Good morning,
A bright new day is born again! Let us be grateful. One of the ironies about the church is that a large majority of church members do not like change, yet, God is all about change! God creates and calls us to change, to be made new. “Today I am doing something new, something you cannot say you have heard before.” (Isaiah 48:7) “ Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The past is forgotten, and everything is new.’ (II Corinthians 5:17) Something new is happening right now. Our world is changing. Our lives are changing. Right before our eyes. What was will never be again. The challenge and opportunity for the church is clear: will our faith in the Risen Christ guide and inspire us as we re-enter a nation going back to work? From Jesus’ mission statement in Luke 4: The Lord has sent me to tell good news to the poor, to announce freedomfor prisoners, to give sight to the blind,to free everyone who suffers, and to say, ‘This is the year the Lord has chosen.’” Will we Christians be handmaids of the Lord, who is doing something new? May the Spirit that was in Jesus Christ, be in you, Pastor Michael Good morning,
During tomorrow morning’s worship service (Shaun will tell us more about that later today) I will read the hope-filled words of Jesus, “I came that they (the sheep who hear his voice) might have life and have it abundantly.” We may be tempted to wonder if abundant life is even possible during this Covid 19 pandemic. Good news – abundant life is here, among us, alive and well. For Christians , every day is another opportunity to celebrate and discover more about the power of Jesus’ resurrection. “Jesus’s resurrection is the beginning of God’s new project not to snatch people away from earth to heaven but to colonize earth with the life of heaven. That, after all, is what the Lord’s Prayer is about.” (N.T. Wright) During this shut down, we might feel as though we are stuck in a dark, boring tomb, yet it is in a tomb that our resurrection faith began. Pray that our eyes and heart be open to the abundant life among us, even now. May the Lord make his face to shine upon you, Pastor Michael Good morning all,
I thought I would take a moment to share with you what has inspired me this morning. First of all… most of our congregation’s mission budget supports the work of the Wilkinsburg Community Ministry; here is an update: WCM Food Pantry Weekly Numbers Persons Number of People Picking Up 560 Number of People in a Household 2.5 Total People being served 1400 Total Food Bank Lbs per Week 3000 Total Lbs per person per week 2.14 WCM is our very busy mission arm into the local community. Two ways to support them are to call 412-241-8072 and offer to volunteer. If you are under 65 years old – you could probably help out. OR. Go to the WCM website to donate www.wcm15221.org Thank you. Secondly, I love this quote from Pope Francis, his heart is with the people – a role model for all world leaders. “Rivers do not drink their own water; trees do not eat their own fruit; the sun does not shine on itself and flowers do not spread their fragrance for themselves. Living for others is a rule of nature. We are all born to help each other. No matter how difficult it is…Life is good when you are happy; but much better when others are happy because of you.” Grace and peace everyone, Pastor Michael |
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