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Weekly Update (April 17-24)

Welcome to community-at-a-distance! This is to tell you that we miss you, here at the church, and that we hold hope of our joyous return to being a congregation. Soon enough the music and laughter will echo on these walls and the coffee will brew and the grill be hot and and and…we'll return.
I'm hoping you're receiving Sunday sermons, either in text or in video.
And as always, I'd love to talk to you!
A few things to share:
Cathy says: "Thank you for all the care and prayer and well wishes" on the loss of her sister-in-law. "They mean a lot."
Laura says: "My granddaughter is out of the hospital. God is good! Thank you for praying!"
…and a great many of you share this message: "I'm fine."  (See commentary for more details.)
For those that have been able to share offering: thank you. It truly makes a difference . We rely heavily on the plate giving of Sunday offering here, as expenses still continue. What you give, again, makes a difference.
And as always, we'd love to share your thoughts and well-wishes with one another! Send a note or give a call! Your people want to know how you are doing!
From Pastor Paul… Toward Sunday:
"Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe."  ~ John 20:29
   Picture it: earlier this week, up the shore between Gooseberry and the Split Rock, there's a small harbor, and tucked on a hill by that harbor, a small grassy outcrop, secluded by the trees, overlooking the lake. There's a small fire pit there, and an easy place to sit. On the day I write about, the sky is clear, the wind is out of the west, but buffered by the hills and the woods. There are no waves, but when the wind settles after passing overhead, it lands on the lake and dances across the surface in the speckled and dappled way wind does, sending sparks of light across the lake toward the Wisconsin shore. It is…yes gorgeous.
   Lest I "wander lonely as a cloud" like Wordsworth, I write this as an intro to the subject of living into Resurrection. It is our time. We have learned that death does not defeat life – that despair does not defeat hope. Jesus has taught us this, and I think it worthy to take it to heart and soul.
   See, this week, I reinvigorated my old practice of journaling with a spirit of inventory – all for the sake of living into Resurrection. I'm pushing myself toward a review of the day (the day-to-day) with four points by which I can measure my overall well-being: "PMSA" I call it: Physical, Mental, Spiritual, Aesthetic. The first three are pretty straight-forward: Am I caring for my body, my mind, my spirit? But the last is a gift from God: did I bear witness today to anything that triggered awe or wonder or beauty?
   I mean, we know this: that there's something out there, every day, that has the potential to touch and stir us…something worth lingering on…something praiseworthy. Do we see it?  Do we let ourselves experience it? Friends, I'm thinking that the in-road to practicing Resurrection comes from our ability to embrace and engage God's presence in our everyday experience. Physical, Mental, Spiritual, Aesthetic .
   …And Friends, I want to share it with you. Why? Well, at the risk of sounding rather flighty or vague, soft or new-age or self-help, I want to share it because I've always appreciated it when others share it – when others share their way of seeing and experiencing the presence of the Holy in their day to day, and it strikes me how little we take the time to share those moments – how often we keep those moments private…lest we sound, perhaps, as loopy as our pastor might be!
   Context: Round about Holy Week, I had this vision that as a church we might share a little with one another about how we're sustaining our faith in these isolating times. I had this idea that I would inquire with each of you, and that each of us would share a few words about practicing our faith in these times, alongside a welcome and word of kindness.
   Can you picture the response? "Tell people that I'm fine." I'm fine. Over and over, person by person, "I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine…" …Which is great, don't get me wrong.  "I'm fine" means that you're not struggling, but "I'm fine"  is also the "can't complain could be worse" diminutive neutrality that keeps the spirit of God well-checked in the coatroom instead of out on the dance floor. I picture a congregation, with all of the Scandinavian or Nor'Minnesota stoicism, as a gaggle of birds (think penguins or geese or seagulls) – all with the same tone: "Fine. Fine. I'm fine."
   I know I'm getting quirky here (quirkier than usual, even), but I think there's more to this day-to-day and prayer-by-prayer than our neutrality belies. I think we all have moments of bright joy and dim despair. And I think we owe it to one another to share them.
   I mean, if we can't share all of that very real life with each other – if we can't share our spirit with those for whom "Take It to the Lord in Prayer" every Sunday is common vernacular…well then, who else?
   So here's my nudge for this week…it's the same nudge God has given me: take some time to consider how you are doing…really – (not just the broad generality, but the vivid day to day). Delight in the joys. Accept the challenges. And for the sake of the church and your friends and your faith, share them (I mean it! Send me a note or give me a call: 218-349-0143).  
   And I'll share mine again: those dappled waters on the lake just plain stirred my soul. I wish you were there. And even if I can't take you there right now, I want to tell you all about it. Because it matters. Because it stirred my heart and I want to share it. Because we live in Resurrection. 
Keep in touch,
Pastor Paul
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Aging and Senior Care Community Resources in Duluth

