Podcasts about okc first church

We are excited to welcome Pastor Jon Middendorf of OKC First Church of the Nazarene to the podcast for a time as Wayland's co-host. On this episode they catch up on the last year since Jon was a guest on the podcast (April of 2020), and talk about the state of our community right now when it comes to race. Start listening and join us for this new season of the podcast! Go to UnitedVoiceOK.org

This Sunday at OKC First Church we are going to be taking a closer look at our struggles with unanswered prayers. We will look at some common responses to unanswered prayers, examine God's response to Job's unanswered prayers, and explore what it means to trust, even in the midst of suffering and prayers going unanswered.

Things have changed. It's no secret that our world has changed significantly in the past 10 months. But what does that mean for the Church in America and around the world? What does that mean for OKC First Church? Where do we go from here? What does it mean for us to think about a fresh start? What would it look like for us to act boldly and courageously to transform our church and our community? These are questions that we will be pondering as a church and church body this morning!

Managing Your Mouth James 3:1-12 3 Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. 2 We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check. 3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. 11 Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. These words of James' are words that our culture struggles with, maybe more than any other words in all of the Bible. Now don't get me wrong, our culture struggles with faith and worry, love and kindness, but our struggle to "tame the tongue" likely outshines all our other struggles when it comes to our cultural ethic. Just hop on Twitter and see how our culture is doing in taming our tongue. There's a mantra among those with a robust social media platform and brand, "Don't read the comments." Another is just like it, "Don't feed the trolls." Both of these maxims point to the fact that our culture continues to spew vitriolic speech online. But we must remember, James is writing to committed Christians and the Bible doesn't demand that culture adopt a Christian ethic or lifestyle. No, Christians must adopt an Christian ethic and lifestyle, and what I've noticed over the past few years is that Christians are just as bad at taming our tongues than non-Christians. I've been saddened so many times when I've watched Christians tearing down other Christians in online Twitter wars. This Sunday at OKC First Church we will be examining James' words about managing our mouth. We will explore the cause of our foul speech, how our untamed tongue causes chaos in our lives, and steps we can take to manage our mouth. I hope to see each of you online or in person this Sunday at 10:45 at OKC First Church! Pastor Lesly

Faith in the Flesh James 1:27 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. Not all religion is acceptable to God. That statement strikes our postmodern ears as intolerant, ethnically prejudice, and even bigoted. But there is religion that is acceptable to God, according to James. A major theme that runs throughout James' epistle is that faith must be lived out in the flesh. Acceptable faith, then, is faith that is lived out, faith that empowers us to care for the orphans and the widows: the least, the last, and the lost. This Sunday at OKC First Church we will be celebrating Faith Promise Sunday, a day in which we make our commitments to supporting our mission ministries around the world. We will hear from each of our missionaries ministering around the world, examine what it means to care for orphans and widows, and how our faith can be acceptable to God. I look forward to seeing each of you online or in person this Sunday at 10:45 at OKC First Church! Pastor Lesly

James 2:1-13 2 My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. 2 Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. 3 If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” 4 have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? 7 Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong? 8 If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. 11 For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker. 12 Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, 13 because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment. James' message, this faith lived out in the flesh, is supposed to carry throughout our entire lives. This faith should be lived out more than just on Sunday mornings when we are doing our religious things. It should be lived out more than just before meals when we bless the food. It should be lived out more than just in our prayer life, or devotional life, or church life. This faith in the flesh must be lived out each day, especially in how we interact with other people. James has some incredibly challenging words to us in our culture. You may think we've surely grown past judging others based on their outward appearances, but I think we have regressed as a culture. Contorting so we can get the best angle for our selfies that make us look 10 pounds lighter, creating a personal brand and image on social media, making sure we wear the latest style of clothing are indisputable signs we have a long way to go. This Sunday at OKC First Church we will be taking a new look at an old problem: favoritism. We will discover the hidden signs we may be struggling with showing favoritism, how a spirit of favoritism and judgmentalism can be combatted, and ways in which our faith empowers us to treat everyone with respect, dignity, and grace. I hope to see each of you online or in person this Sunday at 10:45 at OKC First Church as we learn "How To Treat People Right." Pastor Lesly

