(our theme for September)

Everyone who knows me knows that I am a huge fan of Lin Manuel Miranda’s hit musical Hamilton. As a lover of both history and musicals, what’s not to love? But my love for it stretches far beyond combining two of my passions in life. I find myself so drawn to it due to how it handles the clashing personalities of the characters and their attitudes towards the future.

Our main protagonists in the musical are the well-known political rivals Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. These characters serve as polar opposites to each other on multiple fronts, most notably among them, how they perceive the notion of what is to come.

Hamilton is portrayed as an impatient yet boisterous go-getter and is said to “write like he’s running out of time” and like he needs it to survive. He is such a go-getter and works himself to the point he blatantly refuses when his wife, Eliza, encourages him to take a break. A common theme associated with the character of Alexander Hamilton is the fact that he is consumed by concern about the legacy he will leave behind. He is a believer in doing everything he can to achieve his future hope as soon as humanly possible.

Then on the other hand, we have Aaron Burr. During his song entitled “Wait for It”, we see that Burr is a far more patient and reserved man than his adversary. He feels that his future is not set and stone, and reiterates that if there is a reason he’s still alive, then he is willing to wait for it instead of working at breakneck speed to see that reason to fruition like Hamilton. Additionally, he ponders what it is like in his adversary’s shoes, commenting that his pace is relentless, he does not waste time, and has something to prove but nothing to lose. However, Burr stays true to being willing to wait for good to come his way instead of rushing to achieve it like he is running out of time.

I know I am certainly guilty of having Alexander’s impatient nature when waiting for good things to come from work I’ve done; I believe this is simply human nature. Waiting is often a hard task. However, I’ve also been able to look at this through the perspective of Burr and being more willing to wait and go with the flow. But whether we find ourselves looking at what’s to come as a Hamilton or a Burr, regardless we are on God’s timing. God is actively guiding us towards our future hope he has planned and will not abandon us as we make our way towards it. This future hope is promised, but we just have to be willing to be patient and wait for it or to work towards it.

God, forgive us for being impatient while we wait for what’s to come and help us to remember that we live on your time and so long as we are patient, you will help us to see the fruits of our labor. So long as our hope is placed in you, may we always remember that our future hope will be bright and will not be forsaken by you. In your name, amen.

This devotion was written and recorded by Grace Jonas.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at

(our theme for September)

The Apostle Paul wrote this wonderful news to believers in Rome and everywhere. Paul wanted all believers to be totally assured of how much God loves us.

Henri Nouwen, considered one of the great spiritual writers of our day, taught at Harvard, Yale, and Notre Dame. In his book Life of the Beloved, he wrote these words:

We only have to seek Him to find Him. His LOVE is waiting to give us Peace. All we have to do is believe and reach for Him.

God of LOVE – I believe. I am reaching. Let me feel your great LOVE today and every day! Amen!

This devotional was written and read by Bernice Howard.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.

(our theme for September)

Some people are inspiring to be around. We feel good in their presence. They improve the quality of our lives and make us want to be a better person.

Hilliard Hester is one of those people for me. Hilliard lives in the same apartment building that I do and sometimes we have breakfast together. I go to the dining room around 7am directly from my apartment but he comes from the gym where he has been working out for 45 minutes or so. Hilliard is 93 years old.

The thing about him that inspires me most is not that he works out regularly at his age, though that’s certainly impressive , but it’s that he has what the writer of Proverbs calls “a cheerful heart.” He always has a smile, often tells a joke (they are corny but always clean), and he lifts the mood for everyone around him. His good humor is not the cynical kind that is so common today, but clearly comes from embracing God’s goodness in a way that makes his life, and through him, my life, positive.

The Bible speaks often of joy. It is a major theme in the Psalms. When an angel come to some night workers to announce the birth of the savior of the world the angel says his news will bring great joy to all people. Joy is one of the fruits of the spirit listed in Galatians.

So why are we so gloomy? Because we get our news from the world and not from the angels. A broken spirit saps our strength. But a cheerful heart is good medicine. Thank you, Hilliard, for constantly reminding me live a life of joy.

Dear God, I know I can trust you: today, tomorrow, forever. Because I can trust you, release in me a cheerful heart. Amen.

Today's devotional was written and read by Herb Sadler.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.

(our theme for September)

When I look at the world before me what do I choose to see? If I look at a tree, do I see the fallen leaves that show the passing of seasons and the loss of life? Or do I see a tree that is healthy and doing what all living things do by living and renewing for a new season?

When I look at my garden, do I focus on the tomato with a spot or the twenty that are ripening and full of all the good that is fresh produce twenty feet from my back door?

When I look at a person in front of me do I see their age, clothes, attitude, differences from me? Or do I see God’s beloved before me with whom I can share some time?

