Tidings from Thomas - How Much Longer Until We’re There?

Do you have childhood memories of road trips? Whether it was a two-hour drive to visit grandparents or the long haul to Disney World, there came a point in every childhood road trip at which I was simply ready to be done. I was done counting out of state license plates and playing cow bingo. I was done looking for funny signs. I was simply done. This usually resulted in annoying my parents with different versions of, “How much longer until we’re there?”

I’m not much better as an adult. Some years ago, a friend and I road tripped to visit another friend in Indiana. We woke up one morning in Indianapolis, got in the car, and drove to Charleston. We were somewhere in Kentucky when I realized I was done. The worst part of the trip came when I dropped my friend off at his house in Mount Pleasant. It was an interminable 20-minute drive from his house to mine. I was so close! Why couldn’t I just be home? Yet, I knew in Kentucky the same thing I knew in Mount Pleasant. The only way to be done is to keep going.

I think I’m starting to feel that way about COVID-19. South Carolina’s infection numbers continue to rise. People continue to suffer. The uncertainty about things that were once certain is taking a spiritual and mental toll. 

Yet, I must remind myself of the same lesson I learned in Kentucky and Mount Pleasant. The only way to be done is to keep going.

I don’t know how and I don’t know when, but I do know that at some point I can put away my masks. 

At some point, I can hug necks and shake hands. At some point, Central’s campus will be bustling with people and the sound of the assembled people will be like choirs of heaven. But, the only way to get there is to keep going.

When we shared Central’s reopening plan, we fully anticipated moving into Phase 2 of reopening around this time. That, however, is no longer the best way to proceed. Until COVID-19 cases decline, we will remain in Phase 1. In the meantime, let us not lose hope. There is an end to the pandemic. There is an end to social distancing. Like a child on a road trip, none of us truly knows when this long, difficult trip will end, yet we can be assured that the end will come. 

Still, the only way to get there is to keep going.

In worship this week we will read from Psalm 139. In Psalm 139:7 the Psalmist asks God, “Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence?” To summarize, the answer is nowhere. 

There is nowhere we can be and nothing we go through that God is not with us. God is with us and God is for us. Until this season is over, let us keep going.

Yours in Christ,

Thomas W. Smith

Tidings From Thomas - Live-Streaming

A good friend of mine has rightly insisted on not using the phrase “new normal.”  We are adjusting to new circumstances and situations in every aspect of our lives, but so far nothing resembling normal has emerged.  For the church, worship has continued to be a moving target.

For most of the time, we were not worshiping in-person, we recorded our services in advance.  This gave Philip Maenza, our communications director, the ability to edit sound and video.  The result was a highly polished production.  As we transition into phased in-person worship, we are moving to a live-stream format.  A live-stream enables us to worship together in real-time, whether the worshiper is on campus or at home.  Since worship is going out live, we will not have the ability to edit sound and video before it is broadcast.  The polish will not initially be the same, but each week we will continue to build on what we have and improve as we go.  For example, last Sunday we had one camera.  This Sunday we will have the ability to switch between three cameras.  Last Sunday, a last-minute set of circumstances meant we could only use Facebook Live.  This Sunday we will be able to live-stream on YouTube, which means a clearer picture and better sound.  We are a work in progress and these examples are a few ways we are already improving.  

Although we are beginning in-person worship, we will continue live-streaming worship for the foreseeable future.  A strong online presence both nurtures members of Central and serves as an evangelism tool for those who are not part of the Central family.  We are treading new ground, learning from every experience as we go.  I ask your continued patience as we move forward.  I also welcome your feedback and input. 

There are some things everyone can do to help enhance the Sunday morning experience.

• Subscribe to the Central YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/channel/UCGfuOhTwi9Kyt5LuIGmq9Eg/videos. 

If we reach 1000 subscribers, YouTube will give us access to new tools and resources.

• Like the Central Facebook page at www.facebook.com/CUMC.SC.  All our YouTube videos are linked to Facebook.  Facebook likes and comments encourage people to visit the YouTube page.

• Regularly visit the virtual worship page and COVID-19 resource page at www.centralmethodist.net.  You can stream all video content directly from the virtual worship page.

• Whichever platform you use, click the like button on the videos you watch, comment on them, and share them.  This helps other people see them as well.

These are new ways to live into our mission of following Jesus by loving God and loving our neighbors.  Thank you for your faithfulness to God through Central and our shared mission.

Yours in Christ,

Thomas Smith

Tidings from Thomas - June 1, 2020

I have started and stopped writing these words multiple times over the weekend.  I have deleted text and thrown away paper because nothing I seem to write adequately conveys what I am feeling and thinking.  Regardless, I am compelled to offer a pastoral word in response to the events facing our nation and state.

I am horrified and angry at the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.  Holy anger is an appropriate response.  After all, didn’t Jesus get angry and run the moneychangers out of the Temple?  Even though Jesus became angry, he remains the Prince of Peace.  Jesus models for us the importance of speaking truth to power, defending and advocating for the marginalized and vulnerable.  Jesus shows us that we are all children of God and are therefore one another’s brothers and sisters.  This holy anger should drive us to seek justice for all God’s children.

