From Pastor Dan Shinabarger .... Let's start praying these Scriptures for our world today.I have been reading a book called City of Prayer (Transform Your Community Through Praying Churches) by Trey Kent and Kie Bowman. Here are 7 major prayer focuses for church, city, county, state, and nation:1. Pray for Unbelievers to Be Saved. (Matthew 9:37-38)2. Pray for a National Spiritual Awakening. (II Ch...  Read More

Dear FMC Family,A Call to Relentlessly Pursue Unity Amid Racial TensionsGrace and peace to you in the Name of our Lord, Jesus Christ!We, your Board of Bishops, are coming to you today amid the grief, sorrow, disbelief, and increasing rage that has gripped our nation following the wrongful death of George Floyd. To our African American sisters and brothers, we mourn with you and share in your prese...  Read More

15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful. 16 Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. 17And whatever you do or say, do it as a represent...  Read More

13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. Colossians 3:13-14In Colossians 3:10 & 12 (Blog post last week, What Are You Wearing?) Paul describes the attire of a Jesus follower. Using the analogy of how we clothe o...  Read More

10 Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator.12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Colossians 3:10 & 12In Colossians chapter 3, Paul encourages believers to make the changes needed to fully live the life God intended. He gives guidance to things we need...  Read More

It has been a long stay at home season for me.  I made some decisions of what I would do and wouldn’t do. One decision I made was to walk each day.  I think I have only missed 2 days.  I have been walking between 2 ½ - 3 miles a day.  It clears my mind and refreshes my spirit.When we make choices to do a certain thing, we must make a decision to not do something else.  This last week I read a stor...  Read More

6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. Ephesians 1:6-8Paul writes in Ephesians chapter 1 that God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing.Blessed...  Read More

4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. Ephesians 1:4As we continue to look at the opening verses of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he continues to describe the ...  Read More

3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. Ephesians 1:3We are often encouraged to count our blessings, to be thankful for what we do have rather than focusing on what we don’t have, but desire. This is a good spiritual practice and fosters a grateful spirit. Paul begins this l...  Read More

Palm 27:13-14 (NLT)Yet I am confident I will see the LORD’s goodness while I am here in the land of the livingWait patiently for the LORD. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the LORD.Waiting. We are all put into a position of waiting at one time or another. Waiting in line, waiting for an answer, waiting for a friend, a call, a breakthrough, an end to one season, the beginning of ano...  Read More

Matthew 22:34-4034 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is...  Read More

Matthew 10:39 NLTIf you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.Panic. Terror. The slow advance of dread across my soul--these were three of the sensations that gripped my second grade heart when Mom said, "It's time to go to swimming lessons." Mom picked her battles wisely, contending with her fearful son for his own benefit. The fruit of her la...  Read More