First United Methodist Church

304 West Second Street

PO Box 715

Washington NC 27889

Phone: 252-946-3311

Email: admin@fumcw.com

WebPage: www.fumcw.com

Return Services Requested

Non-Profit Organization

US Postage Paid

Washington, North Carolina 27889

Permit #95

Baby Book Program: A children's book is placed in the Church Library in honor of each child born to our church family. The following children were honored with the books listed below: The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister In honor of: Atlas “Attie” LaVee Leak (born June 2, 2019) Parents: Chris and Sara Leak Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney In honor of: Forrest Lynn Tunstall (born June 12, 2019) Parents: Abbott and Hillary Tunstall Grandparents: Bill and Judy Cheshire If Your Dreams Take Off and Fly by John Butler

In honor of: Coleson James Oden (born June 13, 2019)

Parents: Sarah Katherine and Stephen Oden II

Grandparents: Jim and Kaye Buckman

Great Grandparent: Mildred Buckman Spivey The

Lamplighter

August 2019 ● Volume XI● Issue VIII

Inside This Issue…

Senior Pastor’s Article __________ 1

Christian Sympathy ____________ 1

Associate Pastor’s Article _______ 2

Birthdays ____________________ 3

Child Care ___________________ 4

Senior Adult Ministry __________ 4

Matthew 25 __________________ 4

Preschool ____________________ 5

Holy Land Trip _______________ 5

Children and Youth ____________ 6

Missions_____________________ 6

Letters ______________________ 8

UMW News _________________ 10

Summer Book Study _________ 10

Calendar____________________ 11

Baby Book Program ______ BACK

First United Methodist Church, Washington, NC (established 1784)

Mark 2:1-11

Recently, I came across a picture of me with some of my college fraternity brothers. We came from different places, but we came together as one. I truly believe that God put us in each other’s life as a means of blessing and encouragement. Most of the people in the picture became United Methodist ministers, myself included. I have to believe our coming together had some role to play in this. Looking at the photo reminded me of a couple of things: time gets away from us quicker than we realize and how blessed I am to have these people in my life. The truth is that we all need people in our lives to support, encourage and challenge us. We all need good friends.

One of my favorite stories from the Gospels is found in Mark 2:1-11, where a paralytic is healed by Jesus. This miracle occurs, in large part, because this man had four good friends who heard Jesus was in town and could heal their friend. They proceeded to carry their friend to Jesus. When they got to the house where Jesus was, it was so crowded they could not get inside. They could have stopped here; they had made a gesture of helpfulness, but they were determined to see their friend walk, so they went up to the roof of the home and proceeded to lower their friend into Jesus’ presence. It was then that the miracle took place…their friend was made whole and walked out of the house. All of this was made possible by four people willing to do whatever it took to be authentic good friends.

To have such people in our lives is a tremendous blessing, but at the same time, we need to ask ourselves, “Are we willing to be such people for others?” How good are we as friends? Do we stop at making gestures of friendliness or are we willing to go deeper, to do whatever it takes for those for whom we care to find the healing and the wholeness that they seek for their lives? If, by God’s help, we are living into the calling of being good Christian friends to someone, we must be willing to go all the way with someone…all the way to the feet of Jesus. If we can’t “get in the front door,” so to speak, we need to be willing to lower our friend from the roof…to find some way to enter into Jesus’ presence with them.

I am blessed to have such people in my life, and I thank God for the way they have been willing to go all the way in helping me to become the person I am. May God help us all to bless others and be blessed ourselves by good friends. See you in church Sunday.

Ken Hall

Good Friends

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility, value others above yourselves.”

Philippians 2:3 NIV

Christian sympathy is

expressed to the families of:

Sandra Gossett

Jeffrey Williamson

P a g e 2

Dear First UMC Family,

On our recent family adventure across the country, there are several stories worth sharing. Perhaps in the coming months, I’ll continue to reflect on them and search for what God wants me to learn that I can then pass along to you.