James 1:2-11 2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 6 But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.8 Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. 9 Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. 10 But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower. 11 For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich will fade away even while they go about their business. I love how James begins this letter to first century Jewish Christians. There's no catching up. There are no niceties. There is no blessing. His lead sentence is about trials. And he omits a word that I likely would have used, "if." I would have appreciated James to say something like "consider it pure joy if you face trials of many kinds." But instead James uses the word "whenever." It's not a matter of "if" we will face trials but "whenever" we will face trials. That's important to note. Trials, disappointment, pain, frustration, and even persecution are the reality for followers of Jesus. But it should be noted, they are a reality for everyone, believers and nonbelievers alike. For believers, though, our suffering has meaning. We understand when we are faithfully living out our faith we are suffering in the midst of our faith and have an ever-present Savior by our side. This Sunday at OKC First Church we will be examining what it means to experience "trials of many kinds," how those trials can be turned into triumphs, and the process from trials to perseverance. I hope to see each of you online or in person this Sunday at 10:45 at OKC First Church! Pastor Lesly

Over 75% of Americans identify as Christians, yet only around 35% attend a worship service on any given week. Over 90% of American homes own a Bible, but only 35% of Americans read it weekly. It appears Americans say one thing about their faith, but do something far different. But it's not just those outside the church whose words and faith don't match. It's historically been one of the biggest accusations against the church: hypocrisy. I've heard it throughout my career as a pastor. "I'd go to church, but that church is full of hypocrites." And my response is the same every time, "You are absolutely right. Every church is full of hypocrites like you and me." That doesn't always sit well with people when I say that but then I go on to point out that our words and our actions seldom match, no matter who we are. The book of James advises against hypocrisy. James words it differently and more succinctly though when he writes, "But be doers of the word, and not hearers only." This Sunday at OKC First Church we will examine what it means to be "doers of the word." We will see how our faith will begin to mature and grown when we begin to live out the faith we so readily proclaim. Pastor Lesly

The Golden Rule Matthew 7:12-14 12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. 13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. We learned this lesson in Kindergarten, treat people the way you want to be treated. It's a simple, yet incredibly profound guide for life. But does Jesus really mean for us to follow this guideline in today's culture of online outrage and social media justice warriors? I think He does. In fact, this is more than a guideline, for Christians this is our way of life. I hope you will join us online for worship this Sunday at OKC First Church as we complete our series examining the Sermon on the Mount. This "golden rule" of Jesus' will challenge us to lead with kindness, respect, and grace as we engage with our fractured world. We will explore how this "golden rule" will likely become the most fruitful evangelistic tool we can use in today's culture. I hope to see each of you online or in person this Sunday morning at 10:45 at OKC First Church for our worship celebration. Pastor Lesly

The House Upon the Rock This is a season of shifting in our culture. And there is some shifting that desperately needs to occur in our culture. Issues of race, criminal justice reform, healthcare access, and generational poverty need to be addressed in different ways. But it seems as though our culture is shifting in many other ways. Constant outrage, victimization, and online shaming have become the norm in our culture. Something has shifted in the past couple of years. It's as if our culture is being tossed to and fro by the waves. However there must be a bedrock in our lives that keeps us on solid footing. That bedrock for Christians is Jesus Christ. This Sunday as we open for in-person worship at OKC First Church I hope you will join us online or in person as we examine what it means to build our houses upon the rock of Jesus Christ. We will see that having a firm foundation is what our culture desperately needs and is incredibly hungry for. We will examine the steps we can take to firmly build our lives on Jesus. I hope to see each of you online or in person this Sunday morning at 10:45 at OKC First Church. Pastor Lesly

Our Sinning Lips Objective truth is difficult to find these days. Whether it's the news program, a politician, social media, or anywhere in today's culture truth is hard to come by. Everyone is speaking "their truth." It's amazing how that phrase, "my truth," has made its way into our everyday language. "I'm just speaking my truth," people say. As if everyone has a different truth. And it's not just in the wider culture. It's all of us. Online interaction? Post a story making our life seem like something out of a story book. A selfie on social media? Get just the right angle, from the top and the side, that will take away our double chine and the roll above our waistline. A business deal? Hire an elaborate team of lawyers to pour over the contracts and notaries and bidding signatures to ensure that everyone will do what they say they will do. But no amount of lawyers will make people more truthful. Jesus had some very strong words to His followers regarding truth-telling, honesty, and integrity. This Sunday at OKC First Church as we continue examining Jesus' Best Sermon Ever we will see what Jesus had to say about honesty. We will explore specific directions to help us be obedient to Jesus' teachings. We will see that Jesus' words are just as important for us today as they were for those first listeners. I hope to see each of you online this Sunday morning at 10:45 at OKC First Church for our Memorial Day weekend worship celebration. Pastor Lesly

