February is usually greeted with mixed emotions. Winter is still fully upon us. Spring seems an
impossible distance away. The calendar shows a short 28 days, but the days themselves often drag on.
We have to search really hard to find something to kindle our hearts, minds, and spirits into
enthusiasm. In my family, our excitement in February comes from the fact that there are several
birthdays, a wedding anniversary, and even the anniversary of a baptism. It’s this anniversary of a
baptism that I am thinking about as we enter February 2023.
I was blessed to be allowed to baptize my niece, Ashley, on a February 21st many years ago. She was
young and does not remember this event, but I certainly do. In that ritual and in that water the newest of
the next generation of our family was brought into the family of faith and a life with God. This February,
we will be given the opportunity to start our faith journeys again in a very comparable way. February 22,
2023 is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. This Lent we will embark on a journey of seeking. Our
theme is “seeking: honest questions for deeper faith.” As we prepare ourselves, I wanted to start our
journey with the following blessing from Rev. Sarah (Are) Speed. I hope you will join us on this journey.
A Blessing for the Seekers
Blessed are you who turn your face up to the sky, who open your arms to feel the wind,
who notice all the things that we should notice. Blessed are you who are fluent in wonder
and familiar with awe.
Blessed are you who, even now, dream dreams, who have not lost hope,
who swear the glass is still half-full.
Blessed are you who plant trees
and sing the harmony,
who tell the children how this world can be magic. Blessed are you who
walk and seek
and turn over every stone,
pointing out all the corners and colors
that God lives in.
Blessed are you.
Amen.
Rev. Sarah (Are) Speed
Lent 2023
“This Lenten season, we will read many stories of Jesus encountering people who are seeking: a new
beginning, a different life, a deeper faith. In these interactions, an unveiling often occurs – assumptions
are disrupted, a new perspective is revealed, mystery grows.
Like the characters in our Lenten scriptures, we are also seeking many things: clarity connection,
wonder, justice, balance. We are seeking our calling, the sacred, and how to live as a disciple.”
[seeking: honest questions for deeper faith – A Sanctified Art]
This Lent, we will engage in the spiritual practice of seeking – by asking questions, and by staying
curious, open, and nimble. It is hoped that we will soften our assumptions and expand our perspectives.
May these questions create a safe space to explore – to be drawn more deeply into the fullness of life,
into the heart of God.
An overview of our Lenten theme and weekly focus (beginning February 22nd):
Ash Wednesday (2/22/23) seeking: Is this the fast that I choose? Isaiah 58:1-12
Lent 1 (2/26/23) seeking: Who will you listen to? Matthew 4:1-11/Genesis 2:15-17, 3:1-7
Lent 2 (3/5/23) seeking: How do we begin again? John 3:1-17/Genesis 12:1-4a
Lent 3 (3/12/23) seeking: Will you give me a drink? John 4:5-42/Exodus 17:1-7
Lent 4 (3/19/23) seeking: Who sinned? John 9:8-41
Lent 5 (3/26/23) seeking: Can these bones live? John 11:1-45/Ezekiel 37:1-14
Lent 6 (4/2/23) (Palm/Passion Sunday) seeking: Where are you headed? Matthew 21:1-11
Maundy Thursday (4/6/23) seeking: Will you wash my feet? John 13:1-17, 31b-35
Good Friday (4/7/23) seeking: Why have you forsaken me? Matthew 27:27-50
Easter (4/9/23) seeking: Who are you looking for? John 20:1-18
Easter (4/9/23) seeking: Who are you looking for? John 20:1-18
January 2023
Many of us have a desire to enter into the new year with some kind of intentionality. We like the
illusion that we have control over everything and that we can make anything happen. One post I have
been seeing a lot on a popular website is this: “Nobody claim 2023 as ‘your year’. We’re all going to
walk in real slow. Be good. Be quiet. Be cautious and respectful. Don’t touch anything.” Now, while
this is really good advice to follow if we are entering a museum, it doesn’t seem like such a practical
plan for life with its messiness of relationships and responsibilities.
Another conversation I read suggested a unique way to make decisions about the year:
“According to People magazine, this is going to be a year of all work and no play.”
“Oh yeah? People magazine? Sounds like a solid source to set your expectations for the future.”
“I think so. I did answer five questions to get that prophecy, so it’s pretty reliable. One wrong answer
and I could have been doomed for a year of adventure or soothing self discovery.”
Beautiful Mistake Vi Keeland
Yikes! Five whole questions? I often ask myself more questions than that just to convince myself to
get out of bed in the morning.
A humorous, but slightly more realistic idea I saw: “Before I agree to 2023 I want to read the terms
and conditions.” Ah, if only we could have the gift of foresight and know the “terms and conditions”
that the new year was going to require of us. Let’s be honest, most of us wouldn’t stop long enough to
actually read these, though, right?
My personal choice for a suggestion for the new year came from a classic, Miguel Cervantes’ Don
Quixote de la Mancha: “When life itself seems lunatic, who knows where madness lies? Perhaps to
be too practical is madness. To surrender dreams – this may be madness. Too much sanity may be
madness – and maddest of all: to see life as it is, and not as it should be!” As Christians we are
invited to see the world as God wills it and to love that world into being.