One such story is a moment of extreme hospitality that was given to us in Texas. Luke Chapters nine and ten tell of two instances where Jesus sends disciples out to villages and communities as strangers to be welcomed, taken in, fed, and embraced along the way. We often compare these stories to our missional efforts where we travel to another place to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

However, I got a refreshed perspective on this while traveling with my family. We planned to stop by, for one night, at one of Amanda’s college friend’s house in Granbury, Texas. By doing this we hoped to spare the cost of another hotel stay. The Fortneys are a young couple (our age) with five children. They live simply but are the happiest family I know. They would tell you God blesses them beyond measure. And for about eighteen hours while we were with them, they shared what God has given them freely with us. While they were already close friends with Amanda, to Isaac and me they were strangers.

They planned an authentic Texas taco dinner for us with all the fixings (even though we were late arriving). They prepared a comfortable place for us to sleep. Fed us again well the next morning, and for lunch. Their children were happy to play with Isaac and show him a good time outside of riding so long in the car. In many other ways they showed us what Jesus must have envisioned for his disciples as he sent them out to be shown the hospitality of strangers on the road. For those eighteen hours in the middle of Texas, we were treated as truly welcomed guests. And I have no doubt that this family would do the same thing for anyone traveling through, even if they didn’t know them. We left Texas refreshed for the second half of our journey toward California. And I am thankful for new friends made along the way.

Upon reflecting on this encounter in light of reading and recently preaching on Luke ten, I can’t help but notice that much of discipleship isn’t always about being ready and prepared with a sermon to share with strangers on the street or making sure we wear Christian t-shirts to display our alignment with Christ. It also isn’t always about needing to go off with a project in mind, where we give to others what we think they need. More often than not, what I imagine Jesus wanted his disciples to learn is how to find God’s blessing in the hospitality of others given to them. Maybe then we will want to be ready to share that hospitality to others as they journey in our midst.

In other words, our best giving can be done by openly receiving.

Thanks for all you do, In Christ,

Pastor Stephen

L a m p l i g h t e r

From Your Associate Pastor of Missional Discipleship

Teny Tanner Rosebuds

The “Teny” Tanner Memorial Rosebud form is now available online. Go to the church website at www.fumcw.com and select Explore, then Procedures & Forms. As always, you may request the form via email at admin@fumcw.com or stop by the church office. The fund was established to honor precious little ones born to parents and grandparents who are members of First United Methodist Church Washington. A rosebud will be placed on the Altars of Wesley Hall and the Sanctuary and noted in the church bulletin for your chosen Sunday.

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P a g e 1 0 L a m p l i g h t e r

First United Methodist Women

Circle News

Monday, August 26, 2019

UMW Executive Board Meeting

9:00 AM, Asbury Conference Room

UMW Circle Meetings will resume in September.

UMW Reading Program

The United Methodist Women’s reading program ends on July 31 and begins again for next year on AUGUST FIRST.

Please be sure you have written the titles of the books that you have read this year on the cards in the recipe box. It is on the UMW book shelf in the church library.

Then, start reading the ones that you have not experienced yet. They will start counting for the 2019-2020 year. If you haven’t read UPRISING by M.P. Haddex, that would be a good place to start.

Happy Reading,

Patty Vore

CALLING ALL WOMEN!

Are you longing to develop a more vibrant, powerful prayer life? Are you wondering even how to go about praying? Do you feel like your prayer life could use a boost?

Prayer is so hard that unless circumstances demand it – an illness, or saying grace at a meal – most of us simply do not pray enough, or we do not pray at all. Prayer is all about a relationship with God. It is the way we experience and connect to God.

If you are longing for a deeper connection to God, if you yearn to grow in your faith and enhance your prayer life, join us by reading independently A Praying Life by Paul Miller! Then we will meet together to discuss it on Wednesday, September 4, for a covered-dish dinner. (Place to be announced.)

If you plan to join us, please email Beth Page at bethpage5@gmail.com so she can add you to the list. This small investment of your time will reap great benefits!

