Give thanks for God’s grace,
bishop says

Martinez preaches
to overflow crowd
at Thanksgiving event

God has given us his greatest gift, Bishop Joel N. Martinez told Thanksgiving worshipers in San Angelo Nov. 19. That gift is Jesus Christ.
“When we accept Christ as savior and lord, we are called into discipleship,” Martinez said during the 6th annual Bishop’s Thanksgiving Gathering. “To live as a disciple means to serve God by loving and serving our neighbor all the time—like today—with all we have.”
Martinez preached to an overflow crowd of more than 600 at First UMC, San Angelo. The congregation included representatives from the city police and fire departments and service members from nearby Goodfel-low Air Force Base.
Martinez told worshipers that people who live out their thankful response to God’s gift will discover at least three things:
> Every day—not just at Thanksgiving—is a time to praise God.
> Every gift we share will bless us at least as much as the one who receives it.
> Everyone has something to share.
Christians should give thanks in good times and bad, Martinez said.
“Those people from the Mayflower who shared lunch with the Indians so long ago had a mighty tough winter,” he noted. “Yet they bowed their heads and praised the living God.”
Jesus praised a widow who offered her last pennies to God not for the size of her gift but for the generosity of her heart, Martinez said.
Giving opens a channel for Christ to work in the world, Martinez said.
United Methodists in Southwest Texas learned firsthand about the blessings received from giving after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, Martinez said.
“Katrina displaced more people than any other event in our nation’s history,” Martinez said. “Hundreds of thousands knocked on our doors. Undoubtedly some came to San Angelo. Others went to Dallas, Houston and San Antonio.
“Your response was like a human tide of compassion. Churches became shelters. Fellowship halls became pantries. Pastors’ offices became grief counseling centers. Volunteers responded with food, toys, clothing, prayer and pecan pies—my favorite. The offering plates were full and full again.”
As a result, Christians felt the joy of generous hearts and willing hands as they helped people in need in the name of Christ, Martinez said.
The Bishop’s Thanksgiving Gatherings began in 2001, Martinez said, as another way to help people respond to God’s grace following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11.
“What shines through the darkness of those awful 9/11 moments is the amazing capacity of individuals—unknown to us but known to God—to risk and give their lives for others,” he said. “Those attacks did not diminish but enlarged our love of country, of neighbor, of those who suffer.”
When others suffer, we all have something to give, the bishop said.
“When given in love, every gift can release transforming grace,” Martinez said.
He told of being homesick at college in El Paso four decades ago—625 miles from his native Seguin.
“Then I received a letter,” he said. “A penciled note said: ‘Dear Joel, I have been praying for you. I know God will bless you. Your sister in Christ, Mrs. Molina.’”
She was a widow in Seguin living on her old-age pension, Martinez said. Nevertheless, she enclosed $1.
“That $1 not only changed my day,” he said. “It blessed my life.”
The size of the gift isn’t important, he emphasized. God can do wonders with little gifts—such as feed 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and two fish.
Gini Christian, a member of Veribest UMC, called the Thanksgiving Gathering “absolutely beautiful.”
“The music was wonderful, and the bishop’s sermon was so inspiring,” she said. “It will make Thanksgiving more meaningful this year.”
The service included a 100-voice choir made up of singers from various San Angelo District congregations; a district youth choir; an ensemble from Wesley UMC, San Angelo; a brass sextet; and a children’s hand bell group.