Obedience Opens Doors of Opportunity

How awesome it is to reflect in the afterglow of our Capital Campaign 2^nd Anniversary Celebration.  What a glorious experience we had in worship with our tremendous guest preacher, Rev. Dr. Ozzie E. Smith, Jr., speaking to the heart of the work that we have been called to do in expanding God’s house, and inspiring members and visitors alike to support the great work.

God called us to walk around this building seven times, as did Joshua and the armies of the Lord, and in obedience to God, we took the walk of faith.  The blessings have been pouring out ever since. God is moving on our behalf and opening doors of opportunity for us in response to our obedience.  We serve a faithful God who always provides in the places where God guides.

We praise God for our Jobs Partnership Program as they have completed their Spring Session and graduated thirty-three students from the three Jobs Partnership sites throughout the greater Cleveland area.  What a blessing it was to see each of them graduate as transformed individuals.  We praise God for our faithful and dedicated Jobs Partnership Team, now more than forty strong, who unselfishly give of themselves for the benefit of the students and for the glory of God.

Now, as we enter the month of June we are afforded yet more opportunities for obedience to God’s word through worship, ministry, giving and service.  We celebrate our confirmands who have completed their course of study and have come through this most important rite of initiation into the Christian Church known as confirmation. We thank, in a special way, their teacher Min. Cheryl A. Lindsay who has faithfully shepherded them through this spiritual process of Christian growth and development.  We offer our congratulations and blessings to Min. Cheryl as she will cross the stage and receive her Master of Divinity degree from Ashland Theological Seminary this month. We thank also the parents of our confirmands, who encouraged and supported them as they began their Christian pilgrimage.

In the month of June, we look forward to our Family Day celebration (formerly Youth Day) on Sunday, June 10, 2012. The celebration will begin with the Men’s Fellowship’s Annual Family Breakfast. We encourage all of our church family to join in supporting the men of Mt. Zion, beginning at 8:00 a.m., as they host their annual celebration of family, food and good Christian fellowship.  We will continue in worship as the youth provide leadership for the service and following worship we will have our Annual Strawberry Ice Cream Social on the Fellowship House Porch. At that time, our Scholarship Committee will make its presentations to our scholarship recipients. We look forward to a great feast of Christian fellowship.

In all, it is our obedience to God and God’s word that makes all of our blessings manifold. Let us remain steadfast in our faithfulness to God…as God calls to yet new levels of service in the Kingdom of God.

In Obedience,

Rev. Paul

What gives you life?

What gives you life? What brings joy to your heart and peace to your soul? What inspires you to live better and motivates you to do more? What gives you strength and courage…energy and vitality? Well, you may have come up with many answers but the only answer to all of these questions is the Holy Spirit.

We are still rejoicing in the season of resurrection and new life, but the month of May reminds us that Pentecost is coming.  Jesus told his disciples while He was with them that He would send them the Holy Spirit to dwell with them and to be in them and to lead them and guide them into all truth. These promises are for us as well. The Holy Spirit is God’s presence here with us right now speaking to us and guiding our footsteps and our path.

I repeat to our congregation over and over again the importance of praying for the Holy Spirit, for when we pray for what God has promised, God surely delivers that for which we pray. The Holy Spirit gives us life, hope, peace, joy and love. It is what we need to live an effective Christian life. Without the Holy Spirit, we will constantly feel inadequate in our work and our ministries for God. But with the Holy Spirit, we are enabled to do all things.

Our church family is in a season of Spiritual Growth and Transformation. As each of us takes that call seriously through striving to live a disciplined Christian life, we will experience the phenomenal blessings that come only to those who walk with God. The Holy Spirit is God’s gift to you. All that you must do is receive it, and the results will follow.

With Holy Ghost Power,

Rev. Paul

New Life

Nothing in life goes backward. Life is a constant forward motion.  Often, I hear people saying things like “I wish that things could be the way they used to be.”  Herein lies one of life’s most important lessons – you cannot go back to where you used to be, because you cannot go back to the way you used to be, simply because life does not go backward.  Life is about growth and change and progress. I am not just suggesting to you that nothing else is good. I am telling you that nothing else is possible. You must go forward, because life, unlike your television remote control, does not come with a rewind button.

