St. Paul's United Methodist Church

St. Paul's United Methodist Church St. Paul's UMC is located at 5360 Route 9 in New Gretna, NJ. Known as the "Come As You Are Church", we just celebrated our 167rd anniversary.

Paul's United Methodist Church was built in 1862 on Route 9 in New Gretna. It is affectionately known as the "Come as You Are Church" because it welcomes campers from area campgounds. The church preaches and follows the Word of God and worships Jesus Christ as the Only Begotten Son of God. Join us for Sunday School at 9:45 and Worship at 11:00 am.

06/07/2026

Communion Sunday!

THURSDAY NIGHT DEVOTIONAL -- June 4, 2026 BEHIND THE SCENES(II Kings 5:1-6, 13-14) “The servant girl said to her mistres...
06/05/2026

THURSDAY NIGHT DEVOTIONAL -- June 4, 2026
BEHIND THE SCENES
(II Kings 5:1-6, 13-14)

“The servant girl said to her mistress, ‘If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.’” (II Kings 5:3)

Often the deepest and most important spiritual opportunities are the ones that happen “behind the scenes.” Also, the person who appears to be the main character in a particular situation is not always the one God decides to work through. We see one example of that in the book of Nehemiah. King Artaxerxes, an absolute monarch, was clearly the most powerful man in the Persian Empire (modern-day Iran). He ruled over Babylon and most of the Middle East. Nehemiah, on the other hand, was the king’s cupbearer, a menial servant. But Nehemiah had an important job, one that always kept him near King Artaxerxes. A cupbearer’s job was to take the first sip of any drink that the king took, to make sure it had not been poisoned (see graphic). That way, if the drink was poisoned, the cupbearer would be killed, not the king. But the cupbearer did more than just sip beverages. Because he spent so much time around the king, he would often become an important adviser, someone who had a great deal of influence on the king. Cupbearer was a position of prestige in the palace. Although he was a servant, a cupbearer lived in a venue of wealth and had considerable influence.

But Nehemiah also had another allegiance. He was a Jew who had been taken to Babylon as a captive. He cared deeply about his original homeland. He knew that the walls of Jerusalem had been burned down and were lying in ruins – and he wanted to do something about it. So he took advantage of his position, at great risk to himself. He asked the king to let him go back to Jerusalem with a group of other exiles and rebuild the walls. He could have lost his life for making such an audacious request. But he saw an opportunity to work behind the scenes to accomplish something meaningful.

We find another example in II Kings 5. A young Jewish girl, whose name is never mentioned, said to her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.” Her master was Naaman, the commander of the Aramaean army (in modern-day Syria) – one of the most prominent military leaders of his day. The young girl was a servant for Naaman’s wife. She, too, saw an opportunity to work behind the scenes, and she seized it. Her suggestion led Naaman to seek out the Israelite prophet Elisha. Naaman made the trip to Israel and was healed of his leprosy.

These stories remind us that God can and does use anyone to accomplish His purposes. The names of the people he uses may be lost to history, but they are never lost to God. He will faithfully reward all those who make themselves available to Him. Let’s make ourselves available to God, and watch what He will accomplish through us!

Brian Detrick

REFERENCE: "Behind the Scenes," Pastor Greg Laurie's Daily Devotional, May 7, 2026, https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/behind-the-scenes-4/
Photo credit: Pinterest

05/31/2026

Welcome to our Sunday church service as we celebrate the Triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

05/29/2026

MOVING MOUNTAINS
(Matthew 17:14-21)

Jesus said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there;’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matthew 17:20 – NKJV)

For years, this was one of the sayings of Jesus that I almost wished He hadn’t said, because it’s so hard to understand. At first glance, it seems preposterous. But I have come to realize that the only way to move a mountain is one stone at a time. God gives us the strength to move a mountain of grief, frustration, or responsibility one day at a time – just as He gave the Israelites manna in the desert day by day, not all at once. In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus taught us to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.” We don’t pray for all the food that we need for the year 2026, but we ask God to provide for us day by day.

If young people starting a career or a family looked 25 years into the future, wondering how they would put a baby through college, or how they would reach the top of their professions, they would be overwhelmed. They couldn’t cope with the responsibility. John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, preached about 15 sermons a week for 40 years. That’s more than 30,000 sermons! If someone told a young pastor that he or she had to preach 30,000 sermons before they could retire, they would probably quit! No, any pastor – even John Wesley – only preaches one sermon at a time. You overcome the mountain of responsibility by doing the best work you can, day by day. You overcome the mountain of grief or suffering by pressing on one day at a time.

