Methodist Billboard

Billboard ^ | Myself

[VeniVidiVici]

Billboard I saw on the way home advertising for the UMC: If you can wish, you an believe.

[VeniVidiVici]

Saw this billboard while driving home and something really bothered me about it. I gave up on the Methodist church long ago so while the billboard doesn't surprise me, I'm curious as to what type of person they are actually after.

The billboard is generic as to church, but the one I saw ref'd the United Methodist Church.

The link above was mainly to give a little background on the billboard that I found on the net.

Any comments?

[Alex Murphy]

Open hearts. Open minds. Open doors.

Closed Bibles. Empty pews.

[GarySpFc]

I left the UMC many years ago. I have a best friend who is a pastor and theologian in the church. Since I left I have learned there are liberal and conservative UMC churches. One almost has to visit to see the flavor. One UMC church in Kansas, The Church of the Resurrection, is one of the fastest growing in the country. One lady told me, "When you listen to Adam hamilton preaching it is almost as if he has been in the presence of Jesus."

[Alex Murphy]

How highly appropos that the UMC chose the image of a dandelion - a weed, aka a tare (Matthew 13:25-40) - to represent this message.

[VeniVidiVici]

Very good, Alex. I had to look it up but think others will get your insight from the passage:

The Parable of the Weeds

24 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds [3] among the wheat and went away.

26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants [4] of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them.

30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’”

[VeniVidiVici]

Gary, I've never heard of the Church of the Resurrection. Though that's a reflection on me and not the church :)

Have you ever heard of the Church of the Brethren? I have several (old) friends that left the Methodist church to join them.

[monkapotamus]

[monkapotamus]

[VeniVidiVici]

LOL! Very nicely done! I didn't even catch it at first.

[GarySpFc]

The Church of the Resurrection is a UMC church in Leawood, KS. The church has grown from four people in 1990 to over 12,000 adult members with an average weekly worship attendance of over 6,500 in 2005. The church was listed as the most influential mainline church in America in a 2005 survey of American pastors.

[Hillarys nightmare]

I was reared between the Methodist Church and the Church of Christ; but mainly in the Methodist Church. By the time I was 15, I had concluded that believing in God was like believing in Santa Claus: And was some what of an agnostic until I was 22 years old. I latter had a series of spiritual episodes which convinced me that God, unlike Santa Claus was indeed real. I accepted the Lord and have since been a believer.
I came to understand that just because you attend a "Church" means nothing to God, because being a Christian is not about being religious, but more about a relationship. Unfortunately I cannot credit either the UMC or the Church of Christ for my salvation experience, but I can credit a select few of sincere believers within those congregations who impacted me in ways I never realized until I was older. However, all of the Glory belongs to the Lord.

[Between the Lines]

Question: Isn't a wish just a prayer to another god? Perhaps the god of chance?

[Lee N. Field]

How highly appropos that the UMC chose the image of a dandelion - a weed, aka a tare

Dandelions are not weeds. They are pretty little yellow flowers that God gave us in great abundance to enjoy.

You think I spend hours trying fruitlessly to gouge them out of my yard?

:-).

[mware]

I crossed the Tiber when they began with the slogan, "Open Hearts, Open Minds".

[Alex Murphy]

I crossed the Tiber when they began with the slogan, "Open Hearts, Open Minds".

I left my childhood UMC for similar reasons. I swam in the other direction, and became a Calvinist :)

[Gamecock]

Did you say Calvin?

[AxelPaulsenJr]

Any comments?

Yeah, find someone else to bash.

[ichabod1]

So, are you elect?

[VeniVidiVici]

Like who? You?

[AxelPaulsenJr]

Please forgive, I let myself get carried away each time I see one of these Methodist bashing threads. Hope you are happy in the Lord where ever you have found him.