Pastor's Pondering - July 24, 2020

Dear friends - Covid-19 is making for some real weird times. For the most part, everything fun about being a minister is pretty much gone - all the things you are missing about church and then some - poof. But this past weekend,  we set aside the grief and the strategic planning for the baptism of Lucas, son of Eric and Gaby, grandson of Dan and Anne Henriksen. It was outside, most of us were wearing masks (unless we forgot in the excitement of the moment), we were in chairs spread out on the lawn, and in a backyard - all pretty unusual circumstances. But here's what wasn't unusual: family, friends, and church members were present, even if a much smaller congregation; Eric and Gaby made vows to raise Lucas to know Jesus, and those gathered made the same promise; Lucas was baptized with the same Trinitarian formula that echoes throughout the ages - in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We have included a video of the baptism as part of worship this coming Sunday, so you too along with those gathered can make these same vows - to welcome Lucas and vow to love, encourage and support him so that he can grow up to know the love of Jesus and become a Christ-following disciple. The words are below - keep them handy on Sunday morning when we worship at 10:30 on youtube, and be part of the celebration. These are weird times, but the Holy Spirit is still present, the community still holds, and we will raise alleluias even so.  Grace and peace, Jess Lucas, with joy and thanksgiving, we welcome you into Christ’s church, for we are one in Christ. We promise to love, encourage, and support you, to share the good news of the gospel with you, and to help you know and follow Christ.