So, Go Ahead..... Plant a Tree (For Sunday, 10-30-11)

Recently, one of my heroes died - Wangari Maathai. In 2004, she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. She wasn't a head-of-state or a diplomat or a military person. She was a biologist. She wasn't an old western world white man. She was a young African woman. She didn't end wars or protest corrupt governments. She planted trees!

Amazing: to connect peacemaking with planting trees. And yet, her Green Belt Movement has probably created more peace that anyone can ever imagine. In Kenya (and now throughout the world), planting trees is saving the planet, saving water, saving agriculture, empowering poor people - especially women..... And, all of the problems these trees solve are often the sources of war. What also inspires me about Dr. Maathai is that she planted trees (millions of them) and died before ever seeing them grow to full maturity. She staked her whole life on a future she would never see.

So it was with many of the Hebrews on the journey to the Promised Land. They moved through the desert, organized themselves and birthed future generations believing that God's promises were sure and that there would be a land and a new life ahead. They did so knowing that most of the people who started the journey would never actually inhabit this promised land. Like Dr. Maathai, they planted trees: trees of community, hope and faith. They planted the trees of life that would sustain their people into the future.

So it is with the church - with our church. We are in the business of planting trees. Every time we nurture a child through Children's Worship and loving relationships; every time we support bringing clean water to a desperate community or when we work to help our whole community feed starving children.... in fact, whenever we do pretty much anything around here..... we are planting trees of community, life, hope and peace that we may never see.

All it takes is a bit of faith - in God, in each other, in all that is good and right in the world. Sooo, go ahead and plant a tree. Invest in the future of FCC, of children here and abroad, in the promises of peace. You'll feel good and you will make a real difference.

Come on Sunday as we celebrate the Promised Land into which we are moving. Come, bring your pledges, your cans, your hearts, your hopes for the future. And, I look forward to greeting you all.

Blessings, Laura Lee

Texts for This Week:

+Psalm 25:4-15

*Joshua 3 - Crossing the Jordan

Note: The texts in bold type will be read in the worship service and the one with an asterisk will be used as the focus for the proclamation of the word.

Ohhhh...Dearrrrr! (for Sunday 10/23/11)

I have always loved Eeyore - even had a stuffed version on my bed from childhood through young adulthood! And, I 'm not sure why. He seems sooo gloomy and I've never been. Remember? Eeyore was perpetually pessimistic - his most familiar phrase was "Ohhhh.... Dearrr!" One day, Tigger greeted Eeyore in the woods by asking, "Isn't it a beautiful, sunny day?" And, Eeyore replied, "Yeahhhhh, but it might rain tomorrow."

What I've learned over the years is that Tigger and Eeyore are both right - today IS beautiful and it MIGHT just rain tomorrow!

On Sunday, we will explore the stories of "Sending Out the Spies" found in the Book of Numbers (chapter 13). Interesting.... they sent out two sets of 12 spies. One group came back exuberantly  describing the 'land of milk and honey', while the other described the fierce, armed tribes that roamed the land. And, they were both correct. Like Tigger and Eeyore, the two sets of spies balanced each other. They encouraged moving into the Promised Land, but with warnings of the dangers to be faced.

So it is with us. Every decision to change jobs, move, get married, have children, etc. Comes with blessings and warnings. Every decision that a church makes to embrace the promises of God comes with exciting possibilities and challenges that may be scary.

The good news is that Eeyore eventually joins Tigger, Pooh Bear and his other pals in their schemes for adventure, despite is reluctance or gloominess. AND, the Hebrews did choose to trust in the promises of God, even though there were many battles to be fought.

I actually think I've needed Eeyore in my life and all of the people who have represented him. We all need the Tiggers and the Eeyores to help us find the balance - the way forward with clear expectations. I'm glad we're Bound for the Promised Land.... Tiggers, Eeyores and all!

I'm hoping to see you all on Sunday - Laura Lee

Texts for This Week:

+ Luke 9:1-6

* Sending Out the Spies - Numbers 13

Note: The texts in bold type will be read in the worship service and the one with an asterisk will be used as the focus for the proclamation of the word.

