I am writing this on a cold rainy day--it seems spring is taking forever to truly arrive, but maybe by the time you read it the greens sprouts will be popping out everywhere. I spent three days last week with my UU ministry colleagues in the mountains of New Hampshire, and we reflected on worship and the sermon writing process. The wind was howling and the rain was pouring down there too. I always appreciate the new ideas that emerge, and the sparks to creativity, when we do deeper sharing on various aspects of ministry. The worship committee and I also have been reflecting on worship, as we plan a special event for May 15--a workshop to orient A2U2 folks who may be interested in the process of planning and leading worship. Even if you are just curious, I encourage you to attend. And if you have ever considered wanting to lead a summer worship service, or help prepare a lay-led service, this will be a chance to go deeper into the worship experience. This would also be a great orientation to joining the worship committee.
In thinking about worship for May, I want to let you know that we are trying a couple of new things this year. First, instead of a Religious Education Sunday in June, we are offering a multi-generational service at 9 a.m. on May 15. It's purpose will not be to showcase our RE program, (as in many years past) but rather to offer a worship service that gathers together all ages of our church community. It's an experiment, and if it serves us well, we may try to do it again like that. Another special worship event will be a Celebration of Music, at the 11 a.m. service that same day. This too will be an alternative style of worship, where the work of the choir will be highlighted, and the service itself will be full of music. I expect that some of you might want to come to both services that day, and you won't regret it.
I have been thinking a lot about what we offer our children growing up as UU's. Most of the time, I don't get to see that part of church life, since it happens while I am leading adult worship. But I care deeply for what happens in our children's program, and how we are helping our children to grow spiritually, ethically, and socially. On May 8th, I will be exploring these questions in the sermon, “The Spirituality of Children.” I always appreciate input from members and friends, and for this service, especially would love to hear from those of you with children or grandchildren. If you have thoughts, questions, hopes, or challenges you'd like to share with me about this topic, please send me an email, or make an appointment to chat.
Challenges at the other end of the spectrum of our lives will be the topic for a service on May 22nd. Many of our members are dealing with Alzheimer’s (and other forms of memory loss or mental illness) in their families. To choose this as a topic for worship gives me a chance to learn more about what spiritual resources we can offer as a faith community for our loved ones who are facing these issues. I also want to encourage anyone who might have ideas or questions about this to be in touch, or if you want to talk about what is happening in your own family.
And just so you know, on May 1st, I will be preaching at the Auburn church, to fill in while Rev. Jodi Hayashida is on sabbatical. You may remember that she came to A2U2 while I was on sabbatical. We have this wonderful arrangement with our fellow UU's to do these reciprocal sabbatical exchanges. I will be visiting the Saco-Biddeford church sometime in the fall as well.
In the meantime, may the beauty of the awakening earth fill your heart and soul with moments of light and joy!
Love,
Rev. Myke