From these various sources and suggestions I have compiled my own list for entering into 2023. I’ve
also included the place in the original “terms and conditions” where such advice can be found:
1) Enter boldly (Joshua 1:9),
2) Do good (1 Thess. 5:13-15),
3) Speak up (Ephesians 5:11),
4) Always be respectful (1 Timothy 5:12),
5) Touch every life you encounter (Matthew 25:35-40),
6) Ask many questions (https://guideposts.org/prayer/prayers-for-stronger-faith/5-best-questions-to-ask-god-in-prayer/),
7) Follow the terms and conditions (Micah 6:8), and
8) See life as it should be (Matthew 6:10).
Whatever you choose, Blessings and God be with you in 2023, Pastor Melissa
December 2022
When I was seeking an Advent Series that we could immerse ourselves in for 2022, I discovered this
resource from A Sanctified Art (a digital resource that integrates art, music, poetry, and prose). When I read
the following description from Rev. Sarah Speed, Founding Creative Partner, I knew this is how I wanted us
to worship and be together this season:
“I can vividly remember a conversation between my 13-year-old adolescent self and my mother on the way to
church one wintry morning. I asked her, “Mom, what if I don’t want to be a Christian?” (a protest undoubtedly
influenced by my teenage desire to sleep in). My mother didn’t take the bait. Instead, she told me how this
story of God has changed her life. She told me how she couldn’t imagine her world without the church. She
told me how she so deeply believed in a better day, and how she felt called to help be a part of that. From the
back seat of the car, I could tell that she was serious. Her joy, her hope, her conviction—they were so pure
and so authentic that they left a lasting impression on me. It was a generation to generation moment. The
Christmas story, of a love that came here, that walked among us, that was born in a humble manger to
uncertain parents with shepherds nearby, is a story that we pass from generation to generation, because
without fail, it continues to change us. It reframes the way we hope. It centers the way we love. It shapes the
way we live. So this Advent, may we tell this story that has spread like wildfire
from generation to generation. Let us remember the generations from Abraham to Jacob who waited for that
promised day. And let our generation be so influenced in joy and love that future generations can’t help but
pay attention. This Advent, let us tell the story of good news—from generation to generation.”
Rev. Sarah Speed, Founding Creative Partner
From Generation to Generation... reminds us of the ways our lives, histories, actions, and stories
are interconnected and woven together. In the midst of narratives, policies, and rhetoric designed to
divide us, what does it look like to practice belonging to one another? The work of God is always
unfolding— in and through us. This Advent season, how will we carry it forth?
*In addition to weekly worship and special worship, there is also a daily devotional for our Advent theme.
Printed copies will be available at the Bible studies on Wednesdays and Thursdays and in the sanctuary on
Sunday morning. (Copies are in the back window of the sanctuary.) There is also a digital format available.
In order to receive the digital format, please email Pastor Melissa Warren melissa.warren@iaumc.org
*The devotionals from the series will also be used for Bible Studies: Wednesdays 9:00 a.m.-10:30 a.m. and
Thursdays from 7:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m. in the East Room of 1st UMC.
*There also is an interactive Advent Calendar. It is a great resource for anyone (families or individuals) who
want a more specific focus as they prepare for Christmas. Some examples of suggested activities include:
1. Matthew 1 lists 46 relatives of Jesus! How many family member can you name? 2. Ask an older relative
to share a memory from when they were your age. 3. Volunteer with your family, or make a donation to
those in need. 4. Create or set up a stable for your nativity scene.
November 2022
Greetings and blessings in this oncoming month of November!
6The point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the
one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7Each of you must give as
you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God
loves a cheerful giver. 8And God is able to provide you with every blessing in
abundance so that by always having enough of everything, you may share
abundantly in every good work…11You will be enriched in every way for your
great generosity. which will produce thanksgiving to God through us; 12for the
rendering of this ministry not only supplies the needs of the saints but also
overflows with many thanksgivings to God. 2 Corinthians 9:6-8, 11-12
A couple of years ago I attended a training event where the speaker talked about how to
present your message and gain people's attention most effectively. One of the main points I
remember her emphasizing was "Avoid the block quote. People won't read them. They will see
a block quote in print and skip right over it to the next thing you have to say.
She was right, wasn't she? Everyone who is reading this article skipped straight over the
scripture passage above to get to the “meat" of the message and to figure out what this article
was really going to say. Don't worry, we all do it most of the time.
I think the same is true of the month of November and the way we live our lives in the latter part
of the year. We know that we are headed for winter. We know that we are headed for shorter
days and longer nights. We know that despite ourselves we will soon scurry away to our homes
and start dreaming about the holidays and sort of “skip over” the regular days, the "block
quote of the month.”
I want to invite us to not skip over the "block quote" that is the month of November, or even
December for that matter. Let’s wade through the thick and heavy together and maybe
discover something really great about what we have to offer to the world and what God has to
offer to us.
OK, go back and read the block quote. I know you were feeling a bit guilty about skipping it in
the first place. It’s ok, I’ll wait…
Yes, the quote calls us to be generous. It calls us to give and share. It calls us to be thankful.
Not just on Thanksgiving, not just on Christmas, but every day. After all, what are holidays?
They are days we set aside as "holy" and every day the “holy” can be seen.
In that spirit, I invite you to begin your Thanksgiving in earnest right now. Start preparing for
how you will spend the months of November and December living into the "every day is a
holiday" spirit. Start living without skipping the block quote.