Save the date for Tuesday, September 17th, 2024, at 10 AM in the Narthex! Join us for a special breakfast event hosted by Paityn Nissly, our Communications Coordinator. Learn how Realm can benefit our congregation and ministries, participate in a Q&A session, and enjoy a light breakfast with coffee, tea, and juice. RSVP by emailing office@apostlesucc.org or by Registering on Realm. If you can’t make it, consider making an appointment with Paityn to learn more about Realm.We hope to see you there!
The Windows of Church of the Apostles UCC
God’s Mighty Acts
Creation
The ancient symbol of God’s all-seeing eye – a triangle with the eye at its center – at the top of the window proclaims the omniscience and wisdom of God. The triangle represents the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Below the eye is a pair of hands representing God’s fashioning of Creation. The Hebrew word translated “formed” in the second account of Creation (Genesis 2:7-8) is the same Hebrew word used for a potter at the wheel. So God, with his hands, forms Creation out of the dust of the Earth moistened with water. Below the hands is a large menorah, the seven branched candlestick or lampstand. In the Tabernacle built by Moses stood a candlestick made of pure gold. In this window the menorah represents the first seven days of Creation.
The Law
Stone tablets with the Ten Commandments God gave Moses on Mount Sinai (Exodus 20:1-17) dominate this window. There are two tablets. One represents the commandments which define the human relationship to God, the second those which regulate humane interpersonal relationships. Jesus Christ summarized the entire Torah (Law of God) when a scribe asked him, “Which commandment is the first of all?” He answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:28-31). Jesus here quotes Deuteronomy 6:4 and Leviticus 19:18. Below the tablets of the Law is depicted the burning bush at which Moses experienced God’s presence and God’s call to lead Israel out of Egypt to the promised land. Tradition places the site where the Fifth Century Monastery of Saint Catherine now stands at the foot of Mount Sinai.
Prophecy
The theme of this window is the important prophet Isaiah. At the top us a pair of tongs holding a burning coal, referring to God’s response to Isaiah’s confession, “I am a man of unclean lips,” at his call (Isaiah 6:5). A seraphim touched his lips with a burning coal from the altar and said, “this has touched your lips, your guilt is taken away, and your sin is forgiven” (Isaiah 6:7). Below the tongs are Isaiah’s words which help interpret the coming of Christ, “the people that walked darkness have seen a great light” (Isaiah 9:2). The lamp below these words symbolizes that holy light. It also reminds us of the Word of God, as the psalm writer expressed it: “Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105). Radiating from the top of the burning coal is a cross which points prophetically to Jesus’ death.
The Birth
The window of the birth of Jesus has at its top small stars against deep blue for that “silent night, holy night.” The six-pointed star is the star of David, since Jesus was of David’s household and lineage. This star (two equilateral triangles superimposed) is also known as the Creator’s star. To Christians it may suggest the Holy Trinity. The words “Peace on Earth” are from the song of the angels, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased” (Luke 2:15). Below these words is the manger with child. The white cloth folded over the crib portrays the swaddling cloths. The face of the child (without features, identified with no people) is surrounded by an orb (halo). Rising out of the halo is a cross foretelling the manner of his death. Below the manger is the traditional white rose, which withstands the ravages of winter and blooms at Christmas. The flower symbolizes the truth that, despite the ravages of catastrophe and war which shake the earth, there exists a Mighty Power which can shape a rose, lead shepherds to a king, and fulfill creation’s destiny.
Light of the World
Jesus Christ is the light of the world. This window’s theme is previously announced in the Prophecy (Isaiah) window. Here a large candle represents light. The reference is to John 8:12, the words of Jesus, “I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” On either side of the candle are the Alpha and Omega, first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, affirming that Jesus frames all of life. Revelation 1:8 states, “I am Alpha and Omega…who is and who was and who it to come, the Almighty.” Christ’s light is not ephemeral; it does not quickly shed its light only to fall to the earth a cinder. This light is from everlasting to everlasting. In the lowest section of the window is the Chi Rho, two Greek letters superimposed. Chi looks like the Roman letter X, pronounced CH. The Rho looks like the letter P, Greek for R. Hence the letters CHR, the first in the name Christ.