John Cardinal Newman, an English theologian, scholar, and poet in the 1800s, learned this lesson as a young priest. On a voyage back from Rome, there was no wind, and his ship was off the coast of Sicily, going nowhere. The young priest was frustrated and complained to the captain, telling him to order up some wind. The captain said, “I set my course by the North Star, not by the blazing sun. Tonight I’ll set my course, and if we get some wind, we’ll move.” The captain rebuked the priest, and later, in his cabin, Newman wrote the words to a hymn, beginning “Lead, kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom.” The experience made Newman a better priest and a better man. He wrote later that he had been looking for dazzling sunlight to guide him through life, but God “sent me the kindly light of a star to show me the way one step at a time.”

You don’t move a mountain by putting a nuclear bomb under it and blowing the whole thing up. You move it one stone at a time. A mustard seed is very small, but it’s alive; and something that is alive can grow and split the concrete apart. Let your living faith grow, slowly, day by day; and it will rise up and split that inanimate object. And one day, the mountain will be gone.

Brian Detrick

REFERENCES: "Moving Mountains," a sermon by Rev. Ernest Emurian, former pastor of Cherrydale United Methodist Church, Arlington, Va.
"The One Year Book of Hymns," a daily devotional compiled and edited by Robert K. Brown and Mark R. Norton; item for January 4

05/24/2026

Today we remember those who have given their lives and the give thanks to God for the gift of the Holy Spirit on this day!

THURSDAY NIGHT DEVOTIONAL -- May 21, 2026 TWO “MEMORIAL DAYS”(Luke 24:1-8) “Why do you seek the living among the dead? H...
05/22/2026

THURSDAY NIGHT DEVOTIONAL -- May 21, 2026
TWO “MEMORIAL DAYS”
(Luke 24:1-8)

“Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here; He is risen!” (Luke 24:5-6)

On Monday, we commemorate Memorial Day, a day to mourn the U.S. military personnel who died in the line of duty. Historically, numerous incidents and observances are claimed to be the original “Memorial Day” or “Decoration Day.” The Department of Veterans Affairs credits Mary Ann Williams of the Ladies Memorial Association of Columbus, Georgia, with proposing in March 1866 the idea of an annual holiday to embellish the graves of soldiers throughout the South. Following up on Mrs. Williams’ idea, one morning in April 1866, four women in Columbus, Mississippi, gathered at a cemetery to decorate the graves of Confederate soldiers. As one woman finished decorating the graves of her two sons, she walked toward two other graves in the corner of the cemetery. “What are you doing?”, asked another woman. “Those are the graves of Union soldiers.” “I know,” said the woman as she decorated the two unknown Union graves. “I also know that somewhere in the North, a young mother or a young wife mourns for these two, just as we mourn for ours. We want someone to do this for our loved ones in nameless graves. We must do it for these in our cemetery.” Newspaper accounts reported this story around the country. Two years later, in 1868, General John Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic gave an order designating May 30 as a day to decorate the graves of all who had died in the war.

On another spring morning, about 2,000 years ago, another group of women came very early on a Sunday morning to the tomb where Jesus had been buried. They too were met with a question and a great affirmation. “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here; He is risen!” That Mississippi morning in the 1860s led to our commemoration of Memorial Day. Because of what happened at the tomb in a garden outside Jerusalem in the 1st century, we have a greater “Memorial Day.” The message of the Gospel is that Jesus died to redeem us and to pay the price for our sins, and there is no grave for us to decorate, because He is alive! Jesus told His disciples to remember His death, and by implication, His rising again. The early Christians did this regularly on the first day of the week. In our congregation, on the first Sunday of the month we take the Lord’s Supper to remember His death and resurrection.

For Americans, Memorial Day is a solemn observance when we remember those who sacrificed their lives so that we can live in freedom. As great as that is, greater still is the first Sunday of each month, when we meet for Communion to proclaim the death of Jesus and celebrate His resurrection. He has promised to come again, and when He does, He will decorate those who love His appearing with a crown of righteousness (II Timothy 4:8). Praise the name of Jesus! What a Savior!

Brian Detrick

REFERENCES: "Two 'Memorial' Days," by Charles Pugh III, Warren Christian Apologetics Center, https://warrenapologetics.org/articles-jesus-christ/2024/5/24/two-memorial-days
Wikipedia, "Memorial Day" item
Photo credit: USA Today

05/17/2026

Holy Sunday!