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic* church, the communion of saints, *universal When we affirm each week in the words of the Apostles’ Creed that we believe in the holy universal church we are affirming something astounding. We are affirming that we believe we are better together than we are apart. We are affirming that the Church, broken and dysfunctional as it is, truly is the living body of Christ. We are affirming that God somehow miraculously works through the Church. We are affirming the faiths of other Christians in other churches. Matthew Henry, the great 17th century minister and author said, “When we take God for our God, we take His people for our people.” The Church is our people. This Palm Sunday at OKC First Church we are going to examine the Church universal, its role in our world today, and its place in our faith journeys. This is an important message in this season of distant digital worship in which we are unable to physically gather together. You won’t want to miss this Palm Sunday with your OKC First Church family. Pastor Lesly

This week, we have a multi-faceted conversation with Pastor Jon Middendorf of OKC First Church of the Nazarene. Jon has has taken an outspoken leadership role in our city in addressing racism and injustice, and we talk to him about his family history that led to this engagement, as well as some of his recent work centered around the Oklahoma County Jail. This episode is honest, productive, and has some great tips for diving into this race conversation in our city. Book recommendations: "New Jim Crow" (https://newjimcrow.com/) and "Me and White Supremacy" (https://www.meandwhitesupremacybook.com/) For more information about United Voice Oklahoma, visit : https://strongertogether.global/united-voice-oklahoma/

On this episode I sat down with my friend, golf partner, pastor and Ducks fan Jason Smith. I met Jason as a sophomore in college when he became our golf team Chaplin. Jason came to Oklahoma to play college golf from Ontario Oregon in 1999. At SNU he felt called to become a pastor and met his awesome wife Katie. During college Jason interned at OKC First Church of the Nazarene where he still works today. Over the years Jason has become a great friend to me and my wife. He officiated both our weddings ( a story for another day ) This was a special podcast for me. Its one I've been wanting to record since I started the podcast over 2 years ago and I'm glad we made it happen. Jason and his wife Katie have two incredible daughters McCall and Berkley and lets just say that we still play a lot of golf together. OKC First Church of the Nazarene - www.okcfirst.com This episode was presented by the Oklahoma Hall of Fame. Telling Oklahoma's Story Through Its People Since 1927. Follow them online www.oklahomahof.com and on social media @oklahomahofCheers. 

What we believe impacts the way we live our lives. In fact, our statements of faith should impact our lives as well. When we recite each Sunday that we believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord it should make a difference in our lives. As we continue to examine the Apostles' Creed we are turning our attention to Jesus this week and what we believe about Jesus makes all the difference in the world about how we practice the Christian faith. I invite you to join us this Sunday for worship at 10:45 at OKC First Church as we discover what we are actually affirming by calling Jesus the Christ, God's Son, and Lord, what kind of difference it makes in our lives to affirm those titles for Jesus, and how this uniquely Christian understanding of Jesus sets us apart, gives us hope, and provides a foundation upon which to build our lives. I hope to see each of you in worship this Sunday at OKC First Church. Pastor Lesly

What we believe impacts the way we live our lives. In fact, our statements of faith should impact our lives as well. When we recite each Sunday that we believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord it should make a difference in our lives. As we continue to examine the Apostles' Creed we are turning our attention to Jesus this week and what we believe about Jesus makes all the difference in the world about how we practice the Christian faith. I invite you to join us this Sunday for worship at 10:45 at OKC First Church as we discover what we are actually affirming by calling Jesus the Christ, God's Son, and Lord, what kind of difference it makes in our lives to affirm those titles for Jesus, and how this uniquely Christian understanding of Jesus sets us apart, gives us hope, and provides a foundation upon which to build our lives. I hope to see each of you in worship this Sunday at OKC First Church. Pastor Lesly

