“I will listen to what the Lord says; he promises peace to his people.” Psalm 85:8 Have you ever tried to listen to more than one voice at the same time? Could it be that we can’t hear the Lord’s whisper because of the clamoring of many voices? Monday is here and who knows what the week may bring. We can’t help the voices that are all around us, but…Keep Reading

Pastor Will Shewey, Shades of Grace United Methodist Church Link to YouTube Video – Luke 5:1 From Pastor Will Shewey Today’s sermon at Shades of Grace, a United Methodist Congregation was taken from Luke’s account of Simon Peter’s experience on the Sea of Galilee. He had fished all night and caught nothing. Then Jesus passed by and told Peter to cast nets to the other said. And the nets were…Keep Reading

“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit that will last…” John 15:16 Think of all the times that you have been called because you were chosen for something. Some were exciting, others were dreaded. The Lord says, ” I have called you by name, you are mine.” A wonderful truth in the Bible that I find very…Keep Reading

“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!” Isaiah 26:3 Our God is the giver of peace. The words “Grace and Peace” go together, because if it had not been for grace, we would never know peace. We certainly do not deserve it. It is also true that the peace we can enjoy depends on our trusting the Lord. There…Keep Reading

“The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai…” Exodus 16:1 When you travel you are always between the place you left and where you are going. The children of Israel had just left Elim and were on their way to Sinai. Elim was like a vacation resort. It had twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees….Keep Reading

“Then I said, ‘O Lord, how long?” Isaiah 6:11 It isn’t unusual for me to sit down and look at the keyboard and not have any idea what the first word or subject is for the devotional. It can create anxiety as I wait and wonder, “Where do we go today Lord, where today?” Sometimes I write through eyes that are blurred with tears, other times with a silly grin….Keep Reading

What Goes Around Comes Around David said, “To the faithful you show yourself faithful, to the blameless you show yourself blameless, to the pure you show yourself pure, but to the devious you show yourself shrewd” (Psa 18:25-26, NIV). God’s dealings with nations and individuals are not arbitrary but based on the conduct of each. We may not see the working out of this principle because God does not settle…Keep Reading

Pastor Will Shewey, Shades of Grace United Methodist Church Link to YouTube Video – Luke 4:21-30 From Pastor Will Shewey Our Saturday morning worship has ended. Seventy one persons were in attendance today. Twenty percent of our congregation was from the unhoused community. We continue to build relationship among them and assist with vital necessities of life. Jesus said the poor will always be with us. I have accepted this…Keep Reading

Never, Never, Never Be Satisfied in Life Be content with such things as you have,” says the writer of Hebrews (13:5). Jesus said that the body is more than food and clothes (Matt 6:5). It is that “more” that really gives life meaning. Children of God should never be satisfied with who they are—“now we are the children of God, but it does not yet appear what we shall be…Keep Reading

Jesus said, “… you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you” (John 14:20). Christian living can be like a glass of sweet tea. It is amazing how sugar transforms tea into something really good. Even though it is invisible when it is in the tea it changes everything. Any bitterness is removed and replaced by a soothing sweetness. The…Keep Reading

THE DOWNWARD PATH OF SIN “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night” (Psa 1:1-2, ESV). Notice the digression into depravity: We are passing by and pause to hear the counsel of…Keep Reading

Are You in Over Your Head? The saying “He’s in over his head” means that one has become so deeply involved with something or someone that getting out on one’s own seems impossible. Lot got in over his head when he pitched his tent toward Sodom. David got in over his head when he slept with Bathsheba. Peter got in over his head when he took his eyes off Jesus…Keep Reading