 Don't miss out on our big "beat the winter blahs" Luau Potluck and Party coming up on LEAP DAY (Saturday, February 29th). Not only will be enjoy some great food, but there will be plenty of fun and games for all ages! One of our values as a congregation is building inter-generational relationships and what better way to do that than to laugh and play together?! After all, we are all ohana (family). So break out your tropical outfit and join us for a memorable evening together! Ho'olu komo la kaua (please join us)! Is Your Fruit Fresh? Our adult Sunday School class is looking at the Fruit of the Spirit as found in Galatians 5:22-23. Each week we'll be focusing on one of these nine characteristics that God promises to produce in our lives through the Holy Spirit. This week, Sunday, March 1st, we'll be talking about JOY.
Why don't you join us at 9:45 AM prior to worship for a lively conversation and some honest assessment of just how much growth is taking place in our lives.  I've known many people in my life who have suffered from depression. Some of them were going through some seriously difficult circumstances while others were dealing with brain chemistry imbalances which needed to be addressed. Most of them, thankfully, were able to get past the overwhelming feelings of despair, but not all of them. In a few cases, they gave up all hope and took their own lives. Life as broken people living in a broken world will include pain, suffering, and emotional distress. Even for those who follow Jesus, there are times in which we feel as if we've been abandoned. It's a times like this when God's Word is a real gift to us. Not only are there encouraging messages and promises that can refocus our eyes on God's presence and the hope we have in Him, but there are also books like Lamentations which can help us find solidarity in our distress. The Israelites went through horrific suffering at the hands of the Babylonians and, even though they had been warned that this punishment was coming because of their rebellion against God, it was beyond what they could bear. Jeremiah witnessed it all and puts the pain into words. Some of it is hard to read, and we may feel tempted to look away. However, the fact that God meets us in our pain - and even shares in it - makes a world of difference. And the five poems of lament which make up the book help us remember that we're not alone in our pain. This Sunday, February 23rd, we'll be continuing in our IMMERSE: POETS series by considering chapter 3 of Lamentations. I hope you're joining us on this reading journey, but take the time to read and reflect on this passage in preparation. Another wonderful resource for understanding Lamentations is the animated overview of the book found on Right Now Media and on Youtube. Here are the links to it: https://www.rightnowmedia.org/Content/VideoElement/204171 https://youtu.be/p8GDFPdaQZQ Is Your Fruit Fresh? Our adult Sunday School class is looking at the Fruit of the Spirit as found in Galatians 5:22-23. Each week we'll be focusing on one of these nine characteristics that God promises to produce in our lives through the Holy Spirit. Why don't you join us at 9:45 AM prior to worship for a lively conversation and some honest assessment of just how much growth is taking place in our lives. Hele mei hoohiwahiwa (come celebrate) at the Luau Potluck! Don't miss out on our big "beat the winter blahs" Luau Potluck and Party coming up on LEAP DAY (Saturday, February 29th). Not only will be enjoy some great food, but there will be plenty of fun and games for all ages!