The Agony
At the top of this window is a crown of thorns for the one pressed on the head of Jesus by Roman soldiers who mocked him as a king. Below are nails representing the nails driven into the hands and feet of Jesus to hold him on the cross. The nails are tipped in red-blood. The lantern in the lowest section of the window represents the arrest of Jesus at the night in the Garden of Gethsemane.
The Crucifixion
The upper section of the window shows Calvary (Golgotha, which means the place of the skull) where Jesus was crucified. The large cross represents the cross on which Jesus died. Attached to the head of the cross is the sign with the letters INRI. These are the first letters for the Latin words, Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum, Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews, the title Pilate fixed to the cross (John 19:19). The smaller crosses to the left and right are those on which the two thieves died (Luke 23:39). The crosses are set in rock, while green grass is growing from the cracks in the rock as a sign of hope. Rising to the center of the rock are spears representing the role the Roman soldiers played in the crucifixion. At the bottom, at the end of the spears, is a red cloth for the garment worn by Jesus. To the left of the garment are two small white squares, dice thrown by the soldiers for its possession (John 19:24).
The Resurrection
The last window on the west side represents the climax of the mighty acts of God; the resurrection of Jesus Christ. White Easter lilies dominate the window with the word Alleluia, which means “Praise the Lord.” The butterfly is a symbol of the resurrection. As the butterfly emerges beautifully from the cocoon, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the assurance of a more glorious life after death. “What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in Glory” (1 Corinthians 15:42). An Easter lily appears below, again proclaiming the resurrection.
The Human Response
The Apostles
The Church of the Apostles is itself a response to God’s mighty acts. The congregation was founded May 18, 1975 when St. Paul’s congregation (founded in 1850) and St. John’s congregation (founded in 1870) united. In this window are the symbols of the apostles St. Paul and St. John. At the top of the window is the symbol of St. Paul, an open Bible with a sword behind it. The Bible bears the Latin inscription Spiritus Gladius, Sword of the Spirit, from St. Paul in Ephesians 6:17, “and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Below is the symbol for St. John the Evangelist, the eagle. It is said that the eagle can look directly into the sun without harming its eyes. St. John’s Gospel penetrates the depth of the Gospel; it is like an eagle soaring to the throne of grace. In the door is the unusual symbol of a cup out of which issues a serpent. Its source is the tradition of an attempt to poison John, which God foiled as the poison vanished in the form of a serpent. Another basis for the cup is Jesus’ statement that James and John were to drink of his cup (Mark 10:39).
The Catholic (Universal) Church
At the top of this window is the Triquetra, a design consisting of three equally shaped leaves, a symbol for the Holy Trinity. There is a legend that St. Patrick was asked to explain the Trinity. Seeing a shamrock with its three leaves he plucked it and said, “God is like the shamrock. The plant has three petals and the petals form the shamrock. So God consists of three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, yet is one God.” The ship at the center of the window represents the church universal. Its sail bears a cross. While the waters in the window (aqua glass) are calm, storms can soon make them tempestuous and could drive the ship aground on the rocky shoreline. Through the ages the church rides the seas of persecution, conflicts, and division, yet remains faithful to its captain, Jesus Christ. This truth is symbolized by the ship. In the lower part of the window is a presentation of the crown of Church of the Apostles. When artist Leanis Linauts first saw the church he said, “the tower is a magnificent crown.” The 24 windows (red in blue) at the base of the crown, at the roof line, represent the jewels of the crown. A cross surmounts the crown. While the cross reminds us of Christ’s death, the fact that it is empty proclaims the resurrection. There are more than four hundred styles of the cross, this one being the familiar Latin cross.
Sacrament of Baptism
The top of this window portrays the scene in the gospels of the Lord’s baptism with “the Spirit of God descending like a dove” upon Jesus (Matthew 3:16b). Below the dove is a sea shell, an ancient symbol for baptism. This symbol was used in pagan religion to stand for fertility and deification. Hence, it was used in tomb art to speak of immortality. Christians used it for baptism for this reason and because of the obvious water association. Coming from the shell are droplets of water, the outward manifestation of baptism, symbolizing cleansing from sin. The ridges of the scallop shell also suggest rays of divine love. Below the water droplets are triangular pieces of aqua-colored glass, which represent the Jordan River where Jesus was baptized. The reed rising from the bottom of the window shows the banks of the river.
