A WORD FROM THE PASTOR….. “Instead be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, songs from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 5: 18b-20 New International Version, bold lettering mine)
Dear Friends in Christ,
I hope things are going well with each of you and that you are finding ways to safely resume some of the activities that were put aside during the hard, long winter months of the pandemic. It is good to know that so many of us are now vaccinated and that the weather is warming so that we can socialize safely outside or in places with good air flow. I’m cautiously enjoying the chance to see more friends and family following the time of “hibernation” and hope you are, too.
As you know we plan to resume in person worship in the coming weeks, but will be waiting until the outside temperature is above 55 degrees on Sunday morning, so that doors and windows can be open. Soon, I hope we can also enjoy fellowship time with coffee together – outside on the yard! There is so much we can look forward to as we reclaim some of the social connections we’ve missed. It will certainly be wonderful to worship together again! I has been difficult for each of us to worship in small groups or alone (though our attendance numbers for remote worship have been very strong). Still, Pat has had to play to an empty room and I found that recording worship was easier if I “imagined” you all in with me in the sanctuary. I look forward to that time when we can see one another, face to face!
While there is much to look forward to at this time, I regret that we still are not able to sing together. As many of you know, before I entered ministry I sang professionally in churches and other locations all around the New York, New England and Pennsylvania area. One of my great joys has always been singing and I know that you are also a “singing church”. Yet, we are still getting guidance from Dr. Fauci and the CDC that singing remains risky as there is no way to sing without sending fine particles into the air. These particles will carry COVID if a person is infected and there is a risk of infection to others if they breathe in any of these fine particles. It is very important that our vaccination rate be as high as possible before we begin to sing together again, especially among the younger people who worship with us, since they are now experiencing the greatest rate of new infections. So, in order to remain safe as we gather, we will continue to refrain from singing. In the meantime, Pat and I will continue to find special music options for our worship services.
As I reflect on this adjustment to our traditional way of worshiping with music and song, I find myself remembering how important music is to building fellowship and reaching out those outside our doors. When I served in New York City, I often found people standing outside the glass doors of the church peering in to see what was going on inside. One night, before an evening service, there was a young Asian woman standing on the front steps. It seemed as though she wanted to come in but was hesitant. As I talked with her I learned that she was from China and had never seen a church before her visit to the U.S. She was curious and wanted to know more about church (Jesus) but thought it was for “members only”. She told me she had heard the music playing and longed to hear more – and as I invited her inside – she was overcome with emotion and began to cry. Though she was only visiting in New York for a brief time, I hope that she found her way to a place where music and a Christian community would welcome her, nurture her and build up her faith. Clearly music and singing are an important part of connecting spirit to spirit – within and outside our Christian community of faith and it is hard to imagine what it would be like if we could never sing together again! It’s interesting to find that Helen Keller once said that what she regretted the most about her inability to see and to hear was that she was, for most of her life, also unable to speak. She wrote that she felt that her ability to reach out to people with her powerful messages of hope and inclusion was profoundly limited because she couldn’t easily communicate, verbally.
Thinking about this challenge, I turned to the Bible to see what the scriptures have to say about ways we can connect with God and one another, without speaking and found the passage from Ephesians (see above). Here Paul writes that we can sing from our hearts to God! Now this can mean “heartfelt” singing, but I think Paul was also saying that we can sing in the internal silence of our own spiritual center. Isn’t it possible that when we practice singing in that inner place, it deepens our spiritual connection with God and with one another so that when we can “open up” and physically sing once more, the singing will be even more wonderfully spirit-filled than ever before? It’s something to ponder and to pray on as we continue to wait to raise our voices in songs of praise, once more. So, as we wait a little longer to resume singing aloud, let’s practice and rehearse “heart singing” so that when we are together in song once again, it will be even more powerfully heart and spirit filled than ever before!
In the meantime, stay safe! You remain in my prayers….and remember, I love you and I need you to survive!
Peace,
Pastor Betsy
CHURCH REOPENING:
We plan to resume worship as soon as the Sunday morning temperature is above 55 degrees. This will allow us to open doors and windows for fresh air flow through the sanctuary. We will still wear masks, maintain social distancing, and keep a record of those attending in case notification is needed should anyone present be infected with COVID. PLEASE NOTE! IF THE WEATHER IS FORECAST TO BE COLDER THAN 55 DEGREES ON SUNDAY WE WILL SEND A NOTICE OUT ON FRIDAY AFTERNOON TO LET YOU KNOW THAT WE WON’T WORSHIP IN PERSON! ALSO, PLEASE CHECK THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE BEFORE COMING TO CHURCH! The service will be available every week on line and recorded for remote viewing during the week. If you need a DVD, please contact the office and a copy will be available for you on the Monday following the Sunday worship service!
PASTOR’S SCHEDULE THIS WEEK
Monday 4/19 Pastor has afternoon office hours & 6:30 pm – Church Council (remote)
Wednesday 4/21 Sermon preparation at home
Sunday 4/25 Worship at 10:30 A.M in person at church (weather permitting)
