From the Pastor’s Desk

Dear Grace Community,

It’s wonderful to be back with you.  I am grateful for the time I had during my maternity leave. The eight weeks gave me a chance to start to get my bearings when it comes to motherhood, and it gave me and John time to begin getting to know this interesting and beautiful baby God entrusted to us.

April 17 was my first Sunday back in worship, and it was a joy to see you, worship with you, and ...

March 16, 2016

Dear Grace Community,

Greetings from maternity leave! John and I are enjoying Alice and look forward to introducing her to you. We think she’s wonderful, and we’re sure you’ll agree.

I talked briefly to a church member the other day who asked me if I was thinking a lot about the church. Truthfully, I told her, some days I can’t remember if I’ve brushed my teeth, so I haven’t been able to put too much energy into church matters. (Being ...

Dear Grace Community,

Sunday, January 10, was Baptism of the Lord Sunday. Each year we read the story of Jesus’ baptism and remember our own baptisms. In 2015 we baptized five people in our congregation.

What was unique was that none were infant baptisms. Three of the baptized were teenagers, and two were adults who had been active in church for their entire lives but never baptized. Each baptism was a beautiful celebration of God’s claim on their lives and a reminder ...

Dear Grace Community,

Are you wondering ‘What to Expect When Your Pastor is Expecting?’ My February 21 due date is fast approaching, and while it’s exciting, it does raise some questions. You’ve asked me a wide range of questions, and I’ll try to cover some of the most common ones.

• Will I take a maternity leave?
  • The Grace personnel policy allows for an eight-week maternity leave, and it is my plan to take eight weeks. If the baby isn’t early, my last day ...

Dear Grace Community,

A couple of weeks ago I sat at my desk making worship plans. I read through scripture and liturgies, and I thumbed through the hymnal. One of my favorite things about our hymnal is the online resource. The online hymnal lets us keep track of how many times we’ve sung a hymn and what dates we sang it. It also makes suggestions about hymns to go with scripture.

The best thing about it is that it plays 30-second samples ...