Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  Anne Lamott is an author whose books I recommend to you for their refreshing way of opening up theological ideas.  On the third Sunday of Advent, on which we light the candle of joy, I would offer you a quotable quotation from her: “Joy is the best makeup.”  As such, it is something we might think of “putting on,” because there are times that simply do not feel joyfull.  Still, we are in a season that apparently asks of us to put on a joyful face in public, even while we all acknowledge that there are devastating circumstances around our world.  It was into that mood, into painful circumstances that Isaiah spoke his prophecies (varied periods that they were).  Imagine how the good news that he shares in the 61st chapter would resonate with the displaced persons today.  Imagine how the later faithful might also have struggled when first hearing Paul’s admonition to “Rejoice always!”  It is for them and for us as we struggle to put on joy that John the Baptist shared good news.  There is a light coming into the darkness.  Let’s celebrate tomorrow and help nurture each other’s hope and joy.

Following worship, we will meet to discuss whether our congregation may sign as coalition partners in the effort to get four gun safety measures approved by the Maine legislature.  All are welcome to stay in order to learn more about plans of the Maine Coalition for Gun Safety and ways you may choose to be involved.

Blessings and peace, Lisa

Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  First, our reminders:  Our quarterly meeting follows worship tomorrow, as does fellowship to include our favorite appetizers.  What will I bring . . . ?
Heading to the church now for fellowship over breakfast, the “Advent Words” of the week are on my mind.  Perhaps not surprisingly, one of the words on which we will focus tomorrow is Advent, itself.  The other word, oddly loaded for many people, is salvation, as we consider the promise of the season.  We may see little glimpses of the grace we seek, even over coffee together.  In a time that is fraught with fears and violence, you are invited to celebrate in the hope of God’s reign breaking in, day by day.

Blessings and deep peace to you, Lisa

Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  First, two reminders:  We will have a potluck Thanksgiving luncheon following worship tomorrow, with turkey generously prepared by Lisa Groo.  Please bring your favorite side dishes as we continue the holiday season on this first Sunday of Advent!  Please also mark your calendars for December 10th, when we will have our Quarterly Meeting following worship. 

There are ways in which the church (liturgical/worship) calendar leaps out at us in the secular world, even while sometimes more subtle things happen during worship.  Advent this year is not one of those subtle shifts, with the movement from Matthew’s Gospel to the Gospel of Mark coming as a bit of a jolt.  In Mark, we meet apocalyptic predictions and harsh words of judgment.  Still, we know this quiet season to be one in which we look for hope, and hope there is.  In days that grow shorter, afternoons feeling like evening, we long for light and are promised that light.  We begin moving toward Christmas in that spirit of hope.  Knowing that the vocabulary of our faith is new to some people and, at best, unfamiliar to some of us, during Advent I will preach on some of the terms that may give us pause.  From where does our light come?  

Blessings and deep peace to you, Lisa

Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  After a filling and fulfilling Thanskgiving holiday, we can look to tomorrow as a kind of New Years’ Eve in the Christian calendar.  As such, we read texts assigned for what is variously called The Reign of Christ Sunday or Christ the King Sunday.  I prefer the former, because of considering the entire world as God’s realm, and because of considering God’s “rulership” through Jesus to be so counter to our usual earthly notions of kingship. Still, elements of the texts from Ezekiel and Matthew do remind us that our sovereign requires of us behavior that is just and merciful.  It is in regard to this that we hear familiar mention of sheep and goats–mention that may make us uncomfortable.  That is the paradox of Jesus’ claim on our lives.  We are asked to be uncomfortable if the way we live runs counter to the ways of justice and mercy.  Let us move together from thanks giving to a deep desire for God’s reign on earth as we move toward the season of Advent, when we make ourselves ready for Jesus’ coming into the world in peace. 

A reminder, too:  our children will gather during worship to create Advent wreathes for their homes, leaving after the Children’s Message.  Also, please mark your calendars for December 10th, when we will have our Quarterly Meeting following worship, accompanied by cookies and cocoa.

Blessings and deep peace to you, Lisa

“Gratitude” It’s an easy emotion to feel when we are the recipients of a kindness or a present or words of approbation. It doesn’t come so easily when we are grieving or have been wounded by a loved one’s anger or treated unjustly by a someone in authority or are overwhelmed with more responsibilities than we have the time or energy to manage. We have been given gifts, some of which we can immediately recognize as gifts, and some of which may seem more like curses than gifts. All of these, however, are worthy of our gratitude. At Sunday worship we will hear Jesus’ parable of the three servants given “talents” by their master and what they do with those talents. We can learn through this parable how God would have us care for the gifts/talents we have been given.

Blessings and Peace, Hunt

Grace to you and peace, from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  “Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”  You may be familiar with this quotation from the 5th chapter of the prophet Amos.  It is a rallying point for social action groups and has been for some time.  Hearing it in the context of the longer pericope (section of text) that makes up our Hebrew Bible lesson for tomorrow might draw a less comfortable or encouraging reaction, however.  What exactly are we called to say and do when the world around us appears less than just or righteous?  Amos in his time and Paul in his offer us different kinds of encouragement or fire under us, even when it isn’t easy to hear.  I look forward to pondering this with you during our worship this week.

Blessings and peace, Lisa