The following are resources that can help seniors and their families understand all the programs that can help pay for senior care:
Joan Martin
Community Outreach and Senior Advocate
(800) 289-4983
Caring.com is a leading senior care resource for family caregivers seeking information and support as they care for aging parents, spouses and other loved ones. We have been featured by AARP, The Administration for Community Living, The National Legal Resource Center, and Forbes, as well as referenced by many government agencies and organizations across the Internet.
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Weekly Reminders (March 22-28)

Not much to report on our usual weekly activities, as all gatherings are cancelled, but here's a few notes on Church to share:

Staying Connected
In this time of separation, we are collecting messages to be shared with your fellow church members! Send your thoughts and greetings, joys and concerns, by email or phone. We'll compile these messages and send them via email (and I'll print out copies and deliver them to those without email). Send notes to Pastor Paul: pastorpaulvanantwerp@gmail.com / 218-349-0143 or to the office: office@unitedprotestantchurch.org / 218-626-2570. Let those you love know how you're doing, and that you are thinking of them.
Helping One Another
For those in need of assistance of any sort at this time, there are a great many resources our church and community can provide. We'll do our best to keep track of these. If you need a hand (or know of somebody who does) send a note to Pastor Paul or the office. You are not alone.
Offering
The majority of our income here is based on the offering we receive on Sundays. Without meeting, there is concern that we will significantly diminish our financial resources. We kindly ask that, if possible, you continue to contribute as you would during worship. You can mail any offerings directly to the office at 830 88th Avenue W., Duluth, MN  55808. Unfortunately, the bulk of the church's operating expenses will continue even while we are forced to suspend services – insurance, utilities, etc.
From Pastor Paul:
   Clarice and I were looking up a song today…she had heard it recently and asked me about it. My ears perked up and my tail started wagging for she mentioned words that I knew well! (And now poor Clarice can't get through a day here without me bellowing the words everywhere I go.) The song is best known as "How Can I Keep From Singing?" but it's often found in hymnals by the first line: 
My life flows on in endless song, above earth's lamentation
I hear the sweet, though far off hymn, that hails a new creation.
Through all the tumult and the strife, I hear the music ringing 
It finds an echo in my soul. How can I keep from singing?
   According to my two-bit research, it was written by Robert Wadsworth Lowry in 1868. It was embraced by the Quaker faith after the Civil War, and after entering public domain can now be found in countless recordings in oodles of versions. The one I have in my head (and keep pestering Clarice with) is a version from Pete Seeger, but here's a version from A Capella Academy (Students 12-18) in Los Angeles: https://youtu.be/nDmaZBX1Tew .     
   It's a song that frankly tells us that no matter what the world might throw our way, nothing can take away our hope, nor the song in our hearts, as people that know and feel God's presence. Or, as the lyrics sing:
What though my joys and comforts die? My savior still is living.
What though the shadows gather 'round? A new song Christ is giving.
No storm can shake my inmost calm, while to that Rock I'm clinging.
Since Love commands both heaven and earth, how can I keep from singing?
   Friends, we can't gather now, but that doesn't mean we cannot sing. We can't recite the Lord's Prayer in  unison, but that doesn't mean we cannot pray. We cannot lift up our joys and concerns in our time of worship, but we can still share our thoughts and faith and love to one another.
   To "that Rock" we truly still cling. When we cannot sing together, we sing for each other. When we cannot pray together, we pray for each other.
Now, more than ever, "Keep in Touch!"
Pastor Paul
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Cancellation of Services

Dear Friends in Christ,
 
As the coronavirus situation continues to worsen, state and local governments are urging that all gatherings of people be cancelled. It is with very heavy hearts that the congregation has made the decision to cancel all services at this time in order to safeguard the health and wellness of all our friends and members. Below are a number of resources and suggestions on how we may stay healthy in mind, body, and soul, and continue being Church together, even as we are forced to separate.

 
First, for yourself and others, please take precautions to stay healthy while we all work to minimize this health crisis.
 
  • Stay away from gatherings when at all possible.
  •  Minimize shopping trips to the necessities.
  • Wash your hands often with both soap and water. When soap and water are unavailable, use hand sanitizer with a high alcohol content.
  • Use this time at home for things you enjoy and which enrich your life .
    • Go for a walk
    • Spend time with your pets
    • Read a book (we know a good one!)
    • Call or write friends, family, and neighbors  
Though we cannot gather in worship and fellowship, we are still a family of love and care and support for one another, and can each do our humble part to keep the spirit of connection alive and shared.
   
Pastor Paul will be sharing a sermon, delivered at the Church on Sundays at our usual worship time, which will be offered as a recording and corresponding essay form. We will share these through our email list, as well as on our Facebook site.
   
