~ Gratitude and Peace...and a Few Other Things...~
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts,
to which indeed you were called in the one body, and be thankful.”
~Colossians 3:15
Dear Members and Friends,
Is it true that by practicing gratitude you can find more peace in your life? Colossians seems to suggest as much, in the verse above. I suppose it makes sense. The inner landscape of our life is always shaped and colored by the things we allow our hearts to ponder and our minds to dwell on. If we make a conscious effort to think about the things we have to be grateful for, then the tone of our life will be hopeful, positive, and generous. Gratitude makes us mindful of God’s goodness to us, and when we remember God’s goodness in the past and present, it helps us trust that God will be good in the future as well. Let’s give it a try in this season of Thanksgiving.
58th Annual Interfaith Thanksgiving: “Lighting the Dark”
Bower Hill Church will be hosting the annual Interfaith Thanksgiving service, now in its 58th year! It started as a collaboration between Good Shepherd Lutheran, Our Lady of Grace, Temple Emanuel, and Bower Hill. The South Hills Interfaith Movement gets involved to varying degrees annually. Alas, the Lutheran church has closed, and the Catholics have pulled out. But the show must go on! In these divided times, the world needs to see people of faith coming together. Our theme, “Lighting the Dark,” is to learn about the festivals of light that exist in many faith traditions at this time of year. Have you ever noticed that, as our hemisphere darkens, many religions respond with a celebration of light? Hanukkah, Diwali, Solstice, Advent, Kwanzaa. Representatives of various religious traditions will be speaking to us about their annual holidays to hold a light against the gathering dark. Please come, and bring a non-perishable food item to donate to SHIM! Tuesday, November 26, at 7:00pm.
Giving from Our Abundance:
In Mark, Jesus sees all the rich worshipers dropping their gifts into the temple treasury. They make a great show of their generosity, hoping everyone will see. After the rich donors, a poor widow drops her last few cents into the plate. Jesus says that the rich have “given out of their abundance,” but the widow has given more than all of them because she gave all she had. You and me? We give out of our abundance. We don’t make a show of it, but we have enough and to spare. So many charities and worthy causes vye for our dollars, and we can usually support as many or as few as we wish. (I’m a sucker for Wikipedia, which I support regularly because I use it several times daily.) Bower Hill Church feeds the poor, gives aid to the needy, welcomes and nurtures children and youth, attends to the elderly, ill, and lonely, offers inspiring worship and meaningful faith formation groups, and opens our building for community use. We help people to make sense of their lives and find purpose and joy. Out of your abundance, please support our mission generously by filling out a pledge card this year! I’m grateful to be working alongside all of you.
Thankfully,
~Brian
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