When Did We Start Electing Such Young Presidents? (for Sunday 10/16/11)

The first President I remember is Ike. His grandson went to kindergarten with me and we had our own Secret Service Agent - Johnnie Powers! To my young mind, President Eisenhower was grandfatherly - what a President should be.  Later, I remember my mother's friends talking about John Kennedy: too young, too handsome, too 'smiley'. And, now we have another young, handsome, 'smiley' President.

I go to the ENT doctor and he doesn't look old enough to have finished college, much less be a medical specialist. It happens all the time - those people in power seem so young. And, of course, it's not that they're so young, it's that I'm getting old!

Some of  the Hebrews must have felt this way when Joshua started taking over! Moses was old, known, trustworthy and  here comes this uppity, young military guy! Edgy, pushy, even. He was full of new ideas and plans. What some of them couldn't see was that Joshua was what they needed to fight the upcoming battles, to mobilize the young and make it possible for them to claim the Promised Land. They couldn't see that it wasn't that Joshua was too young, it's that Moses and his generation were too old to create a new future.

The good news is that Joshua wasn't a radical or a wild man. God had chosen well. He was truly edgy, pushy and had many new ideas, but he had lived in the desert long enough to know. He loved and understood the past leaders, he honored their traditions and all of the things they had built. BUT, he also had a new energy and new skills and a toughness that was needed.

It's the way it's always been and always will be. As we get older, the leaders get younger. God knows that we are always needing new life and new ideas and new ways of being. Our job is to pick good leaders and to trust them to lead us into the future. Tough job - for the Hebrews, for Moses and for us, but well worth it!

You might just want to read a bit of Joshua's story - it has an amazingly contemporary ring!

Hoping to see you all on Sunday - Blessings - Laura Lee

Texts for This Week:

+Matthew 16:13-20

*Deuteronomy 31

Note: The texts in bold type will be read in the worship service and the one with an asterisk will be used as the focus for the proclamation of the word.

We Begin with the Basics (for Sunday 10/9/11)

The Israelites get out of Egypt. And then..... they were stuck in the desert with no food, no water and no place to go! No wonder they wanted to go back. Even slavery came with food and shelter! So, God began with the basics food: manna that arrived every night and quail (on occasion) and water: crashing froth from the rocks.

We certainly can relate to the 'water from the rock' image - after all, Ithaca is Gorges! We also know that you can't even begin to think about a journey to the Promised Land (much less go on one), if you are stuck in the desert and are hungry and thirsty. 

We know that the basics of food and clean water are essential. We are a church that is dedicated to supporting clean water projects, so that disease can be prevented, so that women and children do not have to spend hours each day just collecting water, so that communities can flourish. We are a church that is dedicated to making a difference for people who are hungry in our local community through support of local food pantries, Loaves & Fishes, Friendship House, CROP Walk and others. And, through Feed My Starving Children, we are helping our church and our whole community make a big difference in the lives of hungry children.

On Sunday, we begin two parallel journeys that focus us on the 'basics':

• Our annual Stewardship Campaign gives each one of us a chance to provide for the basics here - electricity, snow plowing, heat, staff, office supplies....... and,  to enable us to continue on the journey to the Promised Land of the 'Church We Are Becoming'.   
• Mission:1 helps us join over 6,000 other UCC churches in a wonderful focus on hunger designed to help us 'boost' our support for local pantries; advocate for hungret people here and around the world through a letter-writing campaign and to help feed hungry people in the world (especially in West Africa) through our 'Neighbors in Need' offering.

I hope you will all participate enthusiastically in these efforts, I am certain you will be blessed greatlly, when you do! In preparation for our October focus, I encourage you to read the story of the Exodus. What you may not know is that variations of this story are found in Exodus, Numbers, Deuteronomy and Joshua. It is interesting to read one of the less familiar versions, so why not begin with snooping around the 30th Chapter of Deuteronomy? You may discover many things you didn't learn in Cecil B. DeMille's movie!

I am looking forward to our journey of stewardship and mission in October and hope you are, too!

Hoping to see you on Sunday - Laura Lee

Texts for This Week:

+Psalm 78

*Exodus Chapters 16 & 17

Note: The texts in bold type will be read in the worship service and the one with an asterisk will be used as the focus for the proclamation of the word.

