Upcoming Worship Se

Upcoming worship services

Jan 14, 10:00, Morning Prayer
Jan 21, 10:00, Morning Prayer
Jan 28, 10:00, Morning Prayer

Feb 4, 10:00, Holy Communion, Father Hillin
Feb 11, 10:00, Morning Prayer
Feb 18, 10:00, Morning Prayer
Feb 25, 10:00, Morning Prayer


THIS is a link to the church calendar of the Episcopal Church. It has links to further information about the people who are commemorated on any particular day.



Thursday, December 25, 2008

Father Nissen's message for Christmas, 2008

The Christmas service was on Christmas Eve, December 24.

The text for the message comes from the Epistle of Paul to Titus, chapter 2, verses 11 through 14:

For the grace of God has dawned upon the world with healing for all mankind; and by it we are disciplined to renounce godless ways and worldly desires, and to live a life of temperance, honesty, and godliness in the present age, looking forward to the happy fulfilment of our hope when the slendor of our great God and Savior Christ Jesus will appear.  He it is who sacrificed himself for us, to set us free from all wickednes and to make us his own people, pure and eager to do good.
The Christmas message tells us that God became one of us through the event of Jesus' birth in Bethlehem.

The epistle reading for Christmas might seem negative.  After all, it talks about renouncing--renouncing impiety and worldly passions.  But what is being said here is not negative at all.  It is saying that we must think again and think more deeply about God's love for each of us.  This love did not stop at Bethlehem; it goes on now.

God came to us through birth and then continued to grow in his human life.  May we, too, continue to grow in our surrender to God's love for us.  In faith we grow.  As we grow, we become more open, more inclusive, more open to new ideas.  A peace comes to us.  We become more natural, spontaneous, peaceful, happy.

What a gift we have in Jesus.  May we each accept him into our hearts.  Then Christmas will not be a single day or even a holiday season but a condition we live in, an on-going state of mind.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Father Nissen's message on December 14

John the Baptist knew what he was called to do.  He was a voice in the wildnerness, called to prepare the way for the Lord.  He firmly stated that he was not the Messiah.

Our society is a wilderness with many conflicting ideas and false hopes.

Our congregations must grow together as inclusive groups using ideas and talents from each other to talk about
  •  society;
  • our strengths and wseaknesses;
  • what changes need to made in our local congregations.
And then we must do it, do things together, meeting after talking about where the Holy Spirit seems to be leading us.  Realizing we are NOT messiahs individually, we must learn from others and walk with others.  Then Jesus' work goes forward.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Father Nissen's message, Nov 16

The text for today is Matthew 25: 14 - 30.

The text tells us of a parable of Jesus. The parable finishes with a hard saying:

"For everyone who has will be given more, till he has enough and to spare; and everyone who has nothing will forfeit even what he has. As for the useless servant, throw him out into the dark, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth!" as it is put in the Revised English Bible. The more contemporary translation or paraphrase called "The Message" puts the end of that same passage this way: "And get rid of this 'play-it-safe' who won't go out on a limb. Throw him out into utter darkness."

This is a hard saying, but perhaps it becomes easier to understand if we look at it more closely. The older translations say that a master gave his three servants 5 or 2 or 1 "talents" of silver or gold. A talent was a measure, and one talent of silver would be about the amount of money a person would be expected to earn in 15 years! It's a lot.

Now the master in the parable--who, it seems, we should understand to be God--was angry with the guy who took his one talent and buried all that money. Why did he do that? Why?

Well, especially when we look at the other parables Jesus has just been telling in Matthew 24 and 25, it looks like this servant thinks maybe the master will die or maybe, since the master entrusted much more money to other servants, he will just forget about the single talent he gave to this servant. If the servant put the money in the bank, then there would be some sort of record of the talent. But if he buries it in the ground, why then maybe the master will just forget about the whole thing. So the servant hoped he could cheat the master. The servant hoped he could dig the money up, live off some, invest the rest, and live "happily" ever after.

So the parable does not seem to be saying that the rich will get richer and the poor poorer. Rather, it is telling us that we cannot cheat the Master. God has given each of us talents (in the way we use the word) and he maybe has given us money or some sort of position. God calls on us to use these for the benefit of God's kingdom, and we cannot expect that God will die or lose interest in us. We can expect that we will keep the blessings we have only if we try to invest them in the growth of God's kingdom.

