Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ! I’ve a friend who says that contemporary Christians have “sanitized” Advent.  That’s an interesting idea to ponder, particularly when we read the lesson from Luke for this week.  Predictions of difficulty before our knowing peace (or Hope, which is the theme of the week given to the season by the sellers of church liturgical materials, so says Mary Luti, retired seminary professor and pastor).  As we enter the season during which we are meant to be preparing our hearts for the coming of our savior, Jesus Christ, we may wonder at the enormity of the gift and we may tremble at the portents through history.  Both feelings, both realities are true at the same time, and in our coming together for celebration and for mutual support, we honor both gift and giver.  See you in church!

Blessings and peace, Lisa.

p.s. Following worship throughout Advent, we will have delicious treats for coffee hour!

Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ! I would first like to remind you that we will have two opportunities for worship tomorrow, with the second being our annual, ecumenical Thanksgiving service, which will be held in our sanctuary at 4:00 p.m.  We will be joined by members of St. Francis and the BH Baptist churches, and their pastors will be leading the service with me.  

Our scripture text for the morning encourages us not to worry, and you may recall with me the familiar, “What, me worry?” with a picture of Mad Magazine’s Alfred E. Neuman’s face in mind.  It is not always easy to set aside our fears and worries.  We humans seem somehow predisposed to worry in a way that is not helpful to us.  Jesus’ words and our long view of God’s activity in the world may help us move toward a goal of greater peace.  In a moment in time in which our fears are being stoked by those who might ease them, we come together in a season of thanksgiving to pray for peace and to bolster our combined efforts to work for good.  As we sing out our praises and bow our heads to the One who made and loves us, we encourage one another.  

Blessings and peace, Lisa

Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ! Speaking with the director of Bagaduce Music, Bennett Konesni, after the concert on Wednesday, we shared our gratitude for being part of work that involves bringing people together in community.  That has certainly been one of the greatest gifts in ministry for me, and this is certainly a time in which our communal strength is necessary.  We have passed through the most troublesome aspects of the Covid-19 pandemic, thanks to vaccinations, but we also know that some persons are separated from others because of ongoing fears.  We are nervous about the days ahead with some typical and some atypical concerns about changing governmental administration.  So, we look to one another for mutual support, and for new vision.  We look to one another to aid in becoming our best selves for a hurting world.  That is part of the message we receive in our scripture lessons this week.  Let’s join in facing the future unafraid and with the resolve forged by working side by side. 

This Sunday also is what we call Consecration Sunday, when we dedicate our pledges and gifts to the church for the ministry of the year ahead.  If you do not have a pledge card, please know that you may ask for one as you enter worship tomorrow.  We will continue to celebrate our gifts with our time of fellowship after worship thanks to our Stewardship team!

Blessings and peace, Lisa

Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  I have titled this Sunday’s sermon “This Corner of the Realm of God,” as conversations and my own musings this week have often been about “what we can do.”  In Wednesday’s emailing, I wrote that the only thing over which we have control is our own actions and our own attitudes.  Perhaps, however, controlling our attitude is especially difficult in the midst of disappointment.  What falls to us, then, is to pay attention to our words and our actions, making certain that they are in the service of love and justice.  As we gather tomorrow, remembering “the widow’s mite” and a story of faithful generosity from First Kings, we may grow some trust in one another and in our loving God.  Isn’t that a large part of why we come together?

Blessings and peace, Lisa

Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  First, another reminder to set your clocks back tonight!  Secondly, a quick mention of the opportunity to gather in the sanctuary on Monday evening at 5:30, to pray for our nation.  On the eve of the election, we may pray for peace, for safety, comfort, liberty, and justice for all. 

During our worship tomorrow, we will remember all the saints that have come before us in our service of All Saints’ Sunday.  We will lift up the names of those we have loved and lost, and we will celebrate the sacrament of Communion, which reminds us that we are all united in spirit through Jesus Christ, and that we will meet again.  This is the good news and I look forward to worshipping with you. 

Blessings and peace, Lisa

Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  I am looking forward to being with you in worship very much!  We can know that this is a place and a people where we live into our best selves, trusting that we look with a similar vision.  Vision is at the core of our lessons for the weekend, with the story of Blind Bartimaeus and of God’s mercy.  How we understand the possibilities for our lives and how we enhance the possibilities for others’ lives is tied to our understanding of both–of vision and of God’s mercy.  So, in this season in which we too often are asked to look at the ways we see things differently, let’s come together in worship, celebrating the way we are seen as one by the One who made us. 

Blessings and peace, Lisa