Mount Sterling First United Methodist Church
Refreshing Your Relationships

  • Hearing God: Listening in a Noisy World

    Last week I asked if you ever had a problem praying to God, knowing what to say, what to think, what or who to pray for. Prayer is our ultimate deep relationship with God, so it is the best way that we can individually and collectively mature and deepen our connection with God. This week we will discuss how to hear God in a very noisy world.
    Hearing God means we are actively listening and in-tune with God’s voice, God’s prompting, God’s encouragement, God’s motivation, and God’s Spirit. Listening is an intentional act of inviting an outside force into your mind that will offer new information, new data, that could possibly change who you are, confirm who you are, and encourage your present day walk.
    Think through your life and how so much has changed, yet one force that has change, and yet remained, is the noise of life. When you are younger, you have the noise of your ever developing body, your parents/guardians, grandparents, siblings, extended family, friends from the neighborhood, friends from school, rules of school, rules of home, rules of the community you live, and the list goes on and on.
    When you get older your noise changes into adult responsibilities. You have the noise of paying bills, the noise of fixing things that are broken, the noise of family, employment, government, neighborhood, other people’s opinions, and the list goes on and on.
    In your retirement the noise changes again but is still present. You now have noises much like when you were younger and your body is doing things that you’ve never experienced before and you may not like it. You also have the noise of hoping you will have enough money to live on, wanting to be available to have fun, desiring to be with family, more medical appointments than you desire, traveling to new places, and the noise of silence as you see more friends start to leave you one by one.

    God speaks in many ways

    In all of noise of life, in every stage of your life, God still speaks. When you’re younger God speaks in a way that is relevant to a youthful age, in your busy adult years God is speaking above, in between, and beneath the cracks of life, in your maturing years of retirement God is speaking in the silence, the mundane, the unwanted, the joy, and the freedom that this life stage provides. God is always speaking but does so in many different ways so that every age and every culture will be able to hear, and hopefully listen.
    So, in the noise of your life, in whatever stage you are in, how does God speak to you? As a United Methodist Christian how does God speak to you? Looking upon our United Methodist heritage, God is said to speak to us through Scripture, Tradition, Reason, and Experience.
    God’s voice is heard through scripture as it is a collection of 66+ books/letters/poems/songs that were constructed to evidence God engaging in relationship with humanity throughout many millennia. Scripture is one of our ultimate guides for reflection of religious interaction with a holy God and humanity on the onward and upward holiness progression of love. Mark Twain said,
    Most people are bothered by those passages in Scripture which they cannot understand; but as for me, I always noticed that the passages in Scripture which trouble me most are those which I do understand.
    Mark Twain
    For non-Christians scripture can still speak to their existence but other religious or humanistic writings may play a larger role, this is to be expected but for us United Methodist Christians, scripture is still essential in our overall understanding of how God can speak through the generations.
    Tradition is another way God can speak to us. Tradition in the USA in 2024 is going to be different than Tradition in Rome in 1200 or Babylon in 300BC. God will speak through the present day culture in a way that is significant, symbolic, while emphasizing God’s holiness and illuminating human understanding through the ever-present and moving Spirit. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe said,
    We must always change, renew, rejuvenate ourselves; otherwise we harden.
    Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
    Traditions can come and go depending on the nature of what is needed and necessary for the people, at the time. Some Traditions can also last too long where no one understands why we do this specific act anymore. Traditions can also be good and deepen a prayerful relationship with God. God definitely speaks through the ritualistic acts that we, as a people, choose to do.
    Reason proclaims the active and ongoing knowledge that humans gain over time. You may have heard the phrase before, “we don’t check our brains at the door of the church”, this should be true of every church that you enter. If something simply does not make sense and new knowledge or data on a certain topic proves otherwise, especially if it speaks against a traditional interpretation of scripture, then reason should be highly considered as more relevant. Francis Bacon said,
    A little philosophy inclines men’s minds to atheism, but depth in philosophy brings men’s minds about to religion.
    —Francis Bacon
    Francis Bacon (Philosopher)
    God speaks through education as we learn more about this world, we do learn more about God and can learn to hear God’s voice in new and exciting ways. Reason is good so don’t easily cast it away when you may not fully understand something new.
    Experience is not new but was an addition from Wesley to the people called Methodists. Wesley added experience to the 3-fold Scripture, Tradition, and Reason from the Church of England. Experience is the active voice of the Holy Spirit in the daily life events, activities, and ever evolving culture of humanity. Humanity must listen to God through experiencing life for the maintenance of old relationships and the establishment of new relationships all consists of new and maturing experiences of life. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin said,
    We are not human beings having a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a human experience.
    Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
    God definitely speaks through experiences that are new, frightening, uncomfortable, and confirming.
    Tradition, Reason, and Experience all speak to Scripture, as Scripture also speaks to Tradition, Reason, and Experience. God throughout time has spoken when there was no Scripture, no Tradition, and very limited Reason and Experience.

