Yearly Archives: 2022

Pastor’s Letter Feb. 9, 2022

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Two people ice skating and holding one another in the middle of a snow storm.

Good afternoon Beloved,

Many blessings on this beautiful day that God has created for all of us – for all people and all of creation. I pray that you are each able to enjoy the moments of today before they slip away. Yet, I was thinking, is not this the very blessing that we hope and pray for throughout life? To enjoy every moment, especially those moments we are able to spend with the people we love. Is not this the truth that God teaches us as we wander through life? 

I believe it is. I believe every moment of life is a gift that God has created for you. And every moment you spend with the people you love is something even better. It is a reflection of the kin-dom which Christ is preparing for everyone. So, if my belief is true, what are we saying when we let grudges, hurt feelings, old wounds get in the way of the joy we could be experiencing? Are we saying God’s gift of that moment is not important? Are we saying the person in front of us is not important? Or are we simply saying that our pain is more important than living in the loving moments God is revealing to us every day? Personally, I am not sure, nor would I make that judgment on anyone. 

For me though, I can say that every moment I spend fixated on the bitter cold pain of life are moments that I am not spending cuddling under the blanket of love. This point is not a call to ignore the negative moments of life. No, we must be aware of them; but I pray you do not let them consume your every waking hour. For, if you do then you may just miss out on the beautiful day which we are experiencing right now. 

Happy Valentine’s Day, Beloved

I pray you enjoy each and every moment with the people you love; for, this gift is a reflection of God’s kin-dom here on Earth. 

Your pastor and teacher, Brian

Please consider these thoughts and the teachings of Jesus during Epiphany. If you would like, you may text, call, or email me always to talk. As I am here to support you and your relationship with God wherever you are on the journey. My number is (207-350-9561) if you need anything or simply want to talk. Next week, my pastoral care hours are Mon. 9-4, Tues. 12-5, Wed. 9-4, Thurs. 10-2 to provide some time for visiting. Many blessings and Love to you all.

Pastor’s Letter Feb. 2, 2022

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An image of Jesus walking hand in hand with a child through the woods.

Good afternoon Beloved,

I pray you are each having a beautiful day and are “at one with God.” I share this blessing because too often we humans are not “at one with God,” or as other pastors might explain “right relationship with God.” However, for me this latter term of right relationship beckons that there is also a wrong relationship – a human judgment of right and wrong – or some clear-cut answer of how we must be in a relationship with God. Wouldn’t that be nice if everything were that simple. It’s not though, is it? 

Every relationship we have with every individual person in our life is different and also changes throughout time. The relationship we have with each of our children is different as are the relationships we have with each and every one of our friends, parents, and fellow parishioners. Relationships, I hope will grow stronger as you spend more time together learning about each other. Yet, those understandings and desires of the other person may change over time. I know mine have. What I understood at five years old when all girls had “cooties” has definitely changed over the years. Why then would our understanding of God not change, grow, evolve. And, why would God have the same relationship with each of us throughout our entire life?

This point is not to say God has favorites or treats some people better than others. Rather, the point is that our relationship with God is more individual than a clear-cut human understanding of right and wrong. It is about being at one with God – at peace with the Divine – in relationship with the one who loves us into Creation. It is a relationship we are called to nurture and respect in a kind and loving way. Not with the ego of, this way is “RIGHT” and that way is “WRONG”; but with, ‘this way of our relationship’ right now is comforting to me and brings me peace. At one with God at this point on my journey to the kin-dom. 

That said, being at one with God is only one part of the journey – a layover – that is good; but does not take us any closer to our destination. For us to continue on the Way, we must be challenged and challenge our understanding against others. Not in violence, but in the love that Christ has for us all. Worship, Christian Education, even the ONA learning Sessions are amazing ways for you to challenge others and your understanding while nurturing your relationship with God. Not because I say so; but because this place is your home – your safe place – your church where you have many relationships with many people. People who love and care for you always. One of the places where you are at one with all of us in fellowship. 

I pray you continue to nurture your own relationship with God and all of us as we learn, grow and nurture our relationships together in this Beloved fellowship.

your Pastor and Teacher, Brian

Please consider these thoughts and the teachings of Jesus during Epiphany. If you would like, you may text, call, or email me always to talk. As I am here to support you and your relationship with God wherever you are on the journey. My number is (207-350-9561) if you need anything or simply want to talk. Next week, my pastoral care hours are Mon. 9-4, Tues. 12-5, Wed. 9-4, Thurs. 10-2 to provide some time for visiting. Many blessings and Love to you all.

Pastor’s Letter Jan. 26, 2022

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Good morning, 

May God’s love always find and guide you through the storms of our lives. For, storms will come and there is only so much we can do to prepare for these events ahead of time. Yes, we can go to the grocery stores, pull out the snow shovels, cover our windshields with snow shields; but, in the end, the snow will come. And we as individuals have to face the pile of white fluffy stuff falling from the sky eventually. So, how do we face the storm?