St. Andrew's Church has a talent for loving. May that love be channeled wisely, channeled so as to help bring others to Jesus.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Father Nissen's sermon, November 2, which is All Souls Day

The text for today's sermon is an Old Testament reading, Joshua 3 : 7 - 17:

The LORD told Joshua, "Beginning today I will show the people that you are their leader, and they will know that I am helping you as I helped Moses. Now, tell the priests who are carrying the chest to go a little way into the river and stand there."

Joshua spoke to the people: Come here and listen to what the LORD our God said he will do! The Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites control the land on the other side of the river. But the living God will be with you and will force them out of the land when you attack. And now, God is going to prove that he's powerful enough to force them out. Just watch the sacred chest that belongs to the LORD, the ruler of the whole earth. As soon as the priests carrying the chest step into the Jordan, the water will stop flowing and pile up as if someone had built a dam across the river. The LORD has also said that each of the twelve tribes should choose one man to represent it.

The Israelites packed up and left camp. The priests carrying the chest walked in front, until they came to the Jordan River. The water in the river had risen over its banks, as it often does in springtime. But as soon as the feet of the priests touched the water, the river stopped flowing, and the water started piling up at the town of Adam near Zarethan. No water flowed toward the Dead Sea, and the priests stood in the middle of the dry riverbed near Jericho while everyone else crossed over.

Joshua was commissioned to lead Israel into the promised land. God promises Joshua to go with him. Joshua believed God's promises, so he had to be courageous and act.

Let us, too, be courageous and act so that God's promises may be fulfilled in family, church, and lives in our community.

It took a lot of courage to build St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, a most beautiful place. It will take courage in this age to extend Jesus' love to people who do not live just in Silverdale.

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Father Nissen's message, October 26

The Gospel reading for today comes from the book of Matthew, chapter 22, verses 34 through 46. Here is the passage, taken from the Contemporary English Version through e-Sword.net.

After Jesus had made the Sadducees look foolish, the Pharisees heard about it and got together.
One of them was an expert in the Jewish Law. So he tried to test Jesus by asking,
"Teacher, what is the most important commandment in the Law?"
Jesus answered: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.
This is the first and most important commandment.
The second most important commandment is like this one. And it is, "Love others as much as you love yourself."
All the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets are based on these two commandments.
While the Pharisees were still there, Jesus asked them,
"What do you think about the Messiah? Whose family will he come from?" They answered, "He will be a son of King David."
Jesus replied, "How then could the Spirit lead David to call the Messiah his Lord? David said,
'The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right side until I make your enemies into a footstool for you.'
If David called the Messiah his Lord, how can the Messiah be a son of King David?"
No one was able to give Jesus an answer, and from that day on, no one dared ask him any more questions.

We hear today the summary of the law, a summary which Jesus gives to the Pharisees. This summary says that God's law boils down to "Love God above all and love our neighbors as ourselves."

We must go beyond the 10 Commandments to let Jesus lift the burdens of our lives. Then we can love anew ourselves and others.

We need sermns, thought, meditation an d practical consideration so we can love better. We need to lover more creatively as church families. If we are to live as God wants us to live as a church family, we must deal with each other in a positive way. We must be
  • supporting
  • encouraging
  • accepting
  • listening
  • respecting
  • trusting
  • negotiating differences
May we continue to work on these areas in our church families.

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Father Nissen's message that wasn't

The morning worship service that was scheduled for October 12 was canceled because of the heavy rain. But this is the message that Father Nissen had intended to deliver.

The Gospel reading for the day was Matthew 22: 1 - 14.

This is an allegorical parable. It talks about people being invited to a wedding banquet, but they did not come. Some even became violent.

There are many themes in this parable. Here are a few:
  • Not to accept God in our lives is serious. It is a snub against God.
  • If we accept God in our lives we can become righteous.
  • If we do not accept God in our lives we do violence against our selves and others. By not growing in grace and not loving other as we should.

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Father Nissen's message of 5 October

The Gospel reading for the day is Matthew 21: 33 - 46.  Here is that passage from the New English Bible:

[Jesus said,] "Listen to another parable.  There was a landowner who planted a vineyard: he put a wall rount it, hewed out a winepress, and built a watchtower; then let it out to vine-growers and went abroad.  When the harvest season approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect the produce due to him.  But they seized his servants, thrashed one, killed another, and stoned a third.  Again, he sent other servants, this time a larger number; and they treated them in the same way.  Finally he sent his son.  'They will respect my son,' he said.  But when they saw the son the tenants said to one another, 'This is the heir; come onk let us kill him, and get his inheritance.'  So they seized him, flung him out of the vineyard, and killed him.  When the owner of the vineyard comes, how do you think he will deal with those tenants?"  

