iHOPE

Reaching Out- With Hospitality

 

I've been thinking about hospitality this week.

Open hearts lead to open homes.

   That is how one of our daily devotions starts this week. Reaching out to others means we are willing to let people in to our lives, into our homes and even (yikes!) into our schedules. It means we plan for it, hope for it, pray for it.

  Now some people are just gifted with hospitality (in fact, hospitality is listed as one of the gifts of the Spirit) and thank goodness for them!  They are the ones who always make you feel at home, always important, always expected, always welcome.It seems to come naturally to them.

  Then there is the rest of us. The rest of us are 'busy'.

Reaching Out- With Food!

  We started the 40 Days of Community last week with the theme:  We Are Better Together!

  Small Groups were formed and each group is being challenged to work together for a service project within the congregation as well as in the community.  The staff received evidence that at least one group on top of things.  We arrived in the office yesterday to find that a group had prepared and delivered breakfast for the staff.

  The food was delicious and a wonderful surprise. The thoughtfulness that went into all the work of planning, preparation and delivery left everyone with big smiles- and full tummys.  Thank you!

  If I had known this would have been the result of this series, we would have done it years ago!

Mark Your Calendars!

  We have a date for opening our new sanctuary!

  Mark November 23rd as the date for our first Sunday in the new Sanctuary.  This will be the last Sunday of our old schedule (more on that later). Come to the service you would normally come to. All three services will start in the old sanctuary and as part of our service, we will move into the new sanctuary for Communion. 

  Later that afternoon, (4:00 pm) we'll be back for our Sanctuary Dedication service. We'll have lots of special music, special guests and of course, bagpipes.

  You won't want to miss it!

Are You Making a Mark?

  Are you making a mark or just blowing sand?

  That is a question I've been asking myself lately.  The question came from a conversation I've been having with Bill Scott, who (among many other things) has spearheaded our 'Making a Difference' Commemorative Brick project. He has been practicing how to best engrave the bricks we are going to place in our courtyard. The first brick he tried to engrave took all of the special engraving sand and several minutes. There was lots of sound and sand, but when he looked at the brick, there was hardly a scratch. It was several efforts later that he found the right combination of air, sand, pressure, and technique to actually engrave a brick.

  As with bricks, so with life.  I don't know anyone who wants to go through life without making some kind of mark. Yet most of us have had the experience of giving lots of effort and creating clouds of effort only to realize we haven't made a scratch.  We have spent our lives with very little to show for them.

  How can we guard against this? How do we lead a life that has significance? What needs to happen so that our life is lived in such a way that it leaves a mark and makes a difference? 

  That is the question I address this Sunday. Come and find out.

40 Days of Community

  Its almost here: the 40 Days of Community is about to begin at New Hope.

  We had a terrific kick-off potluck on Sunday evening and got to eat in the new sanctuary. Thanks to all the folks who pulled together to make that happen. We heard about the importance of community and closed with singing the doxology in the new sanctuary. I know I wasn't the only one with goosebumps afterwards!

  This Sunday, Dan Hettinger starts us off with our first sermon. If you have your books, you can begin to do your readings on Monday. Small Groups will meet to discuss what was read as well as the sermon from the previous Sunday.

  If you are not yet part of a group, there is still time- but not much!  Indicate which times and situation would suit you best and we'll do our best to get you into a group.

  Books can also be picked up at church on Sunday. The suggested donation is $10, but we don't want anyone to not have a book just because of money. You'll see how there is a daily reading with questions for each day of the week.

  40 Days of Community is a way to prepare us fro what God is going to do next in our midst. Will we be ready?  Will you?

Now Is Not a Good Time

Now is not a good time

If you were in worship on Sunday, you heard that line. It was from Marj Carpenter, who was lamenting the response she often hears when she talks about giving to mission.  'We believe in mission and want to give,' people will say, but, 'now is not a good time.'  What is true for mission is also true for

• Giving
• Volunteering
• Forgiving
• Sacrificing

  The most compelling part of the piece from Carpenter was the entry she found in the Minutes of the General Assembly in 1864- a horrible time for churches in America.  Of particular significance were the minutes from the Presbyterian Church of the Confederacy. They were considering whether- amidst of the devastating last days of the Civil War, they could send out more missionaries.  Here is what is written:

“Our backs are to the wall and our homes are being burned and our churches destroyed, but we must send another missionary to Brazil .”  

  What a terrible time to think about sending another missionary. Yet that is what they did.  Today there is a thriving Presbyterian Church in Brazil because people did something that was good and right, even though it wasn't a good time. When i think of it, many of the great things I enjoy in life also came because someone sacrificed or did the hard thing even though it was not a 'good time.'

  Now is not a good time.

I believe we should be wise and pay attention to the times we are in. I also believe that too often, we (and I am at the front of this line) too easily put off doing the right thing because we don't think it is a 'good time'. 

How about you? What is the hard thing, the risky thing, the right thing that is in front of you to do?  Now may not be a 'good time' but 'now' is the only time we have. 

By the way, the title of the book I quoted is To the Ends of the Earth: Mission Stories from Around the World by Marj Carpenter. I'll include it in my 'Books Worth Reading' section in the left column.