Are you Happy?

An interesting simple survey was recently completed. Interesting because the original survey was conducted in 1938 in Britain. The question: "What is Happiness?"

The 226 respondents were then asked to rank what 10 factors made them happy in order of importance.
The top 3:
1.) Security made the top spot!
2.) Knowledge made the number 2 spot!
3.) Religion made the number three spot!

Now 76 years later in 2015 the same question was asked and 489 people responded. The new top 3: Leisure, Good humor, and Security. The report did not list the order but it did say that religion has fallen to, you guessed it….number 10, last on the list!

The study is definitely not a real scientific study. For one thing, it depends on how people define religion. I would probably list "religion" at the bottom of the list too.

But one thing for sure, church, however you define that, is definitely not a priority for many today. Again I can see why. But let me give you a thought. God is a relational God. He wants to be in a full blown, intimate relationship with us. We have the Holy Spirit within us. He made all of us to be in a relationship with one another. A loving, caring, sharing, helping, forgiving, come to the rescue relationship with one another. Can that happen outside the church? Absolutely, but the church offers something that no other gathering does, God as the focus. It is once a week we come together with God as our focus! Sure we can go to our friends house and go on vacations, and meet people for dinner, and for meetings but church is the place where we come and meet and focus on God and our broken relationship with Him!

The reason for Church is to connect with God with other like minded people who agree that there is something "NOT Right" about us and the world and our relationship with God. It is at church where we struggle and sing, and question, and pray, and seek, and HOPE, that God will meet us at our brokenness! It's all we have.

Hope to see you this Sunday, Mothers day, at church! 12:00 noon 800 North Main Edwardsville, Immanuel Methodist Church.

Love, Pastor Kent

This Sunday

We will have some very special guests joining us this Sunday. Krista Kell will be bringing a van of the Beverly Farm residents to join us in our service. We will be celebrating with communion, song and message.

For those of you who are new to our church, I have a son Ben who lives at Beverly farm in Godfrey Illinois. Through the years we have adopted the residents of Beverly Farm as part of our Praise Fellowship Family. Two of our Praise team singers, Krista Kell and Lori Rodgers are employed there. Beverly Farm is located on Humbert Road in Godfrey Illinois and is the home to approximately 380 residents. Beverly farm is a small community located on approximately 240 acres where people with mental and physical handicaps live ad enjoy life. You can find out more about Beverly Farm Here.

This Sunday's sermon topic, What's The Big Deal?

Reminder: On the first Sunday of each month we collect non perishable food items and personal care items for Glen-Ed Pantry.  Thank you.

See you Sunday, 12:00 noon 800 North Main, Edwardsville in the Immanuel Methodist Church!

Love, pastor kent

Are you a GOOD Samaritan!

Those of you who were at yesterday's service know what it's like to be confronted with the same question Jesus asked His disciples. "Follow me!" Drop whatever it is you think is important and follow me.

God has not called everyone to relocate just like He has not called everyone to preach, or play in a worship band, or sing, or teach, or cook, or….. but He has called each and everyone of us to Love our Neighbor as much as we love ourselves which will require sacrifice and change!

The biggest problem for us Christians, I'm talking to me, is that we want a Christianity that requires no sacrifice or discomfort to our life. And that is not possible! I don't care what you may think, the simple truth is this, "To follow Jesus,  is going to require interruption and sacrifice in your life and lifestyle! There is no other path and we have to stop kidding ourselves if we think there is.

For those of you who were challenged by yesterday's service by Steve St. Pierre, director of Restore Saint Louis, let me give you a wonderful parable to pray about. Go to your bibles and read the parable of the Good Samaritan. You can find it in Luke 10:25-37 The Good Samaritan

The way to start following Jesus is to become aware of what God has placed in your path. You begin right within your own family, then your next door neighbors, then the people you work with. Become aware and tune in to God's voice as He will direct your steps.

Much more on this over the next couple of weeks.

Todays scripture to ponder:

James 1:27  Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

50 families before Christmas! That is our goal. We are seeking 50 families who are currently not associated with a church. That is a whole bunch of people to love! We can do it!

See you soon, love, pastor kent

Yes I know, I Cringed too!

What I meant to say on the last post was come Here, 800 North main Edwardsville,  to HEAR Steve's story!

Luv, pastor kent :)

When God Speaks to Your Heart

Tomorrow we will be welcoming Steve St. Pierre former owner of Once Upon A Toy here in Edwardsville. Steve is now the director of Restore St. Louis, an inner city ministry which has many programs and facets. See more here RESTORE Saint Louis

Come join us tomorrow at 12:00 noon and hear Steve's amazing story. We will have a special offering for Steve's ministry.

Come hear what happens when someone says YES to God's prompting!

See you there! Love pastor kent

If This Is True!

If what you are about to watch is true, then you have some serious decisions to make! We think we understand and know. But do we really? You will need 5 minutes of uninterrupted time for this. You will need the rest of your life to live what you really believe!

Watch here. A Miracle!

This Sunday we welcome Steve St. Pierre, former owner and developer of "Once Upon A Toy" here in Edwardsville. Steve has an amazing story that you won't want to miss. We will be collecting a special offering for Steve's ministry. See you Sunday at 12:00 noon.

love, pastor kent

What's Your Agenda?

When I was part of Eden Band and got on the church council back in the day, I had an agenda. That agenda was to get a new sound system for the church. When you have an agenda, it affects the way you make decisions, and the way you hear information, and the way you vote for things. Agenda's are not all bad. Sometimes that's what makes things happen. I know several very successful business people who's agenda was and is to be the absolute best at serving their clients needs. Because of that their business has been greatly rewarded!

Luckily, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart very clearly while I was on the council and I dropped my agenda of buying a sound system which would have cost a lot of money. Very simply the Holy Spirit made me realize that the amount of money that I was looking for could be used to feed a lot of hungry children. I also realized how much my focus changed once I dropped "MY" agenda! I became much more effective as a council person because my decisions were now focused on the good of the church as a whole, the whole community. I was set free from my own focus.

Too often people have personal agenda's that have nothing to do with helping others, their agenda's are for self. Do you have an agenda? Is your agenda for the good of others?  Self promoting agenda's come in many forms. If you want to follow Jesus you must drop "self" agenda's!

Philippians 2:3-43 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

1 John 4:1212 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

Love God!
Love your neighbor as mush as you love yourself!
Treat others like you would want to be treated!

Let's make the agenda of our church this: To love others as much as we love ourselves! As much as we love ourselves! Can you imagine if we become successful with this agenda? There have been many churches torn apart because of personal agenda's. Let's be unique and make Love our only agenda!

Announcements:   Last week chili cook off winners
First place              Brad Joiner
Second place         Leah Kaburick
Third Place            Jamie Stunkel     Thank you for all the chili participants it was a fun afternoon!

This coming Sunday: Steve St. Pierre, the founder and original owner of "Once Upon A Toy" a very successful store here in Edwardsville, will be joining us to tell us his story of how he listened to God. Steve has started an inner city ministry in St. Louis.  If you haven't heard about Steve and his journey you won't want to miss his story. We will have a special offering for Steve and is ministry.

See you Sunday! 12:00 noon 800 North Main Edwardsville in the Immanuel Methodist Church.
Love, pastor kent