One of our values as a congregation is building inter-generational relationships and what better way to do that than to laugh and play together?! After all, we are all ohana (family). So break out your tropical outfit and join us for a memorable evening together! Ho'olu komo la kaua (please join us)!  When Tami and I were first married, we lived in New Britain, CT, where I was the youth pastor at the Covenant church and Tami taught school. During the six years we lived there, we had to adjust to the culture - specifically as it related to interactions with strangers. If I were approaching you on the sidewalk, the expectation would be that we would neither greet each other nor even make eye contact. Cashiers did not engage in small talk. People simply hurried along in their own cocoon separately from those they didn't already know. And if you hadn't grown up with the person or have a multi-decade history in the community, you were an outsider and probably would not be invited into their close circle of friends. Now, don't get me wrong. We had some wonderful friendships within the church and Tami's teacher friends were among her favorite people. But it was a bit disconcerting and we were ready for a change when we got called to move to Kalamazoo, MI. We immediately knew we were in a different place when we experienced strangers waving at our car as we drove past. Conversations happened with people wherever we went: at the store, McDonalds, in our neighborhood. The Midwest was certainly different than New England! However, the outward friendliness did not automatically reflect the individual's actual feelings. There were times when we discovered that it was simply the interaction that was expected - much like a mask worn to fit in. Again, we developed wonderful friendships, but sometimes we wondered how much of our conversations were just about saying what you're supposed to say. I'm not writing this to make judgments on anybody, but simply to bring up the question of honesty. There are many times when we fail to be completely honest for fear of hurting someone's feelings or being rejected by them. Certainly we need to be cautious with HOW we say things, but honesty is important, too. What about our relationship with God? Are you able to say anything to Him? Can you express frustration, anger, and confusion as easily as you can express thanksgiving, joy, and praise? This week we're beginning our next season of our three-year journey reading through the Bible using IMMERSE. This section is the POETS (Psalms, Lamentations, Song of Songs, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Job). Each week we're reading for about 20 minutes a day, five days a week. This week our reading takes us through the first book of Psalms: Psalms 1-41. This Sunday, February 16, we'll be looking specifically at Psalm 40 as an example of honestly talking to God. Be sure to at least read this Psalm ahead of time, but there's plenty of time to join us in this rich journey through these wonderful books. You can pick up a copy at church, order one on Amazon (including a Kindle version), and subscribe to the IMMERSE POETS podcast to listen to the audio version of each day's reading. Audio is also available at https://www.tyndale.com/sites/immersebible/poets-resources/ Hele mei hoohiwahiwa (come celebrate) at the Luau Potluck! Don't miss out on our big "beat the winter blahs" Luau Potluck and Party coming up on LEAP DAY (Saturday, February 29th). Not only will be enjoy some great food, but there will be plenty of fun and games for all ages!
One of our values as a congregation is building inter-generational relationships and what better way to do that than to laugh and play together?! After all, we are all ohana (family). So break out your tropical outfit and join us for a memorable evening together! Ho'olu komo la kaua (please join us)! Save the date - more details coming soon!  It turns out that we all need it! While you may never need to make a bare-handed catch of a foul ball, like Evan Longoria, there are plenty of times your peripheral vision comes in useful. Sometimes I find myself solely focused on and overwhelmed by a big problem. When that happens, I forget that God is always present and at work on my behalf. If I use my "spiritual peripheral vision" I just may see where help is being provided! This Sunday, February 9th, we'll be concluding our "20/20 Vision" series with a look at a very well-known story from the sixth chapter of Daniel. While it looked as if Daniel's commitment to honoring God as number one in his life was certain to bring his life to an end, God had other plans. I hope you'll be able to join us and be encouraged. God is always with us! IMMERSE: POETS Monday is the first day of our next Covenant Bible Reading Experience using the IMMERSE resource. This time we'll be reading through the poetry books of the Bible (Psalms, Lamentations, Proverbs, Song of Songs, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Job). We'll be reading for about 20 minutes a day, five days a week over the course of the next eight weeks. Each Sunday I'll be preaching from one of the passages we've read during the previous week.
The IMMERSE: POETS volume is designed to be read in larger portions. They've removed the chapter and verse breaks so that it's much more like reading a novel (or book of poetry in this case). The goal is to simply immerse ourselves in God's Word and let the Holy Spirit speak to us as He wishes to by bringing certain things to our attention. It's definitely different than an inductive verse-by-verse study of scripture. Copies of IMMERSE: POETS are available at the church for a suggested donation of $10, but we don't want the cost to keep anyone from participating in our scripture reading experience. Simply pay what you can. If you prefer, you can also purchase a Kindle version from Amazon. And I highly recommend subscribing to the podcast "IMMERSE POETS" to listen to the audio version as you read along or while you're doing other things. There are other resources available (weekly video summaries, daily audio, and more) at immerse.covchurch.org/poets/ And, finally, some small groups are forming to discuss what we're reading and how God's Word is impacting us as we read the books of the poets. I'm inviting any of you to join me at my home on Thursday evenings at 7:00 pm if you do not have a small group of your own. |
Pastor JeffThoughts about living as a Jesus follower and life at Community Covenant Church Archives
December 2020
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