Friends in faith,
My normal routine when I wake up is to grab my phone and check out the news headlines as I gather the energy to actually get out of bed! These days, I'm quite nervous to see what may have transpired since I last checked my phone. We are reading that there seem to be a variety of armed protests being scheduled for all 50 state capitals, perhaps as soon as this Saturday. Thousands of troops are headed to Washington, D.C.to ensure a safe inauguration for President-elect Biden. Many of us, myself included, are very concerned over possible violence and chaos that may ensue at these protests in the coming week and beyond. It's hard not to feel frightened and overwhelmed during these unprecedented days.
To help shore up our faith for times like these, our Presbytery is offering a Zoom prayer service on Sunday evening, January 17th at 5 p.m. To join, please register in advance here. After registering, you will receive a confirmation e-mail containing information about joining the meeting. It will be a short service of music, prayer, and scripture. We hope you'll join in.
In the same way, we hope you will join us for Sunday worship—tell your friends, too. Our Facebook Live service begins at 10:20 a.m. Pianist Natalya Amelchenko gathers us in with 10 minutes of beautiful piano music. The Word is proclaimed and this service is then followed by our Zoom worship service which usually begins at around 11:10 a.m. The links for these services can be found here. Please note that this Sunday we'll be celebrating "Baptism of the Lord" Sunday (Mark 1:4-11); we'll be celebrating communion together at both services so please have some bread and wine/juice on hand so we can share in the Lord's Supper together.
We also continue to meet via Zoom for Bible studies on Tuesdays at 11 a.m. and for Zoom check-ins on Wednesdays at 11 a.m. Again, inks for these gatherings can be found here. We hope you'll take a break from your day and join us for some time to catch up, share, and explore our faith in our current context.
UPCOMING: Save the date and get involved! On Thursday, March 11th at 6:30 p.m., the South Sacramento Interfaith Partnership (SSIP) is hosting a "Virtual Gala Event!" This fundraiser promises to be a fun evening full of prizes and fun. SSIP is seeking donations—more details to follow.
God's peace to you all,
Jesse