P a g e 3

Celebrating the gift of life during the month of August:

1st Debbie Modlin, Bill MacAdam

2nd Zack Waters, Rick Gray, Paula Willey, Hillary Tunstall, Robert Sandy

3rd Ashley Vansant

4th Ken Matveia

5th Marty Bell, Billy Jackson, Kim Roberson, Katherine Davis

6th Billy Talley, Jeremy Shadle

7th Danny Allen, Spencer Stanley, Macy Main

9th Gordon Nash, Jim Buckman, Paul Thompson, Julia Ratliff

10th Abbott Tunstall

11th Phil Moore

12th Kim Jones

13th Trey Howdy

15th Chuck Sopher, Ann Jones, Samantha Yates

17th Derik Davis

18th Pam Griffin, Valerie Harris, Kyle Nicholls, Nicholas Nicholls

19th Eilene Jacobs, Kathy Lake, Shanon Carter

20th Ryal Cox

22nd Michelle Edwards, Kim Mayo

23rd Hazel Arnold, Angela Haltigan

24th Charles Cowell, Craig Darkow, Doug Whitehead, Bob O’Brien, Gwyn Thompson,

Nathan Sopher

25th Chuck Boklage

26th Betty Jo Bradshaw

27th Hanna Copeland, Wade Eddings

28th Etta Buckman, Richard Morgan

29th Nancy Hemink, Ronnie Koestline, Gary Stainback, Krickett Crockett

30th Judy Sinclair, Carl Crozier, Matt Sopher, Donna Buck

31st Brownie Futrell, Tracy Tuten

P a g e 4 L a m p l i g h t e r

Child Care

Hello to all,

Children are indeed a gift from God. We have a program full of insatiable curiosities. During Chapel each week it is so exciting to watch and see how the children recall the information from the stories from the week before. They ask good questions and someone always has the right answer. As Christians we are accountable for our children. We must instill in them each and everyday the truths of God's promises and his expectations of us as His children.

As much as we must endeavor to teach our children we must also do as He commands and "become like little children.”

Matthew 18:2-4 (NIV) He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

Love to all,

Wendy Godley Child Care Center Director 252-946-3311 ext 225 252-945-8138 mobile

Senior Adult Ministry News S.A.M.'s Club in September

Our Senior Adult Ministry will resume, after a summer break, on Thursday, September 19. Our tentative plan is to have a picnic at Havens Garden at noon, followed by croquet and bocci ball. In case of inclement weather, we will meet at the church for board games. Look to the bulletin for more details. Call the church office (946-3311) or email Pastor Scott at scottandvickie@suddenlink.net to reserve a lunch. Cost will be $5.00. Those willing to make a homemade dessert get lunch free.

Scott Wilkinson

Matthew 25

Matthew 25 Winter Warmth Drive

Coats, blankets, and winter warmth items will be accepted beginning September 1. Donations for men, women, and children are appreciated. Thank you for your continued support of this ministry.

P a g e 9

Greetings,

My name is Jamie Tice and I am the manager of the Volunteer Services Department at Vidant Beaufort Hospital in Washington. I am reaching out to you with a special request in the hopes that you will share with your congregation. We are actively seeking dedicated individuals who wish to be a part of our amazing team of volunteers here at Vidant Beaufort.

Currently, our Vidant Beaufort Hospital Volunteer Services Department maintains in-service volunteer teams whose services augment the paid staff, offer an extra dimension of care and service to patients, empathy for families and visitors, as well as supportive services for the facility’s staff and spiritual intervention when requested.

We believe in offering a variety of opportunities so that if you feel called to serve in the capacity of a volunteer, you are sure to find a role here at Beaufort that suits not only your interests, but your schedule as well. Our volunteers currently serve in the Upfront Gift Corner, Outpatient Surgery & Endoscopy, Emergency Department, the Volunteer Workroom and in our Front Lobby Reception area.

Our volunteers play such a vital role in our hospital. They are inspiring, engaged, respected and valued individuals who sacrifice their time to serve. The love, compassion and commitment they provide to the patients and families in our community is immeasurable and we are forever grateful for their service.

Besides making a meaningful contribution to the hospital and the community we serve, there are many other benefits to volunteering including meeting new people and making new friends. Our volunteers also receive orientation, training, receive a free flu shot, receive a complimentary meal voucher for each shift, an invite to our annual volunteer banquet and are also awarded pins for achieved levels of service hours.

If you or anyone in your church family is interested in becoming a volunteer with Vidant Beaufort, please reach out to me via email at Jamie.Tice@vidanthealth.com or via phone at 252-975-4161. You may also stop by my office anytime Monday thru Friday from 8am to 4:30pm, 3rd Floor, Room 316. I would love having the pleasure of meeting you and discussing available volunteer opportunities here at Vidant Beaufort. May the Lord bless you!

