Dear Trinity Family,
If it’s Friday, it must be time for another update from Pastor. I pray that this finds all of you well and that we all continue to “hold things together” during these days.
In addition to our prayers for peace and patience and healing in our nation and world brought on by the Pandemic; we also find ourselves asking for the same gifts from God because of the unrest following the police involved killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. We mourn the loss; we cry for justice; and we pray for peace. May God hear and answer our prayers.
I was able to talk with Reb today to get an update on Paul who is still on campus in Minneapolis. He is safe and the campus, although nearby, is not in an area where the violence is happening. We pray God’s safety and protection on him and for all those in the city during this time.
As to local news, we know that the County Executive will begin a “Modified Phase One Reopening” of Prince George’s County beginning on Monday. And we have heard her announcement that churches must continue to limit their gatherings to 10 people or less and continue online services. While it is frustrating that these limits keep us from reopening the building for worship in a meaningful way for our Trinity Family, it does seem that our only course of action is to continue as we have for the last ten Sundays, and hope that sometime in the not so distant future we will be able to gather together again.
Because of the continued “lockdown” on our gathering for worship, even though we have moved into our “summer schedule”, I have decided that for at least the month of June, I will continue to offer a “Midweek Devotion” on Wednesdays. I feel that this is appropriate as the times we find ourselves in ask us to have opportunities for more prayer and not less.
More information on the above, upcoming Zoom fellowship, available Bible Study material, and other “notes and news” can be found in this Sunday’s Bulletin available here.
As for a devotional thought to close with, I think I’ll try to save most of my “material” for Sunday’s Sermon, so do “tune in” then. But as sort of a “teaser”…
The “90 Days plus” that make up the “Time of Easter” in our Christian Church Year are the way that I would usually be “marking time” at this time of year. But this year, marking the Sundays in Lent and of the Easter Season have given way to counting how many Sundays that we have been away from worshiping the Lord together in our dear church home. Holy Week and Easter have come and gone. And this Sunday, we will have “lost” the whole of Eastertide.
Or have we? This Sunday, the Day of Pentecost, brings the 50 days of Easter to their close. And with this day, although it will be different for us, it will bring us the same reminder–that the Holy Spirit sent to us from the Father and the Son is with us and will remain with us forever. He is our Comforter, our Counselor, and our Guide. He is the One who, even while apart from each other, continues to “call, gather, enlighten, and sanctify the whole Christian Church on earth” and keeps us united as one. Because of the Spirit, we are truly not apart but one. Praise God for that!
As we prepare to “be gathered” this Pentecost, I will share with you a video that Skip Hall passed along to me this week. It is a “virtual choir and orchestra” video put together by the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians and the National Lutheran Choir singing the Danish Lutheran Pentecost Hymn, “O Day Full of Grace” (LSB # 503). May it be our prayer as we ask the Spirit’s continued presence in our midst, bringing us His comfort and joy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJETTBbnf6w&feature=youtu.be
Lord willing, we will “see” you at worship on Sunday Morning. God’s blessings on you and yours this weekend.
And as always, “May the Lord watch between me and thee, while we are absent one from another.”
Peace and blessings,
+Pastor