others will improve, and a more loving, caring world will inevitably result, to the glory of God our Father.
More often than not when we look at those around us, we look through our own two selfish eyes; we view and judge people and their acts based on how they personally affect us. However, God sees each of us through eyes of unconditional love, and He loves everyone. We need to do the same. We need to learn to see others as God sees them. The best way to do that? Study the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. He is our greatest example, and the only perfect example of how to live and see others as God does.
When we experience God’s saving grace, our way of viewing the world is different. God increases our awareness of others and sends us to share his love with them. The Good News is meant to be shared. God could have found many conduits to deliver his message, but he chooses to allow us to join him in the work. It is an honor to be able to share the story of God’s grace and mercy that has been revealed to us in the Bible. May we love God’s Word so much that we cannot keep the good news to ourselves: this is one message we can share that never grows stale!
Jesus, being God, is love–and his love seeks to serve, and to save the lost with lavish grace. His love is patient and kind; it’s not envious, boastful, arrogant, or rude. His love is not irritable or resentful, does not insist on its own selfish way, rejoices only in the truth, and bears all things. The love of Christ transcends every other virtue. Jesus said this kind of love would identify his followers: it would be the most remarkable thing about them. They would love like he loved and be his love-ambassadors on earth. Christians are meant to be the most love-focused, love-pursuing, love-dispensing people on the face of the earth. Is this me? Is this you?
Jesus, being God, is love–and his love seeks to serve, and to save the lost with lavish grace. His love is patient and kind; it’s not envious, boastful, arrogant, or rude. His love is not irritable or resentful, does not insist on its own selfish way, rejoices only in the truth, and bears all things. The love of Christ transcends every other virtue. Jesus said this kind of love would identify his followers: it would be the most remarkable thing about them. They would love like he loved and be his love-ambassadors on earth. Christians are meant to be the most love-focused, love-pursuing, love-dispensing people on the face of the earth. Is this me? Is this you?
It is the Biblical duty of every generation of Christians to see to it that the next generation hears about the mighty acts of God. God does not drop a new Bible from heaven on every generation. He intends that the older generation will teach the newer generation to read and think and trust and obey and rejoice. It's true that God draws near personally to every new generation of believers, but he does so through the biblical truth that they learn from the preceding generations. God is jealous over our hearts, yearning for us to learn a lesson from those who’ve gone before us and leave a legacy for those coming after. Our legacy must not slip between the generational cracks.
Many people today have the big house, the fancy car, a great spouse, and exceptional kids. They have the career. They have money in the bank. They have everything going the way that things ought to go to supposedly live life to its fullest. But there is something still lacking. They are still lacking life. Jesus has something to say about that, and in John's Gospel, he tells us what our lives ought to be about: "I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” Brothers and sisters, Christ is life! He has come that we might abide in him and live our lives abundantly for the glory of his name.
Children want to be like their parents when they are young—they watch, they listen and then they mimic the parent’s behavior. As children of God, shouldn’t we do the same? God has called us and given us a purpose for life. We are to be holy in everything that we do. We are to set our hope fully on his grace by preparing our minds for action, disciplining ourselves, being holy in our conduct as obedient children and living in reverent fear. We do these things because Jesus gave his life for us. We are his and we are valuable because we have been redeemed.
What is grace? I am confident all of us could answer without hesitation: “grace is God’s undeserved love.” We love to hear about grace, to talk about grace, to sing about grace. We are saved by grace. Yet, the reality of all that God has done for us in Christ Jesus should cause us to ponder why God would shower His blessings on undeserving sinners. The Apostle Paul wrote that God's reasons are based in His character of love, mercy, grace, and kindness—and just as we rely on God's grace for our salvation, we must also depend on His grace to empower us to obey and follow him day by day.
One of the crucial issues before the church in America today is: Shall we be American with a pinch of religious flavoring or Christ's people with a pinch of American flavoring? There are forces in our society which influence us daily, but are incompatible with the Christ-life. We are constantly being shaped these forces—making it almost impossible for the world to see any difference in our values. If we are ever going to be salt and light on this earth, we must renew our declaration of allegiance to Jesus Christ. We are to submit to Christ alone as king; and whatever other submission to man we render, do it within the limits of the lordship of Christ and always for the sake of his glory.