Sacrament of Holy Communion
Wine and bread are the outward elements of the Sacrament of Holy Communion. The elements are represented by clusters of grapes at the top of the window and stalks of wheat with ripened kernels rising from the window’s lower section. Between the grapes and what is a chalice, the most important symbol for Holy Communion, reminiscent of the cup used by Jesus at the Last Supper. Though for hygienic reasons communion trays and individual cups are often used today, the chalice speaks of the cup blessed by our Lord. At the bottom of the window is a curious configuration of white glass. When questioned as to its meaning the artist said, “it represents the bag and the thirty pieces of silver for which Judas betrayed Jesus.” But why place this symbol in the Communion window? It was just before the Last Supper that Judas agreed to betray Jesus and received the silver. Judas had the silver with him at the Supper, from which he arose, went out and betrayed Jesus.
Christian Service
Christians respond to God’s mighty acts with service to their fellow human beings. This window is a pictorial representation of the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), told in answer to the question, “Who is my neighbor?” At the top of the window are the letters IHC. Five interpretations are given to this symbol and its variant, IHS: The Latin, Jesus Hominum Salvator (Jesus, Son of Man); the German, Jesus, Heiland Seligmacher (Jesus, Lord, Savior); the English, I (Christ) have suffered; the Latin, In Hoc Signo Vinces (In this sign I conquer). The preferred interpretation is from the Greek for Jesus, IHCOYC. The first three letters IHC are a monogram for Jesus. As knowledge of Greek became rare, C changed to S and IHS has perhaps become more familiar. In the window the Greek form IHC is retained, reminding us that our service is in the name of Jesus. In the center of the window is the portrayal of the Good Samaritan parable. The Samaritan (dressed humbly in brown) is kneeling over the beaten man. Note the left hand and foot of the wounded man lying on the road. In the bend of the Samaritan’s knee in the rear and to the left is the head of a donkey. Above the Samaritan to the left and rear is the inn surrounded by green trees. Below the scene are the concluding words of Jesus to this parable, “Go and do likewise,” and the figure of a flaming heart.
The Triumph of the Gospel
This is the only window in which brilliant rays of light do not erupt from the top of the windows. Here the light breaks forth from a circle at the center of the window. One image dominates the window, a semi-abstract form of the symbol of the United Church of Christ. This consists of a cross on an orb, surmounted by a crown and a smaller cross. The circle represents the earth. The cross standing on the orb symbolizes the triumph of the Gospel over all the Earth. The crown and cross at the top of the cross proclaims Jesus sovereign over all. The rays of light emanating from the orb flowing down to the flowers portray the triumph and kingship of Jesus not only in the heavens but reaching into every valley and field where people pursue daily life and work.
Song of Praise
In response to God’s mighty acts Christians worship and sing God’s praise. This window was presented by the Senior Choir of Church of the Apostles. At the top of the window is a harp. It represents the harp of David and stands for joyful worship. The words “Praise the Lord for the Lord is good” are from Psalm 135:3. A trumpet stands at the center of the window. Many musical instruments were used in worship in Bible times, among them the lyre, pipe, flute, tambourine, bell, shofar, horn, harp, psaltery, cymbal and trumpet. The Psalmist wrote, “Praise Him with trumpet sound” (Psalm 150:3), and that instrument calls people to worship. Psalm 135:2, appearing in the lower section of the window, is an exhortation that all who stand in the house of the Lord shall praise the Lord.
God’s Rule and Protection
The scales symbolize God’s final judgement. Judgement will not be by Law only but by the grace of God through Jesus Christ. This is the significance of the monogram IHS in brilliant green between the balances. Here IHS is used, rather than the IHC in the Service window, though still symbolizing the name Jesus. The ascending doves and four-pointed stars, or crosses, show humanity’s aspirations for the fulfillment of God’s eternal purpose in creation.
The Crown
In addition to the sixteen windows in the sanctuary there are 24 windows (three in each section) in the tower of the church. The windows are all the same design. They are decorative and have no specific symbolic meaning; as a whole the 24 windows represent a jeweled crown. At the top of each window there are connecting arches, while in the center is a flower. In the lower portion of the windows are connecting scallops. The arches and scallops create the effect of a crown. Of these windows Mr Linauts said, “In the top of the whole building is a style-type which in the bottom parts holds stained glass windows. Twenty-four of these are created in the form of a crown.”