Why is it so hard to see the goodness in the land of the living? It is so easy to look at the world we live in and see what is wrong. A friend reached out to me recently because she had just gotten the results of a medical test. She was stuck in the uncomfortable position of knowing that something was wrong but not yet knowing what the specialist would find. She was worried. I understand. I have been there. I encouraged her to have patience. I pointed out the positives of having other tests that were normal, that she was overall in excellent health, and on and on. Why is it so hard to see the goodness in the land of the living? Why do we focus on one thing, often negative, and lose sight of the complete reality before us? We see a flaw, what is broken.

Why wait to see the good? When I stop and really look, eyes wide open, I find that I live in a world filled with good things and good people. I realize that all I have to do is look, and I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. I believe that I just need to look with my eyes and heart open to all that the Lord has given.

Let us pray- God, please give me the strength so that next time I see a tree with a broken limb after a storm that I will see the whole tree. Allow me to have compassion for the broken limb but joy in the strength of the trunk that withstood the storm and the beauty of the branches that are still there. God, please give me the strength to slow down and have the patience to see all that is before me and how good it truly is.

This devotional was written by Jill Pope and read by Sally Stovall.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.

(our theme for September)

In a recent Sunday School series of classes, we talked about this prayer that we call the Lord’s Prayer, verses 9-13. We didn’t spend much time talking about verses 14-15. As we talked, I was reminded of thoughts that I have had for some time about this prayer and my life.

As a lot of us do, I often say the Lord’s Prayer either as part of a group or by myself. I have often wondered whether we are really listening to what we are saying. Do I really want God’s kingdom to come on earth, want God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, want only my daily bread, want God to forgive me as I forgive others? I expect I really mean the part about deliverance from temptation and the evil one. Do I heed the warning in verses 14 and 15 that follow the prayer?

If I really mean it when I say this prayer, I need to keep it always in mind and measure everything I do and say against my vision of what heaven is like. If the world is to be more like heaven, I need to accept the changes that may make me uncomfortable. This is not easy to do but with God’s help each of us can do our part. When the parts of this prayer are added together, it begins to make a greater impact. It shows us how it affects the whole of our lives.

Dear God, help us this day and each day to live like we really mean every word of this prayer and forgive us when we fall short. Amen.

This devotional was written by Alvin Jenkins and read by Jim Stovall.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.

(our theme for September)

In reading this verse, I am reminded of the lyrics to a song from an episode I once watched of Only Murders in The Building entitled “Look for The Light”. Those lyrics are as follows:

In the episode, this song is from a musical one of the protagonists is writing and is sung as a lullaby from a nanny to a young child in her care, assuring them that should they get lost in their nightmares to look for the love of their nanny, in other words, a lighthouse in the middle of a dark ocean.

Upon listening to this song outside of the context of the show, I’ve found that it’s a beautiful illustration of the love of our God serving as a lighthouse and a glimmer of hope. I believe that we are all guilty of letting the darkness take over when our souls are troubled. While we may often find ourselves feeling like boats adrift in a dark ocean during difficult times, God’s love is our lighthouse, unwavering and unfaltering through the toughest of storms, and there to guide us ashore. We are never truly hopeless, for so long as we praise God, we will always have a gleam of hope in the midst of troubling waters.

God, thank you for weathering each storm for us and serving as a lighthouse guiding us out of troubled waters. Help us to remember that bad times don’t last forever and that we are never without hope so long as we worship you. We look for the light of your love in all times and are grateful for it. Amen.

This devotional was written and recorded by Grace Jonas.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.

(our theme for September)

Thank you for listening to Grace for All, a daily devotional podcast produced by the people of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee.

This is Scripture Saturday, a time when we pause and reflect on the scriptures we have read throughout the week. If you missed any of our devotionals on these passages, you can find them on our website at firstchurch.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Now, we invite you to listen and receive Grace. Welcome and thank you for joining us.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.

(our theme for September)

As I write this, I’m on the verge of finishing clearing out my office because I’m retiring after 40 years of teaching, with the last 34 of them at this college, 11 years in the same office. You can accumulate a lot of stuff in a time frame like that.

The prophet Isaiah in poetic form said, “Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall.” Maybe, but let me tell you: it doesn’t get any easier when you get older. I am flat out exhausted. If I had to do this every day, it would overpower me.

Fortunately, I have hope it will end. I can see the finish line. I’m almost certain I will complete the job tomorrow. (I had better, since the next person moves in the day after tomorrow.)

When circumstances wear out even young people, we can all experience the energy that comes from hope. A well-known energy drink claims it gives you wings. It may or may not, but hope in the Lord definitely does.

Sometimes when I preach on Sunday mornings, my microphone will die right in the middle of the sermon. I swiftly reach for the fresh batteries on the left side of the pulpit and exchange the old, dead batteries for new ones. The word in the Hebrew translated “renew” carries with it the implication of “exchange.” Those who hope in the Lord don’t just renew their own strength. They exchange their depleted resources for the strength of the one who created the stars.

Father, this world can wear us down. We don’t have the strength to deal with it on our own. You have never promised us an easy time, but thank you for giving us the strength to deal with our challenges here. Guide us in waiting patiently for you so we can keep on walking. Amen.

This devotional was written and read by Donn King.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.