"He will bring those bad men to a bad end," they answered, "and hand the vineyard over to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop when the season comes."  

Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the scriptures:  'The stone which the builders rejected has become the main cornerstone.  This is the Lord's doing, and it is wonderful in our eyes'?  Therefore, I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you, and given to a nation that yields the proper fruit."

When the chief priests and Pharisees heard this parables, they saw that he was referring to them.  They wanted to arrest him, but were afraid of the crowds, who looked on Jesus as a prophet.

* * *
This is a parable of a hostile takeover!  The tenants took over the farm, killed the landowner's messengers, who had come to collect his share of the profits, and even killed the landowner's son.  Of course, the meaning is transferred to God the Father as the landowner and Jesus as the Son.  Not only Jesus, but other servants--the church--are made to suffer, too.  

We wonder, why do these injustices occur?  Partly because people have free will to love or hate, and too often we ignore God altogether.  Second, we tend to think we own everything, but in fact everything we have is a gift from God.  Then, too, people tend to become easily angry with God and then to transfer this anger to others.  But in all this the church will be vindicated.

Although we may be tempted to think that some of the teachings of the Bible do not apply to us, we must keep reading them.  The Holy Spirit will reveal to us the deeper meaning of this teaching  in our lives.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Father Nissen's sermon, September 28

The sermon today is based on the New Testament reading, which is the epistle of Paul to the Phillipians, chapter 2, verses 1 - 13.

St. Paul talks of Jesus' emptying, laying aside his god privileges and dying the death of the cross. Jesus limited himself and did not try to escape death.

This theme of limitation applies also to the whole creation and to ourselves. These are not all of the miracles in the universe. We have natural ordered days along with some tragedies and difficulties. In doing this God shows us that we have responsibility in making this world a better place, which means we have a great self-worth and are blessed with reason and knowledge to solve problems, including global warming. We also need to limit ourselves in relation to each other. It is not "me and Jesus" bu "US and Jesus."

How we relate to one another is the essence of the renewal of the church. Creating healthy communities where people can find healing, assurance, forgiveness, and peace in their lives. This is the challenge of our day!

Friday, September 26, 2008

Father Nissen's message of September 21

The Gospel reading for the day is Matthew 20: 1 - 16.

This parable really can catch our attention.  This teaching can even be frustrating.

It was harvest time, and the landowner went to town to hire workers early in the day.  It was a bigger job than he first thought, so he went back to hire workers again at 9:00 am, at noon, at 3:00 pm and even at 5:00 pm.  The he did the most unusual thing: he paid everyone the same wage--even those who worked only a short time at the end of the day.

The central thought is God is generous.  And if God is generous, then we should be, too, especially with our attitude toward others.  We may think that others have it better in life than we do.  But should stop and evaluate: we too in our struggles have been given much.

So may we contineu to share Jesus' message to others, knowing that all are welcome and that the most unilikely people are the greatest asset to the church!

Sunday, August 31, 2008

August 31, Father Nissen's message

The Gospel reading for today is Matthew 16: 21 - 28.

There are things in life we think we need, such as that white Mustang, a flat panel TV, a certain game, a certain concert we want to attend. These are all wonderful to have, but they will not bring us real life and fulfillment.

Jesus talks about the conclusion of his life of service, including his death and then his resurrection. Jesus very strongly says we MUST grow beyond things to change in our lives to SERVICE. We will find resurrection in our lives if we grow beyond things to listen more to our children, coworkers, and friends, if we spend more time with our church, families, and community..

Jesus calls us always to look outward in our lives, families, and parish families. A good way to look outward as a church family is to develop a mission statement that articulates what St. Andrew's Church is and what we want it to become.

