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Summer

6/14/2022

So weird. And so cool! This morning (Tuesday) when I woke up at 4:30—you see some serious first light this time of year. Yes, most of the time I’m up this early.

Why? This. I love it!
This time of year is awesome! First light. 4:30am. Cup of coffee. The best time of day!

The days are so long now—obviously longest next week at the summer solstice, June 21. But, you get a pretty good idea now. And at night, the last light is still fading at 9pm.

I love summer!

I especially love summer on the east coast because of that early light. I don’t set an alarm anymore—haven’t for years. I go to bed when I’m tired and get up when I’m done, whatever that looks like. Sometimes it’s 4:30 or even earlier and that’s fine by me.

I love that first light, especially if I can get outside to sit and watch it come like today.

Amazing!

It feels like a new awakening—it feels like creation.

Genesis 1:
In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, 2 the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness [God] called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. (NRSV)

That wind from God. In Hebrew, it’s “ruah elohim” and it looks like this:
וְר֣וּחַ אֱלֹהִ֔ים

Read it right to left. Wow! Pretty awesome!

The Spirit of God. Literally, the breath of God.

There’s no alarm clock for it. In fact, to God—what is a day? Just think about that. From God’s perspective, what is a day?

That alone is enough to make your brain hurt. It’s enough to keep you busy with summer reading, if you want. It’s enough to think about for now.

Summer is almost officially here!
The Spirit is moving!
And so are we--

We’re still on Facebook Live every week—and we’ve moved church to the Community House in person on Sunday mornings to beat the heat. We have some air conditioning here—and not so much in the Sanctuary. There’s room for the Spirit of course!

There’s room for you.

I love summer because it feels like creation.
It feels new.
It feels like the breath of God.
And I hope you feel it too!

See you Sunday!

Grace and peace,
Scott

Confirmation Class

6/7/2022

This is an exciting week in the life of Fairmount Presbyterian Church!

Sunday was Youth Sunday, the Day of the Pentecost, (the birth of the church as in the book of Acts), we baptized two of our students, and it was Confirmation Sunday. Whew! It was awesome!

This year, 4 of our middle school students came most Sundays after church to spend time learning about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. How do they impact our world, our lives, who we are? Do they still impact our lives today? If so, how?

They have been wrestling with the tough questions and now is the time when all that work pays off. They are now full members of Fairmount Presbyterian Church. They are full voting members, they can be elected to serve on session as Elders, they can be elected as Deacons, and they now have both voice and vote in all Congregational matters.

Interestingly enough, while this may feel like a “graduation,” it’s not. It’s really the signal of the end of the beginning. They have the background, the foundation, the source material to answer the hard questions, not the least of which is:

Is Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior?

That’s the only question we officially answer in order to be a member of the Presbyterian church. That’s it. All full members have answered it. But what a hard question! When you really answer it from the heart, thinking about it can make your brain not just hurt—it might make your brain explode!

I tend to think that we spend the rest of our lives answering that question. Confirming, denying, confirming, denying—because that’s what we do. So, I’ve warned them—that’s what they will do.

One of the things they are also required to do is write a statement of faith in their own words that answers these questions: What I think about God. What I think about Jesus. What I think about the Holy Spirit. Think “Apostles’ Creed.”

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth,
And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
**I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy *catholic Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.**   (catholic in lower case means “universal.”)

We say it a lot in church, so I know you’re familiar with it. I gave it to our students to use as a reference point. And they wrote their own just for the exercise.

So, I wonder what you might say. What do you* think about God? What do you think about Jesus? What do you think about the Holy Spirit? And what would you say?

If you were here on Sunday, or joined us on Facebook Live!—I took each of their statements and put them in a blender creating an Affirmation of Faith that we will use going forward in our worship. It’s pretty amazing—we’re going to use it again this week so come this Sunday to see and hear! They lead us in their affirmation Sunday and you can come and see and hear and be for yourself in church this Sunday!

Here it is:

God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit are love—they claim us like children of Heaven and Earth always. God creates everything. God is the constant trusted presence of love and forgiveness for all the world no matter what. Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior. Jesus shows us love, hope, courage, kindness, sacrifice, and suffering in the faith that drives our lives. The fully human and fully God Christ Jesus teaches us to believe in each other and ourselves. The Holy Spirit is an angel of God protecting and empowering us always in all ways. The Spirit is our faith in action. God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit are mystery, beyond understanding, always present everywhere. Amen.

I know! Pretty amazing, right?
Come and join us this Sunday to pray it together—maybe relive your confirmation.

Is Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior?

I’m just askin’…

Grace and Peace,
Scott