December 6,2002

Pastor's Corner

Dear Friends in Christ,

In a few weeks Christmas will be over and a new year will be beginning. This year has fled by and I am sure that 2003 will be just as kind. I hope that all of you will join with me in thanking God for a year full of strange and wonderful gifts.

As this year comes to an end we also are beginning to come to terms with the seasons of our church. I understand that there is sadness among many of us here at Elm Street. I believe that it is natural for us to take the news of our financial situation with a heavy heart. With the coming of winter the world around us seems to die. But we must not forget that in spring new life is brought forth.

I was given a sermon to read the other day and there is a paragraph that I would like to share with you. Rev. William Fairbank preached this sermon to a congregation in New Orleans, LA.

He said:

It is human nature to have down times, times when we feel "like an owl of the waste places"; times when we feel out of joint with God, His world, and everything and everyone in it. The danger is that we get stuck there.

The hours and the days tick by and those feelings deepen. I proclaim to this morning that God did not place within us a craven spirit, a fearful spirit, "God has placed within us a spirit of power and love and self- control!" (2 Timothy 1:6-7) ...Where are you this morning in your race of faith? What time is it in your life? Do you need to get out of wherever you are? You see, I believe that your spirit can be quickened.

Rev. Fairbank’s words are important for us this day. My brothers and sisters in Christ, it would be easy for us to get stuck. The challenge for us is to be open to each other...to be honest about our feelings. We need to trust that indeed we have been given the Spirit of power and love. My hope is that we can lean into God’s Spirit and leave the spirit of fear behind.

With much love,

Rev. Nicole Richardson