In truth Beloved, there are a lot of theories about how we accomplish this eventuality and many ideas about motivation. Many of these ideas speak on the difference between an external motivation like we have to go to work and an internal one like when we want to go visit someone. Both get us out into the cold. Yet, most theories believe that the internal source is a longer lasting and more healthy way to endure the storm. If you had not guessed, I am speaking about more than just the weather. I am also speaking about the storms in our life where no motivation will get us out from under the covers. Storms of health, depression, loss, etc. What motivates us then to get up, breathe deep, and face the eventual storm?

Now as your pastor and teacher, it would be lovely to think everyone is going to say God; but, let us be human as well and realize what actually does get us up in the middle of the storm. What sends us out in the middle of the night when our child is sick with a whooping cough and needs medicine. What is it that causes us to drive halfway across the country in the middle of a blizzard when our grandmother gets in a car accident? What motivates us to hold and care for our husbands as the storm of sickness carries away their personality? Any ideas? How about love, beloved? The simple and powerful gift of love. Yes, I believe love is the great motivator which sends each of us into the white flurries of the storm, every time. Thank be to God; for, God is Love. Hmm, maybe everyone can say – God gets us through.

In all seriousness, Beloved, this truth is the very reality of our faith; God is not an external or internal source motivating us through the storms. But the One who provides meaning to our lives by inspiring us with love as they traverse the storms with us. The storms that will eventually come and the storms which will eventually end. This love, which is from God, will allow us to face the white stuff falling from the sky – every time. 

May you always be blessed by the Love of God as we traverse the storms together

Your pastor and teacher, Brian

Please consider these thoughts and the teachings of Jesus during Epiphany. If you would like, you may text, call, or email me always to talk. As I am here to support you and would be happy to hear how you are surviving the storms of your life. My number is (207-350-9561) if you need anything or simply want to talk. Next week, my pastoral care hours are Mon. 9-4, Tues. 12-5, Wed. 9-4, Thurs. 10-2 to provide some time for visiting. Many blessings and Love to you all.

Pastor’s Letter Jan. 19, 2022

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Good afternoon, Beloved,

         I pray the day finds you well and free from the pretzel-like troubles of this world. These troubles that we are enduring so often today, though, are only intensified because we cannot find a solution. At least not one which seems acceptable due to the lines being drawn in the sand and people flocking to one tribe or another. We have seen this time and time again. The conflicts created by doing anything in the old familiar way as compared to the new changes being innovated in an ever-changing world. 

Now, I believe we can see these conflicts happen in generational differences, political differences, and yes even in religious differences. We even see this reality creep out over small things like mask use: should they be required for the greater good or should they be avoided due to their inefficiency and propensity to cause health problems for people. The problem is that somewhere along the line people stopped listening with an open heart to the opposing perspectives. And decided the arguments were either / or. I am right and moral and you are wrong and immoral. Why would we do anything else as there is so little time in our world to hear the voices of our friends, let alone those others who do not believe as we do. 

Why? Because, Beloved, God calls to all people – all genders – all identities – all of Creation. And if we cannot find a solution amongst our perspective then maybe…just maybe, we need to learn from another source to discover the middle ground in a world of divisions. For our reopening team that place in the middle was and is the individual discernment and choice of mask use for each person. A decision, I believe, was the most faithful choice they could make. Well done.

Perhaps this gift we give ourselves to learn though will also allow us to follow the faithful call to teach one another – another tribe – another Beloved child; so, we call all be held by God together. With this thought in mind, I offer these words from another source about the teachings of Christ and how we deal with the changing church of today. 

Lest We Burst

By John Engleton

Jesus told them this parable: “No one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, ‘The old is better.’” – Luke 5:37-39

Between 2008 and 2019 I led worship approximately twelve hundred times, give or take a hundred. Leading services three times a week for almost eight years really ran up the numbers. I went from wobbly and nervous to loose and confident. I’m not boasting, just pointing out that practicing something a thousand times really helps.

Since the pandemic began, I’ve led worship maybe a hundred times. And those one hundred times have been in at least four or five formats that were new to me: live on Zoom, pre-recorded on YouTube, livestreamed in the sanctuary, outdoors on the lawn, a hybrid of all the above. I’m back to wobbly and nervous, and I don’t like it. I miss the old wine of well-known ways of worship. I’ve tasted the new and I would say, “The old is better!”

It’s okay if the time of worship during Covid isn’t your favorite. It’s okay if it doesn’t measure up to what used to be. No one should expect it to. This is a time of new wine. This time has to be given room to breathe and expand, to become whatever it will become. Our job as the church is to learn new lessons and strengthen new muscles. Our job as the church is to stretch and flex.

Because we aren’t the wine. We are the wineskins.

Prayer

God, this time is hard for us. Help us to worship you in beauty and truth, in new ways.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

John EdgertonJohn Edgerton is Lead Pastor at First United Church of Oak Park, Illinois.

May all of these thoughts help guide you to find the place God is calling you too, not on one side or another; but in the loving place which encompasses all of Creation together. 