    The Role of Discernment

    This bring us to discernment. We all have the ability to perceive or recognize differences to judge what is right and wrong, good and evil, the voice of God and the will of humanity. Unfortunately, we’ve all come across people who who have very little discernment. There is a quote from an unknown author that says:
    ​
    Little [people] with little minds and little imaginations go through life in little ruts, smugly resisting all changes which would jar their little worlds.
    Unknown
    In other words, there are some people who simply do not have any common sense to see life with another person’s vision or walk through this world in another person’s shoes. In our 1Kings scripture reading , we have the story of Elijah running for his life after the prophets of Baal were killed. Elijah proclaimed God’s word, held to his cultural traditions, reasoned with his real life circumstances, and experienced God anew in a relational conversation. The bookend of this experience was God questioning Elijah, “Why are you here?” God spoke with Elijah to confirm who he was, confirm his prophetic action, confirm that throughout all the noise around him that God is not in the noise of the world. God is ultimately received and heard in the thin, quiet moments of reflection, discernment, and interpretation while journeying in all the noise of this crazy world. Catherine of Siena said,
    The core of pride is impatience and its offshoot is the lack of any discernment.
    Saint Catherine of Siena
    Discerning God’s voice, while in the noisy moments of life, help us to do what the Psalmist invites the readers on multiple occasions-SELAH, to pause, to sit, to reflect, and then act. When one has a prayer life whose foundation is built upon divine discernment then you will have a pray-er who intentionally seeks God’s will as God’s ambassador not the world’s warrior. When we take time to discern we then will be able to hear the voice of God. John 10.27 says
    John 10:27 CEB
    My sheep listen to my voice. I know them and they follow me.
    In the stillness of life we are able to be attentive to the voice of our Savior, to hear, to listen, and then to follow.

    God desires genuine relationships

    The busyness of life can be so noisy that we, at times, choose to deny God the relationship of his desire. That relationship is to give and receive love with you. The God/human relationship is one of intimacy in prayer, intimacy in action, intimacy in private, and intimacy in public. God never stops pursuing you for there is not an end point to a relationship. In prayer we continue to communicate with God and time with God is needed especially when the world’s noise can be too distracting. Thomas Schreiner says,
    Love for God cannot be sustained without a relationship with him, and such a relationship is nurtured by prayer.
    Thomas Schreiner
    A deeply held prayer life does not have to be one that is outlandish where you are always the person asked to pray in public settings; don’ worry that is always reserved for the pastor, even if the pastor don’t want to do it. A deeply held prayer life can also be very subtle. A deeply held prayer life can be very private. A deeply held prayer life is true prayer. R.T. France says,
    True prayer is not a technique nor a performance, but a relationship.
    R. T. France
    A true relationship with God must have true prayer from the believer or the seeker of the divine. Prayer enters one into the presence of God. Prayer strengthens the relationship with God. Prayer emboldens the faith of the believer in a noisy world. When you are soaked in prayer then you are transformed into your prayers. Warren Wiersbe says,
    Prayer is not something that I do; prayer is something that I am.
    Warren W. Wiersbe
    As we continue to develop our prayerful skills, we develop our listening skills, which develop our divine loving skills. A prayerful heart that listens to and connects with God is an act of love. Saint Augustine said,
    What you love you worship; true prayer, real prayer, is nothing but loving: what you love, that you pray to.
    Saint Augustine of Hippo
    As we pray to that which we love, our words and our actions will unite together as one. Our relationship with God will grow, the deafening noise of the world will extinguish, the words from our tongue will be praise, and people will see a prayerful life of love in action. So whether we are asleep or awake a life of prayer will guide us and help us to hear God more. John Wesley said,
    The moment I awaked, ‘Jesus, Master,’ was in my heart and in my mouth; and I found all my strength lay in keeping my eye fixed upon Him, and my soul waiting on Him continually.
    John Wesley (Founder of the Methodist Movement)

