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Covenant
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| Pastor’s Message |
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| July 2004 |
Notes
From
The Apprentice’s Log Book
It is the season of Pentecost, when out of the depths of Good Friday and after the exhilaration of Easter Sunday, the church ponders the future. The author of the Gospel According to Luke and the Acts of the Apostles wrote them as a pair. The Gospel reflects upon the gift of Jesus’ birth, life, ministry, death, and resurrection. The book of Acts concerns the gift of God's Spirit to the church for the long haul.
This season used to be formally acknowledged in the Common Lectionary, the grouping of scripture readings shared by churches around the world. However, the most recent Lectionaries have deleted this season of reflection. It is almost as though the architects of the Lectionary felt the season too risky. Nevertheless, at Stone Church there is a genuine season of Pentecost, celebrated in worship through August 29th and marked for us by the beautiful banners up front and the streamers adorning the side walls of the sanctuary.
It is fitting that we celebrate Pentecost at Stone. For there is no timidity here about the future. Consider the two Session Task Forces that are at work. The Facilities Task Force has been working for over four years. Way back then, they started imagining how our physical space could be rebuilt to better serve the ministry of Stone Church. Now, we have started construction on the first phase of the plans that the Facilities Task Force developed.
The Vision Task Force is a group of thirteen men and women just appointed by the Session. This group of veterans and newer members will lead us in clarifying our self-understanding as a Christian congregation at the beginning of the 21st century. They will lead us in dreaming about the shape of our future ministry together.
I see little evidence of timidity about the future. Rather, a group of down-to-earth Christians seems willing to rely upon the guidance and presence of God's Spirit as we work together to understand and to act upon God's calling us to ministry in the future.
May God continue to Bless us with awareness of God’s Spirit in our midst and with the courage to move forward in ministry together.
The Rev. Art Mills