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This Sunday we will gather to celebrate Consecration Sunday.
Each one of us is given space on this morning to consider how we will use our time, resources and talents to spread hope to others this coming year.
Consecration Sunday is a celebration. It’s about taking notice of what we have and deciding on new (or continued) ways that we can live out the Gospel to others.
For many, one of the ways we do this is through financial giving. Finances keep the lights on, pay salaries, fund programs and projects, create opportunities to help those in crisis. It keeps the organ working and the piano tuned, the website updated and the online services streaming to those who are unable to attend. Financial giving spreads the hope of the Gospel in a tangible way. This kind of giving, as a community, is something to celebrate.
But so does opening our homes to children living in the limbo of foster care, caring for a parent with dementia, decorating and setting up for Vacation Bible School, adopting siblings so they can stay together, visiting community members on hospice, inviting a struggling mom to coffee (or bringing her one), helping fix someone’s leaky roof or sink, teaching Sunday School or leading youth group, checking in on a lonely neighbor, raking leaves or pulling weeds for a friend who is unable to do so, tutoring a child so they can build confidence and get caught up. These things are all ways that various people and families in our congregation are living out the Gospel every day. We celebrate this on Sunday as well.
In Sunday School, every child will be taking a moment to think about this. Maybe this is a conversation that can be had before Sunday in your home, around your table, or on the way to practice.
What does it mean to give hope? How can we intentionally plan to do that this year?
May Christ’s example of generosity guide you, inspire you and bless you.
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