Old Fashion Potluck this Sunday March 29th
Garden of Grace UCC will furnish "fried chicken"
There was no sign up list because with an old fashion potluck, It is just that, "potluck."
So bring a side dish or dessert and fellowship outside if the weather permits.
If you need more information, please contact Joe Matthews at 803-351-3001. |
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Potluck This Sunday!
March 25 devotion
God Does Not Like Whiners
"Why have you brought us up out of Egypt, to bring us to this wretched place?"
Reflection by Martin B. Copenhaver
One of the messages from this passage from the Book of Numbers is easily summarized: God does not like whiners. God had just led the people of Israel out of slavery in Egypt when they started whining about where they ended up, in a land where there was little vegetation and no visible source of water. In response, God told Moses to strike a rock and water poured out of it, but God was not too happy about it and said, in essence, "This group of whiners is never going to make it to the Promised Land." God doesn't always expect us to be cheery. In fact, it is evident from scripture that God welcomes lament and even complaint as legitimate responses to the hardships of life. The difference is that whiners always find a way to whine, regardless of circumstances. They tell a story in Vermont about a farmer who always moaned about his crop yields. Every harvest seemed to fall short. Then, one year, after a spectacular bumper crop, a fellow farmer said, "Well, even you will have to admit that this was a good year." To which the whining farmer replied, "Yes, but terribly hard on the soil." Whiners always find reason to whine. And those whose lives are marked by gratitude always find reason to give thanks. It is clear which kind of person God expects us to be.
Prayer
God, please hear my complaints when life is difficult, but, dear God, please don't let me become a whiner. Instead, trace my heart with gratitude. Amen.
About the Author
Martin B. Copenhaver is Senior Pastor, Wellesley Congregational Church, United Church of Christ, Wellesley, Massachusetts, and the author of To Begin at the Beginning: An Introduction to the Christian Faith.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Re: Upcoming March 29, 2009 at Garden of Grace UCC
--- On Mon, 3/23/09, ANDY SIDDEN <pastorandys@msn.com> wrote:
|
March 24 devotion
On the Way to the Springs and Palm Trees
He cried out to the Lord; and the Lord showed him a piece of wood; he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.
Reflection by Ron Buford
The trip was going badly as he led the Children of Israel out of Egypt. In his moment of desperation, Moses did the three things we should all do. First: call on God--in good times and bad. Second: Be open to God's answer when we sense an answer--even when it seems . . . well, strange. And finally we should act on what God reveals through the sacred texts, prayer, and impressions or hunches we get on our daily prayerful walk with God.
It's not always easy. Would you have thrown that piece of wood in the water? I doubt that I would have. I might have been more afraid that I'd look desperate or foolish.
How does one know the will of God? Sometimes you don't know. Sometimes you have to take the risk, the leap of faith. And after taking the risk, you will know because the bitter undrinkable water in your life will become sweet or healthy. If it doesn't work, don't be too proud to change course. But notice how Moses' temporary solution eventually leads the people to an abundance of water.
So it is in life. In conflict, add a little sweetness. In time, it will lead you and those in conflict to a greater abundance of peace.
Prayer
Gracious God, help me bring calm and peace to a troubled situation in my life, my family, my community today. Help me take the risks needed to make peace. Bless the effort and help it lead to an abundance of peace. Amen
About the Author
Ron Buford is Director of Development, Northern California Nevada Conference, United Church of Christ.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
March 19 devotion
Excerpt from Psalm 107: 1-3, 17-22
Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wonderful works to human kind.
Reflection by Talitha Arnold
Right now. Just do what the psalm says. Stop whatever you're doing or whatever you're worrying about, and make a list. Not of your groceries or your "to-do's." Make a list of God's wonderful works to you. Write down ten things you're thankful for in this very moment. Ten things. My top two are always that the chili is green and the sky is blue. But even if you don't live in northern New Mexico, I bet you can come up with ten reasons to thank God in your life. What about that last breath you took? Or the first light of a new day? Those are pretty wonderful works. Thank the Lord for his steadfast love, that you've known in the smile of your child or the support of a co-worker. Thank God for that song on the radio as you drove to work or for having a job to drive to. Thank God for the healing you've known, in body and soul. Thank God for the fear that didn't last or the love that has. Thank God for the cat you loved as a child or the dog who loves you now. Go ahead. Thank the Lord. The Christian mystic Meister Eckhart wrote, "If the only prayer you ever say is 'thank you,' that would be sufficient." So write down ten things you're thankful for. And then write down ten things more. Just do it. Prayer For green chili, blue sky, and all your other wonderful works, O Lord, hear my prayer of thanks. Amen.