THURSDAY NIGHT DEVOTIONAL -- May 14, 2026 A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE(Acts 14:21-23) “Paul and Barnabas preached the gospel ...
05/15/2026

THURSDAY NIGHT DEVOTIONAL -- May 14, 2026
A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE
(Acts 14:21-23)

“Paul and Barnabas preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. ‘We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,’ they said.” (Acts 14:21-22)

When we get to heaven, we will probably look back on our lives on earth from a different perspective than we have now. I think we will see that some of the things we thought were good were actually bad for us. And some of the things we thought were bad were helpful to us. For example, we think that success and wealth are good things. And they can be, if we use them for the glory of God. But for many people, prosperity becomes an obsession, and it causes them to lose their focus on God. Material possessions can become a burden spiritually, when God wants us not to be overly attached to the things of this world. In the same way, we think of sickness or failure or financial reverses as things that are always bad. And often they are. They cause serious problems in our lives. But they can also cause us to turn to God and rely on Him in ways that we never would have if things were going smoothly. So from God’s perspective, what we think are bad things can be beneficial to us.

Pastor Greg Laurie uses the story of Jesus and Lazarus to illustrate this difference in perspectives. When Jesus got word that Lazarus was sick, He put off going to see him. John 11:5-7 says, “Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when He heard that Lazarus was sick, He stayed where He was two more days, and then said to His disciples, ‘Let us go back to Judea.’” Instead of rushing to help Martha and Mary and Lazarus, like they hoped He would, He waited until Lazarus had died. Why? He didn’t just want to heal Lazarus. He wanted to raise him from the dead, which would bring greater glory to God. Sickness and death were the way to bring about God’s greater glory. The Lord doesn’t look at suffering the way we do. So who has the right perspective? God tells us, in Isaiah 55:8-9 – “‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.’”

Sometimes God will eventually show us the reasons for our suffering. He will help us to see from His perspective, how our suffering led to a greater good. Until that time, we have to remember the words from Acts 14:21-22 – “Paul and Barnabas preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. ‘We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,’ they said.” No matter how many hardships we have to go through, the result – eternal life in the kingdom of God – is more than worth it.

Brian Detrick

REFERENCE: "A Matter of Perspective" -- Greg Laurie's Daily Devotional, May 14, 2026, https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/a-matter-of-perspective/
Photo credit: Mark Jerde, Lift Up Your Eyes!

05/10/2026

Holy Sunday!

THURSDAY NIGHT DEVOTIONAL -- May 7, 2026ARE SOME SINS WORSE THAN OTHERS?(Romans 3:9-12, 21-24) “God demonstrates His own...
05/08/2026

THURSDAY NIGHT DEVOTIONAL -- May 7, 2026
ARE SOME SINS WORSE THAN OTHERS?
(Romans 3:9-12, 21-24)

“God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)

Someone once asked me, “How could God forgive murderers and rapists?” The fact is, ANY sin is enough to keep us out of heaven. One place where the Bible says that is tonight’s Scripture passage from Romans 3, where Paul makes the point that no one is righteous, not even one. All have turned away, and there is no one who does good. “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” It is only by the grace of God that anyone is saved. That raises the question, Are some sins worse than others? On one level, the answer is Yes. The Old Testament Law specifies that there are different penalties for different offenses. Clearly, some sins are worse in terms of the effects they have on people. To the victim, it makes a big difference whether I kill him or just think evil thoughts about him. Jesus said some sins are worse. He said to Pilate, “The one who handed Me over to you is guilty of a greater sin” (John 19:11). He was referring to Judas. So on that level, some sins are worse than others.

But in terms of our eternal destiny, apart from the grace of God, even a so-called minor sin can keep us out of heaven. Asking if one sin is worse than another is like asking if cyanide is worse than arsenic. Here’s an illustration. Suppose you took Carl Lewis – a former track star who won nine Olympic gold medals, including four for the long jump – and me to the edge of the Grand Canyon and asked both of us to try to jump to the other side. Suppose Lewis, at his peak condition, had his best jump ever, surpassing even his best Olympic jump. It wouldn’t be enough. He would still fall to his death in the Grand Canyon. Then it was my turn. Even in my younger years, my pathetic jump would be nowhere near as long as Carl Lewis’s. But the result would be the same. I too would fall to my death. Our best efforts were nowhere near good enough. In terms of eternal salvation, only putting our faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ at the cross will get us to the other side.

People ask about murderers, rapists, and others guilty of capital offenses. Jesus paid their debt at the cross. What’s really unbelievable is not that God would forgive a murderer, but that God would forgive ANYBODY. The cost was the death of God’s own Son. One of the verses I showed the person who asked the question was Romans 5:8 – “God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” We are so familiar with some of the hymns that sometimes we sing them without thinking. One verse of “How Great Thou Art” goes like this: “And when I think that God His Son not sparing, sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in; That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died, to take away my sin.”

Brian Detrick

REFERENCE: "How Great Thou Art," a hymn by Stuart K. Hine
Photo credit: King James Bible

Address

5630 Route 9
New Gretna, NJ
08224

Opening Hours

11am - 5pm

Telephone

+16092969134

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