Rec Min Message Mar 2025

Every workday, I have a 45-minute drive to the office. With plenty of time in between destinations, I usually kick off my day with either an informative podcast or a playlist of songs that match my mood. There are days when I prefer to drive in complete silence. Today, I began with an informative podcast, but I found it hard to focus, so I switched to my "liked" songs playlist on Spotify. The first song that came on was "Counting My Blessings" by Seph Schlueter. These lyrics speak to me in so many ways:

“God, I'm still counting my blessings

All that You've done in my life

The more that I look in the details

The more of Your goodness I find

Father on this side of Heaven

I know that I'll run out of time

But I will keep counting my blessings

Knowing I can't count that high”

One thing I’ve consistently emphasize to myself and my children, who are now adults, is to always find the blessings—even during tough times or when things are hard to understand. This past weekend, when both of my children were home (one of whom lives out of state), I couldn’t help but think about how fortunate I am to have my family all together in one place. At the same time, I reminded myself to keep this in mind when I start complaining about the cleaning and cooking that comes with having everyone home.

It’s easier to reflect on difficult moments and recognize the blessings that came from them, but it’s much harder to do that in the midst of the struggle. Yet, that’s when it matters the most. This is when our faith really kicks in, bringing us to our knees in gratitude. We thank God for all He does for us, for what He brings into our lives, what He helps us through, and for the plans He has for us during those times.

Marcia Gibney,
Director of Recreation Ministry
Christ United Church

Rec Min Message Feb 2025

Photo by Christ United Church staff, Denise Dunham (Communications)

The SNOW of 2025!  Have you ever seen anything so beautiful? Did you notice how quiet it was during the snow? It was absolutely one of the most peaceful times I can remember. That quiet, peaceful sound that the snow left behind was a blanket of goodness and a beautiful landscape will be remembered for a very long time. God invites quietness and asks us to practice it. Quietness gives us the connection we need to hear Him. Psalm 46:10: "Be still, and know that I am God"

Not only was it quiet, but it also felt very cleansing - the air felt brisk and clean. Just looking across the landscape of the farm fields (my view), the dirt and the brown, dead grass and leaves were covered in the soft white snow. Snow is often seen a symbol of purity and cleansing, representing God's forgiveness and the change from sin to righteousness. The whiteness of snow shows the removal of impurities, as seen in Isaiah 1:18, which says, "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow."

Snow is representative of many things – all good and even though we do not normally experience that kind of snow, we can still invite quiet into our lives and know that through God’s forgiveness, we are cleansed as white as snow.

What a beautiful gift God blessed us with in the SNOW of 2025. I hope that, during all the days spent at home, you found peace, enjoyed the stunning view, and had moments of quiet time with God.

Marcia Gibney,
Director of Recreation Ministry

Rec Min Message Jan 2025

This is the month many will make resolutions to make a change in their life.  The practice of making resolutions has become somewhat an oxymoron. Resolutions are a temporary change instead of the original intent of a life change.

The present definition of resolutions is “a firm decision to do or not to do something.” Resolution’s earliest 14th century definition drew from its direct Latin source resolutionem, which meant “a process of reducing things into simpler forms.”  Now this definition of resolution would be a better purpose for “making a resolution” than our current one.

Matthew 11:28–30 highlights how Jesus offered a path of simplicity and relief from life's heavy burdens. Today we face pressures such as overpacked schedules, work demands, and constant distractions from social media. It's easy to lose sight of the calm and clarity that Jesus promised and even more, this kind of life has become our normal, making life noisy and complicated.

This year, make a resolution to reduce the more complicated things in life to a simpler form. Lessen your load and give your worries to God. Less noise can bring more focus and with this you can get through the tougher situations with clarity and confidence in your decisions.

Marcia Gibney,
Director of Recreation Ministry

Rec Min Message Dec 2024

God made our bodies to move. He gave us the ability to be flexible with all of the joints we have. We have a system built like a spring so that when we land, our body responds to the impact. He put fluid on our system to keep our joints lubricated and moving smoothly. The muscles were created to empower the structure to perform movement and give strength as and where needed. God put in some acidic mixture to help our bodies break down foods to nourish our body. Our brains are the mastermind that controls all of the systems of the body. Keeping the brain healthy means keeping the body healthy in every way through feeding it proper nutrition, consistent exercise, daily education and information, and human interactions.

Most of us take our body for granted. We don’t see ourselves the way God made us. He created us in His image! Shouldn’t we honor that by taking care of this vessel the way God has taken care of us by creating such an incredible masterpiece?

