PASTOR'S PEN
Additional Grace …
“And the Word became flesh and lived among us…” John 1:13
As some of you may know, my older daughter
started to take ice skating lessons recently. (Thankfully, in contrast to what
many people think, lessons aren’t much more expensive than taking piano
lessons, or lessons in other activities.) Initially, when she was seriously
willing to take a group class over the summer – where she didn’t know one
single person – I knew she must have really wanted to take skating lessons. If
you know her, you know that she would ordinarily NEVER be willing to do such a
thing! In any case, long story short – she has continued taking small group
lessons since that first group class.
Today, as I sit here at the rink, watching her
take lessons in the midst of hundreds (I kid you not!) of other ‘public
skating session’ people, I have been given the opportunity to ‘people-watch’
them as they skate. Now granted, these are just generalizations, but…most
people are smiling, and some people look dead serious. Some are skating by
themselves, even if they’re just beginners, some are holding hands as they
wobble along. Some take risks while skating (like skating backwards, or trying
to skate on one foot), some are clinging onto the edge for dear life.
And then, there are the ‘spectators’ – who are
freezing and watch their children and loved ones skate, but would never dare to
go onto the ice to experience the rush of gliding on the ice, and feeling like
you are floating. (As you can tell, I love to ice skate myself!) These people
sometimes look at their watches thinking, ‘When is this waiting going to end?”
This kind of reminds me of life and our journey
of faith. Some are enjoying the experience, some are so serious that they
forget that even Jesus laughed and had a great sense of humor. Some are ok and
are rather ‘independent’ about living out their faith, some need someone else
to coax them and hold their hand. Some feel called to take risks beyond their comfort
zone, some are so afraid that they cling onto whatever they think they have a
hold of.
And then, there are those who watch from the
outside – into the life and journey of faith. Some have preconceived notions
(whether right or wrong) of this experience, some find it just too much trouble
or downright scary. Some may think that they could ever be that ‘religious’.
However, the unfortunate part is that similar to those who have never
experienced the excitement of ice skating, they may never experience the
exhilaration - of sensing the blatant presence of God. They may never
understand why certain people do ‘irrational, illogical things’ based on their
faith. They may not be able to ever experience God in a positive, meaningful
and powerful way.
But thanks be to God – that, unlike my skating
observation, God invites and continues to invite all to the ‘rink’ of faith.
Through life events, God nudges us to take those first steps, to put on the
‘shoes’ of faith. Through other people, God takes our hand and leads us to onto
the ‘ice’. Through our situations, God teaches us to ‘glide’.
And, in addition to this grace, God sent Jesus,
the Christ, to become human and to experience this first-hand. Being both fully
divine, and fully human, at some level, Jesus had to learn what it was like to
depend on God and be lead by God – just like us! Perhaps Jesus also experienced
the fear, pain and frustration of it too.
It is this additional grace that we celebrate
this season…the divine-made-flesh-to-live-among-us. As in the Bible verse
above, God’s Word, God’s being, became human to live among us. And although
Jesus is not physically with us any longer, his presence – God’s presence –
continues to be with us and continues to invite us and prompt us into the
journey of faith.
Although I don’t expect all of us to become ice
skaters (although I invite you to, it’s quite fun!), I do pray that we will all
accept God’s invitation to this amazing, wonderful, complex, challenging,
frustrating, mysterious and fun journey that we call faith.
Won’t you join me on the ‘rink’ today?
Christmas blessings,
Pastor Grace Kaori Suzuki
DEACONS' REPORT
What a bountiful table we had for our annual
Thanksgiving Dinner last weekend! Our cup did indeed run over. It was
heart-warming seeing the church filled with people as we gathered to partake of
the wonderful meal prepared by the Deacons and enjoying the turkeys, cooked to
perfection. We thank all the hands that pitched in to prepare the meal and for
your donations to the S.F. Food Bank that will help put food on the table for
many needy families. It was an evening that gave us a brief opportunity to stop
and give thanks for all our many blessings and be nurtured and filled with the
Spirit as we begin the holiday season.
Our Pastoral Partnership training is now under
way. The next training dates are December 6 and January 3. It is our goal that
each person will feel loved and cared for and supported in their faith journey.
If you would like to be a part of this important ministry, please let any one
of your faithful Deacons know or contact the church office.
The Sunday School children and youth have begun
their preparation and rehearsal for the Christmas Pageant to be held on Sunday,
December 21. We hope you will be able to join us as our youth share the story
of Christmas…of God’s hope, love, joy and peace for all of us.
We give thanks and praise for what God has given
us, and would like to lift up those in our community and church.
COFFEE FELLOWSHIP:
The Deacons would like to thank the individuals who have contributed to the coffee fellowship during the month of November. The Deacons 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
New CUPC Directory for 2009…
As the New Year approaches, we are working on a
new Church Directory! Since our last directory publication in 2005, we have had
new members and others that have joined our church family. We would like to
update you all with the latest contact information.
We are also hoping to add a new line for e-mail
addresses as well. If you communicate via e-mail and feel comfortable sharing
this information, please contact the church by phone: (415)567-3988 or e-mail church1700@earthlink.net Address
Protected by OnlyMyEmail.com Encoder to let us know your e-mail
address. We would love to hear from you!
Thank you & Happy Holidays!
