Rural Church
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July 9th, 2025 – On Food Insecurity in Rural Places
This post was originally published on my Facebook on July 9th, 2025 Now, a word on cuts in food assistance. One thing we need to be reminded of when we talk about food insecurity in rural spaces is that rural does not equal agrarian. The assumption that all rural people can or know how to Continue reading
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July 8th, 2025 – Healthcare and Hope
This was originally posted on my Facebook on July 8th, 2025 Alright, now that we’ve acknowledged the realities of passing of the Trump administration’s Big Beautiful Bill, let’s talk about our role in what comes next with the realities at play. While the “Big Beautiful Bill” doesn’t outright target rural communities, we know that rural Continue reading
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An accidental parable?
When we moved into our house in 2019, this shrub had been cut pretty far back and was unrecognizable. It didn’t have the blooms or the dried out flower/pods that follow. We considered digging it up. Then I said no, let’s give it year. Well, it came back. And each year, with some pruning, and Continue reading
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Bread Ties and Homemade Banners
In my time off this weekend, we went to the Mint Museum in Charlotte. It was there I came across a piece of art made from bread ties. It reminded me of my love for pop art, found object, and even some of Dada, because it uses the things we see each day and lifts Continue reading
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Missions in the Rural Church
One rural reality that seems to be overlooked is mission and service. Often, denominational bodies continue to push mission as this singular thing a church does. For a while it was going on a mission trip, and then “big event” missions, and then it is regular service as a group in the community. However, if Continue reading
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Hospitals and the Rural Community
(An older version of this post first appeared on my Facebook – facebook.com/j.lemastersmith on March 2, 2021) The combination of my current reading, my current experiences, and the articles talking about the pandemic impact on rural healthcare is weighing on me today. Rural healthcare systems are already strained and many communities have lost hospitals and Continue reading
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Persistent Leaves
As someone who loves to hike, no matter the season, the American Beech tree is a welcome site among the brown and grey winter woods. The American Beech trees leaves die like all deciduous trees, but they do not drop their leaves, instead the leaves turn a off-white paper color and stay usually until new Continue reading
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Disaffiliation Rumors, Myths, and Opportunities # 6 – Appointments, Communications, and Rural/Small Churches
This post originally appeared on my Facebook page, facebook.com/j.lemastersmith, on January 30th, 2023 Another rumor circulating is that The UMC does not care about the small and rural church (you could also include immigrant, ethnic, and inner-city churches, but I also know less about those systems). Some responses: “We ask for a licensed local and Continue reading
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Rural Ash Wednesday and Lent
I’m a fan of Ash Wednesday and Lent, I truly am. But, rural folks don’t need a reminder that we are going die, and the Lenten disciplines, including fasts, photo-a-day challenges, special studies, extra readings, often feel like adding to the noise. Instead, we need an Ash Wednesday and that reminds us that some seasons Continue reading
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More than One Way to Get There
One thing we can do to help alleviate church “growth” stress in rural churches is to remind them that there’s more than one way to get home from here. I regularly take different routes to get to my destinations. I’ve been at my churches just over six months and I’ve learned a dozen different ways Continue reading
Jonathan LeMaster-Smith 