Midday Prayer Midweek: A Still Point in a Turning World

One of the parts of life that I truly like about our Church is Midday prayer midweek--Wednesday--in the sanctuary. Using the Midday Prayer order in the Book of Common Worship, 6-10 of us gather for 20 minutes to pray, using the words of Scripture and usually a reading from a book by my friend Henri Nouwen as our guide. The meal afterward continues the sense of community that has begun to surround our gathering.

An invitation: if you are free on Wed. afternoon, please come to Midday prayer! Take 20 min. of your day and discover what Eliot called the "still point of our turning world."

Peace!

Pastor Brett

An Active Church

On Wed. night, we were one open, active, lively church! We gathered for great Middle Eastern food in the Fellowship Hall and watched a slide show of pictures taken from my latest foray into the Holy Land. The food was great! And the audience super! Thank you all!

And downstairs we had the ESL gathering, with 19 children who showed up.

Meanwhile, over in the sanctuary there were hand bells ringing and choir rehearsing.

We are an active, open, lively church. It is great fun to see all the lights burning, the rooms being used, and ministry happening!

It is also the Church alive when all the lights are off and we are busy in the neighborhoods surrounding the Church building. That too is a sign of life.

We are an alive, open, welcoming, and active Church!

Praise God!

Pastor Brett

Easter Monday

We have now entered the next 50 days of Eastertide. Like Advent, Christmas, and Lent, this is a "tide" of days, commonly referred to in the church as Eastertide.

And on this Monday of Eastertide, I must admit I am humbled by the awesome people we are surrounded by at First Presbyterian Church.

* A big shout out to the Church staff: Kathy, Kristy, and Clifton! Thanks for all your help in the last week or so.
* A big shout out to Elder Phil Hanny, Karen Hanny, and Peggy Stocks for their incredible work and artistry.
* A big shout out to Elders Raynah Adams and Mike McKoon for great worship, as well as Karen and the choirs!

Thanks for the wonderful memories of Holy Week, which will continue to set us on an incredible course on our pilgrimage through Eastertide!

Peace!

Pastor Brett

Amazing Palm Sunday

There was a lot of planning and preparation that went into Palm Sunday this week, and it seems to have paid off in people's experience of worshiping God:
* Karen Hanny made a beautiful new banner and pendants that adorned the wall where Christmas wreaths usually hang during Advent;
* the hand bell choir, children's voices, and adult choir were wonderful during the anthem;
* Karen Reardon played beautiful music in spite of our soloist calling in ill at 7 this morning;
* Rev. Marshall preached a fiery Palm Sunday sermon;
* Holy Communion was shared by all...

Praise God!

Now we are on our pilgrimage path, following the Pilgrim God to Maundy Thursday, to Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday!

Peace!

Pastor Brett