You Welcomed Me!

Good morning, Loved Ones,

Here's hoping that you all found meaning and hope in your Christmas celebrations and that the onslaught of serious winter has brought you peace and beauty, not vexation and despair.

The gospel passage assigned to New Year's day by the lectionary is an interesting and challenging one. It is Jesus' parable of the sheep and the goats from Matthew 25.

I was hungry and you fed me,
I was thirsty and you gave me a drink,
I was a stranger and you welcomed me . . . (Mt. 25:35)

What a message for the New Year! If we are going to make resolutions, perhaps they should be informed by that verse.

Today I give thanks for . . .

. . . a third Wednesday of Cafe en la Calle and the generous response of one man who has been waiting for work every day now for three weeks. In the middle of his third conversation with Pastor Alfonso he reached in his pocket and pulled out a $5 bill. Pastor Alfonso told him, "No. These elements are a small offering on our part." The man responded, "Yes, I know. It is a beautiful work and I would like to be part of it." Thanks be to God.

. . . 17 young people at youth group last night and particularly for my friend and our brother, Ivan. I give thanks for him and pray that he would find the strength of spirit to move away from all the things that are interfering with his abundant life with Christ. Thanks be to God.

. . . the courageous 70+ people who braved the treacherous roads and showed up for Christmas Eve Communion and Candlelight and the 35-40 who did the same on Sunday morning. What a great meal we had --- Jean's Steak soup, Veronica's Tamales and Maria's Chicken Mole -- Mmmmmmm. Thanks be to God.

. . . Sam and Randy who are helping to fashion an idea for a "Back to Summer" youth conference that has been a dream for over a year. Thanks be to God.

. . . and finally for Kent Parrett's beautiful labor of love that decorated the front of the sanctuary and inspired us throughout advent and Christmas and now into Epiphany --- stained glass images of the Nativity, lit up, artfully hovering over the front of the sanctuary. What an addition to our worship! What great beauty during the candlight on Christmas Eve. Thanks be to God.

Let's be resolved to be thankful whatever 2010 may bring and to remember to look for Jesus and serve him in the most unlikely places.

Pastor Rick

Forget the Stress

Merry Christmas to all this morning!

Hope that your advent celebrations are leading you to the light. I am posting again this year an alternative Christmas song for you to sing. It is sung to the tune of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." It comes from the folks at Sojourners.

Have Yourself a Peace and Justice Christmas

Have yourself a peace and justice Christmas,
Set your heart a-right.
Flee the malls and focus on Christ’s guiding light.

Have yourself a peace and justice Christmas,
Give your time a way.
Share God’s love, And serve “the least of these” today.

Here we are, as we pray for peace,
We’ll live simply and give more.
We care for those far and near to us,
Which brings cheer to us, once more.

God brings down
The haughty from high places,
And lifts up the low.
God cares for the hungry and the humble, so –
Forget the stress and let the peace and justice flow!


Thanks be to God for . . .

. . . a great group of youth who chased each other around the ice skating rink last night.

. . . a second Wednesday morning of "Cafe en la Calle." Thanks to Gely, Javier and Maria who came along today and brought sandwiches, sweet bread and arroz con leche to share with the folks who were waiting and hoping for work. Please pray for Vince who is sleeping in a park in this cold weather because the shelter is full.

. . . Courtney and Yvonne who are completing community service at the church and doing so with positive spirits and not as life draining obligation.

. . . Harvesters Food Netwrok which enables us to share God's bounty with those of us who are struggling to make it.

. . . Glenda Jo Self and her daughter Theresa who, for the second year in a row, helped five familes to have some food and presents.


What are you thankful for today?

Gimme cinco!

Pastor Rick
http://gimmecinco.blogspot.com/

Good morning, Loved Ones,

As the season brings its stress and challenges, let the your gratitude rule the day.

Philippians 4:4-7 (The Message)

^4-5Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!

^6-7Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

Thank God for . . .

. . . music teachers who help children like me and the bright eyed middle schooler at last night's Eisenhower M.S. find artistic expression through our voices and instruments.

. . . Erandeni Ontiveros who is gathering our church kids to do special music during worship next Sunday.

. . . Pastor Tom who consistently calls us to corporate confession Sunday after Sunday. Pastor Tom is the best 'bad guy' in the world!

. . . those who work in the healthy cooking program on Fridays. The teachers, the interpreters, the helpers, the organizers, the child care provider. This ministry is proving to meet a great need.

