Dear Friends in Christ,
I felt the excitement building last Saturday night as the strings in our Christmas Cantata tuned up… It’s not the prettiest sound, of course, as they seek to be sure that they are matching the pitch on the grand piano, but it speaks of what is soon to come.
I feel it every time God’s people gather for worship in this place be it Saturday night or Sunday morning as the security chime rings in the office, announcing the arrival of yet another person who has come to lift their voice and heart in prayer and praise. And then as the conversation builds in the narthex as more and more people greet one another and begin to get caught up on the week’s events.
I feel it on Wednesday nights as one after another, confirmation students and guides drift in through the doors in fellowship hall, coming to learn about our God who created, redeems and guides them. I suppose to the unaccustomed ear it sounds like just ‘so much noise’, but for those who know its meaning it functions to build anticipation of what is to come. For me, anyway, that results in a combination of gladness and hope and yes, maybe a few butterflies at the unknown that lies before us.
In much the same way, Salem’s Annual Meeting on January 23rd at 12 noon is a little like those strings preparing to play. It’s when we gather as God’s people to adjust our strings, to check our pitch, to wonder together about how we have reflected our Mission Statement: “Living Christ’s Love” in the year past and to dream together about how we will do so in the year to come. Oh sure, to the unaccustomed ear it may sound like just ‘so much noise’ as we consider financial statements and budgets, listen to reports from staff and leaders, and elect leaders for the year to come. It’s more than noise, though, of course, for if you listen you will recognize God’s people checking in with each other, pausing to get ready to plunge into the next year of mission and ministry together.
I would urge you not to miss it!
Our meal will be served at 12 noon in fellowship hall on Sunday, January 23rd. Congregation members will be invited to sign up to help provide dessert. The meeting will follow immediately. Child care will be provided. I look forward to seeing you then!
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
December 2010
Dear Friends in Christ,
“O Come, O Come Emmanuel…”
I can’t see these words on the page in front of me without hearing the mournful, hopeful echoes of the familiar tune we sing each Advent as we gather.
Indeed, as the days grow shorter and the nights grow longer we may pause to find ourselves turning inward, hearing echoes of longing for something more, something else which perhaps we hardly knew we felt. Yearning for healing.
Longing for wholeness. Wishing for justice in a world where justice is often lacking. Looking for hope in places that long seemed void of hope altogether.
It is in the midst of that sense of longing that we find ourselves singing along, “O Come, O Come Emmanuel and ransom captive Israel, which mourns in lonely exile here…” And yet, the words may be both familiar and unfamiliar to us at the same time… for while we may be able to sing them by heart, the experience they point to may at first be entirely unfamiliar to us: at least at first glance.
As we gather on Wednesday nights for midweek Advent worship, we will take a deeper look at the images the hymnist painted for us: the Branch of Jesse, the Key of David, the Dayspring from on High and of course Emmanuel. To be sure, as we learn together the roots of these phrases which roll off our tongues in song, their meaning will deepen for us every Advent to come so that as we sing it the words will more deeply and surely express the longing which all people experience and the hope it offers all the more real.
Be sure to join us beginning on Wednesday December 1st at 7 p.m. as we walk this Advent journey together. “Holden Evening Prayer” will frame our worship and our time of meditation will focus on the meanings within this wonderful ancient hymn. Consider using the lessons shared those nights to deepen your own journey at home.
Dec 1 “O Come, O Branch of Jesse” Isaiah 11:1-11 and Matthew 1:1-17
Dec 8 “O Come, O Key of David” Isaiah 22:22 and Luke 1:46-55
Dec 15 “O Come, O Dayspring” Isaiah 60:19-20 and Luke 1:78-79
Dec 22 “ O Come, O Come Emmanuel” Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:18-25
Peace to you and many blessings
—Pastor Janet
“O Come, O Come Emmanuel…”
I can’t see these words on the page in front of me without hearing the mournful, hopeful echoes of the familiar tune we sing each Advent as we gather.
Indeed, as the days grow shorter and the nights grow longer we may pause to find ourselves turning inward, hearing echoes of longing for something more, something else which perhaps we hardly knew we felt. Yearning for healing.
Longing for wholeness. Wishing for justice in a world where justice is often lacking. Looking for hope in places that long seemed void of hope altogether.
It is in the midst of that sense of longing that we find ourselves singing along, “O Come, O Come Emmanuel and ransom captive Israel, which mourns in lonely exile here…” And yet, the words may be both familiar and unfamiliar to us at the same time… for while we may be able to sing them by heart, the experience they point to may at first be entirely unfamiliar to us: at least at first glance.
