Eileen stopped by church the other day. She arrived just in time for Chapel Time at Mother’s Day Out, so I invited her to join us. Afterall, I figured, its not often that three- and four-year-olds get to meet an angel. In the interest of transparency, I better stop there and clear things up. While Eileen is indeed an angel,…
As I fumbled to fill the church’s Advent candles with oil on Sunday, I found myself snagged by the grief’s sneaky undertow. But that is how grief often operates. It is much less a sequence of predictable events we can check off than it is a series of repeating waves that rise and fall according to their own somewhat random…
A Season of Thanksgiving I was born with faith; I think we all are. I was lucky to be brought into this world by parents and family who lived their lives in faith, hope, and love, sharing with me these gifts to experience, to enjoy, and to express. My father was an astronomer, and I can still remember as a very…
The Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love brought to the world through the birth of Jesus that we celebrate every year during Advent is a blessing that is meant to be shared. This year we are asking the children and youth of the Giddings-Lovejoy Presbytery to share that blessing by helping make Christmas a little brighter for the children and youth…
Message Shared by Sandra Monroe for the Giddings Lovejoy Presbyterian Women’s Gathering October 21, 2023 Exodus 1:15-22 15 The king of Egypt spoke to two Hebrew midwives named Shiphrah and Puah: 16 “When you are helping the Hebrew women give birth and you see the baby being born, if it’s a boy, kill him. But if it’s a girl,…
Statement On The Conflict In Israel And Gaza Issued By The Cabinet Of Interfaith Partnership Of Greater St. Louis October 13, 2023 As people of conscience, we are deeply distressed and profoundly saddened by the tragic attacks that took place in Israel this weekend, and our hearts break as we continue to watch the conflict unfold between Israel and Gaza. As…
The Presbytery of Giddings-Lovejoy gathered on Zoom and at LoveJoy United Presbyterian Church of Wood River, Illinois, on Thursday, August 24. Many highlights of that day will be shared next week. We wanted, however, to share the worship message that kicked off the day, by the Rev. Jimmie Hawkins, Director of the Presbyterian Church (USA) Office of Public Witness in…
This post was taken from the newsletters of First Presbyterian Church and Westminster Presbyterian Church Cape Girardeau, Missouri. We truly are the church together! “Presbytery” has been considered a four-letter word by some congregations (and probably some pastors). “The presbytery” in general has often been accused of ignoring congregations when they are struggling or obstructing progress when calling a new…
Who has the Keys to our Churches? While we can think of a set of keys tangibly as a physical privilege and responsibility of leadership, they can also be symbolic of capabilities, power, and access. Many Church memberships are declining, younger generations are faced with competing activities on Sunday mornings (and Wednesday evenings), and our congregations are aging. In a…
(All photos are credited to: Phil Shoulberg Photography) “Do you think we could borrow your idea about handing out orange ribbons to the congregation for Wear Orange weekend?” That’s how it started. Then one of the members of Churches Together for Justice asked, “But wouldn’t it be cool if we did something together for Wear Orange Sunday? We could have…