Sunday Worship

One of the finer joys of summer on the Cape is Sunday worship at the beach. Hosted by the local Methodist church, this early morning service has been a tradition for many years and is well attended by locals and visitors. Worship always begins with a hearty hymn sing and time for silent meditation; and being the beach lover that I am, nothing is more satisfying and fulfilling for me than hearing God's voice reflected in the sound of the waves, wind and shore birds. Prayers, scripture, and a meaningful message are always central in this worship service, along with musical offerings and more hymns. If you ever find yourself on Nauset Beach at 7:30 on a Sunday morning, please join us in the gazebo - you'll be glad you did!

Secretaries' Retreat

This past weekbeginning (Sunday, Monday, Tuesday) I had the pleasure of attending the Church Secretaries' Conference/Retreat at Craigville Conference Center on Cape Cod. An annual meeting of women called to a common 'ministry', this event is an opportunity to connect with others who know my job only all too well. We all serve in differing capacities, from full-time office administration to part-time work in specific areas, but yet recognize and honor the common thread of our focus - service to God and our churches. In addition to attending an informational seminar on Safe Church Policy, we ate, played and worshiped together, strengthening our friendships and appreciation of and for one another.

Well...yesterday's class with Ted Mullett was great...I learned some new techniques which I'll be spending lots of time playing with! As soon as I come up with a few creations, I'll post them.

I also started reading a new book yesterday - The Shack by Wm. Paul Young. Recommended by a couple of friends, it is already proving to be all they said it would be. A work of fiction, it tells the story of a man's face to face experience with God. Definitely a worthwhile read - lots of food for thought.

Well, off to do some needed organizing and decluttering...and more reading!

Who is Jesus?

On this Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week, the most important question we can ask is "Who is Jesus?"

In his famous book Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis makes this statement, "A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic - on the level with a man who says he is a poached egg - or he would be the devil of hell. You must take your choice. Either this was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us."

The Twelve Days of Christmas - 1, 2 & 3

I am among many who like to think of the Christmas song The Twelve Days of Christmas as a song of Christian instruction, perhaps dating to the 16th century religious wars in England, with hidden references to the basic teachings of the Christian Faith. (Read more about this by clicking this link.)
Over the next several days, I will post ATCs I have created to represent these teachings ...