Pastor's Message

January 2004

New Year’s Resolutions

Many of you have probably heard me talk about the fact that I don’t get very excited about “New Year’s Resolutions.” We tend to make these resolutions on the first day of the New Year, and by the second day of the year, they are stretched if not completely broken. I prefer to think about personal change during Lent, or even more, during Advent, when we are called to “prepare” for the coming of our Lord.

And yet, we are about to start a New Year. There has to be more to it than just hanging a new calendar on the wall. As we start this new calendar, perhaps we can set some new behavior patterns that can carry through the year. As your pastor, I would like to suggest a few items you might consider in regard to your church.

First, and most important, in the life of our congregation, is receiving the grace of God through the Sacrament of Holy Communion. How often did you receive the Sacrament in 2003? How often should we receive the Sacrament? From my perspective, you can never receive too much of the grace of God, which is our gift when we receive the bread and the cup. We only have communion seven times each year at St. Paul's UCC (eight if you include Christmas Eve). We hope every member will make a sincere effort to participate in each of these services. But this is not just a benefit for us to keep to ourselves, it is a gift for all people. As I announce at each communion service, it is the Lord’s Table, not ours. Anyone who accepts Christ as their Lord and Savior is welcome to the Lord’s Table. And so it is our faith duty to see to it that all Christians come to receive the grace of God through the Sacrament. Will you reach out to invite others to join us for Communion? We have quite a few members who have not received the Sacrament in more than 3 years. Many are friends and family members. Will you invite them to come? Will you offer to bring them? I personally plan to contact at least 5 inactive members this year and either invite them to come, or offer to bring them Home Communion. How many will you invite?

Communion is not the only service we should attend faithfully. We should worship God every week, if at all possible. I understand that some people have to work, and sometimes those soccer games have schedules that interfere, but how often did you gather with other members of the church to worship this past year? I counted 106 worship services that I attended here at St. Paul’s UCC in 2003. I can only think of one other member who attended near this many services. Count up how many you attended this past year and then ask yourself, “Can I do better in 2004?” And ask yourself again, who can I invite or encourage to come and worship with us?

Let me bring up that other aspect of church membership that I don’t like to talk about, and that most members don’t like to hear about – our giving to the church. The Bible teaches us to tithe, which means giving 10%. How close is your giving to being a tithe? Just doing a little arithmetic, if your only income is Social Security, let’s say $1,000 per month, a tithe would be $100 per month, or $25 every Sunday. If your income is more than that, your giving should be proportionately more, according to Biblical teaching. Average giving at St. Paul’s UCC is low, lower than the average for Penn Central Conference and a good bit lower than the average for the UCC. You will soon be receiving your giving statement for 2003. Take a good look at it and then ask yourself, “Can I do better in 2004?”

I am sure that none of us will be able to make much of a change in our habits if we do not ask God to strengthen our resolve. Alone, I don’t think we can change. But with God’s help, all things are possible. Ask yourself what you can do to grow in faith and in your relationship with God’s people through the church, and then ask God to help you to see what you might do better in 2004.

May God bless each one of you throughout the New Year.