Start today by making even just one small healthy change. Feed your body good foods to nourish the muscles. Move your body daily with the intention to increase strength and bone density to assist the joints. Feed your mind and spirit daily by staying in God’s word. Don’t wait for “New Year’s Resolution” to commit to living in your body the way God intended.

“I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are your works, and that my soul knows very well.” Psalm 139:14

Marcia Gibney,

Director of Recreation Ministry

Rec Min Message Oct 2024

See that picture of my morning travel coffee and my daily water bottle? (do not zoom in to spot the dust on my desk though 😂)

Every workday morning my husband fixes my travel coffee, and my water bottle - complete with ¼ piece of lemon & lime and a dash of salt. This is just one of the many little things he does for me. Some of the little things I do for him is an automatic back scratch as soon as he gets home and make sure he has his white cheddar popcorn nighttime snack. Without fail when either of us are leaving the room, we ask the other if we can get anything for them while we are up. These are little things that come naturally out of a desire to serve each other.

Jim Burns and Doug Fields from The First Few Years of Marriage wrote:

According to the Oxford English Dictionary Online, routine refers to an action that is “performed as part of a regular procedure rather than for a special reason.” This definition fits marriage perfectly. You don’t choose to love your spouse for a special reason. Instead, you love your spouse for no reason at all. That’s what love is. It doesn’t demand a reason.

You’ve heard the saying, “don’t sweat the small stuff.” Well, you should. It is the little things that feed the big things. Selfishly demanding that needs or wants to be valued above all else or holding out on doing for your spouse because they aren’t doing for you is detrimental.  At some point, those little things matter in a big way. Godly marriages consist of men and women who love, sacrifice, and intentionally seek ways to serve their spouse and build them up. Serve your spouse in small and big ways the way God intended, and this is the key to great love.

Blessings,
Marcia Gibney
Director of Recreation Ministry

Rec Min Message Sept 2024

From our current series, Upside Down Kingdom Devotional from The Sermon on the Mount, the first message is about blessings.  So many times you hear the saying “it was a blessing in disguise”.  What does that actually mean? It typically refers to something that at first appears to be bad or unlucky but actually turned out to be a good thing. For instance, a car that broke down a few feet from a train track probably caused a person to be late for work. Moments later, the railroad gate mechanism failed at the same time a train was approaching. The car breaking down went from a terrible inconvenience to a potential life saver, hence, a “blessing in disguise”.  There are many other sayings about events in life such as, “it just wasn’t meant to be” or “when one door closes, another door opens”.  In all of these sayings, someone had an experience where the end result was something positive or good that was directly related to what at first seemed like was an omen, so they feel like the experience was the blessing. Sometimes they even question it.

When you turn to your faith for answers in the “why’s” or “how’s” of it, you will find that blessings are not always what they are perceived to be. We can see how the car situation would be perceived as a blessing. The real blessing is more of the purpose that can come out of that situation. Maybe that near death experience gave the driver time to reflect and find a purpose to give back to be a blessing to someone else. I’ve always taught my children that when bad things happen, find the blessings. Blessings are not material things; they are actions of faith, and they serve a greater purpose than waiting to be received. Go out and be a blessing!

Blessings,
Marcia Gibney
Director of Recreation Ministry

Rec Min August 2024

Rec Min Message:

PROCRASTINATION – LEAD BY EXAMPLE

Early on I learned that I could procrastinate certain things because I worked well under pressure. Many times, I thought I escaped consequences because I “got it done”. I also learned that consequences aren’t always immediate. When raising my children, I did my best to raise my kids to NOT procrastinate by allowing the consequences such as not having clean uniforms if they didn’t get them to the laundry basket, not have a packed lunch for school the next day if they didn’t do it the night before, and so on. Yet, I still procrastinated some things myself regardless of the consequences.

Recently my oldest (adult) child waited until the night before moving day to pack up a 3-bedroom 2-bath home. She waited until the last minute to not only to pack but also to ask for help. She too works well under pressure. Needless to say, she did not have as much help as she needed but somehow got it done. Immediately she felt like that move was a success since she got it all done. She did not escape consequences. She had to coach 3 volleyball teams through practices and games after working full days and was unable to move without aches & pains. She learned from my example. My younger (adult) child does not procrastinate for any reason – he learned from her example since he was a witness to the consequences.

Proverbs 22:3 says, “A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions. The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.”

I don’t procrastinate nearly as much. The consequences just are too exhausting. Yet here I am on August 13th, getting my August newsletter submission completed. While I did have a major event in my family which was scheduled in advance, I should have “foreseen the danger and taken precaution” and had this done. I can always look to scripture to remind me of what I should have done and what I should be doing. His words lead by example.

Marcia Gibney,

Director of Recreation Ministry

Rec Min February 2024

From our C-Sports Spirit Moments Book:

You Guys Are Different!

