November 28, 2022 Antoinette Richardson
Advent is a time of waiting, anticipating the coming of Jesus Christ in a physical body just like ours. Christians everywhere and throughout time have used Advent to reflect, to deepen their experience of God coming to us in the flesh.
For Advent this year, the members of the Ministry of Adult Spiritual Growth have decided to try something different. In the past, we have offered special Sunday morning Advent classes as a way for people could enhance their spiritual growth. However, many people find attending Sunday morning classes difficult or not appealing. We know that such classes reach only a small portion of our worshiping community.
At our most recent meeting, we considered ways to reach out to the entire church community during Advent. We decided to have an Advent Email each week on Monday morning, with a reflection about the theme of the week and its application to everyday life. We know that our fellow church member, Jean Reinhold, has written wonderfully poetic Advent reflections. So we asked, and Jean has generously agreed that we can use her writings for our Advent emails this year.
Each week during Advent, you will receive an emailed reflection by Jean on the theme of the week from the Ministry of Adult Spiritual Growth. You will find the first Advent email, on the theme of Hope, on the next page. We hope that you will read and re-read this reflection throughout the week as a way of deepening your experience of this time of waiting.
from Ann Williams and the entire Ministry of Adult Spiritual Growth
Tags: Adult Ed, advent, faith, growth, trust, WorshipDecember 2, 2018 Peg Weissbrod
A person is talking to God, and asks “God, how long is a million years?”
God answers, “To me, it’s about a minute.”
“God, how much is a million dollars?”
God says, “To me, it’s a penny.”
Person says, “God, may I have a penny?”
God says, “Wait a minute.”
December 10, 2017 Peg Weissbrod
There was once a young preacher who was given this advice: If, in the middle of your sermon, you forget your train of thought, just step back, pound the podium, and repeat the title of the sermon – and that will get you back on track! Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: acting, action, advent, beloved, Christmas, comfort, community, dis-ease, discomfort, ease, fear, hope, Isaiah 40:1-11, love, Mark 1:1-8, Right in Your Lap, tension, waitingDecember 3, 2017 Peg Weissbrod
Happy New Year! I bet you didn’t see that coming, did you? But you know today’s the first day of the new worship year. Indeed, the church calendar begins in Advent and runs through the year until Christ the King Sunday, or the celebration of the rule of Christ which we marked last week. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: advent, Advent 1, communion, community, faith community, First Sunday in Advent, Happy New Year, hope, liturgical year, Mark 13: 24-37, Parker Palmer, Stay Awake, suffering, support, tensionDecember 11, 2016 Peg Weissbrod
Happy Gaudete Sunday! Today is the third Sunday of Advent, known as Gaudete Sunday, from the Latin imperative for “Rejoice!” You may notice that the Garretts lit a pink candle on the Advent wreath as well as the purple candles from weeks one and two. That pink candle symbolizes joy and so I say to you, “Rejoice!” Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: advent, hope, Luke 1, magnificat, Mary, Philippians 4, rejoice, tensionNovember 27, 2016 Peg Weissbrod
As you know, today is the First Sunday of Advent. Throughout Advent we prepare for the coming of Jesus. When we talk about preparing for Jesus it’s a little confusing, even for those of us who have been a part of the church for a long time. During Advent we prepare for the birth of Jesus. But as some people have wisely pointed out–wasn’t Jesus born last year? Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: advent, communion, curious, hope, incarnation, keep watch, mystery, prepare, ready, Romans 13, surprise, waiting, watchful, witnessDecember 6, 2015 Peg Weissbrod
I come to the task of preaching this morning with a heavy heart. And I want to acknowledge that, because I imagine that you, too, have strong feelings about the violence and chaos that are being unleashed on the world at a terrifying pace. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: advent, expectations, food pantry, God's ways, history, justice, Labre, Luke 3, prepare, relationships, repentance, terrorismNovember 29, 2015 Peg Weissbrod
Preparations for Christmas begin every year at this time. The season is called Advent, which means Coming. During this season we are to wait and watch and look for signs of the coming of God. We look for signs of Jesus – incarnation – God taking on flesh. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: advent, birth, change, Christmas, crossroads, fear, hope, Luke 21, pain, risk, staff, waiting
RSS