Sincerely,

Jamie Tice Manager, Volunteer Services Vidant Beaufort Hospital

Laugh a Little

Show and Tell

A kindergarten teacher gave her class a “show and tell” assignment. Each student was instructed to bring in an object that represented their religion to share with the class. The first student got up in front of the class and said, “My name is Benjamin and I am Jewish and this is a Star of David.”

The second student got up in front of the class and said, “My name is Mary. I’m a Catholic and this is a Rosary.”

The third student got up in front of the class and said, “My name is Tommy. I am Methodist, and this is a casserole.” The Usher

An elderly woman walked into the local country church. The friendly usher greeted her at the door and helped her up the flight of steps. “Where would you like to sit?” he asked politely.

“The front row, please,” she answered.

“You really don’t want to do that,” the usher said. “The pastor is really boring.”

“Do you happen to know who I am?” the woman inquired.

No,” he said.

“I’m the pastor’s mother,” she replied indignantly.

“Do you know who I am?” he asked.

“No,” she said.

“Good,” he answered. Anonymous

P a g e 8 L a m p l i g h t e r

Letters

“You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself.” - Luke 10:27 CEB

Dear Friends, Thank You!

The dear people you just helped with your gift to UMCOR may never have the opportunity to meet you, but if they did, I am certain their response would be—Thank you!

Since 1940, UMCOR has served as the humanitarian agency of The United Methodist Church, providing disaster response and relief to areas impacted by natural and man-made disasters around the world.

And through your financial support, you are serving within a vital network of interactive relationships as UMCOR responds to increasingly-frequent and destructive storms—sharing 100% of donated funds with those in need!

Together, may we continue to reveal the love of God for men, women, and children of all ethnic, racial, cultural, and national backgrounds and to demonstrate genuine love for our neighbors.

Grace and Peace,

Thomas G. Kemper, General Secretary Roland Fernandes, COO and General Treasurer

Dear First United Methodist Church Congregation:

Thank you for caring about helping local women and their children who do not have a home of their own nor a bed to sleep in every night.

First United Methodist Church’s donation to Open Door Community Center (ODCC) is most appreciated. It will help us provide a safe place for these women to live while gaining skills needed to transition into a stable, long-term home.

As of June 30, 2019, four women and a combined total of eight children have been able to transition into stable housing and are doing well. None of this would be possible without the kindness that we’ve been shown from First United Methodist Church. This thoughtful donation will allow us to continue helping those in our community who need it most. Your generosity is very much appreciated.

Sincerely, Marcia Norwood Executive Director

Eagle’s Wings “Christian Love in Action”

Acknowledges with appreciation

your donation to our ministry

dated July 15, 2019.

Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and

not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Isaiah 40:30-31

Thank you!

Irreverent God Talk

You are free in our time to say that God does not exist; you are free to say that He exists and is evil; you are free to say...that He would like to exist if He could. You may talk of God as a metaphor or mystification; you may water Him down with gallons of long words, or boil Him to the rags of metaphysics; and it is not merely that nobody punishes, but that nobody protests.

But if you speak of God as a fact, as a thing like a tiger, as a reason for changing one’s conduct, then the modern world will stop you somehow if it can. We are long past talking about whether an unbeliever should be punished for being irreverent. It is now thought irreverent to be a believer.

G.K. Chesterton in George Bernard Shaw. Christianity Today, Vol. 36, No. 13.

P a g e 5

Preschool It’s hard to believe that once again we have flown through two camps this summer. Each of them had 28 children signed up. It was all smiles in each class as they learned about the topic of the camp and got to see their friends from school. We will hold our last camp for the summer on August 5 -8 where they will be learning about “Outer Space.”

It’s hard to believe that our teachers come back the last week of August for our work week. The summer has flown by and the teachers are eager to return and get started! We are happy to welcome Mrs. Roxanne Beeman to our preschool as she will be the lead Pre-K teacher! There are still some available spots left in the Little Bits, Two’s, and Pre-K classes. Call for more information or visit the church website. We would love for you to join our preschool! We are always looking for subs for the upcoming year. If you are interested, please contact Angela Haltigan at the church for more information.

