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Pastor Amy's Thoughts for May

5/9/2014

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Christ is Risen!  He is Risen Indeed!

It was a joy to celebrate Easter together and tell once again the story of the resurrection of Jesus.

It was a joy to gather with old friends and new, to greet relatives from afar, and to once again put our best face forward on this very important day in our church worship calendar.  Thank-you to all who extended themselves in service and hospitality  -- for the choir, our music director, our pianist, the ushers, our childcare worker, all who cleaned the church & grounds beforehand, the youth group for stuffing eggs for the Easter egg hunt, those who prepared and cleaned up the coffee & treats after the service, and … the list is long!

But it was a joy, wasn’t it?  Hospitality is like that.  When we greet the stranger, welcome the visitor, serve a meal for family and friends – we often receive far more than we give.    I went home from Easter Sunday tired but also very grateful to be serving God and neighbor in a church like ours.

One of the time-honored practices of the Christian faith is hospitality.  The early Christian hermits and monastics knew that their decision to withdraw from the world engendered a certain curiosity from those who stayed behind.   Visitors would arrive at the hermit’s desert home and ask for prayers, for guidance.  And what did the hermit do?  He or she received them “as one would receive Christ himself.”    Was it easy for them? No.  But it was what they were called to do by their understanding of the gospel message that “whatever you do to the least of these, you do also to me (Jesus).”

My brother and sister-in-law took a trip a few years ago to New Mexico.  In the town of Los Alamos they visited the local Starbucks and were looking for a place to have dinner.  They started a conversation with another couple in the café, and before long that couple had invited them to their home for dinner.  At the end of a pleasant evening, both couples confessed that “they never did anything like this before.”

What is hospitality?  How do we practice it?    In the book, “Radical Hospitality,” Fr. Daniel Homan and Lonnie Pratt describe their own ministry of hospitality to the youth and young adults who visit St. Benedict Abbey in Oxford Michigan.   They remind us that hospitality is not just a shared meal.  It begins with an attitude that conveys openness and warmth.  It does not mean becoming a doormat for others, but being available for deep listening and support if the other person requests it.  It may require getting past our fear that people who are somehow different from us are not trustworthy.  It may mean risking a little of ourselves, or our personal space.  It may mean reordering our priorities and commitments.

The key to the practice of hospitality is listening.   Near the end of the book (p. 203) Homan and Pratt write,  “[But] hospitality is not a planned event, or a series of routine gestures.  It is the stance of the heart that is abandoned to Love.”  And.. (p. 216)  “There is so much in life that is potentially dehumanizing. Listening is the most hospitable thing we can do, and if we do no other thing than train ourselves to listen to others, we will have taken great steps in hospitality.”

There is prayerfulness in offering hospitality to someone as if they were Christ.  There is prayerfulness in listening to someone as if they were Christ.    It is my hope that during the month of May we might listen more carefully to those around us.  Who are they?  How may they indeed be Christ to us?

In Christ’s love,

Pastor Amy


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May  News and Notes

5/9/2014

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The Community College Outreach (CCO) Board is inviting you to support the Community College Outreach by attending the CCO’s second annual benefit dinner on Saturday, May 3rd, from 5:00—7:00pm.  You will have an opportunity to hear from community college students on how this ministry has impacted their lives and helped them to come to Jesus and/or grow in their walk with Jesus.  The dinner is at Calvin Presbyterian Church in Shoreline, WA.  As a benefit dinner, there will be an auction, raffle and a request for donations.  People are asked to arrive at 5:00pm.  Dinner tickets are $25 per person or $40 per couple.  The dinner is not appropriate for children, and child care is not available.  Registration can be completed on-line at www.calvinpc.org from the main page.

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Stewardship, Finance & Administration  

5/9/2014

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Stewardship:  Please remember to pay your member per capita=$48.17.  If you have paid already, thank you.  If not, please do so at your earliest convenience. Thank you for continuing to be great stewards of God’s gifts to you.

Finance:  We continue to consolidate some of the church’s funds. 

Adminstration:  Edmonds Presbyterian Church has a new Administrative Assistant, Tamara D.  Welcome her.  Thank her for doing a good job and for becoming a part of EPC. Tamara is in the church office Tuesday-Friday, 9am-1pm.

We are investigating ways of incorporating on-line payments of pledges to the church.  We will be engaging another set of provider(s) for our email and church website, because our current provider is going out business.

Respectfully submitted,

Minna D, Stewardship Elder


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May Women's Association

5/9/2014

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The ladies of Edmonds Presbyterian Church held their regular monthly luncheon. A good time was had by all.

In April, over 120 Easter baskets were stuffed for the local food bank.  Everyone had fun, and the baskets were greatly appreciated by the recipients.   At the April meeting, a collection was taken for the Missions.  Dolly H. from the Welcomers Group spoke to the Womens Association. 

Moderator Barb S opened the meeting with prayer. The minutes and treasurer’s reports were read and accepted. With no other old or new business, we dismissed for lunch. Ruth R  will host the Martha Circle meeting in her home on April 30th at 12:15pm.

Sincerely submitted….SL, Secretary



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May Men's Fellowship Update

5/9/2014

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Men’s Fellowship meets in the Edmonds Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall every Saturday morning from 8:30 to 9:30. Coffee and maple bars are the usual fare with a pancake breakfast served quarterly. Christian discussion topics or a current topic from the news are presented by one of the group. We enjoy the fellowship of each other’s company and always leave with something to think about that helps us review our personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Please join us and become part of the fun and fellowship of EPC Men and Jesus Christ.

 


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Thank-you to the Girl Scouts!

5/9/2014

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We are blessed with THREE scout troops!  And they sure know how to plant bulbs!  Our property is filled with daffodills and tulips this year.  Thank-you, Scouts! 

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40 Days of Prayer for Edmonds

5/9/2014

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 Local churches, including ours, are committing to pray for the next 40 days for our community.

We are invited to use the following to guide our prayers:

May 1—Thank God for His Church, our city, and our neighbors (Psalm 118:28-29)

May 2—That Christians will humble themselves before a Holy God. (Isaiah 66:2)

May 3—That Christians will live out the unity that is ours in Jesus. (Ephesians 4:2-4)

May 4—That Christians will humble themselves, seek God and pray. (2 Chronicles 7:14)

May 5—Christian Unity: For healing and reconciliation among believers.  (Colossians 3:12-14)

..and you can read more at www.prayedmonds.org.   The complete 40 day calendar will be available on the back table in church.


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New Website!

5/9/2014

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We have a new website!  Send us your suggestions for how to make it better! 

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