This Lenten season we are going to be focusing on the Apostles’ Creed. The Apostles’ Creed is a statement of belief. “I believe,” are the opening words of this creed. The Apostles’ Creed is a brief statement that outlines the foundational doctrines of the Christian faith. In spite of the name it was not written by the Apostles, but it reflects what the Apostles taught. It is a very brief summarization and broad survey of apostolic doctrine. It is Trinitarian in that it affirms God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is not comprehensive in that it does not cover all aspects of Christian doctrine, but everything it covers is vital to our Christian faith and is common among all Christians. The Apostles’ Creed is THE most common statement of faith among all churches across the world. The Apostles’ Creed was written around the year 120 to combat a number of false doctrines or heresies arising in the early Church. Some in the early church were saying Jesus was only a Spirit, not really a human being. Others were saying Jesus was merely a human who became a god at his baptism. There were some who were saying Jesus’ resurrection was simply a myth. Others were debating the nature of the Holy Spirit. The Apostles’ Creed was written to combat false doctrine and beliefs of the early Church. But that doesn’t mean the Apostles’ Creed has nothing for us today. Certainly, it is a central element of worship as United Methodist Christians, but more so, it both educates and defines us as Christians. The Apostles' Creed teaches us about our core beliefs. We believe in an Almighty, Creating, and Loving God. We believe in Jesus Christ and affirm that He was crucified and resurrected and will one day judge the world. We believe in the Holy Spirit as known through the universal Church, the resurrection of the dead, and the forgiveness of sins. These are essential beliefs as Christians. But the Creed also defines us as Christians. Because of the doctrines in the Apostles' Creed we are to live differently. Because we believe in an Almighty God we can live life with confidence, knowing that God is somehow mysteriously in charge. Because we believe in Jesus Christ we can live without fear of dying because we believe as Christ was raised we too will be raised. Because we believe in the Holy Spirit we know we are not alone in the world and that God is as close to us as our heart. The Apostles’ Creed is more than just a collection of ancient doctrinal statements. The Apostles’ Creed is a living, breathing statement that both informs us and defines us as Christians. Make sure you join us at OKC First Church during this season of Lent as we study, learn about, and daily live The Apostles’ Creed. Pastor Lesly

When facing insurmountable odds what do you do? Well, many people quietly slip away. Instead of running a marathon they walk for a week and give up. Instead of losing those 40 extra pounds they sneak in a trip to the fast food burger joint. Instead of getting help with their addiction they pop a pill, fill the needle, or light up. Instead of staying and fighting they slip away into the night. And it’s not always their fault. Indeed, many obstacles in life are seemingly insurmountable, at least on our own. Of course, when the young boy David faced the fierce giant Goliath he stayed and fought, but not without fear and trepidation. Oh yeah, and God was with him. In fact, God’s presence with David was the most important part of that great epic. This Sunday at OKC First Church we will take a fresh look at this classic story. We will see how God’s hand was leading David into battle, the ways God readies and empowers us for battle, and the kind of victories we can expect when we follow God’s lead. I hope to see each of you this Sunday in worship at 10:45 at OKC First Church as we experience together this story of David and Goliath. Pastor Lesly

In this episode we talk about how we can cultivate true friendships and create community in our churches. We look at specific ideas for creating community at OKC First Church as we seek to become a relational oasis in a downtown environment. In the show outtakes Morgan shares her love for school cafeteria food, but not for square pizza.

Genesis 6:11-22 11 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. 12 God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. 13 So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. 14 So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. 15 This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high. 16 Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit high all around. Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks. 17 I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish. 18 But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark—you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you. 19 You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you. 20 Two of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive. 21 You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them.” 22 Noah did everything just as God commanded him. When I was growing up we had a wonderful pastor's wife who was very gifted in teaching children. In fact, her expertise was in using a felt board to teach Bible stories to us. She was amazing. I had never experienced these stories like I did when Mary Dieker was teaching them to me. In our digital age of multi-sensory learning the use of felt boards has gone out of style. But I have found using these tools of a bygone era can be effective in today's culture. They are seen as a novelty by today's children who have never heard of or seen a felt board. One of the reasons I love the felt boards Mary Dieker used is they are the main reason I know the great stories of the Bible. Stories like the great flood, Moses and the burning bush, David and Goliath and Daniel in the Lions' Den are all stories that continue to speak to me today. They are often known as children's stories, even adorning the walls of nurseries and the covers of children's Bible story books. But the messages of these great narratives are anything but simplistic and infantile. These are stories with adult themes and great theological significance. Beginning this Sunday we are going to be taking a fresh look at these grand Old Testament sagas. Through the use of the felt board, Biblical research, and practical application we will see how these stories still speak to our faith today. This Sunday we will examine the story of Noah and the great flood. We will see how our culture may not be that different from Noah's culture, how God's grace was present in the life of Noah, and signs of God's grace in today's time. I hope to see each of you in worship this Sunday at 10:45 at OKC First Church. Pastor Lesly

