1 Thessalonians 5:18

If you had been able to attend church yesterday, you might have seen these announcements in the bulletin.

Celebrations: 

• We have a new grandbaby in the congregation. Congratulations to Aarol and Ken
• As seen on Chek News -- Lloyd and Lee have just celebrated their 67th wedding anniversary. Instead of a candlelit dinner, they cleaned behind the fridge. 😕Hey, it's memorable!

Announcements:

• The church building is closed but the prayer chain is still operating. If you have requests for prayers email them to prayerchain@saanichpeninsulapc.org 
• Food bank pick up from the church has been suspended, but your donations are desperately needed. You can drop them off at the Sidney Foodbank, 1586 5th St. Sidney, from 8:00 -2:00 pm. Monday through Friday.
• "Virtual church" has no offering time, but if you want to send your envelope to SPPC, our address is 9296 E. Saanich Rd., N. Saanich, B.C. V8L 1H8
  

If you are reading this you have access to the internet and all the resources available there. Not all in our congregation have that facility. Give a thought to those people and find a way to connect. 

Last week I received a hand-written card in the mail. What a treat. Amid all the junk mail, bills, magazines and notices was a letter addressed in cursive, bearing a stamp and delivered to me out of the blue. It cheered me up three times -- when I collected it from the mailbox, when I opened and read it, and every day this week when I glance at the pretty picture gracing the mantelpiece. 

One of my friends commented recently that she felt like there three Fridays in the past week. I guess that's better than three Mondays, but it still underlines what happens when we lose our routine. The days run together, we lose order in our days, we sleep too much, we lack focus. We get bored and cranky.

As an antidote, I've tried to adhere to a semblance of my "old" life by keeping to a virtual routine.

Wednesday is Bible Study. I pick my favourite morning time and tune in to one of the many Bible study programs available on line. I've mentioned the Nooma series before. Here is the link again.
I know one of our members who has found an interactive Bible study on Wednesday evenings.

Thursday morning is Friendship coffee -- get out your knitting, ladies. Call a friend, put the phone on speaker, chat and click those needles for an hour or so.

Thursday evening is choir practice. Even if you are not in the choir at SPPC, why not spend this time with music. If you already play an instrument, use this time to practice. If you don't have an instrument, use the time to listen to your favourite recordings.
If you like to sing, here is a sing-along hymn site. There are many such offerings on the internet. You could even find an all Elvis channel if you tried. 😀

This is why my latest knitting is a mess.

One Friday a month, the worship committee meets. This might be a good time to plan your personal devotions for the coming week. Again, the internet has endless helps. http://presbycan.ca/2020-04-04/needs/ is a daily devotional sent out by the Presbyterian Church in Canada. Some of you may already have it delivered to your inbox. The Bible Project has many resources from text messages to podcasts. Maybe one is right for you.



Sunday morning, at 10:00 am, using the link Rev. Irwin sent the night before,  I go to "church."  I do get dressed but I admit I skip the high heels.  This week's video is here, in case you missed it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CR07Q6th7zM&feature=youtu.be 

At 11:00 am, I have "coffee hour" with my own cup of java and the telephone. I catch up with a few of the people I would normally see on Sunday mornings. I know others are doing the same, fostering those relationships. 
I chatted with Barb this morning and we wondered, when we all get back to "normal," will "normal" be different? If there is an upside to all this, I'd suggest that we'll value our friends more than ever, and, I hope, we'll be more compassionate with those who struggle for whatever reason. I don't have a crystal ball, but I do have hope.

Luke 1:37

Virtual Church

 Welcome to our second week of virtual church. It feels odd to wander into the living room with a cup of coffee at 10:00 am on Sunday, but at least we can watch (on youtube) a service, with Rev. Irwin. Here is the link to the latest. https://youtu.be/oUNlEI8TiB8
I hope you sang!

Since the building is closed, there's not much to report there, although I've heard that one of our keen volunteers has taken the opportunity of an empty building to do some deep cleaning. She is scrubbing the grout in the ladies bathroom. Every cloud, eh?

In the category of “old dogs new tricks” Session is now holding virtual meetings on “zoom”. Not the same as sitting around a table but at least participants can see faces and hear voices.

One of the things I miss most is Bible Study.  We were in the middle of a Nooma series when gatherings were cancelled. We had watched number 12 of 24. The videos are available on line. Number 13, Rich, is here. The only problem with just watching is we can’t argue. 😊

Previously we did a survey course with Mark Strauss, and John Walton. They both offer on-line studies. I've linked to some of their videos .

One of the dangers of social (physical) distancing is loneliness and depression. Astronaut Chris Hadfield had a few words of advice on the  front. Remember on his first trip into space in 1995 he was the only one aboard and the internet was in its infancy. He knows whereof he speaks. 
Among other things, he suggested picking one new thing to do during your “at home” time, and do it. Learn to play an instrument, for example. Take up whittling and make a statue of your dog. In other words, give a purpose to your day. Give yourself a sense of accomplishment by the time you go to bed.

 Along that line, one of my friends reports that she has cleaned her spice drawer. 😕Small steps. 
I have ambitions for my sewing room but there is a knitting project I must finish first, not to mention this blog.

If you are stuck for a project, might I suggest memorizing a passage of scripture. Do you have a favourite psalm?  The twenty-third is too easy. Pick another. How about Romans 8—that’s a project to occupy several days. Why not report your progress in the comments below? We can have a conversation.

There is still the telephone. Voice-to-voice seems terribly dated in today's world, but it's still a great way to connect on a personal level -- and you don't need worry about someone seeing your messy house.

I remind you that beauty is still open and it's free. The Butchart Gardens is closed, but I saw this lovely tree at the end of my street. 

The owners were happy to let me take a photo. I met their dog too.

Finally, I bring you another picture of my cat. I hope you can hear her purrs.