About the AuthorTalitha Arnold is the Senior Minister of the United Church of Santa Fe, New Mexico, and the author of Vital Worship for Congregations.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Columbia Progressive Network notice
Columbia Progressive Network activities:
Tuesday, March 24: Rally for Change, 4-6 pm, State House, Gervais at Main.
Rally to support stimulus funds in SC being spent on health care, education, green energy and JOBS!
Tuesday, March 24, 7pm: Progressive Network Study Group, Modjeska Simkins House, 2025 Marion St. Columbia (at Elmwood).
The Network kicks off its Columbia Study Group (every 4th Tues.) with a discussion of the various political theories and practices that shape our politics and economy: "Ism's": Can capitalism be saved? Should it be? Are there alternatives? We'll look at varieties of socialism, communism, and libertarianism and discuss alternatives. Go the the Network Study Group for two suggested readings prior to the discussion. The meetings are informal and everyone can participate.
The topic of the April 28th study group is "Economics for Dummies - understanding the stimulus" with a little help from Professor Jerel Rosati. Readings will be posted at the above site two weeks prior to the meeting.
For more info, or to be removed from this list, reply to network@scpronet.com
--
South Carolina Progressive Network
POB 8325 Columbia SC 29202
803-808-3384 * fax: 803-808-3781
E-mail: network@scpronet.com
Web: <http://www.scpronet.com> www.scpronet.com
Blog: <http://www.scpronet.com/wordpress/> www.scpronet.com/wordpress
POB 8325 Columbia SC 29202
803-808-3384 * fax: 803-808-3781
E-mail: network@scpronet.com
Web: <http://www.scpronet.com> www.scpronet.com
Blog: <http://www.scpronet.com/wordpress/> www.scpronet.com/wordpress
YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/scpronet
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
March 16 devotion
By Rev. Dawson B. Taylor Curate / Associate Pastor for Congregational Life, Cathedral of Hope UCC, Dallas, TX
I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 1 Corinthians 3:6-7
I received a plant as a "get well" gift following throat surgery in the fall of 2007. I am very excited to report that it is still living and seems to be thriving. This is an enormous feat for me. I don't exactly have a green thumb, so when I received the plant I thought that it was doomed under my care. I have worked to care for it, making sure it has enough water, but not too much. I even transplanted it to a larger pot and we both survived.
I have it in my living room and the plant gets plenty of light, but doesn't sit close to a window. However, I have noticed an interesting phenomenon – my plant is growing toward the light. The side that is closest to the window is growing at a much faster rate than the other parts of the plant.
I am convinced that God is teaching me more than just how to care for living beings in our world. I think God is teaching me to grow into the light as well. In the darkness of Lent, it is often hard to see the light of Easter morning on our spiritual horizon, but it is there. It may be faint and difficult to see, but as sure as morning comes, it is there.
Sometimes life feels that way as well. Sometimes God seems distant or difficult to see, but just like the morning, I know that God is there. So if you find yourself wallowing in the darkness this day, my prayer for you and for me is that we would truly see God's handiwork around us and that we bathe in the light of resurrection.
Loving God, help me to grow into your light. Amen.
Friday, March 13, 2009
March 13 devotion
By Dr. Pat Saxon Prayer Ministry Volunteer at Cathedral of Hope UCC in Dallas, TX
"The moments when we meet and reckon with contradictions are turning points where we either enter or evade the mystery of God." - Parker Palmer
Our lives are filled with contradictions. The sun which grows the crops that feed us can also scorch the earth; the ocean that swells to a raging Tsunami also sustains wondrous sea creatures; the drug designed to heal sometimes kills; a devastating loss becomes the place of transformation. We struggle most with contradictions in our lovers and our leaders. We are drawn by their virtues, their nobility, their passions, their vision, yet their flaws—their very human flaws-- leave us deeply disappointed. We feel hurt. We feel anger. We want to attack or cut our losses and run. So too with our beloved institutions when they let us down.
