I am musing from a distance today, for I was on retreat with the FaithQuesters Sunday - indeed the entire weekend**.
First of all the Thanksgivings:
· Thank You brother Mauro Souza for leading the worship service in my absence – I already heard good things about the message! So once again it is wonderful to know that I can be away and have absolute confidence THAT ALL IS WELL!
· Thank You Elder Ernest Lloyd for serving as lay leader when I am away. The lay leader has a different set of responsibilities in the pastor’s absence, so thanks for stepping up.
· Thanks again to Sister Darlinda Coe for sharing your musical talents with your sisters and brothers on the piano and organ! Your skills, imagination, love of music and commitment all provide for an uplifting and essential facet of the whole service!
· Thank you DAPC & NLPC members and leaders for valuing the faith of our youth enough to allow your pastors (David & Riz) to spend an entire weekend with the FaithQuest 2015 community!
Second the Joys:
· A little bird told me that Sheryl Anderson shared a great joy for DAPC: we have found our new M.O.M. (Minister of Music) Miryana Monteva! Look for more of Miryana’s musical journey in the Sunday bulletin and Rainbow Record, but for now we celebrate that she is bringing a broad swath of musical experience, excitement, imagination and skill into her call to be our Minister of Music! I don’t know if it is the Alpha & Omega of the music world to include both church choir and music experience AND musical direction of the Fringe Festival - but that’s (part) of the blessings Miryana brings to DAPC! I can’t wait to get started!
Third the Prayers:
· We need to uplift and love and support and comfort those families among us that are grieving: The Maghakian/O’Keefe family and the Vellenga family. We add to that list Jackson and Juliana Gienger‘s family as they grieve the death of Sandy Steiner – Jackson/Juliana’s grandmother … Jodie Gienger’s mother.
· We continue to surround Allie Smith as she continues her healing and therapy** And Ernest Lloyd’s brother recovering from his stroke.
** WOW what a weekend! We stayed at All Saint’s Episcopal in South Minneapolis – where we learned of their community ministry: First Nations Kitchen. We also visited (and ate lunch at) Gandhi Mahal restaurant, which is leading the nation in sustainable innovations: aquaponics in the basement, bees on the roof, supply gardens in neighboring backyards scattered throughout the area. We learned of the work of hospital chaplain Denise Dunbar- Perkins (a friend of DAPC & PTCA Moderator). We discovered the ministries of Kwanzaa Community Presbyterian – 21st Century Academy for middle schoolers, Freedom School for all students, Northside Women’s Place, for women seeking liberation from the sex trade and Kwanzaa’s Community Gardens for the neighborhood surrounding their first church building at 24th & Emerson. We worshiped with Kwanzaa on Sunday … the Rev. Anthony JERMAINE ROSS-Allam preaching … explored Jesus’ Marks Of Ministry in Luke 4:16-22, discovered James teachings about living our faith in action {James 1: 10 ff}, watched The Mission to get a sense of how the Good News of Jesus transcends the errors and tragic mistakes of the missionaries and looked to John 1:4 to identify both the Light that keeps us going and the darkness that seeks to extinguish our Light! I repeat: WOW! All of that in about 48 hours --- with a little bit of time for goofing off, having office chair races, enjoying the beauty of God’s world in Powderhorn Park & Webber Parkway … and some are purported to have gotten some sleep!