by Stacey Hilliard | May 5, 2024 | Sermons
We’ve already visited two of Wesley’s “Means of Grace” in Communion and Baptism. But there are more. In this sermon, Pastor Anne Robertson invites us to look at how Wesley saw meeting together in “holy conferencing” as a means of receiving God’s grace. In addition and as an example, she reviewed some of the most significant decisions made at the 2024 General Conference which ended 2 days prior to her delivery of this sermon.
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by Stacey Hilliard | Apr 21, 2024 | Sermons
With Earth Day approaching, we’ll look at the plain text of that question: “Can we still save the earth as a home fit for human habitation?” But we’ll also look at what John Wesley thought about the theological aspects of that question: “Can this planet be redeemed?” Wesley had some thoughts on whether it was really only people that God was concerned with redeeming.
— Pastor Anne
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by Stacey Hilliard | Apr 18, 2024 | Conversations
The theme of Earth Day, April 22, 2024, is Planet vs. Plastics. It seems like a good time, with warmer weather approaching, to remind people to carry reusable containers for water. If you need to purchase water bottled in plastic, please don’t leave them in a warm place and of course, recycle the used plastic. I am very grateful that I can still bend down and pick up discarded plastic, but I would be much happier if I didn’t have to. There are still a lot of discards on the ground. This is Winchester and a river runs through it and that river reaches the ocean eventually.
Now that Earth Day is upon us, maybe we can renew our efforts to recycle, try to use less plastic, walk more and pick up more. My mother used to say that “every day was mother’s day,” true and it is also true, that every day is Earth Day. We are so blessed with this gift of God’s good earth.
– Janet Herrmann
Ways to Reduce Use (and Abuse) of Single-Use Plastics
If you have ideas for ways to reduce our use and abuse of plastics, let us know here, and we’ll add them to this list!
Refill shops (also known as zero waste stores)
These usually small, independently owned shops provide items commonly used in most households (dish soap, laundry detergents, shampoo, conditioner, and more). Customers bring their own containers which are weighed before and after filling, so they only pay for the product. I made the switch to my local refill shop’s shampoo and conditioner a couple of years ago, and love the products. Another thing I purchase from my refill shop is foaming hand soap refill tablets. While you can buy a stylish new bottle with a supply of tablets on Amazon, I simply use the refill tablets in my Method foaming hand soap dispenser. If you’re local to Winchester, here are two nearby refill shops to check out:
Wherever you are, Google “refill shops near me” to find your local shops.
– Stacey H.
by Stacey Hilliard | Apr 14, 2024 | Sermons
Last week we looked at the sacrament of Holy Communion and why John Wesley called it a “Means of Grace.” He gave that label to baptism, too, so this week we’ll look at the various ways that Christians baptize, and what it means for us when we do it the way we do.
— Pastor Anne
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by Stacey Hilliard | Apr 7, 2024 | Sermons
While still under the year’s umbrella of “A Time for Choosing,” we’re going to be spending the spring taking a closer look at Methodism. At the end of April, the General Conference of our denomination is going to be making some enormous choices of its own; and it will be all over the news. Many of our members (including me!) came from other denominations or from no church background at all; so, it seemed like a good time for a refresher about why United Methodists do things the way we do them and how those are either like or unlike other Christian churches. Since this is a communion Sunday, we’ll start with that, and what Methodism’s founder, John Wesley, meant by the phrase, “Means of Grace.” See you Sunday!
— Pastor Anne
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