And as always, we are available and willing to share. Pastor Paul can be reached via cell phone at 218-349-0143 or email pastorpaulvanantwerp@gmail.com.  You can also call the office to set up a time to chat with Pastor Paul.  Karen Robnik, the council moderator, is available for any church questions or concerns you may have.  If you have any concerns you’d like prayers for, we have prayer chain plans in place as usual. For any of the above, please call the office at (218) 626-2570. If no one is in at the time you call, please leave a message. Messages will be checked frequently.
 
But more importantly, we encourage each of you to reach out to one another and check in, even if you suspect that somebody else has done so. The more we share, the more love is expressed…and maintaining that shared love is what is most important at this time.
 
The church will also be sharing regular email messages and posts. You are encouraged to contribute as well! Please send any message you’d like to share with fellow members (joys, concerns, well wishes, sources of comfort and inspiration, pictures, jokes, etc.) to pastorpaulvanantwerp@gmail.com or to office@unitedprotestantchurch.org. We will consolidate these messages and share them in a digest form on a regular basis.
 
Also, as many of you are aware, the majority of our income here is based on the offering we receive on Sundays. Without meeting, there is concern that we will significantly diminish our financial resources. We kindly ask that, if possible, you continue to contribute as you would during worship. You can mail any offerings directly to the office at 830 88th Avenue W., Duluth, MN  55808. Unfortunately, the bulk of the church’s operating expenses (insurance, utilities, etc. ) will continue even while we are forced to suspend services.
 
As a further note, our church leaders are working diligently to provide resources for “direct deposit” for folks that cannot attend but are still interested in giving offering. We are still at least a month away from implementation, but as soon as that resource is available, we will share that information with you.
 
We will keep everyone posted as soon as anything changes and services can be resumed, but in the meantime, remember that we are still one united family in friendship and in Christ. Faith and fellowship remain, even if we cannot congregate. We need one another for friendship as well as support. We love one another!
 
Stay healthy, friends, and God bless!
United Protestant Church in Morgan Park 
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United Protestant Church Weekly Reminders 3/13 – 3/20

Weekly Reminders

 

SUNDAY:

Worship at 10:30. Third Sunday in Lent. A message of
hope in a time of fear. Fellowship downstairs to follow.   

 

MONDAY: Bible Study at 6pm. Join Pastor Paul as
we explore this week’s scripture in the lectionary and bring it into our lives
and faith. Questions encouraged. Stories honored. Eye-rolls for the Pastor’s
tangents accepted. 

 

WEDNESDAY

“Grill’s On!” Community Potluck 5-7pm

Join us in the
Fellowship Hall as we share a community meal together. Friends and strangers
welcome! As always, bring what you have, or just bring yourself. There is
always enough!

 

Choir Practice at 6:00. NOTE: Choir will be meeting every
Wednesday through Lent in preparation for Holy Week. All interests and skill
levels welcome to join us!

 

THURSDAY: AA Meets in the Fellowship Hall, 7pm.

 

 

COMMUNITY:

Sunday March 22nd: Norton Park UMC
Chicken Parmesan Dinner—12-2pm

A number of church folk are attending
this event, and (per Norton Park) we are welcome to bring additional guests
without reservations if we like. Join us! Worried about cost? Contact Pastor
Paul!  

 

 

A Look Ahead:

Holy Week at United Protestant Church 

 

Wednesday, April 8: Easter Egg
coloring (for kids and community), 5-7 pm (during community potluck)
  

 

Thursday, April 9: Maundy Thursday Gathering, 6 pm

A humble gathering and conversation to center us for our
most important story.   

 

Friday, April 10: Good Friday: 

Stations of the Cross Driving Tour (details to be announced)

Good Friday Ecumenical Service, 7 pm Our Savior’s Lutheran
Church, 4831 Grand Avenue West Duluth clergy and congregations will share in worship.
 

Note: Our church will be hosting the first stop on the
“Stations of the Cross” Driving Tour and YOUR CREATIVE ENERGY IS
REQUESTED. 

Want to lend a hand? Contact Pastor Paul!

 

Saturday, April 11: Easter Egg Hunt    Watch
for more details.   


Sunday, April 12: Easter Service, 10:30 am (Breakfast
at 9 am).  Watch for more details

 

 

 

 From Pastor Paul, Toward Sunday:

“…and the doors of the house where the
disciples had met were locked for fear…”

                                                                        –John
20:19 (excerpt)

 

WARNING—PASTOR
NERD WORDS AHEAD: Here’s a fun phrase I don’t get to say very often: “I’m
picking a particular part of a pericope.” In other words, I’m only quoting a
small part of a Bible verse, leaving the rest of the text behind—an exegetical
choice that I normally squint cautiously at because, when combined with
demonstrative proclamation in print or sermon from a so-called figure of
authority, it can run the risk of missing the big picture, in service instead
to nit-picking words in the Bible that justify a particular ideology or notion that
said “authority” wishes to make cultivate and spread. In other words: I’m
thinking that the Bible shouldn’t support what I want to say, rather, I should
support what the Bible has to say to me. We can pick and choose words in the
Bible to justify almost anything we want. Plenty have done it. Plenty have
caused great harm in the name of Christianity. Let us all remember to take the
message as a whole.

