August 27, 2019

Family,

Some notes and thoughts…

Worship

Thanks to all, especially Carolyn, who brought such spirit and joy to worship this past Sunday. This coming Sunday we celebrate Pride Sunday and all the relationships that go with our long standing identity as a Welcoming and Affirming congregation. Our preacher will be Rick Mixon who was ordained by LABC in 1996.

In his sermon at the closing worship at First Baptist Church of Palo Alto Rick spoke these words of hope – Remember old Sarah and Abraham? By faith they stayed for a time in the land they had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac Rebekah and Jacob, Leah and Rachel, who were heirs with them of the same promise from God. They all looked forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God (Hebrews 11). Whatever the concepts of time and place held for them, they were on a journey to the land of promise, to their final home in God’s Beloved Community.

We look forward to welcoming Rick back home on Sunday.

Labor Day

I am proud that my youngest son is a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. Through him I have learned and observed much about how important unions are to the well being of our society. For example, the cover story of the August 2019 edition of The Electrical Worker (first published in 1893) is “Crisis in a Bottle: Opioids and the Construction Industry.” The article details the crisis of opioid addiction in the building trades and the meaningful efforts being made to address it. The words of a union leader quoted in the article deserve reiteration, “Just because someone’s an addict, it doesn’t make them a bad person, if someone was walking around with cancer we wouldn’t judge them or shun them. We need to treat addiction like that.”

2020 Census Job Fair

Saturday mornings, August 31 and September 7, 10:00 -11:30, Allen Temple Baptist Church, 8501 International Blvd.

Santa Biblias

Thank you to Wally Bryen and Yvonne Young for noticing the need for, as well as purchasing, Bibles in Spanish and English for our use in our worship services. They can be found in the Narthex.

A Prayer of Hope

O my God, Relying on your infinite goodness and promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of your grace, and life everlasting. Through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer. Amen.

Correctional Institutions Chaplaincy: Prayers of the Faithful,  August 2019, In appreciation of the ministry of Rev. David Robinson

Peace,

Jim H.