Good morning, friends!
Our worship service and other morning activities are cancelled today due to snow. Enjoy a day at home. Be safe. Give thanks to God for the wonder of the seasons.
While we won't gather together this morning, we can still "have church" right here on the Internet.
Music
Rachel Barham, our soprano soloist/section leader has a YouTube channel where she has recorded some lovely music.
Click here
for her Epiphany offering, "Brightest and Best." Rachel's entire holiday series is
here
.
Sermon
Giving
You can even take part in an at-home offering this morning. You may
give online to Westmoreland here
. Another way to give would be to take some time today and write two or three emails or notes to fellow church folks -- tell them you appreciate and love them.
Prayer
The following prayer -- written about the government shutdown -- is from United Methodist pastor, Melanie Weldon-Soiset
.
Loving God,
We give you thanks for today.
We thank you for the breath in our bodies,
and for waking us up this morning.
Our lives are your good gifts to us.
Yet you know, God, that we are hurting.
We feel the lack of a functional government.
Some of us feel the lack of paychecks and provision.
We are hungry, angry, and scared.
We call our leaders to repentance, God.
Take away their hearts of stone, and give them hearts of flesh.
Only you can do this.
Where are you in this disruption, God?
Change our own hearts so we can see you.
The problems are so big.
Yet we thank you that you are bigger than this mess.
You have used crises in the past to birth creative, new ideas.
You put flesh on dry bones before.
We ask you to resurrect our current country.
In this disruption, teach us compassion.
May we look up and notice the pain of the other.
In this disruption, challenge our assumptions.
Reveal yourself in the fissures.
Expand our universe.
In this disruption, strengthen our faith.
May we know you anew as Parent, Sovereign, and Friend.
Feed us, fill us, heal us, Holy One.
Have mercy on us.
We pray for storytellers.
May they refresh us with the ways
you steadfastly loved our ancestors.
May we stop, look, and listen to the stories you are telling us now.
In Your Holy Name We Pray,
Amen.
Love, warmth, and hope to you all on this snow-draped Sunday morning.
Tim Tutt
PS. For information about the Green Stairwell concert planned for tonight,
click here
.
