Advent Week 1 - Hope

Supplies needed: Bible, lighter/matches, 5 candles (individual or part of an advent wreath/log)

Luke 1:26-38 NRSVUE

26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 30 The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” 34 Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” 35 The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. 36 And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

 Light 1 candle.

Discussion: What brings you hope (especially this time of year)?

Reflection: How has hope affected your life? When has it been helpful? harmful?

Awareness: The hope of Christ is all around us. Pay attention to moments of hope this week as you live expectantly awaiting, like Mary and Elizabeth.

 Pray:

Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Book of Common Prayer, pg. 211.

Thanksgiving Message from Pastor Andy

“And we urge you, beloved, to admonish idlers, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with all of them. See that none of you repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:14-18

This week we celebrate Thanksgiving, a secular holiday in our nation that admittedly has too often white-washed the history of European settlers and the Indigenous people we unsettled (and worse) as a result. There is much to be repentant for, and much more work lies ahead of us.

Thanksgiving also offers us the opportunity to practice the spiritual disciple of gratitude, giving thanks to God, from whom all blessings flow. In the above passage from 1 Thessalonians, the author admonishes the church to do good in all ways, avoiding repayment of evil with evil, all while being patient with one another. These are words all Christians can use as a compass, as a north-star, orienting us toward the way of Christ.

The author puts a very fine point on it when he writes: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances.” And while this way of being sometimes flows forth easily for disciples of Jesus, often it is not so easy. When disappointment, and despair, and death are knocking it can be difficult to rejoice. When grief and anxiety have overwhelmed us, it can feel impossible to pray. When one bad thing happens after another, it can leave us at a loss for what we are supposed to be giving thanks for.

My sisters, my brothers, my siblings in Christ Jesus, if this is such a season for you, may these words be an encouragement for you, if you are struggling to rejoice, if you are struggling to pray, if you are struggling to give thanks in all things, turn once more to the beginning of this passage: “Admonish idlers, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak.” When we turn our efforts to be in service to others, God’s grace has a mystical way of welling up within us, and rejoicing, and praying, and giving thanks have a way of following naturally.

Know that this Thanksgiving, I rejoice because of you my St. John family members. I am praying without ceasing for you and yours. And I am giving thanks to God Almighty for you and our shared space in the family of God.

May God’s grace and blessings be with you and yours this holiday season as we gather to give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for us.

Shalom,

Pastor Andy

Finding HOPE in Hope

By Kimber Olson

We turn on the news and there is so. much. hurt. in the world.  So. Much. Suffering.  Does it ever feel to you like you've just had enough of it? Are you sometimes so enveloped in the thoughts and stories and news of your own and the suffering of others that you struggle to see the light in the darkness? The visceral pain of that light, of hope, as just a flicker when we want a whole wildfire of it, can be overwhelming. 

Hope isn't toxic positivity, and it isn't pretending that suffering doesn't exist. But it is noticing that a seed can grow in the most unlikely of places and can peek into our lives as a tiny, fragile reminder of its tenacity. A flicker that can grow into a wildfire when we fan it and share it with others. A grace that we don't deserve but are given nonetheless. A beautiful message from God. 

Join us October 22nd in HOPE, Alaska, as we identify together where we hold hope (and joy!)  in our bodies, our hearts and our minds, and how we can bring its light, God's light, back into our lives again.  

Register here for “Finding HOPE in Hope": 

Details: October 22nd, 10am to 5pm, lunch provided, with optional dinner till 6:30pm

Cost: $10/person or $20/family

Who: All people and ages welcome!

Where: Hope Retreat Center, in Hope, Alaska

Kimber Olson is chair of St. John’s Discipleship Ministry Team.

'Go to love and serve your neighbor'

By Betty Hertz

“Go to love and serve your neighbor.”

How often have we heard these words at the close of St. John church services? They echoed in my head Monday as I drove out to Centennial Campground. I volunteered to help the Salvation Army but wasn’t sure what I would encounter. I knew about the various incidents there and wasn’t sure how safe I would be.

Pastor Emily, three St. John members and I received a heartwarming welcome as we walked into the office! The Salvation Army members quickly introduced themselves, gave us a brief orientation about the residents, and provided guidance on safety concerns. They reminded us that their services are often called on during disasters and this encampment qualified. Then they shared their excitement that an organization had just volunteered to launder sleeping bags and towels regularly.

While I stayed in the office to help register new residents, the other four headed out to the campground to do the morning census. They traveled in pairs and had walkie-talkies in case they needed help.

What did we find? Neighbors seeking help ranging from hygiene kits, clothing, phone access and bus passes to tents and housing applications. We saw people wanting basic needs that most of us take for granted. I realized my whimpering about all this rain paled compared to their daily challenges.

Are you feeling the call to help our neighbors?

More volunteers are needed at the campground, especially on Mondays and Fridays.

Go to www.westernusa.salvationarmy.org/alaska

Then click on Volunteer in this community. Next, click on Volunteer Efforts at Centennial Campground. There are opportunities to help at the campground or at offsite locations.

If you don’t feel comfortable helping in person, donations of sleeping bags (new or clean used ones) are urgently needed and St. John is collecting sleeping pads.

 Heavenly Caregiver,

Open our hearts so that we reach out to our brothers and sisters in need. Help us give to others as you have given to us.

In your beloved Son’s name, Amen.

Betty Hertz is a longtime member of St John UMC, a Stephen Minister, Certified Lay Speaker and a member of SPRC. When not doing volunteer work, she is playing with her three goofy dogs.

Time for a new experience

Are you yearning to go deeper with God but unsure how? Would you like to grow in your experience of God while at the same time learning more about yourself? Are you open to learning and incorporating new ways of praying and connecting with God? Do you want to break out of a life focused on sin and live a life more full of God’s grace?

If you answered yes to these questions, you might want to explore the New Spiritual Exercises - a Retreat in Everyday Life. It’s a journey where we dive into familiar stories of Jesus’ life and grow in new understandings of those stories and new understandings about ourselves. We will learn new ways to pray and share our experiences with others in our retreat group. So if you are looking for an intimate and connective experience, maybe God is nudging you to explore this retreat.

For six days a week, you will be guided through meditations that help you explore your relationship with God, yourself, and others. Rather than experiencing a retreat condensed over three days (or 30 days in the case of St. Ignatius’ original spiritual exercises), this retreat offers daily times for you to connect with God over a year. You will also meet with Colleen for spiritual direction once a month. Spiritual direction is a space for you to reflect with someone on what God is doing during your prayer time. The retreat begins Aug. 31 and ends May 10.

Unsure of whether you want to commit?

Hear this prayer from Teilhard de Chardin titled, “Above All, Trust the Slow Work of God.”

Above all, trust the slow work of God.

We are quite naturally impatient in everything to reach the end without delay.

We should like to skip the intermediate stages.

We are impatient of being on the way to something unknown, something new.

Yet it is the law of all progress that is made by passing through some stages of instability and that may take a very long time.

And so I think it is with you.

Your ideas mature gradually. Let them grow.

Let them shape themselves without undue haste.

Do not try to force them on as though you could be today what time — that is to say, grace — and circumstances acting on your own good will, will make you tomorrow.

Only God could say what this new Spirit gradually forming in you will be.

Give our Lord the benefit of believing that [the divine] hand is leading you, and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete.

Above all, trust in the slow work of God, our loving vine-dresser.

Amen.

If you have questions or want to learn more about the Retreat in Everyday Life, contact Colleen Runty via email at colleen.runty@gmail.com.