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It's Not About The Religion,
It's About The Relationship!
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Happy Thursday Church!
I’M BAAAAAAAAACK. I cannot tell you how much I missed seeing your faces, hugging your necks and ministering at your side. My 3-month sabbatical was a very special time. I am sure, as the weeks go by, that we will discuss even more who we are and how we get to where we want to be. Those of you who were blessed to be at the Sabbatical Retreat with my good friend and colleague, Rev. Rod Echols, have a head start on our focus during the next year.
One of the books I read during my time was a gem titled: “Hunting Magic Eels … Recovering an Enchanted Faith in a Skeptical Age.” By Richard Beck. I encourage all my readers out there to give it a shot. In the book, Beck suggests that God has never left our side and yet … we find ourselves in crisis of attention. He writes, “God hasn’t’ gone anywhere, but we’ve lost our capacity to see God.” There are times when, in my attempts to be as scholarly as I can, I lose the enchantment, I lose the wonder. I try to spout facts, when I really need to spout is the truth. Part of the truth that I am coming to grips with is my motivation in ministry.
For the past, almost 7 years, most of what I/we have done has been done to with the hope of igniting growth in our congregation ... getting more butts in the seats as they say. Now, I hail from the land of mega churches. Numbers were always questioned. In one church I served, the senior pastor would “edit” the numbers of Christmas Eve worship … hiking them up a hundred or two. The rest of the staff would do an internal eyeroll and giggle at the new increased numbers. Because, as we would say … “The attendance on Christmas Eve was a whopping 1000 people, pastorally speaking of course. When in reality, our numbers were more like 750. We were all charged with numerical growth at every turn. Now don’t get me wrong … growth is awesome! But I have found in our congregation, that our desire for “growth” is not the motivation we need. More people in Sunday worship cannot be our reason for everything.
What we need is a return to our basics. As we return to those things that ground us in this place, we will be healthier and ready for all the new folks who find us. We will discover together, what discipleship means for us as a congregation in the United Church of Christ. Read these lyrics from a 2009 Contemporary Christian song.
We need to get back to the basics of life
A heart that is pure and a love that is blind
A faith that is fervently grounded in Christ
The hope that endures for all times
These are the basics
We need to get back to the basics of life.
Oh … and as we do … not only will we be spiritually healthier, but we also will be so much more attractive to the outside world and that excites me. I hope you will worship with us Sunday morning. You will hear more about my sabbatical and the things I learned, and you will be invited, once again, to Christ’s table as we remember who God is, what Christ has done and what we are being filled to do. I love being your pastor.
Holding you close and lifting you high!
Pastor Greg
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Just Worship
It's been a while since I wrote a worship article since I was preaching all summer. While I’ve loved preaching, I’m excited to focus on just worship through music for a while. I don’t have too much to say this week, but I’m excited to have Greg back, to hear what God puts on his heart this week, and to support how we engage God’s Word (written and spoken) through musical reflection and worship. Take a listen to the songs we’ll be doing this week and prepare your hearts to worship together this Sunday.
Pastor Brandon
| | Our featured native plant this month is San Diego wirelettuce. It's scientific name is stephanomeria diegensis and it's a part of the asteraceae family. | | | |
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The asteraceae family of flowering plants is huge, containing more than 32,000 plants. Sunflowers and daisies are both members of this family.
The poster on the left gives some examples of other flowers found in this family. As you may notice, they do share a pretty strong family resemblance. Perhaps, you will see other members of the asteraceae family as you go about your week!
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Getting Aid to Nepal
Before our lovely Cathy Evans left for India, she shared two suggestions for getting money directly to the Nepali people impacted by the devastating floods.
Conscious Connections Foundation, along with its local partner Conscious Connections Nepal, has mobilized to provide immediate disaster relief following the catastrophic August 2026 flash floods and landslides. Because the foundation has a long-standing, deep-rooted infrastructure in Nepal focused on rural healthcare and education, they are pivoting their network to deliver direct aid to impacted communities.
