Dear Congregation,
Here at CCC February has certainly been a month of hearts and love! With Valentine’s Day coming in the middle of the month, we piggy-backed on the traditional focus on hearts as symbols of love in several ways. The first is our participation in the Church World Service “Blanket the World With Love” special mission project in which we’ve have had the opportunity to donate $10 in memory or honor of a loved one. For each donation a heart has been pinned on the yellow CWS summer weight blanket displayed at the front of the church. As of last Sunday, the number was 36 hearts with one more week to go!
Second, on February 10th we were reminded in the Children’s Message that each of us is loved by God, as the children distributed “I Am Loved” pins to everyone in worship.
Third, the children received a heart picture on black velvet craft last Sunday to color, as I shared with them, and those in worship, my visuals—a heart and cross picture and a red tin heart ornament topped by a cross. These were reminders that as Christians our hearts should be guided by Christ’s love.
But as we end this month with its focus on love, the scripture for this coming Sunday, Luke 6:27-38 challenges us to love in ways that can be very difficult, if not seemingly impossible. The text begins with Jesus’ words, “But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you…” No hearts, flowers, or chocolates here!
I invite you to be present in worship on Sunday as we consider together this important text and its meaning for our lives. To pique your curiosity, the sermon is aptly titled (I think!) “An Impossible Possibility”.
In Christ’s Love,
Pastor Candy Thomas
Interim Pastor
Christ Congregational United Church of Christ