In the face of contradictions, we tend toward black/white, either/or reasoning, seeing winners and losers, saints and sinners, those who are for us and against us. You're in "my camp" or "his camp;" you're my friend or hers. But our spiritual teachers show us another way. Living in the midst of contradictions, holding the tension, resisting our tendencies for easy answers lead to far greater learning, far deeper loving.
Every Lent, as we live again the Pascal Mystery, the cross is our foremost symbol. It was an instrument of torture-- punishment imposed by the powers and principalities against "offenders." Yet Jesus transformed the cross into a place of forgiveness, a place of ultimate surrender to the God whom he trusted completely. By its very construction the cross embodies contradiction: the vertical is grounded in earth and reaches toward "heaven;" the horizontal stretches out to the world on left and right, east and west. In the meeting of the two axes is the greatest tension, energy, and the greatest possibility of transformation. We take on the cross in our very bodies. If we extend our arms to each side, we can feel the pull of polarities—ideas, desires, values, people, groups. In the center of our chest—the energy core--we mirror both vulnerability and expansiveness: our heart space stretched open, our hands reaching out to the world—both sides. But unless we are anchored in the vertical-- prayerfully discerning the will of God, humbly seeking the path of Christ-- we will have enormous difficulty holding the tension. We are more likely to judge, to hold fast to this one, reject that one, more likely to be broken apart.
If, however, we can come to live in the midst of the complexity and even the pain of contradiction, we may, as Palmer asserts, learn a larger truth than we had dreamed, live lives larger than we had ever imagined. We might, just for a moment, enter the mystery of God.
Oh, God, help us to hold the tension in the contradictions of our lives for whatever we need to learn there of wisdom and of love. Amen.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Upcoming March 15, 2009 at Garden of Grace UCC
Upcoming at Garden of Grace:
You are invited to celebrate with us! 1020 Atlas Road, Columbia, SC 29209 803-695-9664, www.gogucc.com
How does our Garden grow?
5:15 p.m. Tuesday, March 10, pastoral staff meeting.
6:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 10, Linda Renner, lgrenner@aol.com, and Loretta Cobb, lorettaacobb@aim.com, lead a Care Circle in Lexington, exploring "Bible Study for Amateurs."
7 p.m. Thursday, March 12, our associate pastor, Rev. Candace Chellew-Hodge, revtheodyke@gmail.com, represents us at a spirituality panel discussion at the SCGLBG's meeting at Embassy Suites on Greystone Boulevard.
7:30 p.m. Friday, March 13, and Saturday, March 14, our pastor, Rev. Andy Sidden, pastorandys@msn.com, serves our community as a priest in a walk-on role in the Columbia City Ballet's production of Don Quixote at the Koger Center on Assembly Street. Tickets are available by calling 251-2222 or church member Jason Cobb at 799-7605. Garden of Grace's beloved William Starrett is director. More information is available from jasonhowellcobb@yahoo.com.
9:30 a.m. Sunday, March 15, Choir practice, led by Andy Farmer, jandyfarmer@yahoo.com. Our choir is growing! New members are Joanna Bentwood and Ben Brooks.
11 a.m. Sunday, March 15, Pastor Andy presents the message, "Tower of Taboos? Realm of Rules?", based on Exodus 20:1-17 and Matthew 19:16-22. A garden of grace trumps a realm of rules. S.C. Progressive Network representatives will make a short presentation on ways we serve our community together. Music Team member, Jay Greene, colablkdragon2@aol.com, will provide special music.
12:30 p.m. Sunday, March 15, Team of Trustees meets. Joanna Crowder, joannaec@live.com, is vice moderator.
Also, How Our Garden Grows!
7 p.m. Monday, March 16, Rev. Candace leads series of Care Circle lessons at church. At Garden of Grace we believe that God is still speaking. God can speak to us in many ways – through the Bible, nature, and even through song. We'll explore how God speaks to us through the songs of the Irish rock band U2. As a new album comes out from the group, we'll delve into past songs that reveal God as justice, lover, absent, and present. The circle gathers first and third Mondays at 7 p.m. to explore how God is still speaking through U2.
