Hi, Friends at FBCP,
I hope you received Pastor John Jay's letter yesterday evening and his reminder that we are here to pray and talk with you if at any point you need some pastoral care given the events that unfolded yesterday at the nation's capital. We love you and are praying for you and our country. We believe God's people are called to love and work at such a time as this, and we will continue to seek God's will in the pursuit of justice and goodness.
We know that having conversations about these things with our children can be difficult, but there is a lot of shared wisdom in our church families. We are meant to be a resource and support for one another, especially in times like these. To that end, this Sunday at 3:30PM we are inviting parents to join us over Zoom for a discussion about having thoughtful conversations with young people regarding our ongoing national news. John Jay will help lead that time, and we hope you can join us to share your questions and input. I’ll send out a Zoom link and a reminder Sunday morning.
And now for some regular updates for our families with kids.
January Liturgy for Families with Kids
The next Liturgy for Families with Kids is Saturday, January 16th, at 10:30AM in the park. We will maintain our safety protocol with distance and masks so that we can keep each other healthy. And, of course, we will worship God with songs, a Bible lesson, and activities for the whole family. This time we are also inviting each family to bring gloves, socks, or an umbrella to donate to Friends In Deed. They are preparing some winter kits to pass out to folks without shelter, and we are eager to partner with them in supplying some of the needs. We hope you'll join us as we celebrate Epiphany and begin a new year in the spirit of generosity and wonder! You can RSVP here to help us plan ahead for supplies. (If you want to invite some friends who need a church family to belong to, we would love to have them! Just share this info and our RSVP link so we can plan for them.)
Sunday
Kids
This Sunday we look forward to sharing another video for kids as usual. Today we have a little weekday story time video to share since last Sunday's video didn't work out. In honor of the celebration of Epiphany yesterday, Pastor Mary reads a story about a wise man in pursuit of the baby Jesus. We encourage kids to grab some paper and colors to draw what they imagine as they relax and listen to the story unfold.
Youth
This week we will have a Youth Zoom gathering at 2pm. Here is the meeting link that you can use to hop on the hangout. The following Sunday, January 17th, we will have a youth gathering in the park. We hope to see you there each week!
Sending you so much love and virtual hugs!
With gratitude for you,
Pastor Lindsay & Pastor Mary