Loading...O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from thy ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of thy Word, Jesus Christ thy Son; who with thee and the Holy Spirit liveth and reigneth, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Collect for 2nd Sunday in Lent, pg. 166, Book of Common Prayer
Be gracious to all who have gone astray from thy ways.... This sentence of our Collect for Sunday stands out for me in two ways.
1. How have I and how have we gone astry from God's ways? As I'm writing this, I'm also listening to a forum with Bryan Stevenson at The Washington National Cathedral on February 14.
Joanne Pinaire first told me about Mr. Stevenson and I have taken every opportunity to listen to him. Not only was he the forum speaker, but he also was the preacher at the service. His sermon is one of the most thought-provoking I've heard in some time.
Mr. Stevenson is a lawyer and is the founder and Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative. He is the author of the book, Just Mercy. He's forcing me to think about our justice system and its faults. He makes a strong case for what we can do individually and what the church can do corporately to work for justice.
How have I/we strayed from God's ways? We've created a system that we call justice, but is not just. We have hidden history that must be exposed so we can all experience freedom like we've never known.
And this is just one issue where I/we have gone astray.
2. In our prayer, we also ask for God to be gracious with us...to be merciful with us. That's the Good News. God is gracious with forgiveness. God is merciful. When we go astray, God keeps calling us back and calling us back. We only need ask and listen.
Many blessings as you finish your week!
Love, Rebecca+
I will be in the office next week Tuesday and Wednesday and at clergy meetings in Camp Hill most of Thursday. Feel free to contact me at nativityrector@pa.net or 717-433-1556.
This Sunday, Heidi and Sharon from Bread of Life Ministry will join us at our service and also for coffee hour. Learn more about this ministry we support.
There will be no Parlor People This Sunday. Parlor People will resume on February 28, when Bill Rohm will lead a session on The Jesus Prayer and Speed Prayer.
Centering Prayer and Taize’, Tuesdays during Lent (February 23, March 1, 8, 15), 5:15pm. Join us for ten minutes of centering prayer followed by an evening Taize’ service. For more on centering prayer, go to the Contemplative Outreach website at//www.centeringprayer.com/. For more about Taize’, go to //www.taize.fr/en
Wednesdays at Incarnation United Church of Christ, 47 N 4th St., Newport 5:30-6:15 is soup and bread supper. 6:15 program.
Feb. 24 - Presenter – Trevor Lightner "Discouragement"
March 2 - Presenter - Tony Hill ""Complaining"
March 9 - Presenter - Gloria McPherson "Resentment and Bitterness"
March 16 - Presenter - Cheryl Dorman "Overspending"
Sign up for the Lenton Carbon Fast For more info and to sign up, visit: //www.macucc.org/carbonfast
Upcoming Meetings
Sunday, February 28, Noon - Welcome Committee
Wednesday, March 2, 10:30am - Stewardship Committee
Wednesday, March 9, 5:30-7:00pm, Worship Committee
Godspell, February 21, 2:00pm, Hershey Playhouse, 830 Cherry Dr., Hershey. Pick up your tickets from Rebecca this Sunday. We'll also try to carpool.
Trip to Washington, DC, Saturday, March 12. The youth are planning a day-trip to Washington, DC. We’ll tour the Washington National Cathedral and eat lunch there. Then, we’ll visit the National Zoo. If you’d like to go along and/or could drive, please let Rebecca know.
The United Way of the Capital Region is sponsoring three community conversations on issues of income, health and education. The Perry County conversations are as follows:
Thursday, March 3, 6:00-7:30, Highland Presbyterian Church, Newport. Share your insights around the focus area of Income - reducing the number of children and families living in poverty.
Thursday, March 10, 6:00-7:30, Highland Presbyterian Church, Newport. Share your insights around the focus area of Health - improving access to health care.
Thursday, March 24, 6:00-7:30, Highland Presbyterian Church, Newport. Share your insights around the focus area of Education - working to decrease disparities in school readiness and school achievement.
Register to attend on their website https://www.uwcr.org/about-us/our-events or call Heidi Neuhaus at 717-724-1055.
Exhibit to Honor Mary Landis. The Perry County Council of the Arts is planning an exhibit to honor the life of Mary Landis. If you have stories, information or memorabilia regarding her life, please contact Roger Smith (rog@perrycountyarts.org) or Missy Smith (missy@perrycountyarts.org).
The choir practices every Sunday at 8:30am prior to the service. The choir will also practice some Wednesdays at 10:30am.
Men’s Breakfast - each Wed., 9am, Espresso Yourself Café.
Women’s Breakfast - Feb. 24th and March 9, 9am, Railside
Join Hands items of the month are diapers. Sizes 4, 5 and 6.
Help People in Need when you buy your Groceries! See Gail Shull or Pat Szabo to purchase cards in various amounts to use at Giant, Mutzabaugh's, or Weis Stores. 5% of the cost of each card stays with the church and is used for outreach and mission projects.
Food Bank Donations are needed! During Lent, we'll collect the donations in front of our altar. For a list of the items needed by the Food Bank, go to their website at //www.perrycountyfoodbank.org/ and click on their wish list.
Honor or Remember a loved one or a special occasion with flowers on the altar! Flowers help make our worship space more beautiful and remind us of the blossoming life we have in Christ. Please consider sponsoring the flowers in memory of a loved one, or to celebrate your thanksgivings. Flowers are $35. A sign-up chart is in the Undercroft.
