Monday, August 29, 2022

New Study to Start September 13 at 7:30 PM

I am looking forward to getting underway on a new study on the Message and Mission of Paul and its Meaning for Us Today. If you have already registered, you should have received the email that is printed below. If you have not registered and wish to do so, complete the form at the bottom of this page. We will be doing this by Zoom, something most of you are already familiar with.

God bless you all!

Alan

- - - - Text of the email follows - - - - 

Mark the Date and Time!

Tuesday, September 13, 2022, at 7:30 PM

I want to thank all of you for signing up and for participating in our survey. Tuesdays and Wednesdays were the two preferred days and 7:00 and 7:30 the preferred times. Since many churches have activities on Wednesdays, I chose to go with Tuesdays at 7:30 (I think you wanted to be done with dinner before we started.

There was interest in looking at the Bible in its historical context and its relevance to life today. Some of you indicated that the types of ‘study books’ commonly used are not very helpful. Fair enough.

So here is what suggest we do. We will look at the message and mission of the Apostle Paul in his day and consider how it might translate into our own faithfulness in our own time.

We will look at the New Testament books that will help us in this endeavor. We will take a look at the letters of Paul in the order they were (likely) written in. We will refer less often to the Book of Acts to help us with matters of chronology and travel itinerary.

You might want to keep a notebook (or its online equivalent) and have a copy of a Bible on hand. I will also send you an email each week with a link to the biblical texts we will be looking at. The link will give you a look at the text from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) and the Common English Bible (CEB). But, feel free to use whatever Bible and translation you are accustomed to using. I like to also refer to the New English Translation (NET) and the New Living Translation (NLT). Again, use the Bible and translation you want to use.

Now, how will we do this online? I have tried out a number of different options (Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Skype) and they felt awkward to the people I was trying them out with. Sooooooooo, I have decided to purchase a pro license of ZOOM. Most of you are already familiar with it and already have it installed on your computers, tablets, and phones. The link below will work each week we meet.

Before we get together on the 13th you might want to read an introduction on Paul. I found one that might be helpful at https://overviewbible.com/apostle-paul/

I hope you can join us on Tuesday, September 13th at 7:30 PM.

God bless you,

Alan

Tuesday, August 9, 2022

A New Day

Forgive me for starting off with a rather clichéd title. But this is a new season in my life. I am now officially retired as an itinerating elder in the United Methodist Church. While I am accepting work on a supply or interim basis, I am seeking to offer opportunities of equipping disciple makers through online media. Most of this will be offered through online weekly gatherings using video, discussions, and instruction. 

Return to this page to look for opportunities to participate in various studies, including theology and church history as well as Bible studies. I also plan to begin a project on journaling. 

I look forward to working with you. 

Grace and Peace, 
Alan

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