What Is Our Famine?
Last fall, we affirmed our vision and mission, and one of the pieces of that is environmental advocacy.
We have taken this summer season to focus on some environmental issues, and we have aligned ourselves with the children’s faith formation class that’s meeting in Rader Park. We’re using the scriptures from their curriculum as our guide for this.
Interestingly, that makes July a lot about famine.
It is the theme that runs through most of the scriptures in July. I put this picture up for you, um, to show you where within the world famine exists. The places that are colored blue is where famine exists. You can see that the continent of Africa is not in good shape.
But there are other places, one of those places is Palestine. The number one cause of the famine is conflict. I’m going to say conflict, but it’s more than conflict, right? It’s violence. It’s violence that is hurting people. The second reason is the climate crisis. The third reason for famine is the rising costs of food.
So famine is a shortage of food. Which leaves people literally hungering. That causes people to migrate and that is what plays in to our story for today.
Today, we’re gonna look at Joseph. Joseph is a major character in Genesis. In fact, to read his story starts in chapter 37. It’s chapter 37 then it goes to 39, and it’s 39 to 45. You can read all of that and I’m going to try and tell you that in two minutes. Six chapters in two minutes. How’s that? But Joseph’s story is laden with conflict.
It begins when he’s a young boy and he has this dream that he is going to be great. He is one of twelve children to Jacob, the twelve tribes of Israel. Jacob becomes Israel. His name becomes Israel. They are the twelve tribes of Israel, if that rings a bell with you at all. Joseph, he is also his father’s favorite son. He is the firstborn to his father’s favorite wife. Yes, he had two wives. Remember, we can get way down in the weeds, and I’m gonna try not to go in the weeds today. But he is the favored son.
You may have heard of Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat. That was a musical. Joseph gets an ornamental robe. In the King James version of the Bible, it was described as a coat of many colors, which is where Andrew Lloyd Webber ran with the Technicolor Dreamcoat. But his brothers, all of his brothers envy him and decide they need to get rid of him. They need to be done with this troublesome brother. So, they take him out and they end up selling him into slavery. Interestingly, if you look at the backstory, he’s sold to the Ishmaelites, and I’ll let you track that rabbit trail yourself. But he ends up in Egypt at Potiphar’s house, and that doesn’t go well either, and he ends up in prison.
In prison, God continues to be with him. This ability that God has given him to interpret dreams comes in handy. Because they tell the Pharaoh who’s been having these dreams. This is where our scripture that we read today is focused. Where I think we can get caught in the weeds and we can see something amazing about God. When you read this story, it’s especially the scripture we read you can get caught with the lean cows and the dried corn, but what’s really happening if we back out of that detail, what’s really happening there is God is talking to Pharaoh and Pharaoh is listening.
I want you to stop and think about that for a minute. Pharaoh does not worship our God, does not worship the God of Israel, does not worship Joseph’s God. He may have heard of it, but he worships the Egyptian gods. Those are the gods of his people. But suddenly, he’s getting messages from another god. What we would call the one true god, who obviously doesn’t mind, or doesn’t have an issue talking to someone who doesn’t really believe in them, or listen to them, or think about them. That’s the God that we worship. A God who constantly reaches out, even to those who would be in opposition to God’s people.
God chose to talk to Pharaoh, and Pharaoh chose to listen. Think about that. That’s God working in all of that. We haven’t gotten to the Moses story yet, but we’ll hear about how God hardened Pharaoh’s heart. That’s a line from the story, from the Exodus story.
But here, God is softening Pharaoh’s heart because it will put Joseph as second in command of Egypt.
Why is that important? There’s going to be a famine in the land. What’s going to happen? Joseph’s family, the 12 tribes of Israel, are going to come to Egypt because they’re starving and they need food. Joseph is in the right place to help them. So all the conflicts of Joseph’s life, the sibling rivalry and the conflict with Potiphar’s wife that lands him in prison. All of that, God works through all of that to bring Joseph to a place where he can be reconciled, where this family can come back together and be God’s people. That’s how I want you to look at the story.