As we gather on Wednesday nights for midweek Advent worship, we will take a deeper look at the images the hymnist painted for us: the Branch of Jesse, the Key of David, the Dayspring from on High and of course Emmanuel. To be sure, as we learn together the roots of these phrases which roll off our tongues in song, their meaning will deepen for us every Advent to come so that as we sing it the words will more deeply and surely express the longing which all people experience and the hope it offers all the more real.
Be sure to join us beginning on Wednesday December 1st at 7 p.m. as we walk this Advent journey together. “Holden Evening Prayer” will frame our worship and our time of meditation will focus on the meanings within this wonderful ancient hymn. Consider using the lessons shared those nights to deepen your own journey at home.
Dec 1 “O Come, O Branch of Jesse” Isaiah 11:1-11 and Matthew 1:1-17
Dec 8 “O Come, O Key of David” Isaiah 22:22 and Luke 1:46-55
Dec 15 “O Come, O Dayspring” Isaiah 60:19-20 and Luke 1:78-79
Dec 22 “ O Come, O Come Emmanuel” Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:18-25
Peace to you and many blessings
—Pastor Janet
Dear Friends in Christ,
“Some wandered in desert wastes, finding no way to an inhabited
town; hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them. Then they
cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress." (Psalm 107:4-6)
I confess to you that I don’t know much of what it is to be hungry. Often I even find myself sitting down to eat yet another meal before hunger pangs make me aware of my need to eat. And yet there are people in this world, yes, even in our community, for whom the words of the Psalmist above would ring all too true. People who are yearning to find a town inhabited with people who would do what they could to feed their children and to give them the hand up they need to begin again.
Surely, one of the dreams we share is that Salem might be more and more that kind of “town” --- a place inhabited by people who want to ensure that at least people will be fed. And to be sure, for the hundreds of families who walk through our front doors from Tuesday through Friday to fill a few bags with groceries to tide them over --- for them, this is that kind of “town.” And for those six middle school students to whom we deliver backpacks of food for their families to share over the week- end, as part of our NEW Backpack Program, Salem is that kind of ‘”town.” We do this because people need it. I expect, we do this also for ourselves, so that we might be more and more the kind of people whom God would have us be.
During November we have a number of opportunities to keep growing into that kind of “town.” On Friday, November 19th from 6-8 p.m. a crew from Salem will gather at Cornerstone Christian Academy to pack bags of food for children all over the world. It’s not too late to sign up to be a part of this effort. The sign-up sheet is in the church narthex or just call the church office. And on Wednesday, November 25th, the day before Thanksgiving when we sit down to share a feast with families and friends, we gather for worship to give thanks to God and to share our gifts with the world. That night you are invited to bring gifts for our food pantry. Especially needed are items for those backpacks: peanut butter and jelly, macaroni and cheese, pasta and sauce, bottles of juice, or whatever strikes you that a child might enjoy!
What a gift it is to be the kind of “town” where the hungry and thirsty know God will deliver them from their hunger!
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
“Some wandered in desert wastes, finding no way to an inhabited
town; hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them. Then they
cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress." (Psalm 107:4-6)
I confess to you that I don’t know much of what it is to be hungry. Often I even find myself sitting down to eat yet another meal before hunger pangs make me aware of my need to eat. And yet there are people in this world, yes, even in our community, for whom the words of the Psalmist above would ring all too true. People who are yearning to find a town inhabited with people who would do what they could to feed their children and to give them the hand up they need to begin again.
Surely, one of the dreams we share is that Salem might be more and more that kind of “town” --- a place inhabited by people who want to ensure that at least people will be fed. And to be sure, for the hundreds of families who walk through our front doors from Tuesday through Friday to fill a few bags with groceries to tide them over --- for them, this is that kind of “town.” And for those six middle school students to whom we deliver backpacks of food for their families to share over the week- end, as part of our NEW Backpack Program, Salem is that kind of ‘”town.” We do this because people need it. I expect, we do this also for ourselves, so that we might be more and more the kind of people whom God would have us be.
