August 7, 2012

Thanks to everyone involved in making the 2012 Church Retreat such a marvelous gathering. Ethan and I were there for Friday night and Saturday. We had a great time and went home both happy and wishing we could have stayed longer. The Retreat Choir will be singing in worship this Sunday.
The sermon I am working on for Sunday is titled “A Profound Understanding.” It will be taken from I Kings 19: 4-8 and Ephesians 4:25-5:2. I will pay particular attention to Elijah’s weary words “It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.”
Elijah seems to be laboring under the assumption that he is some how a “new and improved” version of humanity. Throughout history many people, cultures and generations have believed similar things about themselves. In reality, history shows that men and women tend to repeat the same mistakes. We see ourselves as unconnected to our neighbors, we nurture and feed our anger, we neglect charity and justice, we use our words to hurt rather than heal. Thus, the words Elijah speaks in complaint, in fact, give voice to a profound understanding.

Prayers of the Congregation

• Arnold Anderson – now under hospice care (Castro Valley)
• Bette Pancoe – Summit Hospital
• Gordon White – back home at Grand Lake Gardens
• Virginia Cheatham – Piedmont Gardens SNF
• Theresako Harris for her aunt Elaine
• All who are traveling (including our Stan Fong who is on vacation)
• Pastor Tanner as she prepares for the American Baptist Minister’s Council Senate Meetings
• Tess Benin for the Bernaquilo Family
• Helen Harrison for her friends Chris Buckingham and Ty Whitehead
• The people of Syria
• The Sikh community of Oak Creek, Wisconsin in the aftermath of the attack on their community
• Steve and Carol Leichter
• Zondra Martin for her family
• Ann Fields for her family
• Doris and Ted Evans for their great-grandsons
• Joan Thatcher – health concerns
• Barry Breaux for his mother
• Thanksgiving with Al Johnson and Roy Browner for Al’s new job
• Phil and Gloria Meads for Vincent, May, Dell and Jon
• Edna Dorenzo
• Virginia Damretzky
• Larry Hutchings -Thanksgiving for every day, concern for mom Ethel and Dennis’ mom Jean Venezio
• Toni Gordon-Bradley for her family
• Max Powers -Thanksgiving on his 95th birthday
• Marie for Don and his squad member Blake who was injured during training
• The world as it remembers the anniversaries of the bombing of Hiroshima and the terrorist attack on the Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics
• All who turn to the church for assistance
• Pat Hughes as she mourns her brother
• The Paul Martin family as they mourn their son and brother

Announcements

• Soup and Study returns this evening.  6:00 Soup/6:30 Study. The soup maker this evening is Kristen Phillips.

Postscript
NASA’s exploration vehicle “Curiosity” has landed safely on Mars. I trust that the mission will yield great insight into the history of our planetary neighbor, the solar system we share and the universe of which we are a part.