    Silent Reflection and Mindfulness

    As we enter into a new week, I encourage you to take time in silent reflection and mindfully focus upon God in prayer. Last week I invited you to pray the open-hearted disciples prayer. This week I invite you to say a prayer that has been said for many generations, The Jesus Prayer.
    Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner
    Amen.
  • Blest Be The Tie
  • Jesus Is All the World to Me

      • Romans 12:9–18ESV

  • The body can rest, the mind can focus, the soul can breathe deeply—but if relationships remain fractured, strained, or neglected, the renewal we seek will feel incomplete. This is the final sermon in our Refresh series: turning outward toward the people with whom we share life. Relationships are where faith becomes visible. They are the testing ground of every spiritual claim. If the Spirit has truly been at work refreshing us from within, that work will bear fruit in how we love, forgive, serve, and walk alongside others.
    This week’s message, “Refresh Your Relationships,” draws from Romans, John, Matthew 22:37–40, and Philippians. The big idea is simple but demanding: genuine love is the starting point, the pinnacle, and the finish line of all healthy relationships. To refresh our relationships means to return them to their divine source—love that mirrors the self-giving, non-coercive, fully present love of God revealed in Jesus Christ. Without love, relationships become transactions. With love, they become holy ground where God’s kingdom takes shape in ordinary life.*
    Known by Love (John 13:34–35)
    Jesus speaks clearly: “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” These words come at the end of a long evening meal, after Jesus has washed his disciples’ feet and prepared them for his departure. He does not leave them with a complex theological system or a rigid moral code. He leaves them with a command to love.
    It is worth pausing on the fact that Jesus calls love a commandment. Love is not presented here as an emotion that happens to us or a warm feeling we wait to experience. Love is something we are told to do. That tells us something important: the kind of love Jesus asks for requires intention, practice, and—most of all—inner transformation. We may not naturally love as Jesus loves. Our instinct is to protect ourselves, judge others, draw lines between who is worthy and who is not. Jesus’ love crosses every line, touches the untouchable, forgives the unforgivable, and refuses to give up on anyone.
    The foundation of discipleship, then, is not perfection but love. A disciple of Jesus is known not by doctrinal precision or moral superiority but by love that looks like Jesus. That kind of love sees the dignity in every person, listens before speaking, refuses to retaliate, and keeps showing up even when the relationship is hard. Relationships are healed and refreshed when we stop waiting to feel love and start choosing to act in love, trusting that the Spirit will meet us in that choice and participate in the transformation our hearts as we go.*
    The Hinge of All Things (Matthew 22:37–40)
    When asked which commandment is the greatest, Jesus does not choose one over the other. He holds two together: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
    The image of hanging is powerful. Every word of Scripture, every rule, every teaching finds its place on the hinge of love. Without that hinge, nothing moves. With it, everything opens and closes as it should. Love is the door through which people come and go in relationship with God and with one another. When love fails, the door sticks or is blocked off—relationships become trapped in bitterness, judgment, or indifference. When love leads, the door swings freely, and grace flows in both directions.
    Jesus is describing a relational God—not a distant lawgiver but a living presence who seeks full, personal, and intimate relationship with humanity. And just as God’s love is dynamic, non-coercive, and fully giving, so too must our love for others be. We cannot claim to love God while treating people as obstacles or enemies. We cannot refresh our relationship with God without also refreshing our relationships with those around us. 
    Love binds the two movements together.
    A refreshed relationship, then, begins with love and ends with love. Love is not a feeling we wait for; it is a direction we choose. Every time we forgive, listen, serve, or reach out in kindness, we are participating in the divine life. Every rule, law, and illuminative word in Scripture moves in the righteous direction when guided by love. To refresh our relationships is to return them to this hinge and ask: does this reflect God’s love? If not, what needs to change?*
