Dear Friends,

Now we enter the 50 days of Easter, a time to celebrate Jesus Christ in our lives. It is a time to recognize what God has given us in Jesus Christ. He was not just a man. He is our salvation, our mentor, our teacher, our sacredness, our resurrection, our life, our connection to God, all the good things that we have the capacity for, and so much more. Can we just steep ourselves in this for this significant period of time. After a day of rest, I enter this time renewed and refreshed. I look forward to all we can do together and accomplish together.

Community is essential to the church’s future. We must be intentional in figuring out how to do this. For every church it looks a little different. Although, many church’s are faced with the same issues at this time. Where are our families, where are our children? Where is our commitment to regular worship? I think all of these things (in this day and age) families are finding themselves caught in the competition of their attention. Should the church have as much of their attention? I say, yes, it should.

This Easter Sunday, and not since the pandemic, have we heard the sounds of children’s voices. They were such  lovely sounds. I had to chuckle when several 4-year-olds excitedly went to the aisle with their parent’s money to put in the collection plate. This is what the children remember from their childhoods, and these are such good and wholesome memories. We need kid programs. We need children, excited and engaged, if we are ever going to see families and children return. Worship has to have meaning and worship (and whatever form it is in) has to be where they want to be and what they want to be doing.

Note the picture in these Reminders. Thanks to Deacon Linda and the Schweri family, a last minute Easter Egg Hunt came about. On Friday when we heard about the different families that would be attending on Sunday, Linda volunteered to put together something. Thank you Linda. She contacted Shelby Schweri, knowing that she would be attending and together they pulled this off. We must be offering children opportunities to get to know what being a part of a church is all about. How many of you have fond memories of church. I do. I remember singing, carving crosses out of ivory soap, youth group activities, confirmation, and a whole lot of other experiences.

It is time for St. Gregorys to be a place of memories for young, and in-between, and old! We do this together in community!

Warmly and with many blessings,
Mother Lily+