I had a very hard time finding a picture of Pharaoh. I use the Vanderbilt Christian library and they’ve got thousands of pictures, but not of Pharaoh. Pharaoh is the character in the right bottom corner. This is a picture from the Tuskegee Chapel that was done by the lambs. It’s their singing window and the majority of the characters are African, and it has words of the spirituals on there.
But, I can’t emphasize enough, I want us to think about what that says about who our God is.
That Pharaoh was so moved by God and these dreams that he ignored the ethnicities. He ignored the fact that Joseph was an Israelite. He ignored the different religions, that he didn’t follow the Egyptian gods. He ignored the social classes, because Joseph was a slave. In fact, when Pharaoh chooses him, Joseph is in prison accused of rape. How many people in prison accused of rape would get exonerated and made second in command of a country? Just think about that. We’re talking about a major shift that God brought about for God’s purposes.
Joseph’s interpretation really was not really all that remarkable. In your abundant years, save it. Because there’s going to be lean years. That’s just good economic wisdom, right? Yet, it reminds the people to have a longer vision. Don’t just worry about today and what feels good for today and waste, but look at the longer vision.
Our church is going through lean years and we are trying to take that longer vision.
We’re relying on the abundance that has been part of our heritage. Literally, we say we’re standing on the shoulders of the saints who came before us and their generosity. Because we are in lean years right now. You can be part of making that sustainable through your sustaining gifts. You can be part of continuing that ministry. A ministry of reconciliation within our community, within those whose lives we touch. In ways that we support and advocate for God’s creation. In ways that we welcome all people as children of God and offer inclusive refuge.
So, I have a hard question for you to consider. When, like Pharaoh, do we let go of our need to be right? To be in charge and listen to the wisdom of the one that we perceive as less than us. Because that’s where God’s working through. God’s working through the children, through the youth, through those who have not walked through the doors yet.
I’m also wondering, what are the famines of our lives? For what are you hungry? What are you starving for? What are the situations that can lead us to listen to the wisdom of another?
When we wrote The Mission and Vision, these statements came with the core values. We believe that God’s love is stronger than fear. We value social justice and inclusion. We are called to care for our environment as God’s creation. May these be words of wisdom for us. May they encourage our faith in God who loves and works in the world in ways that we do not understand, and with people that may surprise us.
May they remind us of God’s abundance that we do not have to fear. Thanks be to God, Amen.
I first want to revisit a moment that we had last week when Jonathan was ordained. Because this is a moment that we really need to celebrate.
I want you to feel how important you were in this journey of his to this moment. It’s quite an honor when one of our own reaches that point where they are ordained. It was a great celebration for us.
I took this picture right after Lucy had put the stole on him. That is one of those once in a lifetime moments. You only get your first stole put on you once. That’s why it was so important. I coached Lucy so she knew what she was doing. She was really nervous about it, but it was so important for that to happen for them.
I want to lift up Jonathan, because Jonathan was like the farmer, who, while he was with us, was planting seeds. He planted seeds of love and joy with this entire congregation. With each person he met. As he had events that he was running, he empowered people. He planted seeds with people to take ownership of it and to grow it and to carry it out. He supported them in doing that and he lifted them up. He equipped them for the ministry. He was a seed planter among us. Even if that’s not how you saw him, I just want to name that that is what he was.
Last year, I preached on the parable of the sower, and I used this image, and Jonathan was really struck by this image.
I bring it up again, because we are transitioning to not having Jonathan around anymore. That is bittersweet. We are so happy for him and wish him the best in Connecticut. But I want to name that we also miss him.
But in this picture, the farmer is just frivolously planting seed, just throwing it out with abandonment. That’s not the way most of us who farm or raise gardens plant seed. We don’t just walk and throw seed. Because we want it to produce a crop.
This has been a very frustrating year for me as a farmer. Because we planted three rows of corn and three ears came up. In my first planting three rows, I got three stalks. So we planted again. Now, I’ve got about a row and a half.
A lot of it has to do with rain. We look for just the right soil. We get in there, and we pull all those weeds out and we churn up that soil. I admit, we have a rototiller, so before I plant, I make David go through it at least once so that that ground is really ready. We want to have that good soil.