    Genuine Love Revealed (Romans 12:9–18)
    Paul’s exhortation in Romans 12 reads like a portrait of what genuine love looks like in community: the Romans passage is not abstract theology—it is a blueprint for how love behaves in real relationships. Genuine love is not polite pretending. It is not performance for the sake of appearances. Genuine love opens the human heart to the heart of God. It understands evil but refuses to pursue it. It holds fast to good even when doing so is costly. It refuses to retaliate when wronged. It blesses enemies instead of cursing them. It weeps with those who weep and rejoices with those who rejoice, entering into the full emotional range of shared human life.
    The genuineness of love, Paul says, reveals the true character of a disciple. You can tell who someone really is not by what they claim to believe but by how they treat others—especially those who have nothing to offer in return. Love in relationships creates an atmosphere of equality, justice, compassion, and peace. When that love is present, we see hierarchies collapse. The powerful stop shouting over the weak. The wounded are heard. The strong protect the vulnerable. Forgiveness flows. Peace becomes possible.
    To refresh our relationships, then, is to ask: is my love genuine? Am I pretending to care while harboring resentment? Am I keeping score? Am I using people for what they can give me, or am I truly seeing them as beloved children of God? Genuine love does not require perfection, but it does require honesty. It requires the courage to let God soften the hard places in our hearts so that we can love as we have been loved.*
    The Humble Vision of Unity (Philippians 2:1–4)
    Paul writes to the Philippians: “If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others.”
    Here is the refreshed relational vision: a community united not by sameness but by shared love, mutual humility, and outward focus. To be “of the same mind” does not mean we all think identically or agree on every detail. It means we are oriented in the same direction—toward Christ and toward one another in love. We are co-laboring with the Spirit, co-creating with Christ, and that work invites unity, humility, and service.
    Humility is the key. A refreshed relationship takes sight off of self and redirects it outward toward others. Instead of asking, “What can I get from this relationship?” humility asks, “How can I serve? How can I honor? How can I give without keeping score?” This is not weakness—it is strength rooted in the love of God. It is the posture of Jesus himself, who “emptied himself, taking the form of a slave” and who “humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death.”
    When we walk in that same humility, something miraculous happens: old shame begins to lift, past hurts lose their grip, and guilt no longer defines us. A refreshed relationship delivers us from the negative consequences of broken trust, betrayal, and disappointment—not because those things did not happen, but because love is stronger than injury. Love does not erase the past, but it creates a new future. In Christ, we are free to forgive and be forgiven, to serve and be served, to love without fear of being destroyed by it.*
    Living the Love That Refreshes
    To refresh your relationships this week is to put love into action in small, concrete ways. It might mean reaching out to someone you have avoided. It might mean apologizing for words spoken in anger or silence kept in pride. It might mean listening—really listening—without interrupting, without fixing, without making it about you. It might mean choosing to honor someone you have dismissed, to extend hospitality to a stranger, or to bless someone who has hurt you.
    Refreshed relationships do not happen by accident. They require the same intentionality we have brought to refreshing our bodies, minds, and souls. We have to choose love when it is inconvenient. We have to practice forgiveness when we would rather hold a grudge. We have to speak truth in gentleness when silence would be easier. We have to show up, stay present, and trust that the Spirit is working in every honest attempt to love as we have been loved.
    The world is watching. Not for perfection, but for love. Jesus said, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” Refreshed relationships become a testimony—a living witness that God’s kingdom is real, that love is possible, and that the way of Jesus still works. When we love genuinely, humbly, and persistently, we become the doorway through which others encounter the God who is love. Be that doorway. Show that love. Do it all in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Mount Sterling First United Methodist Church
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