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Hands on Global is working with Instituto Dharma. HOG colleague and friend, Dr. Karina Oliani of Brazil, has a long and profound connection to Nepal. Following the devastating 2015 earthquake, she helped mobilize assistance for communities there. Her humanitarian organization, Instituto Dharma, grew from that commitment and later helped build a school in the Nepali village of Patle. Today, she is in direct contact with her Nepali Sherpa guide and local partners, gathering information about what families need right now, and what they will need in the difficult months of recovery ahead.
Hands On Global stands with Karina, Instituto Dharma, and the people of Nepal. To assist the Nepali people, you may donate to Hands on Global and reference the Nepal Flood.
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Our Church’s Wider Mission Special Offering
Greetings from the Outreach Ministry
Thank you to our Church, family and friends for your generous gifts of food for our very own pantry here at CCP. Your Gifts will bring smiles and full tummies to those that need a little extra help. Thank you so much.
For the month of September, please prayerfully consider supporting our Church’s Wider Mission with a special mission offering to be divided among the United Church of Christ’s Special Mission Offerings and Basic Support.
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Our Church’s Wider Mission Basic Support provides funding from congregations for Conferences and the national ministries of the UCC.
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Neighbors in Need supports ministries of justice and compassion throughout the US including the Council for American Indian Ministry and the UCC’s Justice and Witness Ministries.
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One Great Hour of Sharing responds to humanitarian needs in the world and carries God’s message of love and hope to people in crisis. OGHS provides sources of clean water, food, education, health care, micro loans, disaster preparedness and more.
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The Christmas Fund supports the charitable arm of the Pension Board with direct financial support of those who serve the church and are facing difficulties.
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Strengthen the Church reflects the shared commitment of people across the UCC to cooperatively support leadership development, new churches, youth ministry and innovation in existing congregations.
These special mission offerings change lives inside and outside of the United Church of Christ. Together, they create a network of support that demonstrates the Church in action, loving the world that God loves.
Please prayerfully consider how you can help these missions. Just indicate “Mission Offering” on your check or online contribution. Thank you for helping the Community Church of Poway support 5 for 5!
God’s Blessings
The Outreach Ministry
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Adult Scripture Review
On Sundays, following worship in the fireside room!
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Books and More: August Reading
Books and More is reading Tracy Chevalier's “The Glassmaker” this August.
This novel is an imaginative telling of the art glass making through the centuries on the island of Murano, 1 mi away from the city of Venice. Tracy Chevalier blends history, the Murano and Venetian cultures, the role of women, family, the essence of life, death, love and all of this with one family at the center of it.
You are invited to join this wonderful group of ladies every Tuesday, in the Fireside Room at 10 a.m.
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Centering Prayer
Tuesdays at 6:30 PM
Contact Colleen Clementson at powclem@yahoo.com or on
her cell at 858-663-6584, for the ZOOM invite
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10 Principles of Disability Justice:
Principle #9
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The word "crip" is used in the original version passage below. This is a word that is being reclaimed by the disability community. "Cripple" has been used as a slur to describe and disparage disabled people, however disabled folks have begun to use it to self-describe as a part of our journey in releasing shame that has been imposed on us and reconnecting with pride.
Plain Language Version
"We Meet Each Other’s Needs: Many places, groups, and activities don’t pay attention to what we need. This means Disabled people often miss out on information, events, or opportunities. Together, we find ways to meet our needs and make sure everyone can be included. This is called Collective Access."
Original Version
"Collective Access: As Black and brown and queer crips, we bring flexibility and creative nuance to our engagement with each other. We create and explore ways of doing things that go beyond able-bodied and neurotypical norms. Access needs aren’t shameful — we all function differently depending on context and environment. Access needs can be articulated and met privately, through a collective, or in community, depending upon an individual’s needs, desires, and the capacity of the group. We can share responsibility for our access needs, we can ask that our needs be met without compromising our integrity, we can balance autonomy while being in community, we can be unafraid of our vulnerabilities, knowing our strengths are respected." Source
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Thanks for reading, y'all. If you need to contact me, feel free to reach out at the email address listed below.
Until next time,
dez
pronouns: they/them
dez@ccpucc.org
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