Your pastor and teacher, Brian

Please consider these thoughts during Epiphany. If you would like, you may text, call, or email me always. As I would enjoy hearing how you feel are stretching and growing in these times. My number is (207-350-9561) if you need anything or simply want to talk. Next week, My pastoral care hours are Mon. 9-4, Tues. 12-5, Wed. 9-4, Thurs. 10-2 to provide some time for visiting. Many blessings and Love to you all.

Pastor’s Letter Jan. 12, 2022

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An image of seven hands, all different colors, making the shape of a heart.

Good afternoon, Beloved,

         I pray you all made it through the arctic cold of yesterday in the warmth of God’s love. Love that we see reflected in the lessons of Jesus time and time again. So much so that it almost seems that this act of love is well – important. And I believe it is. Furthermore, I believe we all know this idea is True as the act of loving one another is part of our call as Christians. 

         That said, the body of Christ is not made up of only one human culture. Creation itself does not consist of only one particular culture. Rather, there are a variety of cultures with an untold amount of different identity combinations amongst the billions of people in the world and each person experiences love in a slightly different way. Almost mind boggling to consider the possibilities. Yet, these are some of the things that I think about as I drift off to sleep at night. Hopefully not keeping myself awake wondering about the inevitable question: how do we show God’s love to all these possibilities of people, like Christ does for all of us? 

         This question becomes more important today as we approach our national holiday celebrating Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King JR. One of the great heroes of the Civil Rights movement who preached and taught about love, time and time again. Yet even King’s lessons about love were from a particular culture. One which some Americans today would not recognize as loving at all such as the “Dream” of MLK JR that one day we will all be color blind, i.e. that people will only be judged on their character – not their skin color. For him, I believe this idea was one of the greatest acts of love a person could show another person. Today, this idea is seen as an act of hate amongst some people; for, “color blindness (they say) does not recognize the individual and the varieties of identities said individual represents.” So, how do we show God’s love to both views – all views – all cultural understandings of how one feels love? Can we? 

         I believe we can, and I believe Jesus shows us the way. Not as we may understand love traditionally in our culture; but as, the individual person who we encounter needs to feel love in their culture. Is this not the way God reveals Her love to us every time He answers our prayers, grants us Grace, and holds us when we need a loving friend? Maybe this idea is the true message of MLK JR. day and one of the lessons of the Epiphany: that love is revealed when it is received as it is needed to be felt.

May your week be a blessing of discovering new ways we can love everyone no matter where they are on their journey through life.

Your pastor and teacher, Brian

Please feel free to consider these questions and thoughts during Epiphany. If you would like, you may text, call, or email me always. As I would enjoy hearing how you feel love. My number is (207-350-9561) if you need anything or simply want to talk. Next week, My pastoral care hours are Mon. 9-4, Tues. 12-5, Wed. 9-4, Thurs. 10-2 to provide some time for visiting. Many blessings and Love to you all.

Pastor’s Letter Jan. 5, 2022

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Good afternoon, Beloved,

I pray you are all well on this wet and wonderful Wednesday – on this last day before the Epiphany. As I thought about what to write today, I wondered what does this Holy day mean to you? What is the Epiphany? Why is it important for us Christians, specifically for us in the United Church of Christ who are Trinitarian by nature? What blessing did and do we receive on this day which changes our very understanding of the world – our perception – our purpose? These are questions that may be answered by reflecting on the meaning of Epiphany. 

Then again, it may just be a Thursday for you tomorrow and that is ok as well. For, we are each at a different point on our journey. Yet, if it is just a Thursday then consider what is important for you about that day. The day we are living in right now. Every day of the year and what has and is occurring to make these blessings so wonderful. I believe you will see some of the same purposes as those who consider Epiphany a high Holy day. Yet is this not always the case with so many things. We each witness the world and perceive it in various ways; yet, the basic purpose – solution – and even causes can sometimes be the same. We formulate our world looking for a right answer so we can all be on the same page, if you will.

Yet, the truth is there are no right answers for everyone but there are right answers for you. And we learn by hearing the understanding of other people. This truth is part of what we mean when we say all people are ministers. We all have something to share with each other and the world. For, God does speak and share through each and every one of us. So, I pray you will consider the questions above and consider sharing your understanding with each other. So, we may all witness your voice even if it shakes – or is considered wrong by some -even if it speaks in ways we do not all understand. Your voice matters and I for one would be lost without hearing it as we walk through this journey of life together.

May today be a blessing as we discover the beauty of Thursday and the Epiphany – together.

Your pastor and fellow teacher, Brian

Please feel free to consider these questions and bring your thoughts to our Epiphany pageant this Sunday. There may even be a time for us to all share our voice. If you would like, you may also text, call, or email me and I will be happy to share your voice in the service. As always please call (207-350-9561) if you need anything or simply want to talk. Next week, My pastoral care hours are Mon. 8-4, Tues. 12-5, Wed. 8-4, Thurs. 10-2 to provide some time for visiting. However, if I am at the church please come in. Many blessings and Love to you all.