May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be always with you!
With the beginning of May this week, we have resumed our parking lot coffee times - Tuesday we gathered at Summerville at 11, and again at Westfield at 3; and if the weather cooperates tomorrow, we will gather at Long Reach at 11am. When I think back on last summer, those coffee times were one of the highlights of the summer - so many of us felt cut off by the pandemic, and this was our first opportunity to see one another.
Which makes me reflect on the fact that humans were created to be in community with one another - we are built for relationship. (Theologically speaking, we are created in the image of God, and God is community if you think about the Trinity, so we are created in the image of a holy community.) It is hard for us to flourish if we are cut off from other people. We need each other in a very deep way.
This summer, even though we have more ways of being in community (in-person and virtual) than we did last summer, we are going to continue our parking lot coffee times. It is a chance to sit outside and just BE together. No agenda, just community time. Bring your own lawnchair and beverage of choice (and sunscreen and bugspray if you so desire)!
The other announcements for this week are:
Long Reach Cemetery Clean-up - Friday May 7 at 4pm. There will be pizza involved! We will begin at 4, and when the work is done, there will be pizza for all of the volunteers.
Worship on Sunday - We will be at Summerville at 9:15 and at Westfield and Facebook Live at 11:15. This week we will celebrate communion at both services. If you are going to be joining us on Facebook, you are invited to have some bread or a cracker and some juice or water at hand so that we can eat and drink together. We'll be continuing our Easter theme of living our love when we read John 15:9-17.
Youth and Young Families Ministry Coordinator - We are still trying to form a Search Committee to find our next YYFMC. We do have someone from Long Reach who has volunteered to serve on this committee, but I am hoping to have someone from Westfield and Bayswater-Summerville to join in this process. If you have an interest in being involved in finding someone to fill this position, please get in touch with me!
And I think that is it for today!
Blessings to you and yours, today and always,
Kate.
Rev. Kate Jones Two Rivers Pastoral Charge (506) 757-2201 (office) (506) 343-1307 (mobile) www.tworiverspastoralcharge.com Pronouns: she/her/hers "Teacher, what is the greatest commandment in the law?"
Jesus replied, "You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: "You must love your neighbour as you love yourself."
(Matthew 22:36-39)