Posts

Corona Sabbath 29 LOVE

These weeks when we cannot gather in person for Sunday worship, Lakewood United Church of Christ is providing brief weekly sabbath programs for you to listen to on your own or with others in your social isolation group. They will be posted on Friday so that you can schedule your sabbath time to suit your schedule and your spiritual inclinations. We hope these programs are of spiritual support to you in these difficult times.

The first Sunday in October is designated as World Communion Sunday. It may be some time before we are able to meet together in person and share a crust of bread and a sip of juice. But we needn’t wait a moment to more fully engage love of self and love of neighbor which brings us into fuller communion with the world.

The post this week focuses on the call to love self and neighbor. It includes a reflection from Rev. Kim Wells and a musical offering from Hilton Jones. We hope this post helps to feed your spirit in these conflicted times.

You are invited to find a quiet space, inside or outside. Light a candle. Take a look around you. Breathe. Life-giving breath. Be present.

You may begin with this reading:

If you love the justice of Jesus Christ more than you fear human judgment then you will seek to do compassion. Compassion means that if I see my friend and my enemy in equal need, I shall help them both equally. Justice demands that we seek and find the stranger, the broken, the prisoner and comfort them and offer them our help. Here lies the holy compassion of God that causes the devils much distress.

–Mechthild of Magdeburg 1207-1282

When you are ready, click the link immediately below for Rev. Kim’s Reflection.

REV. KIM’S REFLECTION

(For written text of the above video click HERE.)

As you watch and listen to the music video which follows, you are invited to notice the thoughts and feelings that arise for you.

After viewing the music video, you are invited to offer the following closing –

Love your fellow beings—
for they are all
tabernacles of God.

–Mechthild of Magdeburg 1207-1282

Breathe. Breathe again. Be filled. With the desire to love. Extinguish your candle and engage whatever may come with a sense of peace and a desire to serve.

LAKEWOOD UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST

The mission of Lakewood United Church of Christ, as part of the Church Universal, is to:

  • Celebrate the presence and power of God in our lives and in our world;
  • Offer the hospitality and inclusive love of Christ to all people;
  • Work for God’s peace and justice throughout creation.

 

USEFUL LAKEWOOD LINKS DURING THE CORONA CRISIS:

 

Weekly Update 10/1

WHAT IS GOING ON AT CHURCH –

Corona Sabbath 29

This week the focus is on World Communion Sunday.  It’s a time to think about how being in communion with others, with the world, begins with YOU.  
There will also be a Zoom on Sunday at 10:30 for World Communion.  See details below.  

If you missed last week’s Corona Sabbath here’s the link: https://lakewooducc.org/2020/09/25/corona-sabbath-28-authority-and-integrity/

Zoom This Sunday

The first Sunday in October has been designated as World Communion Sunday.  This tradition began in the Presbyterian church in 1933 and was later adopted by the National Council of Churches and the World Council of Churches.  This designation is a time for Christians around the world to celebrate being in communion with one another by observing the Lord’s Supper.  

Through the years at LUCC, there have been beautiful services often focusing on a country or culture from abroad and the Christian expression of that area.  

In observance of World Communion Sunday this year, since we cannot meet in person, we will meet via Zoom.  The virtual gathering will be Sunday morning at 10:30.  You will be sent the link on Saturday.  While the gathering will be virtual, please have a piece of bread or something that you consider the staff of life, and have some juice or wine to use as well. Together, we will bless these gifts and eat as part of the worldwide Christian community.   Also, if you have a connection with another country, you are invited to share something from that country with the group – a food, a story, a keepsake – to remind us of our communion with the rest of the world.  

Looking forward to sharing a meal on Sunday at 10:30, the meal that unites us with one another and with the entire Christian faith community around the world.  

Make a Difference:  Mentor a Child

LUCC made a  big difference last school year  in the lives of Maximo Elementary’s children and families.  As we know Covid 19 has changed how we do most everything.  What has not changed is the need for mentors at Maximo Elementary.  As Ms. Jones, the Family and Community Liaison, has said “Our students need you now more than ever.”   All mentors will meet virtually with their assigned student for 30 minutes once a week.   Mentors are required to register to be a volunteer and to attend a virtual workshop.   Are you available to make a difference in a child’s life?  You are needed now more than ever~ pcsb.org/volunteerregistration

www.lunchpals.org  (register for virtual workshop)       

Make a Difference:  Provide Needed Supplies
Supplies Needed:  uniforms, child masks (all masks have be store bought), hand sanitizers, Lysol spray, disposable gloves, disinfecting wipes

Supplies can be dropped off at the church on Wednesdays, 9:00am-10am and. Sundays, 6:00-6:30pm. The outside door will be open for supplies  to be placed in the cart  in the church hallway.  If you would like to make a financial contribution for supplies please send a check to the church marked “Maximo.”