But that’s not what God does. God just doesn’t do that. Plants everywhere. To see what happens. What I want us to talk about is, what does that tell us about who God is?
A lot of us know the Parable of the Sower. We know where it’s heading. I bet you could tell me where it’s heading. But what if we focus on what it tells us about God? Right?
The normal way to explain this, which, if you keep reading in Mark, Jesus goes on to tell us how we’re supposed to understand it. That we’re supposed to look at the different types of soil as our lives. It sort of leaves us with this, so clean up your life.
You clean up your life so that you’re ready for the seeds that God’s scattering.
If God is scattering this seed everywhere, I just want you to stop and think, does God really care that your life is already cleaned up and the perfect soil before God scatters seeds with you? When I think about that question, my answer comes down to, God accepts all the conditions of our lives.
Whether we’ve got it all together and we are the best soil waiting for God’s seeds or whether our lives are a mess. Some of us, our lives are a mess. Some days are better than others. Right? I think God accepts us and loves us and throws seed our way, whether we’re together or not.
So for those of us who’ve been felt like you were told by the church that you’ve got to get your life together so that you’re acceptable to God, I want to tell you, you’re worthy for God just as you are.
If your life is such that there are circumstances that are beyond your control, whether it has to do with health or situations that have happened that put you in a place that you wish you weren’t. God understands all of that. God loves us in whatever condition our lives are.
But if you’re doing really well, and you think that you’re running your life, well then, maybe we do need to look at our lives. Maybe we do need to look and see if we are allowing others to run our lives. To come in and choke out the good ideas and the good works and the Word of God that God is trying to plant in our lives.
Maybe we need to be more vigilant at paying attention to our lives.
Who are we listening to? Are we listening to people that are feeding us lies? That are just trying to divide us and make us angry? Or are we listening to words that move us to offer God our praise, to work towards love, hope, joy and peace?
Is there evil that is talking to us, that is trying to get our attention? If you prefer evil, evil personified then is Satan, I’m not fond of that, but is Satan trying to lure you away from God, from your relationship with Jesus?
A lot is happening right now about Christianity being conflated with our patriotism. So, I wonder if you believe that only real Americans are Christians, Do you look at the world and see the beauty of the diversities God has created? Or are you afraid that as white Americans, Christians, we’re losing something? Because they’re two very different postures.
If we’re afraid, there are people that will take advantage of the fact that we are afraid and they will make us more afraid. It’s what they will do so that they can run our lives. Or we can make sure that we are open to God’s love, joy, and peace and that we are peacekeepers. That we are the ones who are sharing love, who are helping groups come together, helping people come together.
Are we building communities, or are we dividing communities? Are we inviting people in, or are we pushing people out? Those are the things that we need to think about in our lives. Are we making our world smaller, or are we trying to expand? Because, I believe that we worship an expanding God. This God of Abundance.
This was a picture of my garden and some sweet peas that were not weeded. You know, God didn’t care that I didn’t weed that patch. Right? God would have seeded it anyway. Sometimes we’re even the seed. As I talked about Jonathan spreading seeds, sometimes, we’re the seed to take the word. Sometimes we need to be the farmer that’s sharing the word of God with others. Those that we share it with don’t have to be perfect. We can love everyone just as they are.
So the question is, what seedlings will we nurture?
Our mission and vision statement that we voted on last fall was that we believe that God is calling us to be inclusive and generous, to be a safe space for those who feel powerless and afraid. So, are we trying to nurture the little seedlings among us, those who are struggling with what to believe and how to follow Jesus? Or, are we judging people to make sure that they are the right soil? Whatever that might mean.
I think in those phrases, we are naming that we are not afraid. It’s the most repeated phrase in the Bible, do not be afraid. Our mission and vision statement implies that we are not afraid. That we want to live out our calling by God to love others. That we welcome those who are looking to learn about Jesus without requiring them to change.
Jesus reached out and invited people to know another way of living. That is what we are to do, to invite others to know the love we have found. To invite another to find the support we have found. To invite another to experience Christ’s grace and peace, and invite another to find community here.
It’s time to put our faith into action. By living in God’s abundance, rather than being trapped in a mindset of scarcity, we have many gifts to share. Let us be about it. Amen.
