This past Sunday three of our folks shared their stories of those who have been shining examples of faith and faithfulness for them; perhaps their comments stimulated reflection on your part about those who have been such examples for you. We do not come to faith alone, and we do not understand faithfulness in a vacuum. We learn from others! Have you considered whether you might be such an example for someone else – in your family, among your friends, or for acquaintances who have observed you from afar? In you, do they see a great example of faith and faithfulness to God or do they see a hypocrite who professes faith on Sunday morning and then betrays that faith the rest of the week? Does your life reflect the faith you hold and the faithfulness to which God calls you each and every day? Across the world there are a host of challenges and existential threats – conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, political rancor in this year’s presidential election, horrific destruction wreaked by recent hurricanes, and the rapid pace of technological change. Our faith does not offer a safe harbor away from those realities, but a resource to draw on in facing them. As a community of Christ, we seek to spark and nurture faith to sustain us, support one another through whatever challenges arise, and share the Gospel in faithful ways within our walls and far beyond. Together we wrestle with hard questions of faith and go wherever God sends us as heralds of the gospel and instruments of God’s love, justice, and peace. Are you joining in that good work, or are you just along for the ride? All that good work is supported by your contributions to our General Fund and the sharing of your time and talents. It is holy work that is supported by staff who lead worship, offer pastoral care, teach classes, and care for children in our preschool, but also by volunteers who do that work too. These church facilities in which so much of that ministry is carried out require maintenance and care throughout the year, including payment for increasing utility and insurance costs. And as good stewards of the financial gifts entrusted to our care, Session has approved hiring a financial secretary to aid in managing the increasingly complex finances of our church and preschool. So often we take the church for granted. But we shouldn’t! We have been blessed by the generous support and vision of saints who have gone before us, and we should not only appreciate their faithfulness, but continue their legacy into the future. In the coming days you will receive a letter from the Stewardship & Finance Team with a pledge card asking you to make commitments for 2025. Give those commitments prayerful consideration, not as an obligation, but as an opportunity to share in ministry and to respond gratefully to God for all the blessings you enjoy. These are commitments that enable us to do God’s holy work in this place and beyond, as a Covenant family, together!
— John Peterson