 

But hey, back
to “picking particular parts of a pericope”—this time I’m stealing from a
larger narrative of the disciples in the upper room (Jesus appears, Thomas
doubts, etc.) and thought it fitting in this time of the world that we live in.
See: be it “fear of a mob of people that want to hurt you” or “fear of disease
or pandemic”, we often keep our doors locked, and ourselves guarded and wary.

 

I’m not telling
you that fear is not justified now. I’m not telling you anybody is being
“paranoid”—nor that any of this is “all this is blown out of proportion”. I
don’t know. I have taken time to read and listen and learn, that I may share
with the best of intentions and information, but still: I don’t know.

 

I do know that
people are afraid, and that people in fear must be honored, because fear is an
honest emotion. I also know (or at least have learned by way of best intention
and information from study and prayer) that Jesus does not want you to live in
fear.

 

So I’m changing
the church sign today—the sign now once again visible as the snowbanks recede,
with these simple words:

 

WHAT YOU FEAR

CAN TEACH YOU

WHAT YOU LOVE. 

 

I think that’ll
fit. We’ll see. I’ll be sharing more about this on Sunday, so I’ll spare you
too many words here (I already was a nerdy pastor in the first paragraph!),
save to remind you that God has the last word, and that last word is love. So:
it is our good and holy work as Christians to engage in prayer and work
together that we may turn our fear into love.

 

Jesus didn’t
appear in that Upper Room saying: “quit hiding you scaredy-cats!” No. He said
“Peace be with you.” And with peace, comes hope, which is our faith’s response
to fear.

 

So: if there is
enough room and enough tiles, on the bottom of that sign I’ll put:

WORSHIP:
SUNDAY, 10:30

HOPE: EVERY
DAY.

  

Keep in touch,
friends. We have some creative work toward hope ahead of us.

 

Pastor Paul

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Weekly Reminders (March 8-14)

Sunday, March 8:  Worship at 10:30: Second Sunday in Lent. Gospel includes our most familiar passage in scripture. Fellowship downstairs to follow.

Monday, March 9: Bible Study at 6 pm. Join Pastor Paul as we explore this week's scripture in the lectionary and bring it into our lives and faith. Questions encouraged.
Tuesday, March 10: Church Council meets 7 pm; Trustees & Diaconate 6 pm.
Wednesday, March 11:
**History Work Day, 10 am
**"Grill's On!" Community Potluck, 5-7 pm. Join us in the Fellowship Hall as we share a community meal together. Friends and strangers welcome! As always, bring what you have, or just bring yourself. There is always enough!
  
Thursday, March 12: AA meets in Fellowship Hall, 7 pm   
 
From Pastor Paul: Toward Sunday
"Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."  ~John 3:17
   'Had one of those grumbly, snarly, bark and bellow moments yesterday…long story short it was one of those auto-renew subscriptions that I thought I had cancelled long ago but the big corporation had no record of it and I could find no record of it, and all of this means I probably never did cancel it, so I wound up spending a year paying for something I never used. 
   "Grr." I said. "Double and Triple Grr." And then: "OK, that's enough."
   And that last line is the one I want to lift up as I write this. This world has enough grumbling and negativity without my contribution. We all have accidents or mistakes that cause us to lose money, and we all have big corporations trying to tempt or goad us into spending  unnecessary money. There's a litany of things that I'd like to gripe about, but to what end?  Here's where faith comes in:
   If God is always present – as I believe – no matter how aware or alert we may be, then every action or expression of emotion is an opportunity to share my life with God.  More to the point: every action or expression in my life is literally shared with God. And in my prayer and study of God through the ministry of Jesus and the Gospel message, I have been guided to believe that God isn't one to give too much weight to the "life stinks" or "everything wicked is here" gripe and grumble. Sure, that's a familiar sentiment, and one many of use have heard taught or preached as a theological conclusion from reading John 3:16, but those that espouse the "this world stinks, only heaven matters" attitude would do well to read on to the next verse, and consider exactly what it was that his "only begotten son" did while he was part of this world. Engage. Embrace. Heal. Preach and teach and model values of love and welcome and kindness. "Not to condemn the world," the next verse reads, "but in order that it might be saved…"
   "…through him." Through the God that is with me every moment and hears all my complaints and reminds me that all my gripe and grumble and negativity should conclude with "ok…that's enough" and I should get back to the matter at hand, which is being a disciple of Jesus, the minister and the Christ.
Keep in touch, friends
Pastor Paul