Church staff 

           Rev. David Diller’s sermon, “Life Changing Teaching” came from Mark 1:21-28.  God’s affirmation of Jesus at his baptism empowered him throughout his life & ministry.  What others, especially our parents, say to us & about us can shape our lives for good or bad.   It works the other way, too.   We parents can want our children to be proud of us, so we live better than we might have otherwise.  

            We come to worship, because the world can beat us down & discourage us, but here we hear God’s loving affirmation & here we dedicate ourselves to living better on behalf of others.   Jesus came to the synagogue in Capernaum & began telling about God’s love & everyone was astounded at his teaching.   Jesus didn’t put people down, call them sinners, or threaten them with destruction.   There was in the synagogue, however, a man with an “unclean spirit.”  He was outspoken, negative, discouraging, & depressing.   You’ll recognize an unclean spirit because it’s the opposite spirit & outlook from what we find in Jesus.

Jesus silences the unclean spirit, & we all need to learn to keep silent so we can hear Jesus bid those pessimistic, unhelpful, unloving, & critical words depart from our lives.  The man stayed; his negative thoughts departed.   Change may not be instantaneous.  Conversion may be like a wound sown shut too soon.   We continue to fester & rot on the inside.   It takes longer, but we need to heal from the inside out.

Payne Springs UMC hosts a Walk to Emmaus reunion group every Tue at 5 pm.   Meetings are open & everyone is invited to bring a snack supper & join us.   United Methodist Women meet February 9 at 9:30 am.  United Methodist Men meet February 18 at 6:30 pm.  The UMM will host a pancake breakfast for the community on Sat. Feb 28. 

All are welcome to join us for Disciple Bible Study in 2009.  Our next class meets Tuesday, February 10 at 2 pm.  We are studying the letters of Paul.   We study Romans first.         
            Payne Springs UMC is a caring church family learning to follow Jesus. Our purpose is to help every person grow to full maturity in the image of Jesus Christ in the twenty-first century. With open hearts, open minds, and open doors, we combine both traditional & contemporary styles. We invite you to come learn about God and Jesus, the Bible and the Church each week. Sunday school is from 9-10am. At 10am coffee, juice, & snacks are served in Fellowship Hall. Worship is from 10:30-11:30am. Nursery care is provided. Sunday evenings we invite you to an in-depth study of Matthew at 5 pm. If you have questions or need directions, call our church office at (903) 451-2978 or go to www.paynespringsumc.  Or http://www.paynespringsumc.org.

Too often we listen to “the basement people,” those negative voices from our past.  We need to begin to listen to “the balcony people.”  Those who love God, love us, & cheer us on to be more loving & more Christ-like.