Author Archives: Oak Chapel UMC

Oak Chapel’s ‘Team’ Ready to Take the Field and the World by Storm The Cleveland Browns are the new darlings of the National Football League. Many of the so-called experts are picking them to go to the Super Bowl in 2022. Excitement and anticipation are running high, but the question is, how did they getContinue reading “In A Nutshell | June 4, 2021”

Join Us as We Celebrate the Valor of Veterans and the Triumph of the Trinity What a difference a year makes! Last year’s Memorial Day weekend was anything but a holiday. No picnics, no amusement parks, no ballgames, and very few vacation options. This year, restrictions are being lifted, and life as we knew itContinue reading “In A Nutshell | May 28, 2021”

The Spirit is Present (and Moving) Among Us Prayer can take place anywhere at any time, but I find such moments of reflection especially meaningful in the Sanctuary. As I have mentioned in the past, I try to stop in at least once each morning just to “check in” with the Lord and offer aContinue reading “In A Nutshell | May 21, 2021”

Mask Removal Coming Soon; Let’s Make It Permanent! As we continue to emerge from the dark shadow cast by the coronavirus, people everywhere, including here at Oak Chapel, are asking, “When can we remove our masks?” Good question! I think all of us are ready to put our masks in a deep corner of ourContinue reading “In A Nutshell | May 14, 2021”

Life Can Change Dramatically In an Instant It all happened so fast, and yet it seemed to play out so slowly. On June 5th, 1970, my Dad had just picked me up from a year-end eighth-grade party at a friend’s house. It was one of those awkward boy-girl parties when you tried to dance forContinue reading “In A Nutshell | May 7, 2021”

How Much is Too Much? Is it possible to overstate a fundamental Biblical truth? In other words, is it conceivable that we could focus too much on one particular aspect of our faith? My initial reaction to that question would be, “of course not!” God’s truth is indisputable and indispensable — it never gets oldContinue reading “In A Nutshell | April 30, 2021”

You Can Get There From Here You know the old saying, “You can’t get there from here!” It usually surfaces this time of year when road construction produces a spate of orange barrels and detour signs that prevent us from taking our normal route to work, school, or anywhere else that we might be traveling. I foundContinue reading “In A Nutshell | April 23, 2021”

Run the Race, Talk the Talk, Walk the Walk Track and Field has never been my strong suit. I was always pretty slow afoot and somewhat limited in terms of jumping and throwing. However, last week, as I volunteered at the annual Triway Junior High Invitational Meet, I was reminded, in ametaphoric sense, that weContinue reading “In A Nutshell | April 16, 2021”

In and Out Might Not be Our Best Option Quick lube oil change stations have been with us for some time now, and theyserve as just one more example of our desire to get things done quickly. We can’t seemto take our time with anything these days. The faster the better…but to what end? WhatareContinue reading “In A Nutshell | April 9, 2021”

Filling the Void with Active Engagement Believe it or not, the saddest time of the week for me is just after our worshipservice ends on Sunday morning and everyone has gone home. The church is emptyand dark, and the idea that it will be largely vacant for another seven days is verydisheartening.At the same time,Continue reading “In A Nutshell | April 2, 2021”