Uniforms:  

Boys- shorts, pants, shirts 5T, 8,10,12  Girls- shorts, pants, dress, skirts, shirts 5T, 6T, 8, 10, 12

Undies: Boys and Girls 5T, 6T, 8,10,12

Uniform colors:  blue, khaki  (girls and boys) pants, shorts, dresses, skirt
                               Light blue, dark blue, white  All shirts boys and girls

Your LUCC Education Ministry team thanks you for all you do  and will do to help  make a difference in the lives  of children and families connected with Maximo Elementary.  

️If you have questions please do not hesitate to contact. Emily Bell (727) 692-2368                Ms. Jones (727) 893-2191  ext. 2305

Ink Cartridges

The church is collecting and recycling ink cartridges! Please save up any empty ink cartridges and recycle them at the church, there is a box in the sanctuary for recycling. The last batch we recycled we received $49.90!

Gratitude from Rev. Wells

Kim would like to thank everyone for their good wishes and prayers related to her heel surgery. The recovery process has become prolonged due to an infection. The treatment process involves IV antibiotics two times a day for two hours. 

Adult Day Care Update

The adult day care is moving forward with mitigating the asbestos in the ceiling of the Fellowship Hall building.  To facilitate this process, some of their furnishings and equipment are now being stored in the sanctuary.  The program will open as soon as the facilities are ready.  The church is grateful to be in partnership with Neighborly Services in meeting this need in the community.  

Register to Vote

Ok.  You are probably registered to vote.  But can you check with others?  Set a goal for yourself like 2 people a day.  And ask two people a day if they are registered to vote.  Yes, with COVID, many are on restricted activities, but ask the receptionist when you call the doctor, ask the server when you pick up take out food, ask the clerk at the grocery store, ask the delivery person who brings you your medications.  Ask in an email to someone you do business with.  Ask a family member, near or far.  Try setting a goal and fulfilling it.  Or exceeding it!  It is very important to our faith and our values that we encourage EVERYONE to vote!  

The deadline to register is October 5!

Sunday Evening Demonstration for Racial Justice TIME CHANGE!   

The Black Lives Matter and Peace and Justice Demonstration continues on 54th Ave South each Sunday evening. This is an important way to inspire hope in the community and to work to create an anti-racist society.  

All are welcome Sunday evenings at the church. In case of rain, the demonstration will not be held that week. Know justice, know peace!

Please note that the time for the anti racism demonstrations is changing this Sunday, Oct. 4th.  The new time will be 6:00 p.m

 Click here to see pictures of the most recent witness.  https://lakewooducc.org/2020/09/23/anti-racism-demonstration-9-20/

AA to Resume in October

Beginning Oct. 6, the church will be hosting a weekly Monday evening AA group at 7:00 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall.  The gathering will practice social distancing, wear masks, and use sanitizer.  The support offered by the recovery movement is very much needed in these difficult times!  All are welcome!

From the Creation Justice Task Force

You are invited to participate in a webinar about a new solar power initiative that is being pursued in Florida.  The program is called Purchase Power Agreements.  This system is used in other areas of the US.  The concept is to make Purchase Power Agreements available to non profits and faith-based communities in Florida to encourage the installation of solar power without the large upfront costs.

Here is the information about the webinar:  
With a PPA, a developer installs, owns, and operates a solar system on the customer’s property. The non-profit then buys the electricity the system produces at a fixed rate. This rate is generally lower than what they pay to their utility providing monthly electricity savings. Nonprofits and governments are able to benefit from solar with low to no upfront cost.  

Learn about the projected environmental and economic benefits of PPAs for governments and nonprofits with the release of a Florida PPA Impact Report on Wednesday October 14 at 2pm ET: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_jpS8in9nS3SQzmR4tCJtlw

Florida Conference United Church of Christ Fall Gathering

Each year, representatives of churches in the Florida Conference gather to build community, celebrate, educate, and conduct some business.  