Who you are has nothing to do with you. It doesn’t have to do with how much you can accomplish, who you can become, what you’ve done or failed to do, what other people think of you, the things you’ve accumulated, your behavior (good or bad), your strengths, your weaknesses, your family background, your education, how your kids turn out, how many times you’ve been married, your looks, and so on. Your identity is firmly anchored in Jesus’ accomplishment, not yours; His strength, not yours; His performance, not yours; His victory, not yours. You are NOT what you do (or don’t do). You are what Jesus has done for you. That is the truth.
There are many dimensions of our life in God that we don’t understand and we may not understand until we are seated at the heavenly banquet. In the meantime, it is the Spirit of truth who will guide us, speak to us, and declare all to us all that we need to know. In today’s Scripture, we are given a portrait of the three persons of the Trinity. Jesus speaks of himself, of the Spirit’s activities, and of the Father. The Holy Trinity is about relationship, indwelling, collaboration and the self-communication of God. The Trinity is about the mutuality of God within the God-head, and about our invitation into the God-head by Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit.
God is light and love. Those who have fellowship with God are becoming more holy and more loving. But how? We become like God by abiding in Him—experiencing an intimate, close relationship. Abiding is more than a superficial acquaintance. Abiding involves ongoing daily dependence on him. To put it simply, abiding means keeping the words of God in our hearts and minds, so that they are renewing and reviving us, shaping and sanctifying us, filling and forming us.
If God is love, how can He hate? The Bible makes several references to God's hatred, not of individuals, but of sin and unrighteousness—sin and evil are contrary to God’s nature. We cannot love with a perfect love nor can we hate with a perfect hatred but God can both love and hate perfectly, because He is God. His love extends to every person and has been proven through the sacrifice of Jesus. God may despise the sins committed by people, yet He deeply loves each person.
Love is at the core of God’s being, and it has been for eternity. But what is love? God’s love is chiefly displayed in the revelation of Jesus, not simply in the cross but also in the resurrection and God’s sanctifying work in us. God's love is unconditional, and it's not based on feelings or emotions. He doesn't love us because we're lovable or because we make Him feel good; He loves us because He is love. He created us to have a loving relationship with Him, and He sacrificed His own Son to restore that relationship.
Light is a common symbol for God’s presence, but what does it mean? Throughout the Bible light symbolizes God’s holiness and God’s guiding presence. God is holy and he leads people into holiness. Jesus is the ultimate guide to holiness and in his resurrection, we are empowered to follow Jesus.
The phrase ‘God is love’ comes from 1 John and is used to convey many different ideas of who God is. But ‘God is love’ is not the only ‘God is’ in 1 John—it also says that ‘God is light’. In the book of 1 John, John proclaims who God is in light of the revelation of Jesus. After the Resurrection, the disciples truly saw that Jesus was the central revelation of God’s character and spent the rest of their lives proclaiming that revelation. In the book of 1 John, John testifies to what they saw in Jesus, that God is light and love.
Have you heard the good news? Christ’s grave is empty. He is risen, just as he said. So let your hearts rise up and rejoice. Because Jesus rose from the dead, we too can rise up from the dead...even while we are yet living and breathing. Abundant life is ours to experience today, if we believe in Jesus and place our lives in His hands. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!
Rev. Martin Nicholas invites you to worship at Sugar Land Methodist Church for Holy Week and Easter services.
In the social media age, vainglory (pride) is one of the shiniest of vices. The constant attempt to secure happiness through attention is all around us. Jesus lived his life to the glory of the Father and in the service of others and found true admiration and glory. In this upcoming Holy Week, may God direct our thoughts and attention towards what matters most, Jesus Christ our King. Let’s choose to focus on worshipping Jesus, thanking Him for the gift of His sacrifice, celebrating the power of the Resurrection, and the new life found in Him alone.
Recently, anger seems an overwhelming part of our cultural, political, and personal rhetoric. Should we be concerned, or is anger an appropriate response to perceived injustices? Anger in and of itself is not a vice. The problem is that human anger hardly ever counters the injustice it is aimed at. It is instead self-serving. Jesus models a life of gentleness and righteous anger. Shouldn’t we follow his example?
Greed has gone from being a vice to being wisdom in our secular age. Greed promises security and self-sufficiency. At its root greed offers a replacement for trust in God for our security. Jesus lived a life of extreme trust in God’s will and invites a security that goes deeper than the bank or the grave.
Gluttony is easily disguised as an enthusiastic love of the good things in life. Yet, no matter how much one eats or drinks of the finest things of this world, their soul will still be starved. Gluttony gives a disordered emphasis on the material world while leaving one’s spiritual life famished. Jesus invites believers to not just feed their bodies, but also their souls. During this season of Lent, I invite you to fast and feast on God’s Word to the nourishment of your souls.