During November we have a number of opportunities to keep growing into that kind of “town.” On Friday, November 19th from 6-8 p.m. a crew from Salem will gather at Cornerstone Christian Academy to pack bags of food for children all over the world. It’s not too late to sign up to be a part of this effort. The sign-up sheet is in the church narthex or just call the church office. And on Wednesday, November 25th, the day before Thanksgiving when we sit down to share a feast with families and friends, we gather for worship to give thanks to God and to share our gifts with the world. That night you are invited to bring gifts for our food pantry. Especially needed are items for those backpacks: peanut butter and jelly, macaroni and cheese, pasta and sauce, bottles of juice, or whatever strikes you that a child might enjoy!
What a gift it is to be the kind of “town” where the hungry and thirsty know God will deliver them from their hunger!
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
Dear Friends in Christ,
"So we who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us..." (Romans 12:5-6)
I had a new refrigerator delivered a few months ago. Two men showed up at my door with it. One was in his 50's and the other a teen-ager. It was hard work getting the old one taken apart so it would fit through the back door and bringing the other one in in pieces and assembling it right before my eyes. For one thing, if you're not paying attention while carrying a heavy refrigerator, you might just miss the stairs going right down into my basement. The older man was careful though to position himself on that side throughout. He knew the perils. He knew to watch his step. I noticed as well how carefully he walked the younger man through every step. What one supplied in muscle, the other had in experience and he was teaching him as they went. They were a living demonstration of what it is to be with and for one another, using different gifts.
For the last nine months I have been meeting monthly with a young pastor. I've been called upon to be her mentor. She is bright, articulate, energetic, and faithful. She's doing wonderful things in her congregation and promises to be a wonderful leader in the church. She doesn't need much from me, that's for sure, although occasionally I do bring the long view that time and experience offer. Mostly though, I find I receive more than I give...Even so, our gifts are different and it's a joy to be able to share them.
Yesterday morning I pulled my car into the hospital parking lot. One of our oldest members was just getting into her car. I knocked on her driver's side window to ask how she was. She told me she was just there for a blood pressure check. She went on to wonder about an accident she came upon on her way there---right at the intersection of DeKalb Avenue and Meadow Lane. On that last day of school she worried about the young people who were involved and was concerned it may have been some of ours. So far as I know, they were not connected to Salem. Still, I was struck by her kindness, her concern, and her instinctive compassion for others in this place. She recognized that we are all 'members one of another.'
Your gifts are many and varied. Our strengths ebb and flow depending on where we are in life. It would be wrong to deny them, a waste not to share them. Clearly, God has given them to us all and we are called upon to use them to build up Christ's body.
So I wonder what gifts God has given you that you're called upon to share with others? What skill have you mastered that you could teach? What young person would benefit from your spending time with them? What older person would like nothing more than to have you stop in? What small task could you do for them that they can no longer accomplish?
Summer is a wonderful time to take a step back and think about how we are connected and to consider all that we have to share. Indeed, we are all invited to live even more fully into our identity as members of Christ's Own Body.
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
"So we who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us..." (Romans 12:5-6)
I had a new refrigerator delivered a few months ago. Two men showed up at my door with it. One was in his 50's and the other a teen-ager. It was hard work getting the old one taken apart so it would fit through the back door and bringing the other one in in pieces and assembling it right before my eyes. For one thing, if you're not paying attention while carrying a heavy refrigerator, you might just miss the stairs going right down into my basement. The older man was careful though to position himself on that side throughout. He knew the perils. He knew to watch his step. I noticed as well how carefully he walked the younger man through every step. What one supplied in muscle, the other had in experience and he was teaching him as they went. They were a living demonstration of what it is to be with and for one another, using different gifts.
For the last nine months I have been meeting monthly with a young pastor. I've been called upon to be her mentor. She is bright, articulate, energetic, and faithful. She's doing wonderful things in her congregation and promises to be a wonderful leader in the church. She doesn't need much from me, that's for sure, although occasionally I do bring the long view that time and experience offer. Mostly though, I find I receive more than I give...Even so, our gifts are different and it's a joy to be able to share them.
Yesterday morning I pulled my car into the hospital parking lot. One of our oldest members was just getting into her car. I knocked on her driver's side window to ask how she was. She told me she was just there for a blood pressure check. She went on to wonder about an accident she came upon on her way there---right at the intersection of DeKalb Avenue and Meadow Lane. On that last day of school she worried about the young people who were involved and was concerned it may have been some of ours. So far as I know, they were not connected to Salem. Still, I was struck by her kindness, her concern, and her instinctive compassion for others in this place. She recognized that we are all 'members one of another.'