Our C-Sports baseball/softball program was still young when Coach Ashley and Coach Russell approached Dan and asked if they could form a girls “All-Star” team after the season to play in the Alabama Sports Festival. The Festival was to be played in Mobile that year and they thought it would be a great opportunity for the girls who wanted to continue with softball after the season. Dan and I agreed to the suggestion with the provision that our C-Sports “In the world but not of the world” standards be maintained even in the highly competitive atmosphere of the tournament. I had coached teams in previous Sports Festivals and realized that, although the opening ceremonies with the Olympic style introductions and parade are exciting, the worldly nature of “win at all costs” was very evident.

Well, our girls enjoyed that wonderful opening ceremony. Parents got great pictures. Then, they went out and played beautifully in the tournament winning a number of games. The exciting part for me happened off the field!

After that weekend we received reports from our coaches and parents that other teams, officials, parents, and coaches were asking members of our group questions such as , “Now where are you guys from?” They noticed and commented that our group was “different” in so many ways. They commented about the way our coaches encouraged the players and interacted with them in positive ways rather than shouting at them. They noticed how our girls even encouraged the girls on the other teams after they had been shouted at by their coaches or made an error. Coach Ashley told me afterward, “We were just doing what we thought was normal.”

And here, it is normal. Can Christian love and fellowship co-exist with a competitive sports environment? I believe it can…and I know it does. Not only were the players, coaches, and parents blessed by the fun and fellowship they experienced at the event, they were fulfilled by the fact that they served as ambassadors from our program…and for the Kingdom, to the world. When God lives in our hearts, it shows!

 Marcia K. Gibney

Director of Recreation Ministry

Rec Min July 2024

Many times I look back through our Rec Min Volumes, written by Steve Ellisor, former Recreation Minister. Mostly I look back to them due to a conversation of those memories, many times because I need the guidance that comes from Steve’s “From the Rec Min” journaling.  I think we can all benefit from these experiences of the early days of the recreation ministry.  Scripture never changes. Life brings change and scripture always keeps us firm to our faith and that is our foundation of moving forward with the changes.

 April 2008 - I was excited Sunday morning when I saw several people in worship that I had not seen before in a service. From my seat in the choir I get a pretty good view. I knew these people from our sports programs! I am constantly motivated by the movement of the Holy Spirit in the practices, games, activities, and prayers that are the fruits of your efforts. The service you have volunteered is bearing fruit as evidenced by the changed lives of the hundreds of people who are affected by your influence, devotion, and care.

When Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman He changed her life. She was so full of the Spirit that she went into town and told many other people. The people became curious and went to Jesus to see for themselves. In John 4:42 we read, “They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”

That may be how God is using you! You pass the word on through the weekly devotions and through your personal actions and testimony. Then, the Holy Spirit leads the people further to hear, see, and feel for themselves. Isn’t it great to be God’s servant? Let’s keep doing His will and being the agents of change in this community!

From the archives of the Rec Min Vol. 2
By Steve Ellisor

Blessings,

Marcia K. Gibney,
Director of Recreation Ministry

Rec Min June 2024

When God speaks to us, do we recognize it?

Last week, one of our recreation participants came through the door - a dear person to me that I have not seen since before the 2020 Covid days.  We hugged and caught up on the last 4 years. She mentioned that her spouse passed away a year ago and she was looking to fill her time helping others as maybe a sitter or caregiver of some kind. As we continued catching up, we vowed to see each other more regularly, and then we went about our day.  Later in the evening, a friend’s name popped into my head. No rhyme or reason for me to be thinking of this person – it was out of the blue. Another person I had not seen or talked to in many years. So I texted her, asking how she and her husband were doing, how are the kids….and as she responded in several texts, everything went completely silent and I felt numb to every sense I had.  She responded that her husband had early onset Alzheimer's (he’s in his 50’s) and he was no longer driving but really felt a need to be doing something. I believe that silence and numbing feeling was God settling me down to hear His words and that is when I connected my two friends together and the lives of three people instantly changed. I get goose bumps every time I think of it.

“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”  Colossians 4:2

Each person feels like they hear God differently than others. I believe God speaks in all types of ways and knows what gift you have for listening whether it be language or senses. Recently, I watched a video of someone describing certain numbers as “crunchy” and others as “soft”. In the same way that she “feels” numbers, we “see” numbers.  God presents himself to each of us the same way – some might feel Him, some might see or hear Him.  With me, I never know how He speaks to me, I just know that He does. Sometimes it’s during and sometimes it’s after – kind of like a “DUH” moment. Sometimes, like my experience above, He silences me.

Marcia K. Gibney

Director of Recreation Ministry