Pastor’s Corner – January 2021

It’s the new year – at last! The past season of Advent and waiting seemed like a good image for the whole of the year 2020. Waiting. Waiting for the crazy and stress to end. Yet in spite of the crazy and stress of 2020, there were great things that happened. God was on the move. 

First Thessalonians 5:19 says, “do not quench the spirit.” That means don’t extinguish the Holy Spirit, don’t try to squelch what God is doing. So many things in the year 2020 seemed as though they tried to extinguish the Spirit, but the spirit of God was not extinguished, blown out, or quenched. God was at work. One example – of many – was that our worship continued. We took worship online and later, both online and in person. 

2021, I pray, will be a great year. I believe already that it will a great year. Our congregation will celebrate 100 years of worshipping and serving during 2021. Our stories will be told and His story will be told that our neighbors and our community may know Christ. 

In this start of our 100th year, it’s only fitting to learn more of God’s story. God’s story in the Scriptures guides our lives, teaches us, renews us, and draws us closer to Him. To equip us, this month we’ll begin the “E100 Challenge.” The E100 is a list of 100 essential Bible lessons from creation to Revelation that we’ll join together in enjoying. The E100 idea was designed by Scripture Union. The E100 is designed to be a personal challenge and a community challenge. You can enjoy it daily for a span of 100 days or over six months, a year, or over some other timeframe. This is great for seasoned Bible readers as well as those who keep thinking, “I really need to get in the habit of reading my Bible.” 

“As you take the E100® Challenge, remember that your goal is not just to make it through the world’s greatest book, or to gain more Bible knowledge, or to become more spiritually disciplined. Those things are very important, but your higher goal is to get to know the Bible’s author, God himself. The reason God gave us the Bible is that he wants us to know who he is. It really is true: if you want to know God, read his Book” (Scripture Union). 

There are three ways to participate in the 100 on our 100th. Mix and match the ways as you have need or as you desire: 

  1. You can use the enclosed list to read from your Bible and track your progress. 
  2. You can go to our E100 web page (located under Worship/Study), click on the Read link for the day, and read from your computer or mobile device. 
  3. Or, using your computer or mobile device, there is a third way to participate. Using the website, you can click on the Listen link and be directed to Bible Gateway to use a play button and have the verses read to you. For readings that enter a new chapter, you will need to use their pull-down (circled) to select the next chapter. 

We enter a new year, full of promise. We enter our 100th year as the community of Saint Paul. And we enter into the essential 100 Bible lessons. In this new year, in our 100th, it is my prayer that we continue to fan the flame of faith in one another (2 Timothy 1:6) and in our neighborhood. 

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor’s Corner – October 2020

I read an interesting article near the end of September. It detailed a person who was following worship communities during COVID. The article noted that, like the rest of the population, people were getting COVID fatigue. However, it found that worship communities were largely doing one of two things. Either the community was trying to do things as normal and was found grieving for all the loses or the community was adaptive. Not surprisingly, those communities trying to do things as normal were finding less engagement with members and less giving. The other communities were trying to do meaningful things in adaptive ways. They found engagement and either solid giving or even a rise in giving. I give thanks to God as I believe Saint Paul is in this second category.

While these may be trying times and unprecedented times, the times offer us an opportunity to be creative. They offer us an opportunity to be creative at worship and in fellowship and in service. The outdoor fellowship time after worship on September 27th is just one example. Coffee, tea, pre-packaged snacks and our lawn chairs in the parking lot allowed for socially distant visiting. This is but one example of this community’s creativity and faithfulness to God and to one another.

This October is the commemoration of Saint Francis. He was known to care for the animals and to recognize that God gave people the responsibility of caring for God’s creatures. For many of us, God’s creatures have been just the furry/scaly/feathery companions needed during these times. On Saturday, October 3rd, weather providing, will be an animal blessing, near the garden. For this outdoor worship, we’ll be socially distanced and enjoy God’s creatures out in God’s creation. It is a short service that includes a blessing and a treat for the pet/animal. Animals need to be in a carrier, on a leash or harness, in a cage or terrarium, or with a bridle.

Other ideas for fellowship and service include three types of exchanges – purse, book, and puzzle. In these, participants exchange these items (fellowship) and donate from that group (service) good quality purses/books/puzzle to various places such as to a women’s shelter, to the school(s), to Longview. These could be conducted in the fellowship hall with distancing, masks, and cleaning. The purse exchange will be October 17th at 1pm. See the blurb in the Pilot for more details.

What other serving things can you think of? Social things? We welcome creative ideas in worship, in reaching out to others socially, and in serving. How can we worship and live out our faith while keeping people safe during the pandemic? Don’t keep the ideas to yourself. Email them to Lori and I: Secretary@StPaulMoValley.org and Pastor@StPaulMoValley.org . Suggestions and volunteers are always welcome. Thank you, God, for a thriving community!

To God be the Glory,

Pastor’s Corner – September 2020

It was nice to take a few days off toward the end of August. I decided to do what apparently many are doing during this COVID season – I cleaned and organized. It was quite therapeutic – refreshing and comforting. Thank you for those days away. As August rolled into September, the dog days of summer reminded us that the season of fall is coming soon. That too will be refreshing as we enjoy familiar milestones.

September is the month we work out in the community, doing good works with God’s Work, Our Hands. God’s Work, Our Hands Sunday will be the 13th. We will help out at Watson Station. Additionally, families can sign up to help seniors with yard work. Watson Station will be expecting us on the 13th. The yard work help need not take place only on the 13th.

We also celebrate the return of Sunday school and confirmation class in September. This year, Rally Sunday and the blessing of the backpack charms will be September 20th. Sunday school teachers, public school teachers, paraprofessionals, and substitutes will be recognized and blessed too.

As the current confirmation class begins year two, there are seven youth to be confirmed. The seven youth who were to be confirmed in May will be confirmed at 9am on September 13th. The 9am time will allow the youth, family and friends to have first seating in the sanctuary. The remaining sanctuary seating and fellowship hall seating can then be filled in. The confirmation will also be live-streamed on our Facebook page and on our new website – www.stpaulmovalley.org .

May you be invigorated by cooler temperatures this month and may you be refreshed, comforted by the familiar.

“Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work.” –2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

To God be the Glory,