7 p.m. Wednesday, March 18, Our Women's Group dines out. Jan Hogan, janh244@yahoo.com, is the leader. This is great fellowship!
1 p.m. Sunday, March 22, Theology Among the People Class, taught by our Rev. Candace and coordinated by Trustee Jennifer Spears, jennifervspears@aol.com.
7 p.m. Thursday, March 26, Our Men's Night Out gathers. Patrick Parker, parker557@hotmail.com, is the leader. Twenty-two folks attended the February gathering!
7:34 p.m. Friday, March 27, Adventure Scouts, a youth troop for boys and girls ages 10 and older, gathers at the church. Leaders are Barbara Johnson, compmom1@yahoo.com, and John Faulkner, JFaul37010@aol.com. Like all Garden of Grace groups, Adventure Scouts is open to the community. The group gathers second and fourth Fridays of each month.
Also, How Our Garden Grows!
A fifth-Sunday covered-dish luncheon will follow worship Sunday, March 29. A Ministry Fair – a time for ministry leaders to share information will be included. Please see Joe Matthews, jmatthewssc@bellsouth.net, or Pastor Andy,pastorandys@msn.com, for more information. The morning's message by Pastor Andy will explore "The Stations of the Cross" on our journey to Easter.
9 a.m. Saturday, April 4, Garden of Grace will host the UCC's Georgia/South Carolina Association annual meeting. This is a great ministry opportunity! Registration is $20 and forms are available at church. Keynote speaker is the Rev. Kathy Clark, UCC Southeast Conference associate minister, kclark@secucc.org.
11 a.m. Passion/Palm Sunday, April 5, we celebrate with a dramatic re-creation of the Last Supper. Participants include Rebecca Causey, Jason Cobb, Loretta Cobb, Joanna Crowder, Tex Green, Jessica Grello, Mike Grello, Patricia Grello, Barbara Johnson, Richard Morris, Will Nunley, Linda Renner, Jennifer Spears, and Pastor Andy. Our Wee Diggers Children's Sunday School will take part, too. Special music is planned by our Celebration Choir.
7 p.m. Good Friday, April 10, we worship with a dramatic remembrance of Christ's important living on the cross. Special Music is planned.
11 a.m. Easter Sunday, April 12, much special music is planned during our celebration of the holiest day of the year.
"Bulletproof Faith: A Spiritual Survival Guide for Gay and Lesbian Christians" can be ordered athttp://www.bulletproofbook.com. This exciting new book by our associate pastor, Rev. Candace Chellew-Hodge, has received much acclaim.
Please feel free to phone or email any prayer requests during the week or please write the requests in our prayer book in our entryway on Sundays.
Our Outreach Team leads Garden of Grace in sponsoring the resettlement of two young Burmese couples who have lived in refugee camps for years before coming to Columbia. This project is a joint effort with Lutheran Family Services of the Carolinas. Joy and Carol Smith-Dailey, fotosetc@yahoo.com, coordinate this growing Outreach/Compassion Ministry.
Patricia Grello, pgrello@sc.rr.com, leads a social-justice Care Circle in West Columbia that volunteers with Harvest Hope Food Bank and with sewing projects for infant clothing. A barrel for Harvest Hope's food drive is at Garden of Grace.
Aluminum cans are collected each Sunday by Trustee Jennifer Spears, jennifervspears@aol.com, and Church Sexton Lois Spears, loistalk1948@aol.com, as an on-going fundraiser.
Plans are under way for a Labor Day week mission trip to help build homes on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Linda Renner, lgrenner@aol.com, and Loretta Cobb, lorettaacobb@aim.com, are organizing this trip. |
Friday, March 6, 2009
March 7 devotion
Forsaken with Jesus
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Reflection by Martin B. Copenhaver
"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" These first words from Psalm 22 are most familiar because they are words that Jesus subsequently uttered on the cross. It can be difficult to find these plaintive words on the lips of Jesus. But Jesus came to live among us, not as God in a human costume that can be shed whenever things get hard and rough. Rather, in Jesus, God came as human to the bone, which means human enough to experience bone-deep despair and even the perceived absence of God. If Jesus never experienced these emotions, that would mean that he never experienced the kind of life we live, which is filled with such things.