Sunday, August 17, 2008

August 17, Father Nissen's message

Today's Gospel reading is Matthew 15, verses 21 through 28:

Jesus then withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And a Canaanite woman from those parts came to met him crying, 'Son of David! have pit on me; my daughter is tormented by a devil.' But he said not a word in reply. His disciples came and urged him: ' Send her away! See how she comes shouting after us.' Jesus replied, 'I was sent to the house of Israel, and to them alone.' But the woman came and fell at his feet and cried, 'Help me, sir.' Jesus replied 'It is not right to take the children's bread and thrown it to the dogs.' 'True, sir,' she answered, 'and yet the dogs eat the scraps that fall from their master's table.' hearing this Jesus replied, 'What faith you have! Let it be as you wish!' And from that moment her daughter was restored to health.


This is the story of Jesus talking to a woman who was a foreigner. In those days people lived segregated lives, and because of Jewish ceremonial laws about purity a traditional Jewish man would not talk to this foreign woman.

Yet Jesus engaged her in a God-centered debate. He daughter was sick, but she had faith that Jesus was able to heal her daughter.

This teaching reminds of two things. First, we must always remember that walls between people can and must be taken down. Second, when these walls are taken down, healing can happen.

This focus can begin to happen in our lives as we talk and share in church services and especially outside of the services.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Father Nissen's sermon, August 3

The Gospel reading for the day is Matthew 14: 13 - 21:

When he heard what had happened Jesus withdrew privately by boat to a remote place; but large numbers of people heard of it, and came after him on foot from the towns. When he came ashore and saw a large crowd, his heart went out to them, and he healed those who were sick. As evening drew on, the disciples came up to him and said, 'This is a remote place and day has gone; send the people off to the villages to buy themselves food.' Jesus answered, 'There is no need for them to go; give them something to eat yourselves.' 'All we have here', they said, 'is five loaves and two fish.' 'Bring them to me,' he replied. So he told the people to sit down on the grass; then, taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples; and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied; and twelve baskets were filled with what was left over. Some five thousand men shared in this meal, not counting women and children.

A long time ago God put us in the Garden of Eden. We had plenty of food, and it was a beautiful place.

The parable of the feeding of the 5,000 brings us back to the Garden of Eden, where God gave Adam and Eve an abundance of everything. We are reminded that since we left the Garden of Eden selfishness entered the planet.

May we be abundantly kind to ourselves and others, getting rid of sinful attitudes.
  • Choose to love rather than hate.
  • Choose to laugh rather than cry.
  • Choose to create rather than destroy.
  • Choose to heal rather than wound.
  • Choose to pray rather than curse.
  • Choose to live rather than die.
This way we are going to have plenty from God's abundance and the love and help from others.

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Father Nissen's sermon of July 20

The Gospel reading is Matthew 13: 24 - 43.

Timing is important: when to say "please" and "thank you," be at work on time, even stay late to help out at work.

Then there is God's timing. Most of the time it takes God a long time to act. The teaching of the wheat and the weeds tells that they grown together and are harvested together.

For us, good and bad exist together. We live with difficulties. The hard times and the difficult people always go away eventually, but the in-between times can be a time to grow in trust of God in our lives.

Waiting on the Lord of the harvest can be wonderful times of worship, peace, and rest, even in the most difficult circumstances.

Monday, July 7, 2008

Fr. Nissen's Sermon for Sunday, July 6

Matthew 11:28 -30"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."

All of us know hardships and difficulties. With so many problems found in everyday living--not having enough money and medical problems (both physical and emotional)--we can become drained.

We can feel helpless. But there are two things to remember. The first is getting the help you need, be it counseling, medication, or financial advise. Secondly and more importantly, seek God in all things.

Jesus tells us, "Come to me all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens and I will give you rest."

God gives us a rock and foundation that gives us hope. We can be confident that that there will be joy and peace after hardship and sorrow. There always is. The storms do not last forever.

Sunday, June 1, 2008

Father Nissen's sermon for Sunday, June 1

This message is based on the Gospel reading, which is Matthew 7: 21 - 29:

Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord" will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but only those who do the will of my heavenly Father. When the day comes, many will say to me, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, drive out demons in your name, and in your name perform many miracles?" Then I will tell them plainly, "I never knew you. Out of my sight; your deeds are evil!"

So whoever hears these words of mine and acts on them is like a man who had the sense to build his house on rock. The rain came down, the floods rose, but it did not fall, because its foundations were on rock. And whoever hears these words of mine and does not act on them is like a man who was foolish enough to build his house on sand. The rain came down, the floods rose, the winds blew and battered against that house; and it fell with a great crash.
The Bible reading talk about building our lives on the rock, which is Christ. Jesus, who walked this life and its difficulties, survived the cross and to rose to new life.

