June 23, 2023
The Life Rhythms of a Church
We use the word “church” many in ways implying many meanings. In “I am going to church,” church would usually refer to a building. In “I will meet you after church,” church would usually refer to worship. While “First Covenant is my church,” would mostly be understood as referring to the people. The words “church” and “synagogue” both have their roots in the word “to gather.” The word “church” at its core refers to the action of a community, and community’s actions have rhythms. This weekend we will see our church’s rhythms on obvious display.
Saturday we will say goodbye to our beloved church member Judy Brinkmann, acknowledging her death while celebrating the resurrection promise that was claimed at Judy’s baptism. We will surround George and the Brinkmann family with God’s consolation and care, both in this service and in the days ahead. We will also gather to say our goodbyes, acknowledging our grief, and praying for God’s care for each other and ourselves as well.
Sunday we will celebrate the baptism of Wolf Rendall. Here we will claim the promise of God in Christ, that in baptism we are baptized into Christ’s death, and in our death will be raised in Christ’s resurrection. In baptism we are also initiated into Christ’s church universal through the local church community, even as the community pledges their support to enfold the baptized into the Body of Christ and encourage them in their journey of faith. And so it will be for Wolf, we pray.
After worship Sunday, we will gather for our semi-annual meeting to do the business of our community. We will approve our annual budget. We will consider four candidates for membership into our community, Wolf being among them. We will celebrate those who have served in our community’s leadership, and vote on people to succeed them. We will share information and updates, and we will offer God thanks for God’s faithfulness to us.
In the coming two days we have a snapshot of the overall life of our church, its beginnings, and endings framing the ongoing nurture, support, and care of our sisters and brothers in Christ, and our invitation for others to join us. These days also reflect the ongoing conversations we have about how we steward all God has afforded us: our physical spaces, our financial resources, the missions and ministries we do in Christ’s name, and the people with whom we share life together.
As we read in Ecclesiastes 3:1, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven…” In this weekend, I invite you to reflect on graces we are experiencing in our church in this season, in the midst of our current rhythms: the obvious love and care within our community, the possibility of a new pastor joining us soon, and new opportunities to share God’s love with the broader world. We are a church, with buildings and services; but we are foremost a community. A living, growing Spiritual community, literally part of Christ’s Body in the world. Might we see these rhythms as the pulse of our First Covenant community, pumping steady and strong, a sign of God’s life in us all.
Thanks be to God.
~ Pastor Todd