However, life does come fully equipped with a “new start button.”  In this life, you can always start anew. You can always go in a new direction. You can always choose a new path. You have the opportunity to take on a new perspective and a new attitude, and you have the privilege of developing a new and different way of viewing life and the world. That is because, in Christ, new life is always possible.  Aren’t you glad to know that you are not stuck where you are, if that is not where you want to be?

So, how do we change our situation and our circumstances? You already know the answer to the question. You begin in prayer. Go to God about your situation and see what God has to say about it. More than likely, if you pray long enough, fervently enough and sincerely enough, God will show you your transformed situation;  your new life. Then it is up to you to begin to work toward it. It is so much easier to work toward something, when you are convinced that it is God’s will. Don’t stop until you achieve the new life that you desire.

In this beautiful season of spring, when flowers are blooming and trees are budding, and we stand on the threshold of the resurrection celebration, take the time to ponder and reflect what areas of your life need to be made new. Remember, new life is possible, so why not access it today. You can have a new  life, a new situation and new circumstances if you are not happy where you are. Never forget that with God all things are possible.

Rejoicing in the new life that Jesus brings,

Rev. Paul

A Pastoral Letter – Focused Faith

The season of Lent allows us to intentionally focus our faith toward God. It is an opportunity to pray more fervently and to fast with a determination to hear from God.  As we begin this Lenten season, we thank God for the spirit and attendance at our Ash Wednesday services. We started out with great zeal and enthusiasm as we began a season of sacrifice.

On Thursday night at our Church Council Meeting, Mike Shinn, Co-chair of our Capital Campaign, shared with the council that the U. S. Attorney’s office has declined to represent us in our case involving the building of ourFamilyLifeCenter. He shared with us the other avenues and strategies that are available to us and shared with us important next steps in regard to our project.

1. At this point it is important that we exhaust all administrative remedies.  Therefore, we will appeal the most recent ruling of the Cleveland Building Department, making the necessary changes to our plans and applying for       variances where necessary.
2. Make ready to pursue our case in Common Pleas Court.

The timing of this news and our strategy could not be better! For we, as the people of God are in the midst of a 40 day fast for Spiritual growth and transformation, What better thing to include in the focus of our prayers than the expansion of God’s house to serve God’s people. I would encourage each of you, every time you stop to pray, to lift up God’s church,Mt.Zionand the mission and vision that God has given us to build and expand God’s ministries in this place. I would ask that you would pray for our church’s Servant Leaders and for me as yourPastor, as we stand at the helm of this mighty ship of “Mt.Zion,” guiding it as the Spirit leads.

Please remember, that victory is reserved for the faithful and success is given to those who persevere. As I told the Church Council on Thursday, I have prayed fervently during this first week of Lent about this and many other concerns and God has said clearly to GO FORWARD!  This is in fact what God has called the church to do in every age. In the words of the Apostle Paul: “Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.”

With focused faith in God we shall reach the goal.

Faithfully,

Rev. Paul

A word from our Pastor (February 2012)

As we begin the month of February, there is so much for which we can be thankful. Our Martin Luther King Day of Service provided all who participated an opportunity to focus on the needs of others. Thanks to the generosity of our members, we collected more than ten cases of personal supplies for our Veterans at the domicillary and thoroughly cleaned and reorganized our Nursery and Sunday School rooms.   We indeed had an awesome and Spirit-filled Annual Meeting and Leadership Vision Retreat setting the tone for the year ahead.

In this Year of Spiritual Growth and Transformation, we are all seeking to deepen our relationship with God and to grow profoundly in God’s grace, mercy and love. In this regard, I am excited about the 40 day Daniel Fast that we will commence on Ash Wednesday February 22nd. I know that it will be a means of extraordinary spiritual development for all who fully engage in its meaning and purpose. As we have done in the past, we will hold weekly Daniel Fast Prayer Calls. This will provide participants with a forum for sharing praise reports and prayer requests, as well as an opportunity to exchange Daniel Fast recipes. In addition, this year we will host several Daniel fast meals for the entire congregation. I pray that many will feel moved to join us in this great spiritual adventure.

