Grace to you, and peace from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  Growing up in the Reformed Church of America, an offshoot of the Dutch Reformed Church, our worship bulletins on Sundays were organized around The Word, which is to say that scripture lessons from the Bible were at the center of worship, in typically Reformed Protestant tradition.  So, the three sections of the bulletin were The Approach to the Word,The Word of God, and The Response to the Word.  I was reminded of this as I studied the lectionary texts for this weekend.  James’ letter is one to which I have always looked for sound reason and loving suggestions of how one should be in response to one’s faith in a loving God.  Jesus’s interactions with his followers and the Pharisees in our Gospel lesson from Mark similarly direct us, in no uncertain terms, not to simply talk about what we believe, but to do what Jesus would have us do.

Jesus was frustrated with the behavior of those who claimed to speak with authority about religion.  I wonder if you have similar frustrations.  Our response to that frustration mustn’t sound or look like more talking about religion, but more like living out our faith in God, who calls us to love–indiscriminately.  James tells us what this looks like, and Jesus tells us what it doesn’t look like.  So, how do we respond?  With our annual meeting coming up in three weeks, we are looking at what may be called the more tedious aspects of being church together: we are going to talk about governance structure.  Rather than regard this as tedious and superficial, I invite you this week to consider how our being church is the most explicit response to the Word there is.  So, we will talk tomorrow about the church’s ministries and what role we each, individually, would like to play in them.  In so doing, we will live to be doers of the Word of God.

Blessings and peace, Lisa.

P.S.  Other things to note this weekend:  Please do stop by Hannaford today in support of our church’s drive to collect canned goods for the Tree of Life!  From 10:00-2:00 you may exchange cans for cookies there, but you also may bring them to church tomorrow for collection!  You also cannot miss the remains of the 158-year-old Elm tree that is now lying on the ground at the edge of the parking lot.  We have the opportunity to make use of 2.75″ cross sections of the trunk that are approximately 36″ in diameter.  Please let me know if you are interested in one, as I have been speaking with Phil Norris (BH tree warden) about how we will obtain them as the wood is processed. 

Grace to you, and peace from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ! What do we do when our lives feel tied to the issues of the day, including politics that can produce anxiety even when discussions of them are hopeful and exciting?  What do we do when our endeavors feel too often focused on temporary things, when we know in our hearts that what matters is more eternal?  Trying to discern between what is temporary and eternal, individual and universal, significant or incidental can be difficult.  Sometimes, in our focus on the stuff of religious ceremony, we can forget our need to connect with the aspect of God and our faithlife that is above and beyond the immediate.  So, on this Sunday, I invite you to slow down for conversation about what matters, revealed to us as it is through scripture, and also revealed to us in our observations of all that is good and life affirming.  Join us in worship of God, who unites us and invites us to love. 

Blessings and peace, Lisa

Grace to you, and peace from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  Hunt and I have been pleased to fill in for Pastor Lisa as she takes a much-deserved vacation, and I will be leading worship tomorrow.  This Sunday, we will continue our study of the Gospel of John by considering John 6:51-59, which contains one of Jesus’s most mystifying and divisive statements: that his flesh and blood are real food and drink and are essential for eternal life.  Why did he say these things, and how did people react when he said them?  And what might they mean for us?

Enjoy your weekend in this magical corner of Creation.

Looking forward, Derek

Grace to you, and peace from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  In this fractious political landscape do we, as followers of Jesus, have any particular responsibility? What does God want us to do? Is it best that we stay out of it and not let ourselves be contaminated by the anger and hate speech? Or should we jump in with both feet and make certain that our voices are loud enough to be heard over the din? This Sunday we will take a look at Scripture and try to discern what guidance God is giving us on this topic.

Blessings and peace, Hunt

If raining on Saturday, the Festival will be held indoors.

Grace to you, and peace from God our Creator and the Lord Jesus Christ!  On this first weekend of August, we look forward to celebrating the sacrament of Communion together.  With our text from the Hebrew Bible and from the Gospel of John reflecting on God’s provision in surprising ways, we may look at the symbols of our central ritual differently.  How are we fed?  And what does Jesus mean when he speaks of living water?  Sometimes our getting back to basics is a good reminder of some of the elements of our faith life we may take for granted.  Whether at home with your own crackers and juice representative of the feast, or in the sanctuary partaking with friends, we come to the table that God has laid to celebrate our unity and God’s grace.

Blessings and peace, Lisa