A frustrated young man went to see the wise man in his village. “I don’t know what to do with my life. How do I find my purpose?” the young man asked.

“Follow me,” said the old man.

Silently, they trudged together to a far away river where they found dozens of prospectors panning for gold.

“There are three types of prospectors here,” the sage said.

“What do you mean?” the young man inquired.

“There are those who strike gold straight away. Excited, they take their plunder, cash it in and live comfortably for the rest of their lives. Then there are those who pan for years. They know that there is gold here and they have seen others strike it rich, so they persist until they too find the gold that they’ve been searching for.”

“What about the third type?” asked the young man.

“They are the individuals who get frustrated that they haven’t found what they are looking for, so after a day, a week or a year or more, they give up, walk away and never find gold.”

Slightly confused, the young man asked, “What has this got to do with finding my purpose?”

“Aah yes, the age-old question.” the old man smiled and looked his companion in the eye. “There are those in life who look for their purpose and seem to find it almost immediately. From a young age they have a clear sense of purpose and pursue their dreams with energy and enthusiasm. Some others have to look a bit harder, perhaps for many years, but if they persist and keep looking, they will find something to live for. Finally, there are those who want to know their purpose, but they become frustrated with the search and give up too soon, returning to a life of meaningless wandering.”

“Can everyone find their purpose?”

“Is there gold in the river?” the wise man responded.

“So, how do I find my own purpose?”

“Keep looking.”

“But what if I want to find it quicker?”

“Son, there are no guarantees that you will be able to find it quickly, the only guarantee is that if you give up and stop looking for it, you’ll never find it.” The young man looked despondent, feeling that he had wasted his time with the old man.

He felt a reassuring hand on his shoulder, “I can sense your frustration, but let me assure you, if you can find your true calling in life, you will live with passion, make the world a better place, be richer than you could imagine and feel as though the very face of God Himself is smiling upon you. That may happen next week, next year or in the years ahead, but the search will be worth it and your life will never be the same again. So for now, your purpose is to find your purpose.”

“Thanks.”

“Oh, and there’s one other thing that I forgot to mention.”

“What’s that?”

“Just as those men and women need to get down to the river with a pan to find their gold, so we need to remain active to find our purposes, we don’t find it sitting around at home doing nothing.”

It was getting late, so the two men turned for home and began their long walk back to the village.

As they walked, the young man was deep in thought about what he had just learned, and the wise man smiled to himself, knowing that conversations like this were an important part of living his own purpose.

Now, over to you.

Do you know your purpose for life?

Are you still looking?

Or have you given up?

Being a good steward is about finding our purpose and living into it.

8:30 Drive-In Worship: Please remain in your cars for this interactive worship experience 

10:00 On-Line Worship: Please join us for this traditional and musical worship service

Every Wednesday, Pastor Greg’s Bible Study takes place. The study will be on the Book of Acts.

Read Acts 12

Join Pastor Kelly for the Educational Opportunities FootSteps of Paul Cruise, October 3-14th 2021 (Tour: GC21, Code C, ID 55108). You will arrive in Venice from Albuquerque on October 3rd, and then on to Katakolon, Santorini, Ephesus, Mykonos, Athens, and Corinth. A pre-tour to Florence and a post-tour to Venice is also available. Additional information and registration information can be found on centraltolife.org or www.EO.travel. http://www.eo.travelwithus.com/files/uploads/GC21_55108_Brooks_005_FINAL.pdf

Video Link

Contact Pastor Kelly with questions or scholarship information kellyb@centraltolife.org. 

to submit a prayer, or view those on the Prayer List.

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Leader: The Lord is king; let the peoples tremble!

People: God sits on the throne; let the earth quake!

Leader: The Lord is great in Zion; God is exalted above the people.

People: Let them praise God’s great and awesome name.

Leader: God is a lover of justice and has established equity.

People: God executes justice and righteousness among God’s people.

Leader: Extol the Lord our God; worship at God’s footstool.

People: Let us praise and worship our God!

Opening Hymn      Great is Thy Faithfulness

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father,

There is no shadow of turning with Thee;

Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not

As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.

Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!

Morning by morning new mercies I see;

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided—

Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Scripture Reading   Matthew 15: 15-22

Solo      O God Beyond All Praising  Richard Proulx

Closing Hymn    Take My Life and Let it Be

1. Take my life, and let it be

consecrated, Lord, to thee.

Take my moments and my days;

let them flow in ceaseless praise.

Take my hands, and let them move

at the impulse of thy love.

Take my feet, and let them be

swift and beautiful for thee.

3. Take my will, and make it thine;

it shall be no longer mine.

Take my heart, it is thine own;

it shall be thy royal throne.

Take my love, my Lord, I pour

at thy feet its treasure-store.

Take myself, and I will be

ever, only, all for thee.

For at least the first few Sundays of our return to worship in our Sanctuary, those who stream or attend the service in person will notice one element missing: sung or spoken community responses. As Music Director, I would like to take this opportunity to both acknowledge the importance of congregational participation in worship and to explain why we will be starting off cautiously as we reenter sacred space.

There has been a great deal written and speculated about the possible role of aerosols in the spread of COVID-19. Unlike respiratory droplets which are generally accepted to fall to the ground within a short space, aerosols are smaller particles that can spread over larger distances and remain suspended in the air for longer periods. We produce these aerosols just by breathing, but we produce more through speaking or singing. The louder the collective noise, the more aerosols are produced, and these can tend to build up over time in indoor spaces. A single singer or speaker does not seem to pose a danger to others provided that they are positioned an adequate distance away, but there are lingering concerns about how much aerosol can be produced by multiple people singing or speaking at once. The science in this heretofore unexamined area is continuously evolving, and a number of first-of-their-kind studies are currently being done. Churches and Music Directors have been monitoring the progress of these studies for months and have chosen to respond in various ways. Many churches who have returned or plan to return to in-person worship are not allowing singing or spoken responses for the time being. Others are allowing a minimal amount of singing in masks. The good news is, these ongoing studies are very favorable to the practice of singing in masks and spaced a minimum of 6 feet apart to significantly reduce aerosol spread. Volume, not necessarily specific activity (singing vs. speaking) is emerging as the biggest factor in aerosol production. Suggestions for singing in groups also include keeping periods of singing down to 30 minutes, with outside being the safest venue and a large, well ventilated inside space with high ceilings as the next best. All of this information indicates that we should be able to quickly progress to singing short closing hymns at the end of our services. However, we all feel it best to err on the side of caution at the outset and introduce any congregational singing or responses after we have had a few weeks to assess our in-person worship practices, as well as to monitor the spread of the virus in our area.

So, for at least the first few weeks, expect the music in our services to be delivered by keyboard instruments, soloists, and video. Please be patient with us as we navigate this next chapter in our worship lives with everyone’s safety in mind.

Leader: The Lord is king; let the peoples tremble!

People: God sits on the throne; let the earth quake!

Leader: The Lord is great in Zion; God is exalted above the people.

People: Let them praise God’s great and awesome name.

Leader: God is a lover of justice and has established equity.

People: God executes justice and righteousness among God’s people.

Leader: Extol the Lord our God; worship at God’s footstool.

People: Let us praise and worship our God!

Opening Hymn     O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing (vs 1-4)    57 UMH

Doxology    “Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow”  94 UMH

Anthem     “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross”  arr. Cutter

Sermon    “God’s Imprint on Our Lives”

Hymn to Engage the World    Take My Life and Let it Be (vs 1,3)    UMH 399

Musical Benediction      “God’s Eye Be Within Me”   John Bell