Mount Tabor Methodist Church

10/05/2026

What if we’ve checked all the boxes…but missed Jesus?

Pastor Cheri’s sermon this Sunday was titled “Don’t Just Check a Box.” Her scripture was Matthew 7:21–23, where Jesus warns us that simply saying, “Lord, Lord,” or doing religious things is not the same as truly knowing and following Him.

Sometimes our Christian life can become a checklist.

Go to church — check.
Read the Bible — check.
Sing the hymns — check.
Put an offering in the plate — check.
Take Communion — check.

We’ve checked all the boxes, so now we go on with our lives and do whatever we want.

But following Jesus was never meant to be a checklist.

We can sit in church every Sunday and still miss Jesus. We can know the Bible stories, know the hymns, say the prayers, and do all the “right” things—and still only know about Jesus instead of truly knowing Jesus.

There is a difference.

Following Jesus means loving Him, trusting Him, listening to Him, and allowing Him to change the way we live. It is a relationship that goes with us when we leave the church doors—not something we check off for the week.

The boxes themselves aren’t bad. Going to church, reading our Bible, praying, giving, and taking Communion are all important parts of our faith. But they should flow from our relationship with Jesus, not take the place of it.

So maybe the question for us this week isn’t, “Have I checked all the boxes?”

Maybe it is:

“Do I really know Jesus—and does the way I live show that He knows me?”

Don’t just check the box. Choose Jesus. Follow Jesus. Know Jesus.

10/05/2026

Scrolling Through the Bible
By: Pastor Cheri Yates

A few months ago, we began something simple together: One Minute. One Prayer. One Church Family. Every day at 1:00, we were challenged to stop for just one minute and pray. I hope you are still doing it! There is something powerful about knowing that wherever we are, our church family can pause and pray together.
This past Sunday I shared a challenge with our youth that made me think about all of us. Think about how many times a day we pick up our phones and scroll. We scroll through Facebook. We scroll through pictures. We scroll through news, videos, messages, and posts. Sometimes we pick up our phones without even realizing we are doing it! But what if we scrolled through the Bible as much as we scroll through our phones?
Psalm 119:105 says, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”
So I challenged our youth to begin a new habit, and I want to challenge our whole church family too: Start your day with one Bible verse. End your day with one Bible verse.
Before you check Facebook, check God’s Word. Before you go to sleep after a day of scrolling, let God have the final word of your day. It does not have to be a whole chapter. It does not have to take thirty minutes. One verse. Read it. Think about it. Carry it with you. And do not forget our 1:00 prayer!
One verse in the morning. One prayer at 1:00. One verse before bed.
Small habits can make a big difference when they keep turning our hearts toward God. One Minute. One Prayer. One Church Family. One Verse at a Time.

10/04/2026

Sunday

09/29/2026

09/29/2026

PICK UP A CORNER
This past Sunday, Pastor Cheri’s message was based on Mark 2:1–12, the story of the paralyzed man whose friends were determined to get him to Jesus.
The house where Jesus was teaching was so crowded that they couldn’t get their friend through the door. But they didn’t give up. They carried him to the roof, made an opening, and lowered him down right in front of Jesus. They believed getting their friend to Jesus was too important to give up.
During the children’s message, Pastor Cheri had the children each pick up a corner of a blanket to help carry their stuffed animal friend. It was a simple reminder that we can all pick up a corner for someone else.
Maybe picking up a corner means calling someone you haven’t seen in a while. Maybe it means inviting someone to church, picking them up, meeting them at the door, asking them to sit with you, or simply praying for them.
When Jesus saw the faith of this man and his friends, He changed that man’s life.
Whose life might we help change? Who needs us to pick up a corner?
We are a church family, and when someone isn’t here, we should notice. We should reach out and let them know they are missed and that we care.
As we came to the altar Sunday, each of us took an invitation to give to someone—a friend, coworker, neighbor, or family member. Maybe we can add a little note that simply says, “We miss you. Come sit with me.”
We are all called to go and tell. Sometimes that begins with something very simple:
Pick up a corner. Help someone get to Jesus. ❤️

09/25/2026

Do Not Let the Rain Steal Your Joy
By: Pastor Cheri Yates

Our granddaughter Molly had her mom FaceTime me from Disney World this week. When the call came through, there stood Molly in her Disney princess outfit—soaking wet!
It was raining, and people all around her were hurrying along in raincoats, carrying umbrellas, and doing everything they could to stay dry and get out of the rain.
But not Molly.
She was laughing, running, jumping, and having the best time. Her princess dress was wet. Her hair was wet. Everything was wet—but nothing was going to steal her joy.
As I watched her, I thought, There is a lesson in this for all of us.
Life does not always give us sunshine. Sometimes the rain comes in the form of disappointment, worry, hurt feelings, difficult people, unexpected changes, or words someone says that we just cannot seem to forget. Before we know it, we are so focused on the rain that we forget about the blessings still surrounding us.
We let circumstances steal our joy.
Jesus never promised us a life without rainy days. In fact, He told us, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
Our joy does not have to depend on everything going our way. It comes from knowing that even when the rain is falling, God is still good. God is still with us. And we are still blessed.
Maybe we need to learn something from a little girl in a soaking-wet princess dress.
We cannot always stop the rain. We cannot control what other people say or do. We cannot prevent every disappointment that comes our way.
But we can decide that the rain will not steal our joy.
So the next time life does not go according to plan, remember Molly at Disney World. Instead of spending all your time trying to escape the rain, maybe it is time to trust God, thank Him for the blessings that are still there—and splash through a few puddles.
“This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” — Psalm 118:24