Dear Friends in Christ:

I can't count how many times I've felt the need to share Psalm 46 in my brief newsletter notes. "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth should change....the nations are in an uproar; the kingdoms totter...the Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge!"

2020 is adding up to be "the perfect storm", where so many things are concerning, disturbing, and even scary. And yes, we are still called to have faith, to trust God, to love our neighbors, to love our enemies, to have the mind of Christ, and to rejoice in hope! In all of the tough things going on, we're also learning important new things about learning and working from home; being church; physical and mental health; what makes for a healthy society or healthy economy or healthy planet. What's hard is that this huge 'learning curve' isn't flattening out!

We have on the banner out front of our building "Be still and know that I am God!" That command is also from Psalm 46. If you know some of Martin Luther's great hymn "A Mighty Fortress" sing those words to yourself. Hum the tune. Take a break from the 24-hour news onslaught when you need to. Mute those negative and misleading political ads when you can. Don't hide from the things we need to be aware of and involved in as Christians and as citizens and as neighbors, but listen to the words Jesus spoke so often to his disciples: "Do not be afraid!" Pray for the grace to live by them.

And thank you for remembering: We are church together! We are a church of stewards! We are a learning church! And, We are church for the community. That will help us stay connected, and it will help us do what God needs us to be doing in these days! -Pastor Paul