Devotionals Detail

Reading: Haggai 1-2

Our 30th anniversary celebration this past Sunday was absolutely glorious! From the Choir, Thrive Band and Orchestra stunning us with music, to florals and candles from our Altar Guild adorning the altar, to our speakers sharing of their memories and hopes, to the decorations in the Fellowship Hall provided by our REAL women’s group, to the servers of our delicious lunch, to our Historian Team who gathered artifacts to help us walk down memory lane, to those church leaders who professed the power of 25 years of ministries past – it was an all encompassing celebration of the power of God’s ministry here at Flower Mound UMC. Thank you, everyone!

Last week, the service began with 30 members of all different ages and stages of faith bringing forth candles to place on the altar, representing the light of Christ shining over these 30 years of ministry. We ended with a Call and Response from our Confirmation class 2026 to lead us into the future and run the race before us for the next 30 years!

So now – are we ready?

That is the choice the prophet Haggai is asking us in this very short (2-chapter) book of the Old Testament. As the Israelite exiles are returning to Jerusalem to rebuild their lives, their priority is on themselves and their homes. Many of them say it is not time to focus on the Temple. They say there is not enough money and not enough time. Their focus right now is themselves, building their own homes up and their own prosperity. They are choosing to focus on that instead of rebuilding the Temple. Haggai knows the people have a choice –and their choices matter. God is, in fact, depending upon their choices.

Haggai’s very short book, spanning only a few months in the life of the Israelites draws our attention to our choices of how we spend our time and energy today. It reminds us that our relationship with God is mutually connected. Just as we depend on God, God depends on us. Without our choices to prioritize God, the house of God suffers.

Without our choices to prioritize God, we don’t grow in our faith, we don’t strengthen our Biblical knowledge, we don’t expand our theological understanding, we don’t multiply our Christian friendships, we don’t grow the church by inviting others, we don’t share the good news through service to those in need. It all comes down to choices of how we spend our time and energy.

As we begin the new rhythms and routines of the school year, this is the time to ask yourself: what will your choices be? How will you form your schedules and routines to

reflect your choices to learn and love and serve in Christian faith? Is your choice just for your own house, or are you making a choice for God’s house? Because the next 30 years of Flower Mound UMC depend on that choice.

I hope, pray, and believe you will make the choice that leads this church into the next 30 years of Christ’s light shining brightly.

PS – In case you noticed our reading today – it is the whole book of Haggai – both chapters! If you would like to learn more about Haggai, check out this video from The Bible Project: Book of Haggai Summary | Watch an Overview Video