In observance of Memorial Day, the church office will be closed on Monday, May 25 and will reopen on Tuesday, May 26.
Giving the Jesus Way
United Christian Ministries is in need of laundry detergent.
To donate items, please drop them off at UCM’s building at 191 Skyland Drive.
Thank you!
First Explorers Update 5.13.26
Midweek Meals
TONIGHT, May 13 at 5:30 p.m.
Our midweek meals will conclude with tonight’s meal
at 5:30 p.m. in the MFC, and we will reconvene our meals together
in September. We look forward to seeing you there!
Giving the Jesus Way
United Christian Ministries is in need of canned ravioli, canned spaghetti sauce
and pot-sized spaghetti noodles.
To donate items, please drop them off at UCM’s building at 191 Skyland Drive.
Thank you!
Mission Moment 5.13.26
Jeff Lee
Field Personnel in Skopje, North Macedonia
A Blessing from a Farmer
A blessing for new life. The springtime brings with it new life and growth. For us to participate in that new life requires us to fully understand what is occurring. We live in a world of constant changes, and we must find our place in the everchanging landscape we face daily. We must facilitate new life.
Blessed is the seed. As we plant a seed for potential new life, we focus on what is set before us. We have an opportunity to facilitate new life. We are the caretakers of what is new and fresh. We live in a broken world but there is hope with new life.
Blessed are the hands. New life requires cultivation. When a seed is planted it requires hands to place that seed into the healthy soil. The soil needs nutrients and moisture to encourage the new life to spring forth from the ground. It requires hands to cultivate and to prune the new life—and that are sometimes calloused and worn from years of tending to multiple gardens of life.
Blessed is the land. The land is the home for new life. We are homemakers on this journey of life. We are required to work and change the land to improve the chances for new life to flourish in sometimes harsh conditions.
Blessed is the rain. Water is a source of life. We cannot live without water. Often, we pass through a period of drought and famine. The rain brings that new life in time of struggle and pain.
Blessed is the harvest. The harvest is part of the cycle of life. We benefit from the harvest, which brings new life for us. We are part of the cycle of new life and death. It is a constant part of who we are. A blessing from a farmer is understanding the cycle and providing for those in need around them.
Blessed is the table. May your table be full and shared with those around you. A blessing from a farmer is to fill your table. May it overflow to create and maintain life in your house and community. A blessing from a farmer is understanding the greatest commandment, to love God and to love our neighbor.
The blessing from the farmer is the understanding that life is an ever-changing journey.
Peace be the journey.
Midweek Meals
TONIGHT, May 6 at 5:30 p.m.
Our midweek meals will continue tonight at 5:30 p.m.
in the MFC. We look forward to seeing you there!
Giving the Jesus Way
United Christian Ministries is in need of canned ravioli, canned spaghetti sauce
and pot-sized spaghetti noodles.
To donate items, please drop them off at UCM’s building at 191 Skyland Drive.
Thank you!
First Explorers Update
This week at After-School was another fun packed adventure. On Monday, we talked about those who help our community. Each kid wrote a short letter to someone in our community that helps others. On Tuesday, Kaitlyn had chapel with us and talked about what it means to have faith and then played a game. On Wednesday, we had RAs, GAs, and Mission Friends. On Thursday we played outside most of the time as it was a lovely day. And on Friday, we learned about caterpillars. Overall, it was a good week at First Explorers!
Empty Fruit & Vegetable Cans Needed
Thank you for the great response to the egg cartons request! We have all we need for our project, and now we need some empty fruit and vegetable cans. If you can donate some, please drop them off at the cart inside the back door of the church. Thank you!
Mission Moment 5.6.26
Benjami “Benji” Suprice
Collegiate Minister and Yale Divinity School M.Div. candidate,
New London, Connecticut
“Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” – Matthew 6:10 (NIV)
A Divinity Student’s Blessing
I bless you to live boldly into the calling placed on your life—to walk as a minister and student, a learner and leader, a chef and mechanic. May you discern how your work intersects with the suffering and hopes of the world, seeing your research, writing and presence as opportunities to reveal the heart and way of Jesus. I bless you to embody the way of Christ in contexts where what it means is forgotten.
I bless you to stand as a witness against the ways that are anti-Christ among us. May the pulpit not be an escape from the world’s pain, but a place of preparation, equipping you to see God’s love woven throughout it. I bless you to find courage in the lineage of prophets, disciples and saints who spoke truth to power, even when it was costly.
I bless you to remember that Jesus did not pray for a distant heaven, but for God’s will to be done on Earth as it is in heaven. May you witness the Kingdom of God breaking through in moments of truth spoken, love enacted, justice pursued and faith embodied. Though we may not see the fullness of this Kingdom in our lifetimes, I bless you to continue this prayer and God’s work, trusting that Jesus considered this prayer holy.
And when it is easy to forget, may you remember that God is with us. We have faced challenges before, and we will navigate them again—together and with God’s abiding presence. May this assurance be the blessing that leads you forward. Amen.