One of the items of business on the docket this year is a resolution calling on the churches of the conference to actively become anti racist churches.  Rev. Wells was part of the group that worked on this resolution.

This year the gathering will be held virtually on Saturday October 10 from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.  You can participate from home or other arrangements can be made.  Lakewood needs two church members to participate along with the pastor. The registration deadline is FRIDAY OCTOBER 2.    

Here is a link to more information:  https://uccfla-reg.brtapp.com/2020AnnualGathering  

If you are interested in representing LUCC, please contact Kim Wells at wells.kim.p@gmail.com 

Care Team Visit

As part of the LUCC Care Team, Patti Cooksey, Ed Kaspar, and Claire Stiles visited Ann Quinn at the Princess Martha on Sunday afternoon.  We had a wonderful time and enjoyed a “stroll in Williams Park” nearby.  Ann is doing very well and was so pleased to see some familiar and friendly faces, mostly masked! She is holding a Ruth Pettis poster card expressing our love for her!

Here is the link to the post with pictures: https://lakewooducc.org/2020/09/30/care-team-visit-to-ann-quinn/

Weekly Labyrinth Walks Continue

Each Wednesday at 9:00 a.m. a small group gathers at the outdoor labyrinth for a time of devotion, discussion, and meditative walking of the labyrinth.  The theme for the week is taken from the Corona Sabbath of the week before, so it is an opportunity to go deeper in the spiritual exploration of that theme for your life.  This devotional gathering is outside and physical distancing is maintained. All are welcome!

If there is rain on Wednesday morning, the gathering will be held on Thursday morning at 9:00.

https://lakewooducc.org/2020/06/23/labyrinth-has-been-refurbished

Spiritual Direction Offered by LUCC Clergy Member.

In these troubled times, it is important to find ways to tend to our spiritual lives. In the Christian tradition, Spiritual Direction is one of the ways of paying attention to the spirit in our lives. A Spiritual Director is someone to talk with about what is going on in our spiritual life and in our relationship with God however we may conceive of God.

Rev. Sally Purvis, Ph.D., a member of LUCC, is a retired clergy person with training and experience in Spiritual Direction. She is offering her services as a Spiritual Director to the community. The sessions would be held on Zoom and there is no fee to be paid. Church leaders are pleased to have the ministry of the church expand in this way.

Spiritual Direction with Sally is open to anyone, not just the congregation. And it is offered to everyone whatever their spiritual or religious background or affiliation or lack thereof. Sessions are generally held once every three weeks. Spiritual Direction is not a mode of therapy. It is a process for understanding and deepening your relationship with God/Spirit in ways that are authentic and life-giving.

Sally was trained by Henri Nouwen, a noted spiritual guide of the 20th century, and did Spiritual Direction as part of her professional ministry before retiring in 2015.

If you would like to explore Spiritual Direction with Sally, please contact her at
sallybpurvis@icloud.com or contact the church (867-7961 or lakewooducc@gmail.com ).

The church is very grateful to Sally for offering this avenue of support to the congregation and the community.

USEFUL LAKEWOOD LINKS DURING THE CORONA CRISIS:

For the above church website links, please note the “Older Posts” button near bottom of each page.

Daily Corona Prayer

https://lakewooducc.org/2020/03/20/lucc-corona-daily-prayer

Assistance Available

If you need help of any kind – something from the store, someone to talk with, support managing during shelter-in-place, parenting concerns – please know that the church is ready and willing to help in any way needed.  This situation is trying for everyone.  You are not alone.  We’ll make it through together.  Please contact the church office (lakewooducc@gmail.com or 867-7961 or Rev. Kim Wells at wells.kim.p@gmail.com).  

Miss someone from church?  Give them a call or send a note.  Personal contact is so important when physical contact is limited.  

Music Ministry

About Hilton’s music. . . If you would enjoy hearing Hilton play more Irish folk songs, you can
listen for free at either https://hiltonjones.bandcamp.com/album/irish-
tunes or https://soundcloud.com/hilton-kean-jones/sets/irish-tunes .

September Birthdays: Kim Wells 9/19, Joanne Reid 9/22, Wilbur Reid 9/22, Donald Ritchie 9/27, and Carolyn Moore 9/30. Someone missing? Contact the church office with birthday information.

