Dear Caldwell,
Today we are reminded that even the first Christmas included both great joy and deep sorrow. In Christ, God came into the world but was greeted by Herod’s attempt to kill him by the massacre of all the young children in Bethlehem. We’ve exeprienced the same mix of the joy of the season with our shared grief over the loss of our sister Ebony Petty and the pain that has brough the Petty family. My thanks to all who have stepped forward to help. Stay tuned to the yahoogroup as Lynn Watson and others coordinate support. I will provide other updates, including details about a memorial service, as they are decided.
This Sunday, we will gather again as a community of faith. The season of Christmastide continues and we will consider Luke’s story of the day that Mary and Joseph presented Jesus at the Temple to be dedicated to God (Luke 2:22-40). The sermon is titled “Holding Hope.” We will “hold hope” in another way as we celebrate the first communion of our Centennial Year. Earlier on Sunday, our Caldwell House breakfast crew will start prep around 7 a.m. and serve our neighbors at 8:30 in the Fellowship Hall. All helpers always welcomed. Sunday school for adults begiins at 9:45 in the Shelby Room.
In addition to holding the Petty family in our prayers, please remember friend Jennifer Roberts as she is recovering from major knee surgery after an injury earlier this year.
Finally, please remember to fulfill your 2011 pledge Sunday if you have not already.
I close with a beautiful old Christmastide prayer of the early church:
“Creator and Parent of our Lord Jesus Christ, our glory is to stand before the world as your own sons and daughters. May the simple beauty of Jesus’ birth summon us always to love what is most deeply human, and to see your Word made flesh reflected in those whose lives we touch.”
In Christ,
John