The Giant Tree in the Narthex

You may have noticed the giant Christmas tree in the Narthex (that is the church word for the lobby outside the sanctuary main doors). You are invited to bring an ornament for the tree to represent your family. This is a tradition that was started many years ago but there is still lots of room on the tree for new ornaments. We would love to see it fill up with symbols of each of our families- new and constant. This is a beautiful way to connect us together as the body of Christ in a tangible way. The symbol of the evergreen tree reminds us of the constance of God. The ornaments remind us of the gifts that the Magi presented to the family in celebration of the life of the Christ child. Gathering on one tree together reminds us that we are not walking in the journey called life alone. I hope you will pause and take a moment to consider each of the ornaments and the sacred connection that we have to each other.

We seem to be in a season of grief as a congregation. Last year, I officiated the most funerals of any year in my ministry. On All Saints Sunday, I reminisced that we had had only eight funerals this year but that they were significant. Since then we have had four more Saints of our congregation return to be with God. As believers, we celebrate the end of suffering and the new life that we can only imagine. But even as we celebrate, this much loss this quickly hurts. It is rare for a United Methodist minister to have had the long history that I am blessed to have with this congregation- first as the Youth Director, then as the Associate Pastor and now as the Senior Pastor. While that long relationship has been wonderful, it also makes the funerals so much harder. It reminds me how every member of the congregation, who chooses to, can become significant to the rest of us. I have never understood how some people can navigate life without a church family. I pray that each of you will get involved in some way that binds you in love to others. We are planning to start a new adult Sunday school class in January for those of you who do not currently have a small group and have found it difficult to connect to an existing group. Please let me know if you would like to be part of this.

This week we will be focusing on LOVE for Advent and this understanding that God is with us. The very name Emmanuel means “God with us.” The theological significance of the birth of Jesus is called the Incarnation. We will be examining our understanding of what this means. I hope you will join us.

Reflecting,