. . . a new ministry begun this morning. Yesterday Pastor Alfonso said, "Why don't we take coffee to the day labor site on Central Ave. tomorrow?" This morning we served coffee, hot chocolate, pancitos, granola bars and bananas to about 40 men and women who were waiting and hoping for work. They questioned why anyone would give away free coffee. "Es un mundo loco!" they said. We were blessed.

Let gratitude displace your worries today. Gimme conco!

Pastor Rick
http://gimmecinco.blogspot.com/

Buckets of Salvation

Good Monday, Loved Ones,

Your gratitude offering comes early this week. I'll be out of town until Thursday night and am disconnecting from cyberspace. So, please respond this week when you can.
Our inspiration this week comes from Isaiah.

Isaiah 12:2-6 (The Message)

²"Yes, indeed—God is my salvation.
I trust, I won't be afraid.
God—yes God!—is my strength and song,
best of all, my salvation!"

^3-4Joyfully you'll pull up buckets of water
from the wells of salvation.
And as you do it, you'll say,
"Give thanks to God.
Call out his name.
Ask him anything!
Shout to the nations, tell them what he's done,
spread the news of his great reputation!

^5-6"Sing praise-songs to God. He's done it all!
Let the whole earth know what he's done!
Raise the roof! Sing your hearts out, O Zion!
The Greatest lives among you: The Holy of Israel."

Today I raise the roof because . . .

. . . Kent Parrett took time and used his skills to produce a stained glass nativity scene for the front of the church. Can't wait to see it during the candlelight service.

. . . Javier Ruiz has agreed to fill in and coach Los Tiburones Tuesday evening weather permitting. Baby it's cold outside!

. . . Jim and Carolyn Mallinson, with dogs in tow, escaped a deadly, devastating fire at their home outside Sedalia Friday night. They lost everything but the clothes on their backs. Please keep them in your prayers.

. . . Bump Haynes continues to receive good reports in his health struggles. Keep praying.

. . . Alexander Jeffrey Dean's surgery was successful and he has begun the long and challenging process of healing and rehabilitation. Keep him and his mom, Amy, and dad, Greg, in your prayers.

. . . good folks at United Access handicapped equipment rented us a van at 1/2 price to get Alex home from the hospital on Friday. This would have been a very difficult task without the van's special equipment. Their generosity and compassion made the move a breeze.

OK, I pulled up one extra bucket of salvation water. What do you have the strength to pull up from your wells of salvation this week. Let's raise the roof with our heartfelt gratitude.

Pastor Rick
http://gimmecinco.blogspot.com/

Inadequate Thanksgiving

Good morning, Loved Ones,

Here's praying that this season of Advent finds you with your heads up, standing tall and paying attention. Live into hope!
Today's scripture for your reflection:

1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 (The Message)

^9-10What would be an adequate thanksgiving to offer God for all the joy we experience before him because of you? We do what we can, praying away, night and day, asking for the bonus of seeing your faces again and doing what we can to help when your faith falters.

^11-13May God our Father himself and our Master Jesus clear the road to you! And may the Master pour on the love so it fills your lives and splashes over on everyone around you, just as it does from us to you. May you be infused with strength and purity, filled with confidence in the presence of God our Father when our Master Jesus arrives with all his followers.

Today I give thanks for . . .

. . . Alexander Jeffery Dean, our nephew, who today is undergoing an extensive surgery on his legs. He's a brave trooper. Please pray for him today and for his mom, Amy, and dad, Greg.

. . . Pastor Alfonso Tot, my partner in ministry, for his steadfast commitment to building a community of faith, justice, peace and hope. His head is up, he stands tall and he pays attention while struggling with the incredible challenge of Parkinson's. Keep him in your prayers every day. I know you are in his.

. . . Sam, my son, who has chosen to spend his next semester in a border studies program rather than an exotic semester in Argentine. He'll be studying immigration issues and working with justice ministries and programs along the border. Keep him in your prayers.

. . . Lucas, my son, who has chosen the difficult IB studies program and continues to be committed to the life of his church and his music, soccer and swimming. He is growing into a fine young man. Please pray for Lucas.

. . . the ministries of Grandview Park Presbyterian Church, the justice work of IJAM (Immigrant Justice Advocacy Movement) and the neighborhood development work of AQUI (Affiliated Quality Urban Initiatives). All of this work is about the love of God filling our lives and splashing over on everyone around us. Pray for these efforts.

We are full of hope and the thanksgiving we share is insufficient for all the blessings we experience daily.

Pastor Rick
http://gimmecinco.blogspot.com/

Today we welcome Ingrid and Maria to our sharing of gratitude.