Your gifts are many and varied. Our strengths ebb and flow depending on where we are in life. It would be wrong to deny them, a waste not to share them. Clearly, God has given them to us all and we are called upon to use them to build up Christ's body.
So I wonder what gifts God has given you that you're called upon to share with others? What skill have you mastered that you could teach? What young person would benefit from your spending time with them? What older person would like nothing more than to have you stop in? What small task could you do for them that they can no longer accomplish?
Summer is a wonderful time to take a step back and think about how we are connected and to consider all that we have to share. Indeed, we are all invited to live even more fully into our identity as members of Christ's Own Body.
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
Dear Friends in Christ,
It seems as though summer has been in full swing longer already this
year than it normally is. By the time you receive this I will have already
mowed my lawn seven or eight times and the dandelions are flourishing
in spite of my best efforts to allay them. I’m told the farmers got their
corn planted in record time. Bright sunshiny days have been calling us
to pursuits that involve fresh air and exercise for some time now.
Summer is a different time of year. It’s one where we try to find the time
to relax and let down in ways that other seasons may not allow. It’s a
time when we may better be able to find the time to look around and
celebrate the gifts of God that surround us.
Be sure to take advantage of some of the ways we will be doing
that at Salem over the coming weeks:
Drop in on Sunday mornings as we take a look at the book of Genesis.
Starting on Sunday, June 13 at 9:15 we’ll begin the study: “Genesis
Stories: And You Thought Your Family Was Dysfunctional!” Be sure
to bring your Bible as we go deeper into these familiar stories.
Be a part of the Wednesday night cook-outs and study of the book
Receiving the Day: Christian Practices for Opening the Gift of Time by
Dorothy C. Bass. Special programming for children will be part of the
gatherings beginning on Wednesday, June 16. Sign up in the Welcome
Center at Salem to reserve your copy of the book.
Check out the schedule for Salem’s two softball teams and come along
to cheer on the teams and spend time with friends.
And remember that God’s people at Salem will gather for worship at
5 p.m on Saturdays and 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. on Sundays. Summer
is often a good time to invite a friend to visit. Be looking for someone
who may be looking for a church home.
I do hope that the change of pace this summer allows you to experience
the gifts of God in a variety of new ways!
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
It seems as though summer has been in full swing longer already this
year than it normally is. By the time you receive this I will have already
mowed my lawn seven or eight times and the dandelions are flourishing
in spite of my best efforts to allay them. I’m told the farmers got their
corn planted in record time. Bright sunshiny days have been calling us
to pursuits that involve fresh air and exercise for some time now.
Summer is a different time of year. It’s one where we try to find the time
to relax and let down in ways that other seasons may not allow. It’s a
time when we may better be able to find the time to look around and
celebrate the gifts of God that surround us.
Be sure to take advantage of some of the ways we will be doing
that at Salem over the coming weeks:
Drop in on Sunday mornings as we take a look at the book of Genesis.
Starting on Sunday, June 13 at 9:15 we’ll begin the study: “Genesis
Stories: And You Thought Your Family Was Dysfunctional!” Be sure
to bring your Bible as we go deeper into these familiar stories.
Be a part of the Wednesday night cook-outs and study of the book
Receiving the Day: Christian Practices for Opening the Gift of Time by
Dorothy C. Bass. Special programming for children will be part of the
gatherings beginning on Wednesday, June 16. Sign up in the Welcome
Center at Salem to reserve your copy of the book.
Check out the schedule for Salem’s two softball teams and come along
to cheer on the teams and spend time with friends.
And remember that God’s people at Salem will gather for worship at
5 p.m on Saturdays and 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. on Sundays. Summer
is often a good time to invite a friend to visit. Be looking for someone
who may be looking for a church home.
I do hope that the change of pace this summer allows you to experience
the gifts of God in a variety of new ways!
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
Dear Friends in Christ,
I was sitting at a stoplight, fingering my way through the Psalms. I was going to be
right on time for Confirmation Class and Psalm 91 was the basis for our opening
prayer. I had thought I’d have plenty of time, but was instead called back to the
nursing home where one of Salem’s saints had just died. We had prayed for God’s
blessing on her, on all those gathered in that circle, and on all those traveling to join
them. And then, for me, I found I had to get back to the usual Wednesday routine.
So I sat at the stoplight and opened to Psalm 91 and found myself more surprised
than I should have been at how the words spoke to me in that moment. I was
especially struck by this:
“For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all
your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not
dash your foot against a stone.” (Psalm 91:11-12)
I shook my head to think that no more fitting words had ever been spoken than those
for a family who had walked the journey they had in those hours. God’s promise of
God’s protection is a wondrous one.