In the church there is always the tension between our beautiful buildings and Jesus' words. May we find beauty in each other and in talking and sharing so that we might bring Jesus' message to others. We must carry on hte message of the church.

May we love to build Christian community as much as we love our churches.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Father Nissen's sermon, May 18, 2008

Passage for this week's sermon is II Corinthians 13: 11-13.

In Paul's letter he concludes by a seeming impossibility: be perfect, be of one mind, and live in peace.

Perfection should be understood in the context of the entire Gospel. We recognize that there is sin in all of us. Paul charges us to aim in the direction of perfection. Through Holy Communion, we are given the energy to go on. So go for the Good. Do not minimize God's call for us to strive for perfection, instead make the necessary changes needed to complete our journey.

Paul says, "Be of one mind." There is diversity of opinion in the Church, but the focus here is everyday expression. Let us be compassionate, hospitable, and effective sharers of the Gospel.

The final thought Paul leaves us with is "Live in Peace." Live in healthy relationships with others. It is easy to say, "I am right, and you are wrong." This is not the case. May we listen to others, live in Peace, strive for unity in the church, and achieve realistic perfection in our lives.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Father Nissen's sermon for April 13

"The Lord is my shepherd."

We have all heard the 23rd Psalm. We remember these words because they promise us so much. They give me strength and peace, as they did for Israel, Moses, Deborah, Gideon, Ruth, Isaiah, and Jeremiah. In Paul's letter to the Hebrews, we are reminded of a great cloud of witnesses each of whom--when they were reduced to nothing--were led by God, the Good Shepherd.

In this post-modern self-sufficient world, may we focus our thinking from "The Lord as our shepherd" to "The Lord is our shepherd." It makes such a difference and spares us so much anxiety.

Sunday, March 23, 2008

Father Nissen's Easter sermon, March 23, 2008

When we think of Easter we think of light, flowers, and sunshine.

But let's remember that when Mary Magdalene came to the tomb of Jesus, it was dark. It was dark for Mary and for the whole human race. Mary thought someone had stolen Jesus' body. Then she heard her name spoken, "Mary," and she knew right away it was Jesus. The darkness and fear in her heart left. Mary and the whole human race began to live in light and hope with Jesus walking with us.

Whatever darkness may be in your life--hurt, pain, depression, death, loss of loved ones--know that Jesus walks with you! We will have joy from sorrow and peace from pain.

Christ is risen!

Sunday, February 3, 2008

Father Nissen's sermon, February 3

Father Nissen's sermon is based on 2 Peter 1:16 - 21. Here is that passage from The Message, which is either a Bible translation or a Bible paraphrase by Eugene Peterson.

We weren't, you know, just wishing on a star when we laid the facts out before you regarding the powerful return of our Master, Jesus Christ. We were there for the preview! We saw it with our own eyes: Jesus resplendent with light from God the Father as the voice of Majestic Glory spoke: "This is my Son, marked by my love, focus of all my delight." We were there on the holy mountain with him. We heard the voice out of heaven with our very own ears.

We couldn't be more sure of what we saw and heard--God's glory, God's voice. The prophetic Word was confirmed to us. You'll do well to keep focusing on it. It's the one light you have in a dark time as you wait for daybreak and the rising of the Morning Star in your hearts. the main thing to keep in mind here is that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of private opinion. And why? Because it's not something concocted in the human heart. Prophecy resulted when the Holy Spirit prompted men and women to speak God's Word.

Father Nissen's message: The HEART symbol is a universal symbol of togetherness and love. All of the times the romantic valentine fails and relationships end.

Another more committed kind of symbol for love is found in Peter's letter. It says, "The day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts." The morning star is the planet Venus, which morning by morning in certain periods appears just before dawn, signaling that the darkness is soon to be over. That morning star is Jesus.

Jesus gives us the love of Christ, committed love, caring love. You are able to love the complexity of a person who is different. Love then becomes challenging and an adventure.

Happy Valentine's Day.

Thursday, January 24, 2008

Annual Meeting

St. Andrew's Episcopal Church of rural Hays held its annual meeting following the morning worship service on January 20th, 2008. The meeting was presided over by Senior Warden Dennis Johnson. The annual meeting was combined with a church potluck. Those in attendance were Father Peter Nissen, Dennis and Denise Johnson, Frances Eichman, Gwen Johnson, Fred McIntosh, and Paul, Jacinta, and Xan Faber.

