Hasten The Day
"I don't want to wait no more."
Those words capture my experience at this point of the Advent season. Christmas is right around the corner and in some ways its approach is a relief. As our community anticipates voting on the possible purchase of the Phillips Event Center, I feel a sense of anticipation, both for the meeting this Sunday and for what God has for us in the seasons ahead.
Beyond those temporal longings however, this season is also a reminder that we wait for eternity. For the fullness of God's kingdom and the return of Christ our king. We long for a world made right, and for the one who is himself right. As we gather for the final Sunday of Advent, I'm looking forward to lifting the name of Jesus high, and eagerly waiting together.
With the meeting this Sunday and Christmas next week, I wanted to highlight a couple of things:
Parish Meeting. We'll be jumping into the meeting immediately following worship on Sunday (this is a slight change from what was planned earlier). The meeting will be very short, primarily consisting of the vote itself. If you have questions or concerns, you can read the information docs here, watch our meeting from last week here, and reach out here. The meeting will be streamed online and members can vote online. The nursery will be set up with a stream of the meeting as well, so parents with little ones can be back there and participate in the meeting if needed.
Celebrating the Incarnation. Next weekend we are holding services on the 24th, 25th, and 26th.
For Christmas Eve our service will be at 5pm. This will be a Eucharistic service with a kids choir offering, and will conclude outdoors with carols and candles. This is great night to invite a friend! Bring cookies or Christmas snacks to share!
On Christmas we'll worship at 11am. This is a short service of Holy Communion, featuring a reading of the Christmas story. The service will be about 45 minutes. Feel free to come in something comfy (even pajamas!).
The First Sunday of Christmastide at 10am. This is a traditional "Lesson & Carols" Service, guiding us through salvation history as we rejoice over Christ's coming.
I am so looking forward to rejoicing with you as Advent comes to a close and we celebrate Christmastide. I hope you can join us for some or all of these services of worship. I also wanted to highlightthis podcastfeaturing our very own Krista Vossler, reflecting on her favorite Advent/Christmastide hymn, and that Lionel Young, a member of our community, had abookincluded as a finalist forChristianity Today's book awards. It looks like a great read for Epiphany!
In Christ,
Peter+
Ps. If you can watch a recording of last week's Lunch & Learnhere.