Orientation for our upcoming preschool year will be August 29, 12-1 PM and 6-7 PM. We are all excited to return for another year!

Angela Haltigan Preschool Director 252-946-3311 ext 216 252-341-8321

Holy Land Trip

So far our group is about 20 strong and excitement is building! There is still plenty of time for you to join us. We will depart from Raleigh-Durham airport on Monday, May 25, 2020, for our 10-day trip to the land of Jesus. All accommodations and food will be of the highest quality. The cost will be between $3000 and $3500 and will be set very soon. We are simply waiting until we have our best guess of the final number. Because this is a customized trip, the more we have going, the cheaper the cost. Anyone with airline miles may also be able to use them to reduce the cost. Where will we be going and what will we see? We will be going to all of the places that are important in the life and ministry of Jesus: Bethlehem, the Sea of Galilee, the Judean dessert and, of course, Jerusalem. Everywhere we go we will sing hymns and read scriptures appropriate to each location. Our tour guide will be Dr. Charles Page, former director of the Jerusalem Center for Biblical Studies and one of the leading archeologists in Israel. Along with all the normal places of interest, such as the Church of the Nativity, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and the home in Capernaum believed to have belonged to Simon Peter's mother-in-law and where scholars believe Jesus had his headquarters, there will also be some unexpected surprises. Let me share one.

On the side of a hill in Jerusalem, there is the Church of Gallicantu. It was built by Christians in 1932 over the ruins of a church originally built in 457, which was built over the ruins of a very impressive first century home. Records dating back as far as 333 AD, show that Christian pilgrims came here because they believed it was the home of the high priest, Caiaphas. A unique feature of the house is that it has a dungeon in the basement. It also has a courtyard and a first century stone stairway leading up from the Kidron Valley. Could these steps be the very ones Jesus was led up after his arrest in Gethsemane? Could this courtyard have been built over the one where Peter denied Jesus three times? Could this dungeon be where Jesus spent his last night before his early morning trial? The word Gallicantu means "rooster crow.’ You can go online and see pictures of the church, the current courtyard, the ancient steps and the dungeon (www.seetheholyland.net/tag/house-of-caiaphas/). On my last trip to Israel as our group was going down the steps into the dungeon, we passed a group of Christians from Paris who were coming up from the dungeon where they had been praying. One of the young women was sobbing and was being helped up the steps by two of the young men. I asked one of the others in her group if she was OK. They smiled and said, "Oh yes; we have been praying for her for months. She was not a Christian, but just accepted Christ in the dungeon!" In the holy land you never know where you may find Jesus, but it could be anywhere!

If you are interested in more information about the trip, please contact me at scottandvickie@suddenlink.net or 252-916-6808.

Scott Wilkinson

P a g e 6 L a m p l i g h t e r

Children and Youth

Missio Dei

God calls us all into mission personally, preparing us as we go along in order to best show God ’s love and desire for relationship to the world. God calls everyone into the mission of bringing people into relationship with God. Jesus, God as human, instructs the earliest disciples into this very act, to “go…and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20a). This is where the matter and manner of mission—also known as ministry—comes into play. The way in which Christians, from the Twelve until the Last Day, join into God ’s mission is through various forms of ministry and practice. Some are called into official spiritual vocations such as pastoral care or counseling, literally teaching others how to live life in such a way that it reflects Jesus and his teachings. However, the majority of the Christian congregation must find ways to join into the ministry of the church in the context of the world. How can one reflect Jesus as a police officer in a rough neighborhood, as a wedding consultant, as a court-appointed lawyer, as a teacher prohibited from teaching biblical principles outright, as a teen or a child?

The act of ministering to someone else is not necessarily going to ask you to go above and beyond the call of duty, as Barbara Brown Taylor points out in an anecdote about a lady who doesn’t want the important role of doing ministry:

Like many of those who sit beside her at church, she hears the invitation to ministry as an invitation to do more—to lead the every member to canvass, or cook supper for the homeless, or teach vacation church school. Or she hears the invitation to ministry as an invitation to be more—to be generous, more loving, more religious. No one has introduced her to the idea that her ministry might involve being just who she already is and doing just what she already does, with one difference: namely, that she understand herself to be God’s person in and for the world (Taylor, The Preaching Life, 1993).