Over the weekend, peaceful protests in Charleston and Columbia descended into chaos.  Similar and worse events unfolded in communities across the nation.  Yet, there were peaceful protests.  It is possible to channel anger into positive action.  Let us resolve to transform anger into action.  Let us forge relationships with one another and work to bridge racial and social divides.  Let us seek reconciliation and find a way forward together as children of God.  My pledge to you is that Central will be a force for peace and reconciliation, thus making real our God-given mission to follow Jesus by loving God and loving our neighbors.

Consider these words of Martin Luther King, Jr. from Strength to Love, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that.  Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that."  Wherever you are, whatever you are doing, whoever you are with, follow Jesus by loving God and loving your neighbors.

Yours in Christ,

Thomas W. Smith

Tidings from Thomas - An Update

I have been thinking about the many stories the Bible gives us about God leading people through uncertain times.  Take the case of Moses, found in Exodus.  God called Moses to lead God’s people to the promised land.  After being saved from slavery in Egypt, the Israelites found themselves on the shore of the Red Sea with the Egyptian army bearing down.  When death seemed certain, God parted the waters and the Israelites walked to safety.  When they were without food in the wilderness, God caused a bread-like substance called manna to appear on the ground each morning.  When they were without water, God caused a spring to arise from a rock.  Despite the many ways God provided for the people, they wandered in the wilderness for 40 years before arriving at the promised land.  I am sure they more than once asked, “How long?”  They had no clear notion of God’s timeline for leading them to their destination.  The Exodus story is full of their frustrations and doubts.  Yet, at each pivotal point, God was faithful and provided what was needed.

We also find ourselves in uncertain times.  None of us like uncertainty.  We want to know what to expect, now more than ever.  By now, I had hoped to be able to announce a date on which we would begin reopening.  With the information we have available, I cannot at this point announce resuming in-person worship and other gatherings.  Regardless, I know with certainty that our ever-faithful God is leading us and providing for us.  We may not yet know the time of arrival, but this long and uncertain journey will end.

Next week will be an important week as we receive guidance from our denominational leaders and public health and government officials.  Reopening plans are under way and will be finalized as soon as we are able to do so.  Until then, please continue to pray for the clergy, staff, and lay leadership of Central as well as our bishop and denominational leaders.  Please continue to monitor your email, Central’s social media, and the COVID-19 resource section of centralmethodist.net for important information.  In the meantime, stay safe, stay well, and may God richly bless you.

Yours in Christ,

Thomas Smith

Tidings from Thomas - COVID-19 Update

Perhaps you have heard the John Lennon quote, “Life is what happens while you are busy making plans.”  Over the last few weeks, we have made lots of plans, altered those plans, revised our alterations, and just plain started over.  That has been the case for Central, but I am sure it has equally been the case for all of us in different ways.  Since writing my Tidings last week, we received word from Bishop Holston that we will refrain from in-person worship and gatherings through May 20th.  We will continue to evaluate as the situation unfolds, knowing this date may be extended.  For now, we will not meet in-person until after May 20th.  Until this date, all church meetings and gatherings will either be rescheduled or held online.

Life keeps happening, but we keep planning.  We are in the process now of preparing plans to resume in-person worship and gatherings.  Our return to in-person church life will by necessity be measured and intentional to ensure the health and safety of our entire church family.  We will communicate those plans as the time draws nearer.  In the meantime, please continue to look out for emails from the church and monitor the worship and COVID-19 resource pages at www.centralmethodist.net.

In this time of uncertainty, the mission and ministry of the church continues.  Our church staff and lay leadership continue to work, mostly remotely, to handle administrative functions and continue all of Central’s ministries.  While we are spending less with decreased in-person activities, we still must pay bills, honor our commitments to fund community ministries, maintain facilities, and pay our dedicated and hard-working staff.  Without in-person worship we have experienced a decrease in giving.  If you are able, please prayerfully consider continuing to give financially.  You can give online at www.centralmethodist.net/give, mail a check to the church office, or drop your offering by the church during regular office hours.

All of us are uncomfortable with uncertainty.  I have heard many versions of the same questions, causing me to think about the word normal.  When will get back to normal?  What will normal be?  Is there no such thing as normal?  I do not know when we will get back to normal, what will be normal, or if normality will even exist.  It is uncomfortable, but we simply cannot know.

I am reminded of the story of Abraham and Sarah from Genesis.  In Genesis 12:1, God calls Abraham to leave his home and family and, “…travel to the land that I will show you.”  Packing his things, Abraham left with his wife Sarah and the members of his household and began a journey, not knowing where he was going.  Imagine if someone said to you, “Let’s take a trip.  I don’t know where we’re going, but we’ll know it when we get there.”  Would you be willing to take such a trip?  Our lives feel like that sometimes.  We do not know where we are going, but we seem to be getting there in a hurry.  This is a time for us to plan, but it is also a time to radically depend on God’s guidance.  Consider Proverbs 3:5-6,

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
    and do not rely on your own insight.
 In all your ways acknowledge him,
    and he will make straight your paths.”

I do not know exactly when we will be back to normal.  I do not what normal will be nor if there will be a universally accepted concept of normality.  Indeed, it may even feel as if we are being propelled toward an uncertain and unknown future.  I do know that God calls us to be God’s people and that God will lead us to a good place.  In the midst of uncertainty, let us find solace and peace in presence of our ever-faithful God.

Yours in Christ,

Thomas W. Smith