The News

Ken Edwards, Senior Pastor

At the special session of the Administrative Board that focused on prayer, discernment and strategic planning, I was asked to offer the closing remarks and prayer. I decided to use the prayer of Thomas Merton. Merton was a Trappist monk, writer, peace and civil rights advocate, and spiritual writer. I was first introduced to him during my younger  years when I read The Seven Storey Mountain. I can always find inspiration in his works, and this prayer is one I keep inside my journal—I use it often as I set out for the day.

Dear God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself...and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. I hope I have that desire in everything I do. I hope I never do anything apart from that desire.

And I know that you will lead me on the right road. . . though I may know nothing of it at the time. Therefore, I will trust you always for though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death, I will not be afraid because I know you will never leave me to face my troubles all alone. Amen.

The honesty and confessional nature of the Merton prayer are refreshing. The words remind us that we are here to please God, not ourselves, and that we are here to follow God’s plan, not our own.

Download May 3, 2013 - Volume 160 - Number 01

Roela Victoria Rivera

Roela Victoria Rivera is legally blind but spiritually filled with faith and hope.  She is blessed with gifts and graces from God that allowed her to write and publish her inspirational book, GLIMPSES OF HEAVEN: Lessons on Faith and Hope, Love and Joy. This book is Roela’s thanksgiving testimony to God’s healing and loving grace after she had a near-death experience that blessed her to see the beauty and glory of heaven. In her 240-page book, Roela narrates her heavenly visions at three points in her life and the lessons she learned from them in vivid and interesting short stories and essays, prayers and poems.  The book is accentuated by some of her original creative artworks done before and after she became legally blind and also tells about Roela’s faith story and her GraceNotes Creative Ministry that she organized in 2009 with her husband Jun. Now with her inspirational book, Roela hopes to share God’s message of love, grace and hope and to bring inspiration and encouragement to many people especially those who are visually impaired and physically handicapped. 

Roela’s book will be launched and dedicated to God’s honor on July 24 during the Centennial Convocation of the National Association of Filipino American United Methodists (NAFAUM) at Riviera UMC in Redondo Beach, California.

An author, Christian educator and creative artist, Roela is a diaconal minister in the United Methodist Church serving in the Tennessee  Conference.

Ken Edwards, Senior Pastor

The week that began on April 15 was an anxious and troubling week for our nation. Early that afternoon as runners were nearing the finish line of the Boston Marathon, two bombs exploded, bringing death and injuries to countless individuals. Once again the nation faced the dark reality of terrorism and senseless violence. We were glued to television coverage of the manhunt that resulted in the death of one suspect and the capture of another. Several of my colleagues reflected on how to rewrite sermons to speak to the concerns of the people on Sunday, April 21. What words might bring hope and comfort to the people who would gather in churches across the nation?

For Belmont it was Youth Sunday, and our young people planned the service, including the music, the liturgies, and the sermons. Our young people created a beautiful worship service around the words of Psalm 23. They sang and spoke of God’s shepherding presence in our lives, of God who provides everything we need, even in times of darkness and despair. Four of our seniors shared inspiring messages from different perspectives on this text. By their youthful presence they brought us a message of hope. By their presence they shined the light of God into our darkness. (I was reminded of 3 years ago when Youth Sunday fell on the Sunday after devastating flood waters had covered much of our city, and the youth brought us messages of hope and recovery on that Sunday as well.)

We are blessed with a vibrant youth ministry at Belmont UMC. We give thanks for the commitments of our young people in many areas of ministry. Their garden project raises fresh food for the hungry of Nashville. Many of them participate in the Open Door Singers and the Wesley Ringers. They are preparing for a summer choir tour, and two different mission trips. They are led well by our Youth Pastor, Chris Allen, and a host of adult partners in ministry. And they are witnesses to all of us as they live out their faith in Jesus Christ.