The meeting opened with an invocation offered by Father Nissen.

The minutes of the 2007 annual meeting were read and approved. The treasurer's report for 2007 was read and accepted. The 2008 budget was proposed, discussed, and approved. Motions for approval were made by Paul Faber and seconded by Jacinta Faber.

In the new business, the first item on the agenda was the appointment of various congregational officers. Dennis Johnson and Fred McIntosh were reappointed to the posts of senior warden and junior warden respectively. Gwen Johnson graciously agreed to continue performing the treasurer's duties. Jacinta Faber was appointed clerk. Dan Johnson and Paul Faber will continue to serve on the Bishop's Committee.

Denise and Dennis Johnson agreed to serve as the delegates to the 2008 diocesan convention, which will be held in October, 2008, in Hutchinson, Kansas. Paul and Jacinta Faber volunteered to be the alternates.

The second item on the agenda addressed the Bishop's call to increase church membership. Dennis Johnson proposed hosting a church picnic and inviting those living in the surrounding area. This idea was enthusiastically received by the meeting attendees. A picnic had been tentatively planned for early summer at St. Andrew's.

Finally, the congregation offered its heartfelt thanks to Father Nissen for another year of service as pastor, to Gwen Johnson for her service as organist and treasurer, to Denise and Dennis Johnson for serving as delegates to the diocesan convention, and especially to Frances Eichman for her many years of service as the congregational clerk. She received a well-deserved round of applause.

The meeting was adjourned and followed by a generously provisioned potluck dinner.

Faithfully submitted by Jacinta Faber, clerk.

Sunday, January 20, 2008

Father Nissen's sermon, January 20

There is a Christian research group called the "Barna Research Group." They did a study comparing people of faith and those who have no faith. They discovered that no-faith-ers and active-faith-ers had about the same problems. But those of faith declared themselves as having peace.

We can fail and make mistakes and yet have peace. God will help us to face problems of life without being devastated to them. For some problems there are no solutions. We just live through them. We can with the peace God gives us.

God promises us peace, just as he did the ancient people of Israel in the book
Isaiah, chapter 49, verses 1 through 7 (from the version called "The Message"):

Listen, far-flung islands,
pay attention, faraway people:
God put me to work from the day I was born.
The moment I entered the world he named me.
he gave me speech that would cut and penetrate.
He kept his hand on me to protect me.
He made me his straight arrow
and hid me in his quiver.
He said to me, "You're my dear servant, Israel, through whom I'll shine."

But I said, "I've worked for nothing.
I've nothing to show for a life of hard work.
Nevertheless, I'll let God have the last word.
I'll let him pronounce his verdict."

"And now," God says,
this God who took me in hand
from the moment of birth to be his servant,
To bring Jacob back home to him,
to set a reunion for Israel--
What an honor for me in God's eyes!
That God should be my strength!
He says, "But that's not a big enough job for my servant--
just to recover the tribes of Jacob,
merely to round up the strays of Israel.
I'm setting you up as a light for the nations
so that my salvation becomes global!"

God, Redeemer of Israel, The Holy of Israel,
says to the despised one, kicked around by the nations,
slave labor to the ruling class:
"Kings will see, get to their feet--the princes, too--
and then fall on their faces in homage
Because of God, who has faithfully kept his word,
The Holy of Israel, who has chosen you."

Annual meeting

The worship service January 20 will be followed by the annual meeting of the congregation and then a shared meal. Bring something if you like, but you do not have to do so, since there is always plenty of food to go around.

Sunday, January 6, 2008

House Blessings

This season, the Epiphany season, is a time to bless homes. Let Father Nissen know if you want prayers and a blessing or if you know of a friend who does. You can e-mail Father Nissen by clicking here: e-mail Father Nissen.

Christmas and Epiphany Message

The Christmas message tells us the angels appeared to the shepherds in the fields, telling them Jesus was born in Bethlehem. The story reminds us that common people such as you and I must carry the story of Jesus' love.

The Epiphany message goes beyond the emotional message of Jesus as a child and goes on to the message of Jesus' bringing Epiphany light to everyone. All of us will have better physical and mental health as we let God in our lives and then share the old, old story.