October Birthdays: Janet Blair 10/19, Denise Williams 10/25, Olivia Gibson 10/29, and Victoria Long 10/29. Someone missing? Contact the church office with birthday information.

Circle of Concern: Ed Kaspar, Claudia Rodriguez, JoAnn Reid, William Owen, Wilbur Reid, Jen Degroot, Carolyn Moore, Ann Quinn, Maggie Brizendine, Dave Radens,Kim Wells, Elinor Ross, teachers, students, and school personnel, Vern McKinney, and all healthcare workers and essential workers. All those suffering from COVID-19.

Please keep LUCC member, Olivia Gibson, in your prayers. She is a nurse in a COVID-19 unit in a local hospital. We are grateful for her ministry!

Recent Posts:

Weekly Update: If you are involved with an activity or event that you would like to share with the LUCC family, please send the information to the Church Office by Tuesday since the Update usually is sent out on Wednesday.

Care Team visit to Ann Quinn

As part of the LUCC Care Team, Patti Cooksey, Ed Kaspar, and Claire Stiles visited Ann Quinn at the Princess Martha on Sunday afternoon.  We had a wonderful time and enjoyed a “stroll in Williams Park” nearby.  Ann is doing very well and was so pleased to see some familiar and friendly faces, mostly masked! She is holding a Ruth Pettis poster card expressing our love for her!

MIdweek Hymn: “To us all, to every nation comes a moment to decide”

This past Corona Sabbath 28 online devotional was about voting, authority, and integrity. The hymn for that post was the Battle Hymn of the Republic. A friend and fellow church musician told me the hymn she often uses in association with the topic of voting is “Once to every man and nation comes a moment to decide.” It’s a GREAT text and I’m happy to have learned of the association of this mighty hymn to the topic of voting. My friend is right on target.

The original text is by James Russell Lowell, 1819-1891.

Here’s what hymnary.org says about him:

Lowell, James Russell, LL.D., was born at Cambridge, Massachusetts, February 22, 1819; graduated at Harvard College, 1838, and was called to the Bar in 1840. Professor of Modern Languages and Literature (succeeding the Poet Longfellow) in Harvard, 1855; American Minister to Spain, also to England in 1881. He was editor of the Atlantic Monthly, from 1857 to 1862; and of the North American Review from 1863 to 1872. Professor Lowell is the most intellectual of American poets, and first of her art critics and humorists. He has written much admirable moral and sacred poetry, but no hymns. One piece, “Men, whose boast it is that ye” (Against Slavery), is part of an Anti-Slavery poem, and in its present form is found in Hymns of the Spirit, 1864. Part of this is given in Songs for the Sanctuary, N.Y., 1865, as “They are slaves who will not choose.” [Rev. F. M. Bird, M.A.]

That hymn text isn’t in the New Century Hymnal; however, the tune I associate with is. It’s NCH #267. But the text we’ll sing to it is found on https://hymnary.org/hymn/VU1996/694. It’s Lowell’s text adapted for more contemporary sensibilities regarding gender from the United Church of Canada hymnal, Voices United.

Sunday Morning Music: Wendeyaho

This is based on a Native American hymn traditionally sung to the four directions in the morning by the women of the community. The harmonization, arrangement, and orchestrations are my own, as well as the video performance. I’ve done several settings–orchestra, solo piano, and choir–the piano solo (with some soft string pads) is presented here.

“Wendeyaho” is often described as a “Cherokee Morning Song.” However discussion of it on the Internet indicates that the word, “Wendeyaho,” is not contemporary Cherokee, although it may have its origins in an ancient form of the language. The translation I was able to piece together from various internet sources is as follows:

Translation – We n’ de ya ho
Freely translated: “A we n'” (I am),
“de” (of),
“Yauh” –the– (Great Spirit),
“Ho” (it is so).

Feel free to download the 2 page sheet music PDF from THIS LINK so you can play it at home, yourself. You need to do some tricky shifting of hands to cover all the parts in the last two variations, but it’s doable, I promise. If you don’t want to download anything, you can follow along on this graphic below.

The choir at Lakewood UCC, St. Petersburg, FL, where I’m the music director, enjoys singing my choral arrangement of Wendeyaho. It’s very simple and effective. You can see it HERE.