Why a new blog?

We live in an information overload

Communication is one of our prime interests. It may even be a need. Drawings on cave walls, the first grunts in rudimentary language, carvings in stone, writing on papyrus, the development of the printing press, the rise of newspapers & magazines, and finally computers and the internet – all these are attempts by people to communicate better and more effectively.

 If the world strives to get its ideas to more and more people, how much more important is it for the church – the bearers of The Good News – to spread its message.  This blog is one endeavor in getting the message of the church to as many people as possible.

 John Wesley, one of the founders of the Methodist Movement, was deeply involved in a publishing ministry.  He found very quickly that the publishing of books, tracts, sermons (his own and others), prayers and inspirational material was an effective way of transmitting the Christian message to people from all walks of life. (Wesley used the proceeds from these publications to support his ministries among the poor, the widowed, the orphaned, the ill and the imprisoned.)

 I have no doubt that if people like the Apostle Paul had access to the internet, they would have had websites, blogs and accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat, YouTube and whatever other outlets might be available.  In a quest to “be all things to all people” (1 Corinthians 9:22), I have no doubt that the early evangelists would have sought out all possible avenues of communication for the sake of the gospel.

 Today information bombards us.  Whether we seek it or not, the news of happenings in the far quarters of the earth reaches us as it happens.  We have become amazingly sophisticated in getting material from one place to another.

These are the blog’s purposes
So, this blog has two purposes.  The first is to provide our community of faith with information that is important in our little corner of the world.  Pickwick United Methodist Church and Pisgah United Methodist Church serve the community of Hardin County, Tennessee in the Pickwick Dam area.  The blog will contain information that will enhance our work in this neighborhood.  Church programming and religious events are an important part of our ministry.  This vehicle will help keep our church members and our community residents apprised of the goings-on in our congregations.

 Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, this blog will comment on -- and offer some interpretation about – the tasks that our churches undertake.  As we are inundated with information, it is necessary that we do some sifting, some prioritizing and some clarifying of all that comes our way.

What I will do is offer my take on the things that I see going on around us.  I hope that these observations will prompt you to ponder these things for yourself.  You may want to examine the issues more deeply.  You might even want to talk about them with me.  I would look forward to that.

In terms of scheduling, I won’t be posting every day.  But I will be adding to this blog regularly.  Right now, I interpret that to mean a couple of times a week.  I hope that this beginning of an exchange of ideas is a blessing to you.  I already anticipate that it will be for me.

The peace of the Lord be with you.

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In the absence of a parish newsletter, each week in my Sunday post I will include the scripture lesson that we will consider during worship for the next Sunday.

The reading for Pickwick's worship services is John 6:24-35.  The text for Pisgah's homecoming day is 2 Samuel 23:13-17.