The Apostle's Creed contains this affirmation: "Jesus Christ was crucified, dead and buried. He descended to hell." The last part of that statement always used to trouble me, until one day someone told me that, for her, it was the most treasured part of the creed. When I asked why, she answered: "Because hell is where I spend much of my life." Hell—a sense of being forsaken, a place of despair. We have been there. And Jesus has been there. He has been with us. And, having been there, Jesus transforms it by his presence. And he still has the power to transform the experience of any and all who have been in the darkest regions. So this word of despair ends up being good news, indeed.
Prayer
Oh precious Lord, accompany me into the darkest valleys of my life, that I might know that I do not journey there alone. Amen.
About the Author
Martin B. Copenhaver is Senior Pastor, Wellesley Congregational Church, United Church of Christ, Wellesley, Massachusetts, and the author of To Begin at the Beginning: An Introduction to the Christian Faith.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
March 5, 2009 devotion
By Rev. Dr. Rusty Baldridge Associate Pastor for Community Outreach & Benevolence, Cathedral of Hope UCC, Dallas, TX
Overcoming Depression!
I am concerned about depression. It is responsible for more heartache and waste of human energy than most of us are aware of. It strikes at the heart of contemporary life because so many people are affected by it.
I believe a lot of depression is primarily a spiritual disorder and it can not be successfully overcome without giving attention to the spiritual dimension of life. Depression is, in part, the price we pay for the very heavy investment of our culture in the physical and material order of things.
As a physically "run down" person is more susceptible to the common cold, so a spiritually "run down" person is more susceptible to depression. By spiritually run down, I mean simply a person who has given little or no attention to the development of the spiritual dimension of life.
Depression is real and it is powerful and it is destructive to human potential. It can rob you of all that is beautiful and joyful; if you let it.
There is a power that can help. God's intention for your life is that you should live with a sense of joy and power but it must begin with your initiative! Jesus said in John 14:27, Peace is my parting gift to you; my own peace such as the world can not give. Set your troubled hearts at rest and banish your fears. Again, He said, I have come that you might have joy!
If you want to do something about depression and are willing to try something, I want to offer the assurance that you can get better! I believe God is able to work in your life if you will cooperate in some spiritual therapy.
Open up Your Life- Let people know what is going-on with you.
Admit That You Are Not In Control
Talk to Someone- Working with a therapist can be very helpful.
Live One Day at a Time
Get Some Discipline into Your Life- Physical exercise is a great antidepressant.
Do Something for Someone Else
Don't make excuses
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Upcoming March 8, 2009 at Garden of Grace UCC
|
Upcoming March 8, 2009 at Garden of Grace UCC
From: ANDY SIDDEN <pastorandys@msn.com> |
Upcoming March 8, 2009 at Garden of Grace UCC
From: ANDY SIDDEN <pastorandys@msn.com> |
Monday, March 2, 2009
March 2 devotion
Let It All Out
When I kept it all inside . . . the pressure never let up; all the juices of my life dried up. Then I let it all out . . . Suddenly the pressure was gone. (The Message)
Reflection by David Schoen
It's about this time at the end of February and beginning of March in the northern climate where I live that one grey day seems to just become another grey day. Life seems to be stuck on hold. For many of us, our spirit seems to get stuck on hold as well, becoming more and more interior and holding things in.
Today, before another day goes by, before another month begins, it's time, as the psalmist writes "to let it all out." How wonderful it is to know that we have a God with whom we can let it all out. All the frustration, hurts, sins, angers, disappointments and boredom . . . let it all out."These things add up, Everyone of us needs to pray." Psalm 32:6.
Or, as the old hymn sang: "What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and grief to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer." Take time, today, to pray and let it all out. "Oh, what peace we often forfeit, oh, what needless pain we bear, All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer."
Prayer How lucky we are, O God, that we can let it all out and take everything to you in prayer. Amen.
About the Author
David Schoen is Minister and Team Leader, Congregational Vitality Ministries, Local Church Ministries, United Church of Christ, Cleveland, Ohio.
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