One of the goals that I have set for our church this year is continuing to build an atmosphere of excellence, excitement and efficiency. My goal in regard to excellence is that all of our ministries would seek to operate at a level of excellence. This means offering the highest level of service to our members and to all with whom we are engaged in ministry.

In regard to excitement, it is my goal to maintain a level of excitement within our church family about the Lord, about our church and its ministries, about reaching out to our community in welcome and service and about the vision that God has given us for the future. In regard to efficiency, it is my desire for us to operate our ministries at the highest possible level of efficiency, particularly as it relates to the economy of time and human resources. Meetings will be held in an expedient and efficient manner with utmost consideration for our members’ time, their families and their commitments. I pray that all will remember that your first ministry is to your family and then toward the world.

I am more excited about this new year than I have been in many years. Truly, 2011 was a year of preparation for the phenomenal blessings that God will bestow upon us in this new year. Let us prepare to step into the opportunities and blessings that will be presented to us in the months to come, so that we may serve God and God’s people to the best of our abilities and experience all of the blessings that God has in store!

In joyful anticipation!

Rev. Paul

A Year of Spiritual Growth and Development

A Word from our Pastor…

The beginning of a new year always reminds us of new beginnings. Many of us look at a new year as a chance to start things differently than we did in the previous year. Some make resolutions or promises to themselves to make changes in the New Year. No matter how you view the start of a year, it is important that we all recognize that the change of the calendar year for God’s church means new possibilities and opportunities for worship, service, and growth.

2012 is going to be A Year of Spiritual Growth and Development. This is an opportunity for us to intentionally take the time to nurture and develop our faith and trust in God and our relationship to God and each other. I am excited about the possibilities that this year holds for all of us and I look forward to the opportunities for growth that we will experience.

In 2012, I am asking all of our church’s boards, committees and ministries to plan and execute activities that will help them to grow spiritually and that will encourage their members to seek a deeper relationship to God. This will have an enormous effect on our church and on each of us individually. There is nothing greater that we can do than to deepen our relationship with God.

In 2012, we will also be expanding our outreach of service to the community and seeking every possible opportunity of ministry and service to the “least of God’s children,” according to Matthew 25:31-46. As we do this, I pray that God will bless and lift each of you to a new place in God.

As we move into this new and exciting year, Kim and I, Robin, Paul Jr. and Paul, III wish each of you and your families…

A Happy, Healthy, Prosperous and Christ-filled New Year!

From 2011 to 2012 at Mt. Zion

Christmas Day

On the Way to Victory

As we move into the last month of the year, I am excited by where we are as a church family. I am convinced, more than ever before, that we are on our way to victory. As we stand on the threshold of 2012, we are in a position of unprecedented opportunity. God is honoring our faithfulness in serving God and God’s people by opening new doors of opportunity for service for our church. Our ministries to the community are being nationally recognized for our dedication to God and our compassionate concern for our community.  What an awesome blessing it was to see yet another class of our Job’s Partnership Program graduate. Present at the graduation was a White House Intern who was by faith a Hindu.  He was visiting a church for the first time in his life and was so profoundly moved that he committed to becoming a Job’s Partnership volunteer and supporter. Also present was a photographer from StillSpeaking Magazine, a national publication of the United Church of Christ, who was taking photographs for a feature article on Job’s Partnership that will appear in the spring edition.  In addition, we were the host of a Department of Labor Symposium on providing aid and assistance to the unemployed and hosted the Faith Based Staff of the U.S. Department of Labor at one of our Job’s Partnership classes.

Sunday after Sunday, worship becomes more and more powerful in our beautiful and newly renovated sanctuary. It is quickly becoming a sought after location for concerts and community gatherings. For all of these things, God gets the glory. If we are wise, we will see the hand of God pointing us in a direction of deeper consecration and greater service, for God truly desires to be worshipped and served. This is what is most important.

As we look forward to 2012, “A Year of Spiritual Growth and Development,” I am even more encouraged by what I see on the horizon for us in the year to come. God is now moving in the miraculous, and we have but to step up into our opportunity. Experiences are great but what we do with them is what is really important. Please pray with me as we step into the blessings and opportunities that God has brought to us at this pivotal place in time. There are no limits on us except those of our own creation. Let’s take the limits off and soar into the future that God has placed before us.

Empowered by the Spirit,

Rev. Paul