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The latest at Irvington United Methodist Church

Stay up to date with the happenings of Irvington United Methodist Church by visiting our blog. You'll find information such as announcements, sermon notes and thoughts from our pastor to encourage and challenge your walk with the Lord.

Return to Me

by: Denise Robinson

04/15/2024

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I thought how I would set you among my children and give you a pleasant land, the most beautiful heritage of all the nations. And I thought you would call to me, “My Father,” and would not turn from following me. Instead, as a faithless wife leaves her husband, so you have been faithless to me, O house of Israel, says the Lord. Return, O faithless children, I will heal your faithlessness. “Here we come to you, for you are the Lord our God. Truly in the Lord our God is the ...
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Hymn of Promise

by: Denise Robinson

04/09/2024

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Is your faith something that God alone can see? So many of us who call ourselves Christians do an excellent job of "hiding" our faith. We live so perfectly and seamlessly in this world that no one would suspect. Paul says this about faith in Ephesians 2:8-10: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good ...
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Eclipse!

by: Denise Robinson

04/08/2024

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Have you heard the news about the total solar eclipse? If not, where have you been hiding? It's been all over the news lately in case you hadn't noticed. Businesses are closing for the afternoon, people are flocking to prime viewing areas, hotels are charging crazy rates, and eclipse events are planned. I bought my $1 pair of glasses, so I'm good to go!Psalm 19:1 says, "The heavens declare the glory of God!" and that will be true today. The word “eclipse” doesn't appear in...
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Feeling Sorry for Jeremiah

by: Denise Robinson

04/04/2024

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This Sunday we are starting a new sermon series, Lessons from Jeremiah (spoiler alert!). Jeremiah didn't have an easy life. He is known as the "weeping prophet" because of all the times he warned the people of Israel to turn away from their wrongdoing and was ignored. He could see that God wasn't going to let them get away with the way they were living for much longer - they were worshipping other gods, ignoring widows and children who were starving, taking advantage of po...
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Rain and Snow as God Sees Them

by: Denise Robinson

04/03/2024

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I just came back inside from letting the dogs out and it's cold out there! It seems we have either sprung or fallen back into winter. I even am seeing the four-letter "S" word in the forecast today and tomorrow. On the other hand, because of the warm weather we've had, my yard needs to be mowed. This is the time, in Indiana, of the almost but not quite. The calendar says it's spring and it almost is, but then we get a reminder that we haven't arrived yet. "There is a time ...
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Singing and Dancing in the Rain

by: Denise Robinson

04/02/2024

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If you live around Indy, you probably know that it's raining (storming might be a better word). My dogs, one in particular, let me know that a few times during the night. She doesn't like thunder or lightning or hard rain or, for that matter, about everything that was going on around 3 am. She, of course, doesn't understand that we need rain ... and just think what we'd be facing if this was snow or ice! Just as the gray clouds produce the rain that the earth needs for lif...
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Easter Isn't Over

by: Denise Robinson

04/01/2024

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Holy Week has come to a close. Most of us honored Easter traditions from Easter egg hunts to baskets with candy to large dinners ... and hopefully, a church service as well. There's just something about hearing "Christ the Lord Is Risen Today" on a pipe organ. Many pastors made it into the afternoon before falling asleep on the couch or in a recliner. Those first followers of Jesus didn't, of course, think of the events that had just gone through as "Holy Week." It sure wa...
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I Would Do Anything for Love But

by: Denise Robinson

03/29/2024

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Today is "Good Friday" but for Jesus and the disciples I imagine they thought of it as anything but "good." This is the day of pain, death, and grief. If the story of Christ ended with Good Friday, there would be nothing good to come from it, nothing good we could say. There's a Meatloaf song with these lyrics: "I would do anything for love but I won't do that." Jesus did "that." (Thanks Pastor Jared for this inspiration!). Jesus went to the cross for you and for me. He we...
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Do This in Remembrance of Me

by: Denise Robinson

03/28/2024

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Lent is drawing to a close. Today is Maundy Thursday (in case you were wondering, "maundy" comes from the Latin word "mandatum," which refers to a mandate or commandment). This evening, we will gather to remember and celebrate that evening when Jesus gathered with his disciples for a last meal and, at the end of the meal, offered them bread and wine. He told (commanded) them to continue the practice in remembrance of him until the day of his return. We continue this practi...
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God's Love Is So Strong!

by: Denise Robinson

03/27/2024

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Natalee Creech wrote a children's book in 2022 titled "Nothing" ("Nothing Can Separate You from God's Love!"). In the opening pages, a young child asks, "Can anything separate me from God's love?"  The answer: "Not a mountain or valley, not the deepest of seas, not a rainstorm or hailstorm, or a cold winter freeze. Not a rumbling volcano, not an earthquake or flood, not a swirling tornado or a sinkhole of mud. There's nothing so powerful, nothing so strong. God's love is t...
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The Fig Tree

by: Denise Robinson

03/26/2024

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If you're in the Indy area today and are headed outside, hold onto your hat (as the saying goes). It's windy out there! Well, it's Tuesday of Holy Week, and Jesus and the disciples are quiet. They are making trips in and out of Jerusalem and, curiously, Jesus stops to curse a fig tree for not bearing fruit. I don't know that Jesus wanted a fig necessarily, although he might have, but he certainly wanted to make a point. Jesus sees the fig tree and it has a lot of leaves, b...
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The Last Day in Jerusalem

by: Denise Robinson

03/25/2024

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Yesterday our sermon focused on how busy Jesus was on the last Sunday of his human life. As a Jew, Jesus observed the Sabbath on Saturday, so Sunday wasn't a "special day." And yet, given that Jesus knew how the week would end, it probably was a special day for him, a precious day. That last Sunday, the one we know as Palm and Passion Sunday, he walked a couple of miles to Jerusalem, rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, had a conversation with some Greeks who wanted to know wh...
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Decluttering

by: Denise Robinson

03/22/2024

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I am trying to "declutter" my house, which has led me to the sad conclusion that I have way too much clutter. It's not like I'm a hoarder or a collector (except for books, of course, to which I plead guilty), but I've lived in the same house for 18 years and I have a lot of stuff. Some of it I don't remember buying or getting ... it just sort of wandered into my house and took up residence (ok, not really). This got me thinking about the "clutter" we have in our lives that...
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Christian Unity on Display

by: Denise Robinson

03/21/2024

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Last evening, we ended our Wednesday evening Lenten services, and I am sad to see them come to an end. The churches - and their pastors - who make up the Irvington Association of Ministers are a great group of people. So many people from our several different churches came up to me after the service last night and shared how much they enjoyed worshipping in other churches and hearing the voices of other pastors. I think what we have experienced is just a glimpse into what ...
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Psalm 150 and Praising God

by: Denise Robinson

03/20/2024

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Praise the Lord!Praise God in his sanctuary;praise him in his mighty firmament! Praise him for his mighty deeds;praise him according to his surpassing greatness! Praise him with trumpet sound;praise him with lute and harp! Praise him with tambourine and dance;praise him with strings and pipe! Praise him with clanging cymbals;praise him with loud clashing cymbals! Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!Praise the Lord!  (Psalm 150)This is a psalm of praise, but it als...
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