Luke 1:26-38 26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” 34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” 35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called[a] the Son of God. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. 37 For no word from God will ever fail.” 38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her. I can't imagine Mary being excited about the words from the angel. She was about to become pregnant as an unwed teenager. A virgin at that. I can't imagine this led to great joy and peace in Mary's life. She knew that if what the angel foretold actually would come to pass it would be anything but peace in her life. Her fiancé Joseph would likely divorce her (he could even demand she be put to death), her parents would likely disown her, her child would be branded as unclean throughout his life, and her fellow Jewish believers would ostracize her. No, this was not good news for Mary at all. In fact, I can't think of much worse news for an unwed teenage girl in the first century. And many of us know what it is to receive bad news during the Christmas season. We know what it's like to receive that diagnosis from the doctor, that word about our aging parent, that memo from our boss, that letter from that collection agency. We know what it's like to receive that bad news. Often that bad news we've received during the Christmas season over the years sours our celebration of Christmas for years and decades to come. But it doesn't have to be that way. In fact, what seemed to be awful news turned into the ultimate Good News. So how do we handle those blue seasons of our lives? Where can we find hope and joy in the midst of those blue seasons? This Sunday we are going to be examining what Mary must have been going through, how she found hope and joy, and the lessons we can learn so that we too can find that same hope and joy. I look forward to seeing each of you in worship this Sunday at OKC First Church! Pastor Lesly

We are in the season that has affectionately come to be labeled "that time of year." It is a time of the year many of us are just holding on by our fingernails with all the activities and commitments we've made to family and friends. It's all so good, yet all so exhausting. Each year it seems Christmas sneaks up on us. Every year I wonder if this will be the year that I make a stand to keep it simple. With all the "to-do" lists and running around for events and purchasing presents it’s really easy to find this season gone before you know it. Christmas can seem so chaotic and busy, but the reality is that the Christmas story is rather simple. It could have been more complicated, but it wasn't. God sent his Son in a non-assuming way. There was no pretense. No grand production. Just a bewildered couple in a stable welcoming God in the flesh. And it changed everything. The next few weeks at OKC First Church we’re going to look at our lives in relationship to this season and what’s hindering us from really appreciating this time of anticipation and hope through the gift of God’s son, Jesus. I hope you will join me and invite a friend or family member as we explore “A Simple Christmas.” I will help unpack how to slow down, reflect, and enjoy this season to make it more meaningful for you and those around you. Pastor Lesly

Habakkuk 3:17-18 17 Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. Thanksgiving begins the season of parties, events, gatherings, food, decorations, and gifts. For many of us it is a season of family and friends. A busy season at that. So busy, in fact, that we’ve almost lost the real reason for our family Thanksgiving gatherings next week. But don’t be confused, there is indeed a reason we gather together: to give thanks to God. But for what are we thanking God? All the blessings in our lives? Food, shelter, clothing? Certainly. All the abundance of those blessings? Wealth, large homes, new cars, fashion clothing? Of course. But what about during those seasons of life without those types of blessings? Can we still be thankful? This Sunday at OKC First Church we will learn about the story of the prophet Habakkuk and how he learned to give thanks and to be joyful even in the midst of disaster and despair. You won't want to miss our combined worship service with The Christ Experience as Pastor Frankye Johnson joins me in preaching this important message. I hope to see each of you in worship this Sunday at 10:45 at OKC First Church. Pastor Lesly