It happens more often than not. God’s Holy Word comes to us --- not always by our
own planning, but rather by God’s design. It seems as though Gods’ Word chooses
us, rather than our doing the choosing.
Over these next several weeks, Salem members and friends are invited to experience
the wonder of this first hand. Those who choose to sign up to contribute to our
summer daily devotional (to be shared with the congregation) will choose a date
between June 15th and August 15th. Then you will be given the ‘assigned’ scripture
passages for that day. You will be encouraged to read through them, settling on one
that especially seems to speak to you, your life situation, or the world as you see it.
Next you would carry it with you for a few days, pulling it out at various time,
always asking what it says to you now. Finally, you would be asked to put those
thoughts down on paper and returned by May 16th. It could be in the form of a
story, a few sentences of comments, or even some questions. All sixty ‘devotions’
will be compiled by Darlene Orth (d.orth@mchsi.com) and distributed to the
congregation to be shared over the coming months.
It sounds risky, doesn’t it? To be asked to write something about a passage you
haven’t chosen? Still, I would encourage you to allow yourself to be surprised by
how God will speak to you in unexpected ways. For God always does…
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
I was sitting at a stoplight, fingering my way through the Psalms. I was going to be
right on time for Confirmation Class and Psalm 91 was the basis for our opening
prayer. I had thought I’d have plenty of time, but was instead called back to the
nursing home where one of Salem’s saints had just died. We had prayed for God’s
blessing on her, on all those gathered in that circle, and on all those traveling to join
them. And then, for me, I found I had to get back to the usual Wednesday routine.
So I sat at the stoplight and opened to Psalm 91 and found myself more surprised
than I should have been at how the words spoke to me in that moment. I was
especially struck by this:
“For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all
your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not
dash your foot against a stone.” (Psalm 91:11-12)
I shook my head to think that no more fitting words had ever been spoken than those
for a family who had walked the journey they had in those hours. God’s promise of
God’s protection is a wondrous one.
It happens more often than not. God’s Holy Word comes to us --- not always by our
own planning, but rather by God’s design. It seems as though Gods’ Word chooses
us, rather than our doing the choosing.
Over these next several weeks, Salem members and friends are invited to experience
the wonder of this first hand. Those who choose to sign up to contribute to our
summer daily devotional (to be shared with the congregation) will choose a date
between June 15th and August 15th. Then you will be given the ‘assigned’ scripture
passages for that day. You will be encouraged to read through them, settling on one
that especially seems to speak to you, your life situation, or the world as you see it.
Next you would carry it with you for a few days, pulling it out at various time,
always asking what it says to you now. Finally, you would be asked to put those
thoughts down on paper and returned by May 16th. It could be in the form of a
story, a few sentences of comments, or even some questions. All sixty ‘devotions’
will be compiled by Darlene Orth (d.orth@mchsi.com) and distributed to the
congregation to be shared over the coming months.
It sounds risky, doesn’t it? To be asked to write something about a passage you
haven’t chosen? Still, I would encourage you to allow yourself to be surprised by
how God will speak to you in unexpected ways. For God always does…
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
Dear Friends in Christ,
“Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed! Alleluia!”
I still remember the first time I started the Easter Proclamation as a very young
pastor. Partly, I was curious to see if it would work. So I climbed into the pulpit and
spoke those words with a false kind of bravado: “Christ is Risen!” I paused. And not
a heartbeat passed before the choir to the right of me took up the response with huge
smiles: “He is Risen, Indeed! Alleluia!”
It’s just around the corner now, those days when we pause to remember Jesus
suffering and dying and rising again. It’s just around the corner when we will wash
the feet, strip the altar, and hear his cry of suffering once again. It’s just around the
corner now; that Saturday when Salem’s Altar Guild will transform the sanctuary into
a garden exploding with color and fragrance; a mere reflection of the wonder that is
ours at the new life that is ours in Christ’s resurrection. It’s just around the corner
when we will come together and sit a little closer to one another than usual; for guests
will join us from near and far; all yearning to hear that word of hope for them, for us;
that Christ is Risen and that means new life for us even now. We will come together
again this Easter and we will hear the brass play and the choirs sing and the shouted
good news once more.
