Eastertide 2019
Dear Friends,
You may know that I preached a sermon series during Lent this year. Maybe you heard some of them or maybe even all of them and maybe you even found them meaningful. They were about God moving. God moving around us, in us, through us. Moving.
To reinforce (or possibly confuse) the point, I put “WE ARE MOVING” on the signboard out front. Clearly the intended message was unclear because I'm still getting questions from people in the community: “Are you moving?” “I didn't know churches could move!” “I drove around the block a second time to make sure it said what I thought it said. What's up?” Just in case you, too, are wondering, it's a metaphor.
We're not moving moving. Not changing addresses moving. But make no mistake, we are moving. We have to be moving. We have to be changing our perspective – learning and listening and exploring how we can best serve God and this community from our spot here on Government Street. Here in 2019. We have to be looking at “what we've always done” and ask ourselves how it is contributing to the ministry to which God is calling us in this place.
We have to keep moving. Because movement is life. Just in these past couple of months we have said goodbye to two ministries of our church that have been the object of much energy, passion, and faithful outreach. After more than 10 years gathering here in our vestry on the second Saturday of the month to raise funds for many worthy causes, the Kittery Coffee House is disbanding. Its reach in our community has been profound. One of the many connections made there was with A House for ME, a connection which led us to welcome them to our parsonage today!
And, for the first time in more than 25 years, our annual Pilgrim Lodge all-church retreat will not take place. This is something to which generations of families have looked forward and at which lifelong friendships have been forged. Maybe it will return another year, but maybe there is now room for something new to emerge. Jesus said that unless a grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, it will not bring new life. But if it falls and dies, many new seeds will be produced.
So yes, we are moving. We're saying “Goodbye” in one breath and “Hello” in the next. We're moving into discerning new ways to be the Welcoming, Learning, and Going Out people we say we are.
Moving. Yes! So let's celebrate our New Location!
Brad
Dear Friends,
You may know that I preached a sermon series during Lent this year. Maybe you heard some of them or maybe even all of them and maybe you even found them meaningful. They were about God moving. God moving around us, in us, through us. Moving.
To reinforce (or possibly confuse) the point, I put “WE ARE MOVING” on the signboard out front. Clearly the intended message was unclear because I'm still getting questions from people in the community: “Are you moving?” “I didn't know churches could move!” “I drove around the block a second time to make sure it said what I thought it said. What's up?” Just in case you, too, are wondering, it's a metaphor.
We're not moving moving. Not changing addresses moving. But make no mistake, we are moving. We have to be moving. We have to be changing our perspective – learning and listening and exploring how we can best serve God and this community from our spot here on Government Street. Here in 2019. We have to be looking at “what we've always done” and ask ourselves how it is contributing to the ministry to which God is calling us in this place.
We have to keep moving. Because movement is life. Just in these past couple of months we have said goodbye to two ministries of our church that have been the object of much energy, passion, and faithful outreach. After more than 10 years gathering here in our vestry on the second Saturday of the month to raise funds for many worthy causes, the Kittery Coffee House is disbanding. Its reach in our community has been profound. One of the many connections made there was with A House for ME, a connection which led us to welcome them to our parsonage today!
And, for the first time in more than 25 years, our annual Pilgrim Lodge all-church retreat will not take place. This is something to which generations of families have looked forward and at which lifelong friendships have been forged. Maybe it will return another year, but maybe there is now room for something new to emerge. Jesus said that unless a grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, it will not bring new life. But if it falls and dies, many new seeds will be produced.
So yes, we are moving. We're saying “Goodbye” in one breath and “Hello” in the next. We're moving into discerning new ways to be the Welcoming, Learning, and Going Out people we say we are.
Moving. Yes! So let's celebrate our New Location!
Brad