Beyond The Pulpit 12.8.24
Good Morning CUMC Family!
What an INCREDIBLE day we had yesterday! Experiencing my first CUMC Christmas Bazaar AND Live Nativity was so inspiring. Everyone worked so incredibly hard, and with a joyous spirit! It makes me so proud to be your pastor. Thank you to EVERYONE who made the day such a success for our community. The highlight for me was connecting with people in the church and in the community! I truly love being here in Crozet.
Beyond the pulpit this past week, some of the highlights included:
- joining our friends at Old Trail for worship Sunday afternoon and sharing communion together.
- giving Gwen Smith a hug and meeting her family on her 97th birthday!
- joining an interview team to begin the search for our new Administrative Assistant.
- meeting with Rev. Liz Hulme Adam and Rev. Kelly Kaufman from Tabor Presbyterian Church to plan our Blue Christmas Service.
- meeting with my Spiritual Director.
- baking 2 coffee cakes for the Bazaar!
- participating in the Christmas Bazaar & Live Nativity with my family.
I do hope that you will plan to attend our Blue Christmas Service on Sunday, December 22, at 5pm. In my experience, this is one of the most meaningful services of the year, and unfortunately one of the least attended. This service is intended to be a space where everyone has a chance to acknowledge loss. And we all experience loss. Certainly the loss of a loved one is difficult. But there are all kinds of loss: loss of a pet, loss of a dream, loss of the future we thought we’d experience, loss of health, and so much more. Also, people of all ages experience loss. This year, in particular, we are encouraging children to join us, which is why we’ve moved this service earlier in the evening, to 5pm. This service will also feature incredible music offered by the choirs from both CUMC and Tabor Presbyterian Church. It is a lovely service allowing us to honor our grief and loss in order to more fully experience the joy that comes on high holy days like Christmas. Invite family, friends, and neighbors, and join us for this year’s Blue Christmas service.
Have a great week!
Peace,
Pastor Christy