Ashes have always been a sign of repentance and examples of this can be found frequently in scripture. Since the days of the early church, Christians have adopted this practice as a mark of penitence. Death, sinfulness, repentance…these are the things symbolized for us in the ashes. Ash Wednesday reminds us first that we are dust, and to dust we will return. Life is fleeting. Time is short. The ashes also remind us that we need God—his forgiveness, his grace, his love. God’s love has reached through our sinfulness, through the grim shadow of death, to the dust and the ashes of human life. We are loved. Nothing in this world, even death, can separate us from God’s love in Jesus Christ. This is the hope and promise that is smeared in ash upon our foreheads.
Here’s the good news we have to share with every man, woman, boy or girl God brings to us: God loves you—personally, passionately, and purposefully. He demonstrated this by giving the Lord Jesus to anyone and everyone who would receive Him for who He is: our Savior, our Lord, and our very Life. His love-motivated sacrifice of Himself for us unleashed the power of God’s total forgiveness, now available to every human heart! What a joy it is to share this good news with all who come our way: God loves you so much that He gave Jesus for you.
Each of us is created in the image and likeness of God. Each of us is an imager of God. In order to equip us in our role as imagers, God has endowed us with various capacities: spiritual, moral, rational, creative, relational, physical. Taken together, these capacities enable us to represent God and honor Him in everything we do in this world. When we begin to understand that our whole person is created in God’s image (rather than merely one aspect of our person, such as our brain or our inner-spiritual self) we are liberated to live all of life as God’s representatives. No part of our lives is insignificant to God!
When we think about religion, we often think about the rules that come along with it. Rules can be frustrating and hard to follow, but sometimes we forget that the rules aren't there to make sure we keep our relationship with God, they're there to make it better. Following Jesus isn’t about learning and following rules; it's about relationship. We are motivated by our relationship with Him and others. Jesus gave us the rules to ensure that if we trust him, we'll have the best life possible—because, rules are not a condition to our relationship with God–they are confirmation.
Few things in the life of a believer are as disheartening as the long struggle with persistent sins. This is particularly true when we have experienced victory over sin in other areas of our life. We know God has the power to get rid of our sin, so why won’t he? It may sound counterintuitive, but sometimes victory over some sin tarries because God desires to teach us how to truly repent of that sin. God desires his people to know not only how to walk in holiness, but also to obey his command to rend our hearts when we fall short of his glory (Joel 2:13). Yes, sin in our life is a problem, but so is a life where we haven’t learned how to truly repent of sin.
Hope, as we typically think about it, is a desire for some future thing which we are uncertain of attaining. Christian hope, in the New Testament sense, is full assurance, or strong confidence that God is going to do good to us in the future. There is something even more peculiar about Christian hope: the Apostle Peter calls it "living hope." What does that mean? Living hope is fertile, fruitful, and productive. Living hope is hope that has power and produces changes in life. So Christian hope is a strong confidence in God which has power to produce changes in how we live.
This year we are celebrating 100 years of ministry. Is Sugar Land Methodist Church still relevant? Today, in a world that is confused, people are searching for what matters and want to find someone who cares. When genuine faith is backed by love, it provides hope. That inspires people, it helps them believe. They want to be part of that. Deep down they know they don’t have the answers, but will no longer settle for a polished theological treatise covered in biblical brilliance. They want to know if we believe what we say enough to truly live it. They want to see faith in action. That is our church’s wonderful challenge.
Many people think that Jesus Christ is not relevant to their lives today. Christ claimed to answer all the deep questions about our existence. At one time or another, we all question what life is all about. Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going after I die? Although other philosophers and religious leaders have offered their answers to the meaning of life, only Jesus Christ proved his credentials by rising from the dead. Jesus offers life with real meaning—life in all its fullness. The choice is yours. Are you tired of a life of empty pursuits or are you ready to discover God’s purpose for your life?
Happy Anniversary church! For 100 years, from generation to generation, the people of Sugar Land Methodist Church have served God faithfully. While each member has a different task we all have the same calling: to fulfill the Great Commission in our generation. Our members may be from various backgrounds with different interests and perspectives but we have been called together for one purpose. That purpose is to cooperate together in reaching out beyond our walls so others can know the love of Jesus Christ. We are in the life-saving business. That endeavor is accomplished best when we understand that we are a family of friends in partnership with each other. Jesus has enlisted us not to a life of leisure, but to a life of service.