Not all ministry asks of us anything more than to simply live into our baptism, recognizing that we are children of God and through what we already do, what we already say, what we already are, we can and will impact the world for God’s greater purpose. For some, simply being a positive role model with the knowledge that we are a baptized people is ministry enough. For others, ministry is an ongoing action.

We here at First UMC—Washington invite all people to become part of the mission Dei, the mission of God. How might you be able to show your understanding that you are God’s person in and for the world?

Here is a list of JAM and UpLift activities for the month of August:

August 7—Let’s grab lunch together and catch-up! Rachel K’s at 12:00 for fun discussion and fellowship! August 12-16—Drew studying at Duke August 23—Movie Night at 7:00 PM. We will transform Wesley Hall into a movie theater and serve popcorn and beverages. Bring the family and have some fun! Movie TBA.

Drew Ellis

IDEAS NEEDED!

The Missions Team has a lot going on! Hopefully you’re participating in our Tayloe Tigers Teacher Support and are bringing in school items to help fill our JCT teachers’ wish lists. On September 18, we will have our annual Italian dinner, raising money to support our The Church has Left the Building project. This will be the 4th year the Missions Team has led our congregation in leaving our church building and getting out in the community. Our purpose is to be the hands and feet of Jesus by helping organizations and individuals. Right now, we are planning for this activity and we need your help!

We’re planning now for October 27 when we will again leave the building and help around the community. Of course, we want you to sign up and join this important activity when the time comes. We also would love to hear from you about needs you see in the community that we may be able to fill. Think about your family, your neighborhood and organizations you visit. What needs have you seen? What ideas do you have for what your church can do around our community on October 27 when THE CHURCH HAS LEFT THE BUILDING! Contact Larry Lang at larryannlang@gmail.com or 252-916-4367.

Missions

P a g e 7

QUOTES FOR PRAYER ENCOURAGEMENT God designed prayer to be simple, not hard. The kingdom of God is, in fact, for those who would become like little children before their Father. Today, your prayers should be simple and direct, not lavish and vague. In this respect, less is more. Better a few words from an overflowing heart than a verbal dictionary emanating from a cold, religious heart. Nick Harrison in Magnificent Prayer Prayer is a powerful gift, and yet we often fail to use it. We let other priorities crowd out time with our Creator. We can see love and goodness when we are in close relationship with God and are following the words and doing the works commanded by Jesus. What a blessing God has given to us: The opportunity to pray. From: Upper Room Prayer can be a place of ordering, a place where everything is brought together in the presence of God, who helps sort it all out. Prayer is a look within and a look without. It is the matching of an inner need with an outward-reaching hope. A Book of Uncommon Faith by Kenneth G. Phifer Rich is the person who has a praying friend. Janice Hughes “Cast all your cares on him, because he cares for you.” 1 Peter 5:7 Come when you can, where you are, how you can and in whatever mood you’re in. Bring your anger, hurt, doubt, despair, exuberance or gratitude to God. There is no wrong approach to God. He loves you and yearns for you to bring it ALL to him. Anonymous Prayer is the gate through which all the graces of God come to us. Teresa of Avila “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.” Psalm 32:8 NKJV The power we possess as Christians will be in proportion to our communion with God. Weak Christians are often weak because they don’t spend time with the source of strength. Nick Harrison Magnificent Prayer Prayer brings power. Prayer is power. The time of prayer is the time of power. The place of prayer is the place of power. Prayer is tightening the connections with the divine dynamo so that the power may flow freely without loss or interruption. S.D. Gordon Whatever God can do, faith can do; and whatever faith can do, prayer can do when it is offered in faith. An invitation to prayer is, therefore, an invitation to omnipotence, for prayer engages the Omnipotent God and brings Him into our human affairs. Nothing is impossible to the Christian who prays in faith, just as nothing is impossible with God. This generation has yet to prove all that prayer can do for believing men and women. A. W. Tozer The place you give Jesus Christ in your life determines the place you give prayer. Ruth Paxson When you focus your entire being on God’s living presence through prayer, he is most assuredly with you, enveloping you in his love and peace. While you relax in his presence, he is molding your mind and cleansing your heart. God is recreating you into the one he designed you to be. Sara Young, Jesus Calling