This year we’re adding something new to our Easter Celebration: Some of us will
gather at Elmwood Cemetery in Sycamore at 6:30 a.m. at the gazebo/portico. We
will come together in that place to whisper the news that death has been defeated in
a place where many of us have the felt the sting, the ache, the loss of death most
profoundly. We will come together to acknowledge the truth of Jesus’ resurrection in
a place not unlike where that good news was first shared with those women who went
to the tomb to anoint his body and heard the proclamation: “He is not here. He is
risen.” We will listen for the good news in that place and we will pray that it will make
its way into the quiet of our hearts. Please join us as we begin our Easter Day in that
quiet place before making our way back to Salem for the Festival Celebrations.
(Special thank you to Phil and Jenny Ruff for opening their home for coffee
in-between the cemetery service and our 8 a.m. worship. Their home is at 625
DeKalb Avenue, just a few blocks from the cemetery.)
So please join us on Easter Week-End and bring your friends.
The Easter Good News is for you!
For Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed! Alleluia!
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
“Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed! Alleluia!”
I still remember the first time I started the Easter Proclamation as a very young
pastor. Partly, I was curious to see if it would work. So I climbed into the pulpit and
spoke those words with a false kind of bravado: “Christ is Risen!” I paused. And not
a heartbeat passed before the choir to the right of me took up the response with huge
smiles: “He is Risen, Indeed! Alleluia!”
It’s just around the corner now, those days when we pause to remember Jesus
suffering and dying and rising again. It’s just around the corner when we will wash
the feet, strip the altar, and hear his cry of suffering once again. It’s just around the
corner now; that Saturday when Salem’s Altar Guild will transform the sanctuary into
a garden exploding with color and fragrance; a mere reflection of the wonder that is
ours at the new life that is ours in Christ’s resurrection. It’s just around the corner
when we will come together and sit a little closer to one another than usual; for guests
will join us from near and far; all yearning to hear that word of hope for them, for us;
that Christ is Risen and that means new life for us even now. We will come together
again this Easter and we will hear the brass play and the choirs sing and the shouted
good news once more.
This year we’re adding something new to our Easter Celebration: Some of us will
gather at Elmwood Cemetery in Sycamore at 6:30 a.m. at the gazebo/portico. We
will come together in that place to whisper the news that death has been defeated in
a place where many of us have the felt the sting, the ache, the loss of death most
profoundly. We will come together to acknowledge the truth of Jesus’ resurrection in
a place not unlike where that good news was first shared with those women who went
to the tomb to anoint his body and heard the proclamation: “He is not here. He is
risen.” We will listen for the good news in that place and we will pray that it will make
its way into the quiet of our hearts. Please join us as we begin our Easter Day in that
quiet place before making our way back to Salem for the Festival Celebrations.
(Special thank you to Phil and Jenny Ruff for opening their home for coffee
in-between the cemetery service and our 8 a.m. worship. Their home is at 625
DeKalb Avenue, just a few blocks from the cemetery.)
So please join us on Easter Week-End and bring your friends.
The Easter Good News is for you!
For Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed! Alleluia!
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
March Town & Country newsletter article
Dear Friends in Christ,
As you receive this, we will already have begun our Lenten journey. This year as we gather on Wednesday afternoons and evenings for midweek services we are spending some time with that most familiar of prayers that Jesus taught us: The Lord’s Prayer.
I don’t know about you, but I can’t remember when I memorized that prayer. It wasn’t intentional, I know that for sure. It just came from week after week of repeating it: surrounded then and now by others who learned these words in the presence of people like you. While there certainly are many who don’t count this prayer as their own, I find that usually its words are known by those who gather at hospital bedsides and at gravesides --- for many repeat them along with me speaking from their heart’s memory, too.
And yet, I know it so well, sometimes I hardly hear it anymore. I don’t take time to wonder at the “Our Father” --- which implies that we are brothers and sisters, you and I. And that we are invited to address God as someone as near as a parent. I don’t pause to reflect on the times I have treated God’s name as less than holy. I don’t think about how radical an idea it is to ask for the coming of God’s Kingdom on earth. And I don’t stop to enumerate those I haven’t forgiven, even as I ask God to forgive me.
And so it’s worth standing still in this familiar prayer again this season. We’re called to go deeper into words we know by heart to mine their meaning for us anew. Please join us as we dig deep into each petition, claiming it for each new day in our journeys of faith. By God’s gift and grace, may it become more deeply your prayer this year --- and for the rest of your life.
Peace to you and many blessings,
Pastor Janet
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