Rev. Andrew's Adventures

Community UMC, Quincy “Keep On Going” June 18, 2017 Pastor Andrew Davis Matthew 9: 35-10:23 While it sometimes feels like a broken record and a little easier to be a ‘negative Ned OR Debbie Downer’ right now, it is hard to escape or ignore the news cycle right now.  While I usually like to err on the side of hope and joy, it seems as if violence and bad news has become all too common in our world these days, including violence over differences in thought.  It is a feeling like being a lamb in the midst of the wolves (or in our case, coyotes and mountain lions).  Just this past week, we have seen incidents of violence in Alexandria, VA, in San Francisco, seven sailors dying in a crash on the USS Fitzgerald, as well as terror attacks in London and Manchester England a couple weeks ago, or remembering those who were killed in the Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando a year ago.  There is also more, as other incidences that don't always get reported. Plus, w...

Community UMC, Quincy “Go” June 11, 2017 – Trinity Sunday Pastor Andrew Davis 2 Corinthians 13: 11-13 Matthew 28: 16-18             As I referred to in my most recent article for the newsletter, June feels like it’s a month that's on the GO.  It’s a time to go on vacation, a time of going from one grade to the next like many of our students have done this week; a time of going on from high school like we saw on Friday at Quincy High School’s graduation and seeing Alyssa graduate.  Or, June is also a time of going to Annual Conference which Gloria and I will be doing next week when we travel to Burlingame to represent our church in the work of our regional body of the UMC in California-Nevada.  But the month of June is also a time of transition for many, as a number of my clergy colleagues will be going to other churches (aka ‘The Methodist Shuffle’) and in the case of a number of my friends who just gra...

Community UMC, Quincy “Fan Those Flames” June 4, 2017: Pentecost Sunday Pastor Andrew Davis Acts 2: 1-21 1 Corinthians 12: 3b-13             About 30-ish years ago, I got to go on my first camping trip with my dad, grandpa, and a family friend up to Antelope Lake not too far from here.  Now, this was my first time camping away from home and will just say it only lasted one night for me, as I went back down with our family friend the next day.  But as he and my dad went out to do some scouting, I think for the upcoming deer season, my grandpa and I stayed behind.  I was eager to build a campfire, so my grandpa decided to show me how to build one.  It was only with small twigs and some paper towels to start and while it was a pretty pathetic fire, that moment taught me the basics of building a fire, a skill I’ve developed over the years.  Then again, I’m known to build some pretty hot fires too....