Luke 12:15-21 15 Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” 16 And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ 18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. 19 And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ 20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ 21 “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” When John Wesley sent out his circuit preachers, he sent them out with a Bible in one hand and his sermons in the other hand. To us it may seem a bit egotistical for Wesley to send out preachers in order to preach Wesley’s sermons, but for most of those preachers that was the only theological training available to them. These sermons are known today as “Wesley’s 52 Standard Sermons,” one for each week of the year. These amazing sermons form part of the doctrine of our United Methodist Church. One of the last sermons in this collection is entitled “The Use of Money.” Now remember, these sermons were written in the late 1700s, but this sermon in particular still speaks to us today. In this sermon Wesley says, “Having first gained all you can, and, secondly, saved all you can, then give all you can.” Wesley taught those first Methodists to earn, save, and give all they could. Over the next three weeks at OKC First Church we are going to be examining these three aspects of our relationship with money. On the last Sunday of this short three-part series you will be asked to turn in a financial commitment card so we can estimate our church’s available budget for next year. This week we will be examining Wesley’s instruction to “earn all you can.” It seems odd that we would need to talk about this in our upwardly-mobile, consumer-driven, over-worked culture, but there is a shadow side to this instruction to “earn all you can.” Wesley was aware of the danger of unbridled acquisitions. He warned, "We ought to gain all we can without paying too high a price for it." Jesus sounds a similar warning in this week’s text, "Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one's life does not consist in the abundance of one's possessions." So I hope you will be blessed as you join us this Sunday as we examine these ancient, but still relevant, instructions to “Earn, Save, and Give … All You Can.” Pastor Lesly

Of all the complex areas of our lives we have examined in our current series none are more complicated than our relationship with God. The complexities in our relationship with God go directly to the core of our being. Hang-ups about our own parents, especially our dads, present themselves quite readily. The distractions of the nuances of theology and the practice of Christianity are so great that we seldom get to the true heart of our faith. More books have been written about the inticracies of the Christian faith than about any other topic. But when we think more closely about it, our faith is quite simple, or at least it should be. In the book "Simple Life" the authors ask a series of simple, yet defining questions regarding this central part of our life: Am I closer to God today than I was a year ago? Is prayer a regular part of my day? Do I read the Bible at least two or three times a week? Am I truly connected, in a meaningful way, to a local congregation? Do I talk freely with my family and others about my faith? Do I love others? These questions get to the heart of our faith. We have a desire that God be first in our lives, but the reality for most Christians is that God isn’t first in our lives. This Sunday at OKC First Church we will be examining our complex relationship with God, how we can simplify that relationship, and some practical steps we can take during this upcoming holiday season to ensure God remains our top priority in our lives. I look forward to seeing each of you in worship at OKC First Church this Sunday! Pastor Lesly

Simple Life: Time "How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. What we do with this hour, and that one, is what we are doing," writes American author Annie Dillard. Time is money. The most valuable asset we have is our time. Once spent, you can never get your time back. These maxims about time show just how much of a value we have put on time. But for most of us we have filled our time with things that are not important. We spend our days perusing social media, watching hours of mindless TV shows, waste away the precious moments we have with our family members. This Sunday at OKC First Church we will be examining our complex relationship with time. We will discover how we are spending our time, how we can manage our time more effectively, how we can set our life priorities, and practical steps we can take to live out our life priorities. I hope to see each of you this Sunday at OKC First Church as we examine "Simple Time." Pastor Lesly

In a study of 1,000 American adults Thom and Art Rainer, researchers and authors, asked what area of life people needed simplicity. In profound fashion the respondents gave four primary answers: relationships, time, money, and God. In all these areas people want less complexity to live lives that truly matter. I know in my own life it all begins with relationships. If my relationships are out of balance, full of complexity, and broken then the rest of my life feels out of balance, complex and broken. From the beginning of the Biblical narrative we find that humans are created in God's image, as relational beings. God desires relationships just as humans desire relationships. One of the most inhumane things we can do to a person is to put them into solitary confinement, to cut off all meaningful human contact, to break all relationships with them. It's inhumane because living a life alone is the opposite of living life. We are all created for and yearn for deep and abiding relationships, yet our relationships are so often fraught with congestion, difficulty, and instability. This Sunday at OKC First Church we will examine the complexity of our relationships, how we are called to simplify them, and some practical steps we can take to experience deep and abiding relationships. We will be challenged to take some very concrete actions in the coming week. You won’t want to miss this message and challenge. I hope to see each of you in worship this Sunday at First Church! Pastor Lesly

Life is stressful. Life is busy. I don’t have time for the things that matter. No matter where we are in life, we all have the same complaints about our lives. We are simply too busy. We all likely struggle under the pressing weight of work, family, exercise, bills, church, school, friends, and a barrage of requests, demands, and desires. Most everyone we know feels exhausted and overwhelmed most of the time. But it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, it shouldn’t be that way. Jesus didn’t live that way. He lived a simple life. He had space on the margins of life to pay attention to the distractions, to help the helpless, to follow God’s call upon His life. Isn’t that how life should be rather than living frantically from one distraction to the next? Join us at OKC First Church for our current sermon series “Simple Life” beginning this Sunday. Throughout this series we are examining God’s call for us to live a more simple, uncluttered, and faith-filled life. We hope this series will inspire lives that are more spiritual and less harried, rich in experiences with family and friends rather than nagging to-do lists or late nights at the office. Join us in this Simple Life. Pastor Lesly

