PASTOR'S PEN
It is All That Easy, and All That Hard…
“Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Colossians 3:12-14
Now, by the time you read this, the November
elections will be over, and we will have elected a new president. Whew – what
an exciting presidential election season it has been! Although I’m not an
American citizen and cannot vote, I can’t help but be affected by all the
‘hype’…but apart from the media coverage and the expected ‘hype’, this election
has definitely posed interesting dynamics of race, gender, faith and
‘Americana’ (whatever that may mean).
One thing that has always bugged me about
politics in general, (and perhaps this is ‘Americana’ too?!) is the need to
prove one’s self over and beyond the ‘other’ by attacking them – either
of their character (whether true or perceived), moral standards, history, etc…
Having said that, I would be the first person to vouch highly for transparency,
genuine dialogue for the welfare of the people, and serious debate in regards
to what the role/office would mean to them, but I always wonder what message it
gives to people when you have to position yourself at the expense of putting
someone else down.
Maybe this isn’t going to happen until ‘thy
kingdom come’, but I dream of a day when all people, not just politicians, are
able to define, position and clarify their own sense of being just by doing
that – defining, positioning and clarifying their OWN sense of being, not by
using someone else’s sense of being and the attacking of them becoming
their own stance. It’s quite a negative way to present one’s self, isn’t it –
being whatever the other isn’t? Maybe I’m being too naïve or optimistic,
but that’s not the way I was raised to behave among people – even if you’re a
politician!
In any case, the election is over and now comes
the time to deal with the ‘aftermath’ of our decisions. Granted, there are many
groups of people who are angry because the ‘right’ president wasn’t picked or
the proposition did/didn’t pass – and are wondering ‘what now’, how can I live
in a place where….(you can fill in the blanks)? Sometimes it is in these
situations that emotions are high and it’s easy to get back into the ‘attack
mode’ explained earlier – ‘if ONLY so-and-so were/weren’t this way things would
be fine’ or just plain give up.
But as children of God, perhaps it’s in these
times that it’s even more crucial to think about how much more effective we can
be if we framed our words and actions according to the One who calls us. In the
above Bible verse, the apostle Paul is encouraging the followers of Christ to
put on, or be clothed with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and
patience. In the previous verses, Paul mentions that in the past, they may not
have acted that way. But because of Christ, they have been made anew and are
therefore able to be transformed into this new way of being and doing. Paul
continues on and invites them to bear and forgive one another. On top of
everything, add love to the list – because it is what will unite them.
Paul’s time was no different from ours. There
were conflicts and people didn’t always agree with each other in terms of what
they thought the ‘right’ gospel would be. I’m sure they discussed, argued and
even ‘attacked’ sometimes. Because Paul was aware of all of these dynamics, he
made sure to prompt Christ’s followers in Colossians to act and treat one
another in love – despite all of their differences – and remind them that they
are all one in the Body of Christ no matter how different their opinions may
be. It is in their working together and through their differences that the Holy
is seen within and among them.
So, as we enter in a new chapter of American
history, and even more so because of our challenging economic situation, I hope
these same words become a guide for how all of us are called to live with one
another. We may have differing political opinions. We may not always agree on
what the ‘right thing’ is for our country. We may not see eye to eye on how we
will get through all of the work and challenges ahead of us.
But we are also called, first and foremost, to be
the one Body of Christ. And as we model the ways of Christ to one another,
working through and within our differences and diversities, we, too, can become
models for the rest of our world as to how we are all called to be with one
another. So…maybe ‘thy kingdom come’ won’t be too far off after all!
Would you like to join this journey with me…? I hope you will!
Peace and blessings,
Pastor Grace Kaori Suzuki
DEACONS' REPORT
What’s in your heart? The annual Deacon-led
worship was held on Sunday, October 19. Our message was about developing your
gifts and talents. On an insert in the worship bulletin, each person circled
two gifts that God had blessed them with and then chose a gift that they wished
to develop. The message then involved audience participation as the
congregation tried to guess, through playing charades, what gifts members had
chosen to develop.
There are so many ways that God can use us. We
just need to be open to His calling and willing to step out in faith. In a sermon
I heard a while back, the pastor said, “the greatest danger is that we will do
nothing because we think we can do so little.” So this serves as the perfect
segue into the Pastoral Partnership Program.
If yours is the gift of caring and you feel
called to follow God's commandment to "Love One Another", consider
becoming a pastoral partner. Each pastoral partner will keep in contact with
five members of the congregation, building relationships and praying for each
person in their group. The objective is that, eventually, every member of our
congregation is cared for and supported in their faith journey. The training
dates for the Pastoral Partner Program are Saturday, November 8, 9:30 a.m. -
12:30 p.m., December 6, and January 3. Everyone is invited to join us for the
training.
The Women’s Group hosted the annual Halloween
Party this past Saturday, October 25, to benefit UNICEF, the United Nations
Children’s Fund, whose program assist children, in developing countries, who
struggle for survival against disease, disasters and other hardships.
Participants brought some very creative Halloween “finger food” enjoyed by all.
The same evening, the Middle School Youth had a lock-in.
In just a few short weeks, the Deacons will be
hosting the annual Thanksgiving Dinner on Sunday, November 23. Price of
admission: adults - $7.00, youth - $4.00. CUPC will join together with
Nihonmachi Little Friends in donating the proceeds from the Thanksgiving Dinner
to the San Francisco Food Bank. So not only will you enjoy a wonderful meal and
the fellowship of your favorite people, but you will make a difference in the
lives of many families this holiday season through your donations. For every $1
donated, the Food Bank can distribute $9 worth of groceries. Mark you calendars
for this annual gathering.
Please be in prayer for those in our community and world.
COFFEE FELLOWSHIP:
The Deacons would like to thank the individuals
who have contributed to the coffee fellowship during the month of October.
We are aware that there are those who contribute but do not sign up on the
list. We wish to thank you also.
Jan Der, Co-Moderator
ARTICLE OF INTEREST
Let Us Extend Our Christmas Greetings!
We are once again offering a service of which you
may wish to take advantage. It was felt that many people may wish to send
Christmas Greetings to the members and friends of the church through the
Visiting Pastor in lieu of sending Christmas cards, thereby saving the cost of
postage and cards and allowing you the opportunity to use the money for some
other worthy cause, a cause which may be especially meaningful to you at
Christmas time.
What we are proposing is to make available
several sheets which will be the Christmas Greeting pages of a special edition
of the VP. There will be a large central Christmas Greeting message with little
boxes of space (2 ½ X 1 ½ inches) surrounding it. Within these little boxes of
space, you may place your Christmas Greeting message along with your name or
family names.
If you wish to take advantage of this service, we
ask that you contribute $10.00 for the space. The amount received will go
towards off-setting the cost of publishing the V.P. during the year, so you
will be helping the church also by participating in this Christmas Greetings
project of the V.P.
For a copy of the reservation form, please call
the office. WE MUST HAVE ALL RESERVATIONS IN BY SUNDAY, November 30th.
The Christmas edition of the V.P will be mailed on December 6th in order to
allow time for delivery before Christmas.
VP Committee
