Dear Friends, I am trying to be more courageous. I believe courage is a much-needed but under-appreciated virtue and during Lent this year I am taking a couple actions that, I hope, will strengthen me on my quest for courage. First, I am going to try to fast one day a week. Fasting is an ancient spiritual practice that people do for…
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Friday, March 15th at 7pm, join Congresswoman Jackie Speier as she presents her book Undaunted : Surviving Jonestown, Summoning Courage, and Fighting Back. The book is an inspiring and powerful memoir of surviving the Jonestown massacre and becoming a fearless voice against injustice and inequality. Admission is free; we hope you can join us for what is sure to be an inspiring…
Dear church family, Many of us spent last weekend up at the beautiful Ralston-White retreat center, among the trees and under the stars, enjoying our annual Women’s Retreat. Thanks are due to Jean Roggenkamp, Margaretha Derasery, and Gloria Alexander for their leadership on this amazing weekend, as well as the many people who shared talents and time to build a weekend full…
SUPPORT OUR YOUTH GROUP: EAT LUNCH! Yes, for a simple donation ($10 suggested, any amount welcome) this week, May 6th, you can enjoy a delicious BBQ lunch after church and support the youth’s annual mission trip. This year they are going to New York City where they will serve in the “four star soup kitchen,” help out at rooftop gardens, provide food…
FROM THE PASTOR’S PEN Friends, Last weekend I stopped by Black Swan Books on Piedmont Avenue, where I picked up a slim volume called The Fisherman’s Saint by Sir Wilfred Grenfell. Before purchasing the book I knew nothing of the author and not much about fishing; I know more about saints than do most Presbyterians, but that’s not why I bought the…
Dear friends, When I send reminders to our nursery volunteers or Godly Play teachers, I usually include a little sentence like “thank you for your ministry with our young ones.” We believe that Godly Play is as important as Celebration – that it is just another form of worshiping God – and though the nursery may fly under the radar it is…
Many of you were there on Sunday to hear our incredible choir, plus Anne Daniel and guest musicians, bring us a real treat. With pieces by Mozart and Haydn, they made our spirits soar… or at least, I’ll speak for myself – my spirit certainly soared on their musical wings! But there were two more treats for us on Sunday – one…
Dear Friends, Spring is here! Those of us who enjoy gardening are eagerly getting seeds in the ground, setting up watering systems for the drier days to come, and planning future harvests. Some expert-level gardeners I know are already gathering in their spring crops and bragging about their peas and artichokes on Facebook (show-offs! ;-). And with less enjoyment, but surely plenty…
Friends, I wanted to give you an update on the bridge over Temescal Creek. A few weeks ago, our congregation gave me the go-ahead to close down the bridge in front of our sanctuary building. Originally our plan was to repair the bridge in places where it was starting to rot, but upon closer inspection, it turned out the rot was more…
In the midst of this week of great cognitive dissonance, in the days between celebrating the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and inaugurating our 45th president, in these short days and long dark rainy nights, I have found a new joy and blessed distraction: creating mosaic art. When we were preparing the manse for move-in, our contractor and adviser, Leonard Nielsen,…