by the Rev. Jeremy Pridgeon O God, our hope and refuge,in our distress we come quickly to you.Shock and horror of that tragic day have subsided,replaced now with an emptiness,a longing for an innocence lost. We come remembering those who lost their livesin New York, Washington D.C., and Pennsylvania. We are mindful of the sacrifice […]
It’s Really Not Easy, Is It?
I have a friend, Jonathan, who is a UCC pastor in Connecticut. His church is in a town about the size of Winona and it is located right in the center – a typical New England design. Their church sign is right on the corner of the busiest intersection – and as it is a […]
Favorite Scripture
Legend has it that Howard Thurman, an African American theologian, prayed the same verse of scripture every day: “How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! I try to count them – they are more than the sand;” (Psalm 139:17-18a) Everyday, year after year, he prayed using […]
Two Stories
In 2008 I was in my final year of seminary and a student pastor at Lafayette United Methodist Church in St. Louis. This was an urban church, right in downtown. It was surrounded by poverty and violence. A large, stone building – its pew were mostly empty on a Sunday morning, but those who were […]
Teachers
Kids are heading back to school. Teachers are getting back into the routine of teaching. The stores are filled with school supplies and there is a feeling of excitement in the air as another school year begins. And at First Congregational, there is excitement as we prepare to launch our new Sunday School program! This […]
Thou Art Loosed
I want to ask you to use your imagination with me. I want you to imagine this bent-over woman in her full humanity. I want you to picture her in your mind. A woman who was bent-over, unable to look anyone in the eye. Unable to see anything more than a patch of ground in […]
The Grand Experiment: Lakeside Worship Services
This summer our congregation took a big leap and tried something new. For five weeks we moved ourselves out of our sanctuary and worshiped in the park on Thursday evenings. Surrounded by wildlife, bluffs, water, and people playing softball, we worshiped God in the midst of God’s glory. Here are few pictures of a successful […]
Be Transformed
A week ago, as I sat down to plan out worship for this week, I noticed on the UCC website a reminder that 74 years ago this week two nuclear bombs were dropped on Japan. I wanted to recognize that part of our human history. I wanted to pause to consider how we as people […]
Lord, Teach Us How To Pray
A wonderful place to observe human nature, and to participate in it, is the Hallmark card aisle in a convenience store. Especially around a holiday. Especially around three holidays in particular – Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, and Father’s Day. And if you are anything like me and don’t stand in front of those cases of […]
When Jesus Stops By
The story of Mary and Martha is another one of the more familiar stories from the Gospels. In it we hear of two sisters, each responding to a visit in their home by Jesus. Martha is busy doing – doing all sorts of things that she undoubtedly felt were what good hospitality looked like. Mary, […]