Batten down the hatches. Tune up the snow blower. Loosen up your back. Make sure you have your favorite snack or drink handy in the cupboard or fridge. It looks like we are about to get hit with a lot of snow and wind in the next 24 hours. I hope you all have a safe, warm place to be. Say an extra prayer for those who are not as fortunate.
It is now February. It is an important month in the church because it is the time in which Lent begins. With Lent, there are some traditions and rituals that we look forward to every year, but due to the pandemic, they will have to look different. (Anyone else getting tired of hear that phrase? ). Below lists what is coming up and how to participate.
Ash Wednesday – Think of Christmas Eve Everywhere. But instead of gathering around the seacoast, there will be two times to gather in our parking lot to receive the imposition of ashes. On Wednesday, Feb. 17th, we will gather in our parking lot at noon and 6pm. These will be brief 20-minute services that will entail confession and forgiveness, imposition of ashes and a brief sermon/message. If you are not able to make it to the parking lot for this in-person service, I will record a message and imposition of ashes service for you to watch from the comfort of your own home. Ashes will be available to pick up from church prior to Ash Wednesday and will be found next to the communion elements in the Narthex. Lastly, if you would like a personal visit from me on Ash Wednesday, please contact me directly and we can schedule a time for me to stop by. Please directly email me at pastortim@htelc.com.
Holden Evening Prayer – We will keep this tradition and do it in the form we did during Advent. It will be live streamed from our sanctuary every Wednesday during Lent. Slight time change. 6pm.
Lent Theme – Each year, we have done some type of theme or study during our Wednesday evenings. This will continue again. This year a former member, David Ronka, and I will be leading a 5-week session on the book “The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery.” Lent is about self-examination. The Enneagram (pronounced “any-a-gram”) is a tool to help you understand the box you are in for the purpose of being able to get out of that box. Each week, we will gather on zoom, Wednesdays at 7pm and watch a 15-20 minute video of David and I introducing that week’s ideas and then have a conversation about insights into what we are learning and assign reading for the coming week. To say that the Enneagram is a “personality test” is a disservice. Generally, personality tests simply “tell you who you are,” kind of like giving you a “pat on the back.” The Enneagram is designed more to understand, at a deeper level, how to be a more whole person than you already are. It actually can be a little uncomfortable. Here is a link to the book on Amazon that will be needed to participate. https://www.amazon.com/Road-Back-You-Enneagram-Self-Discovery/dp/0830846190
Lent in a Bag – Faith Bygd, the Faith Formation Coordinator, is busy working to put together devotions for Lent. By the Sunday before Ash Wednesday, at the latest, you will be able to come to church and pick up your “Lent in a Bag.” In the bag will be weekly devotions and activities for you to do with your family, someone else or by yourself. Please email office@htelc.com if you would like one.(Delivery is an option also!)
That is it for now. I have hope that we might be back in the sanctuary for Maundy Thursday, God Friday and Easter Sunday as the vaccine is coming out, but no promises at this time. Just hope. Which really, isn’t that all we ever really have. Hope. We don’t know what the next day will bring. Tomorrow is never promised. It is only hoped for. We hope it will be a day in which we are one step closer to the end of the pandemic. But no matter what comes, we hope it will be a day in which there is a bit more peace. We hope it will be a day in which there is a bit more compassion. We hope it will be a day in which there is a bit more love. We hope.
Hebrews 11:1
Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Tim