Pastor’s Corner June 2017
June 4th is Pentecost Sunday, when we remember and celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit onto/into the followers of Jesus, and thus the beginning of the church in mission to the world. We live in the reality of the Holy Spirit at work in the world, and at work in each of us. We are Spirit-filled people, Spirit-filled followers of Jesus Christ, and as such we are called and sent into the world, whether next door or far away, to witness to the mighty acts of God, to witness to grace, and to witness to divine love. In the power of the Holy Spirit, we are God’s people, and we are to be examples of love and forgiveness at all times.
Pentecost also means we will be celebrating the Confirmation of 10 of our young people. Ten youth will be affirming their baptism on June 4th. These outstanding young men and women will be confirmed during the 10:15 worship, and a brief reception will be held in their honor following worship in the Fellowship Hall. I hope many of you will be present to rejoice with these young men and women as the affirm their baptism and enter into a new phase in their lifelong journey of faith.
Now for an old joke – Q: How many Lutherans does it take to change a light bulb? A: Change!?!?!?
Starting on June 18th (which is also Father’s Day), we will be changing our worship schedule for the summer. At its meeting on May 2nd, our Worship and Music Committee voted to change our worship schedule for the summer from two services to only one. That’s right, starting June 18th, and continuing through Labor Day weekend, we will have only one worship service on Sunday, and that service will be at 9:00 AM.
The hope in doing this is that the folks who regularly attend our 8:00 AM worship, and the folks who regularly attend our 10:15 AM worship will now have the chance to worship together, as one large congregation, during the summer months. There will still be Welcome Center following worship, for additional fellowship time.
This change involves some compromise regarding Holy Communion. At 8:00 AM, we celebrate the sacrament every week, but at 10:15 AM, we celebrate the sacrament only on the first Sunday of the month. During the summer, we will celebrate Holy Communion on the first and fourth Sundays of each month. Praise Service will still be in the third Sunday, and the second Sunday will be a service of prayer and preaching.
I am excited about this opportunity for us to worship together as one joint congregation this summer, and I hope many of you will take advantage of this opportunity to come together as the one Body of Christ here in Obelisk, lifting our voices, hearts, and lives to God at 9:00 AM, each Sunday through the summer.
Embrace the change! See you in church!
Peace,
Pr. Paul