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Those He Wanted

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Mark 3:13-19 February 1, 2026 • Mount Pleasant UMC Do you remember being on the playground in the days before smartphones and electronic games—in the days when you had to use your imagination to fill up that recess time? I remember the kickball games and how it was always the same two people who were captains. Quickly they would begin to pick teams, and the best players always were chosen first. Now, I know it’s hard to believe it by looking at me now, but I was not all that athletic in my younger years. I was rarely the first one picked. Okay, I was never the first one picked. The choosing would go on and on until someone felt pity on me and said, “Okay, I’ll take Dennis.” Now, is it any wonder that I married a mental health counselor? Maybe some of you were closer to the top of the list in such times than I was. Maybe some of you were in the middle, or more like me, near the end. There was and probably still is a definite hierarchy when it comes to such things in school. To b...
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Those He Wanted (Study Guide)

“Those He Wanted” Sermon Study Guide for February 1, 2026 Downloadable Version Scripture: Mark 3:13-19 Chosen…1 Peter 2:9 John 15:16 1. On the Mountain Mark is based on ____________’s preaching Being _______________________ a radical reorganization 2. Being With Jesus a. Make your ______________________ b. _______________________________ c. _______________________________ d. _______________________________ Questions to Discuss or Ponder: What is an image that comes to your mind that represents being “chosen”? When were you chosen? What kind of people were these twelve men who became “apostles”? How are they like or unlike us today? How do you think it would have felt for these Twelve to be chosen by Jesus? Why would they so quickly give up everything to be with him? What is the difference between a house and a home? What makes a house a home? How do you “make your home” with Jesus on a regular basis? Which of the practices would be most helpful for you to learn to be wi...
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Declaring the Glory

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Psalm 19 January 25, 2026 • Mount Pleasant UMC There is a story told of a little girl—let’s call her Julie—who was very excited about the story of Jonah and the big fish that she had learned in Sunday School, so on Monday she went to school and told the story to her whole class. Her teacher immediately told her that such a story was impossible. It could not happen. Jonah could not live inside the belly of a whale. But Julie stood her ground and insisted it did happen. “I know it happened,” she said, “because it’s in the Bible.” The teacher was just as certain that it did not happen, and kept saying so. Julie, through her tears of frustration, said, “Well, when I get to heaven, I’ll ask Jonah, and he will tell me it did happen.” The teacher smiled and said, “Well, what if Jonah’s not in heaven?” Without missing a beat, Julie said, “Well, then you can ask him” (cf. Groeschel, The Benefit of Doubt , pg. 152). Ah, yes, that’s the kind of comeback I wish I had in those times when I’...
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Declaring the Glory (Study Guide)

“Declaring the Glory” Sermon Study Guide for January 25, 2026 Downloadable Version Scripture: Psalm 19 Jonah and the big fish… 1. Science and Faith scientific method the glory of God… reveal knowledge the way the world was made 2. Problems & Challenges a. Denying __________________________ Romans 1:25 b. Unwilling ________________________ Psalm 104:5 Matthew 6:28-30 Questions to Discuss or Ponder: What Biblical stories do you struggle to believe? How do you deal with people who say the stories are all made up? What seeming contradiction between “science” and “faith” has been most challenging to you? What is the purpose of the Bible? What is the purpose of science? Can these two purposes co-exist? What things in nature/creation leave you in awe or in a spirit of worship? Why do some people worship the creation rather than the creator? What “sacred cows” do people hold onto today, even when there is evidence to the contrary? What did John Wesley mean when he...
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