By Jessica Connor ~ I believe when God calls you to do a job, you’re bound to do it—and do it right.

By Jessica Connor ~ I pass him every day coming home from work. There, on the Columbia bus bench, right across from the high school, he sits and he waves.

By Bishop Holston. Most days I seem to get bogged down in the busyness and irritations of life. Often I am reminded of the quote that says, "Make sure that we never get too busy with life that we don't have time to live." Yet it is so easy to waste time fretting over things that are not important.

By Jessica Connor. I'm a bookworm. I started reading when I was a precocious 2-year-old, and today I count books among my most prized possessions. When I'm not reading, I'm writing. Books take me to other places, other ages and sometimes other planets. They were my escape as a child, my ticket to a bright and limitless future.

By Bishop Jonathan Holston. Musicians say the hardest part of practicing is taking the instrument out of the case. To begin is to be half done! That is what we need to do with our God-sized dreams.

By Jessica Connor. As the mother of two young children, ages 6 and 8, I try hard to make sure they are steeped in strong faith. I bring them to church, pray with them a few times a day, say blessings at meals, the usual. When hard times arise, such as when my son had a brief bout with a bully on the bus, they become good opportunities to show how God is always with us, walking beside us even when we can't see him.

By Bishop Jonathan Holston. Karlton was young, bright, strong and smart. He was also away from home for the first time facing opportunities he had worked hard to achieve. He was acutely aware he would need to be at his very best from day one.

By the Rev. Keith D. Ray II. My beloved United Methodist Church is in the news quite a lot these days. CNN, MSBNC, FOX News, USA Today. We are everywhere. Sadly, it's not because of our relief efforts in the Philippines, or the growth of our church amongst Millennials. We are in the news because of our church trials.

By Bishop Jonathan Holston. It's that time of year again. That special time when we make resolutions to consider in the new year.