Food for the World (for Sunday 10/2/11)

One of the top stories on Ithaca Journal today is about a large portion of the population’s growing reliance on food banks for their daily bread. Click here to read this article. Hunger is a continued, pressing need throughout the world, and it can often seem overwhelming.

Every Sunday we pray together, “give us this day our daily bread,” and for many around the world, that prayer is an urgent one, a plea for food for today. This Sunday, we’ll celebrate World Communion Sunday, when the sharing of a simple meal reminds us of our common need for daily bread. The practice of Communion also challenges us, for there is more than enough room and more than enough food for all – at God’s communion table, and in our daily lives.

A shared meal has the power to bring us together and to participate in God’s work of feeding the world – physically and spiritually. So come, this week, to be nourished, and to be challenged. Be transformed by the presence of Christ in community. Looking forward to seeing you!

Blessings,

Manda

Scripture for Sunday:

Ephesians 2:13-22

Remembering and Re-Membering (for Sunday 9/11/11)

If you're old enough, I'll bet you remember exactly where you were and what you were doing at various points on September 1, 2001. My friend's son, Sam remembers a lot. He was on the 34th floor of the first tower that collapsed. As he and his co-workers struggled to work their way northward, his persistent 'memory' is of all the Chinese Women who kept giving them cold washcloths. He knows this probably only happened once, but it was a strong enough memory and a strong enough gift, that it's his strongest, clearest memory. It's a memory that 're-members' him out of his private horror and into a community of people who were helping each other just get through the day.

Sam's memory of the Chinese women with the washcloths, reminds me of Pam Swiereinga showing up with frozen washcloths in baggies, on the hottest day for the hottest funeral ever. And, it reminds me of Jesus washing the feet of the disciples. All of these are simple, personal gestures create powerful memories of being helped and served at an important time. AND,  all of those memories re-member us to communities of help and care and support.

These are Jesus' words at the institution of communion: "Whenever you eat this bread and drink this sup - rremember me." I think he is calling us to the memory: remember Jesus, especially the disciples who knew him. But, these words of remembrance call us more sacredly and more powerfully to find in communion the ways to re-member ourselves to Christ, to each other and to the whole human family. So, as you spend time this weekend unavoidably remembering 9/11, 2001, I urge you to also find ways to re-member yourselves to the Body of Christ and to the church and to one another, families and friends.

Join us for communion this afternoon at 5:00 p.m., pray for many of us as we pack meals tomorrow for Feed My Starving Children and join us for worship on Sunday as we celebrate the baptism of Taryn Martha Zonder!. It's good to do some re-membering, I think.

Blessings Always, Laura Lee

Texts for This Week:

+Luke 9:46-48

*John 13:1-10

Note: The texts in bold type will be read in the worship service and the one with an asterisk will be used as the focus for the proclamation of the word.

We Heard It First at Church (for Sunday, 9/4/11)

I think Dick Shafer & Bob Swieringa will attest to the fact that corporations spend a LOT of $$$$ to teach employees the practice of 'direct communications.' It seems that corporate America has caught on to something that Christians heard in the first century, long before there ever were 'corporate consultants':

·         Giving and receiving feedback is the way that people change - learn new skills and develop better relationships;

·         Gossip is destructive and people can work out their differences when they are talking with each other instead of about each other;

·         Direct communication enables creativity and problem-solving; and most importantly -

·         The involvement of others (supervisors or other team members and in our case, pastors or lay leaders) is much more effective when people have tried to work things out with each other first!

On Sunday, we will focus on Jesus' commandment to "Love One Another" and this gospel text offers some specific instructions on how we can best do this:        

·         Take our concerns directly to the person first.

·         If this doesn't work, try it with someone else present.

·         And, if this doesn't work, seek the help of the church leadership.

Easily said, but often difficult to do. Perhaps this is why corporate consultants and trainers get paid so much to teach the skills. And, perhaps that's why children benefit from growing up in a church - to learn them early, before they ever go to work for corporations!

Looking forward to seeing all of you on Sunday,

Laura Lee

Texts for This Week:

Exodus 12;1-14

Psalm 114

*Romans 13:8-14

+Matthew 18:21-35

Note: The texts in bold type will be read in the worship service and the one with an asterisk will be used as the focus for the proclamation of the word.