Of all the directives and instructions of Jesus one stands above all the others. It is second in importance only to the command of love, but it is first in the difference it makes in our relationships with others. It has the power to destroy marriages, sour friendships, bankrupt companies, topple nations. No, it is not adultery, or lying, or gossiping, or stealing. I am talking about forgiveness. Forgiveness was the virtue most lived out by Joseph. Indeed, throughout his life Joseph demonstrated many other qualities like faith, trust, humility, and patience, but in the end forgiveness is what set him apart. This Sunday at OKC First Church we will conclude our sermon series “Roots: Back to Our Beginnings” as we examine the forgiveness of Joseph. We will explore the depth of Joseph’s forgiveness, how forgiving his brothers changed his family forever, and how the power of forgiveness can extend to generations in our own lives. I hope to see each of you in worship this Sunday at 10:45 at OKC First Church for this very important message of hope and inspiration. Pastor Lesly

What a week of mission activity and events! We have been sowing seeds throughout this week by being in service to those in need and to those who are spiritually lost. Thank you to all who helped package over 18,000 meals last Sunday before worship and helped us raise thousands of dollars for our missionaries on Wednesday night. This week has been extremely successful and productive! This Sunday at First Church we are going to be examining the rest of Paul's words to the church at Corinth regarding their financial gifts and assistance to the impoverished and persecuted Christians in Jerusalem. He wrote to the Corinthians about planting seeds. Certainly as a farm boy this Scripture has always stuck with me. I have sown thousands of acres of wheat seeds in my lifetime. So I know what it means to sow seeds. But recently Paul's words have taken on new meaning for me, especially when examined in the context of the Corinthian church raising money to send to another area of the world. Paul's words to the Corinthians are God's words to us today. I pray God has laid on your hearts the financial commitment He is asking you to make to support our missionaries serving around the world through your Faith Promise pledge. The reality is that last year we had to drop funding for one of our missionaries because we simply didn't have enough pledges. This year, we are praying for an increase in the amount and number of our pledges to Faith Promise. We have a missionary in mind we want to support, but we simply need the financial support from you to be able to help send this missionary into the field that is ripe unto harvest. This Sunday we will begin collecting the Faith Promise pledge cards and will continue collecting them throughout this month. We hope you will prayerfully consider what God might ask you to give to our missionaries that is over and above your regular giving to First Church I look forward to seeing each of you in worship this Sunday as we conclude our celebration of Mission Week at OKC First Church! Pastor Lesly

I was scared to death when I was a young boy that God would call me to be a missionary. In fact, that fear stuck with me into my teen years. Even though I was an extremely involved leader in our youth group I stayed home when our youth group went on a weekend mission trip to Dallas. I didn’t want anything to do with being a missionary. Needless to say, God has changed my heart over the years. In fact, mission work, both domestic and international, is one of my great joys in life. First Church has always been passionate about mission work. Even as far back as the 1930s we were actively involved in supporting overseas missions. First Church has always been a church that understands the global nature of Christianity and for the past number of years we have used “Faith Promise” as our primary means of supporting missionaries around the world. You will hear more about “Faith Promise” the next two Sundays and how this approach to financially supporting missions has transformed our global outreach at First Church. This Sunday we are kicking off “Missions Week” at First Church. We will begin this Sunday morning from 8:30 am to 10:30 am by packaging food through Stamp Out Starvation. Make sure you show up before 8:30 am so we can package as much food as possible. You can find out more about Stamp Out Starvation on their website, https://www.stampoutstarvation.com. On Wednesday evening we will have a great evening of fellowship, celebration, and food with a barbecue cook-off, a dessert auction, and a presentation from one of the missionaries we support. During the barbecue cook-off and dessert auction you will have the chance to vote for your favorite barbecue by giving a financial donation or bidding for your favorite desert. All the proceeds from the evening will go to support our missions program at First Church. I look forward to seeing each of you in worship this Sunday as we kick of Mission Week at OKC First Church! Pastor Lesly