Dear Beloveds of God, 

“Give thanks with a grateful heart. Give thanks to the Holy One. Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ, His Son. Give thanks with a grateful heart. Give thanks to the Holy One. Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ, His Son.”

Giving thanks through celebration is deeply rooted in scripture. In Exodus 12:14-20 after God’s people were saved from imminent destruction, God called them to commemorate his faithfulness by holding an annual celebration. In the Old Testament, there are three major festivals: Purim (deliverance from Haman), Passover (deliverance from slavery in Egypt), and Channukah (rededication of the Temple). Each celebration holds a unique significance that is shaped by God’s commands to remember. As Christians, Christmas, Epiphany, Holy Week, Easter, and Sunday worship services are ways that we remember and praise God for the gifts of redemption and new beginnings through the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 

Paul reminds us that we are to “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Celebration is a spiritual practice that is crucial not only to our personal lives but in the corporate life of the Church as well. On Sunday January 19th, we will gather for our annual meeting to commemorate the faithfulness of God through celebration. We will take time to reflect on the past year and give thanks for how the Holy Spirit has been at work in the life of this congregation. We certainly have much to celebrate this year!

In celebrating, we will not only reflect on the past year with grateful hearts but look forward to the coming year with hopeful hearts rooted in the deeper story of our Lord. 
 
In Christ,
Pastor Jenn