Dear siblings in Christ,
One of the many things I have come to love in my 40 years of life is the seasonal change and the expectation of things to come in a cyclical fashion. It comforting to know what’s on the horizon, giving us something to look forward to and to mark our time with. This time of year, my house is abuzz with conversations about Halloween costumes and Thanksgiving plans. Just the other day my middle daughter Hattie took out the calendar to count how many weeks are left until Christmas.
This time of year reminds me to look inward into the work we have been doing as a community over the past year, and to reflect on the amazing ways God has broken into our individual lives as well as our common life. I love the calm, quiet time in the morning before the chaos of the day starts. It’s my favorite time for morning prayer or centering prayer.
As I think about the past year we have had at Church of Our Saviour, I am filled with a joy that is palpable. We have had such an incredible year together following our mission and living into our call as people of faith. Whether it’s the ongoing missional work at Our Saviour Center or Transitional Housing, or our relational work across cultural differences in our English and Chinese worshiping communities, CAMP (our new and growing afterschool program), our thriving preschool, or exquisite musical offerings and pastoral care, there are many faces, new and old, in our midst and so much to celebrate.
This is also the time of year when we ask you to recommit to supporting Church of Our Saviour spiritually and financially. We need you. While the process of creating a budget is a tedious task, it is also a necessary undertaking for doing the work God has called each of us to do. We cannot create space for people to experience God without you.
When you pledge to Church of Our Saviour, you are not just giving money for us to upgrade the HVAC system, you are giving so that we can create a bright and inviting environment for our community to gather to feel the incarnational love of God in our relationships. When we allocate money to pay our water bill, we do it because that water allows us to wash dozens of paint-covered hands in our preschool or fill hundreds of coffee cups after AA meetings and hospitality events. We pay the landscaper to cut and maintain our greenspace because we know our church campus is a sanctuary and respite from the hustle of a busy city and a chaotic life. We pay our staff well because we believe in the creative and innovative work they are doing to spread the love of God within and beyond the walls of this campus. We vacuum the sanctuary carpet at night and turn on the lights in the morning not because our building has become an idol but instead so that we are ready to host families coming to grieve, remember, and celebrate the life of a beloved family member.
Your pledge is the foundation for our common life and mission. Sowing God’s love in this community and in the world around us is what binds us together as a community of faith. We need each other to do the work God is calling us to do. We have mailed the parish pledge cards – if you have not received yours, please see the ushers on a Sunday or call us at (626) 282-5147, and we will be sure to get you a card. I prayerfully ask you to participate. We are better because you are a part of this community.
Faithfully,
Jeff+