Christmas is Coming

 The link for this week's live-streamed service is here.

And . . . all at once Advent is here and the rush toward Christmas is upon us. To begin, we decorated the church. Many thanks to Pam and her Friday crew for making the Christmas spirit visible at SPPC. 

Laying out the master plan

worker bees

Preparing a spot

for Hazel's 

knitted nativity.

        

The finishing touches.

Don't forget the outside.

Then, on the first Sunday of Advent we enjoyed the familiar carols and heard a message of hope. 

Bearing witness to hope, after service we joined Josh and Emily for a baby shower/lunch. We shared in their excitement and happiness. Celebrating love and family in the approach to Christmas felt very right. 

Thank you, Emily and Josh, for sharing these precious moments of your life with the congregation. 

 A baby needs grandparents, too.

Just as this family waits and prepares for a new life, Advent is a season of waiting and preparing. It is easy to get caught in the excitement of presents and baking and trees and concerts and goodness knows how many other distractions coming our way, but take a quiet moment here and there to be still and prepare your heart for the coming of Christ.

The first Sunday of Advent celebrates hope. Let us remember that God sent His Son to bring us hope, even in the darkest times. When the noise of the world is loud and harsh, let us reflect on Hope in the time of Advent.

Advent 1, 2022

 The link for this week's live-streamed service is here

Saturday morning eight volunteers showed up at the church to put up Christmas decorations in time for the first Sunday of Advent. Many hands make light work and we had a good time besides. The Christmas tree, the valance lights, nativities in the narthex, wreaths on the back wall and swags on the front door, were all done in a few hours.

Thanks to Tore, Jerusha, Janet, Carmen, Pam, Joan, Barb, and Alice for their time, talent and good humour.

                                           Thanks to Elizabeth, we have angels joining the flock on the upper window ledge.

After the fun comes the clean-up

The outdoor lights had been hung when the weather was fine last week, but left unlit until Sunday. Now we have the candle of hope burning inside and out.  

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Rev. Irwin was away this week so we happily welcomed Pastor George to the pulpit once again. The last time he was here was Advent 1 in 2020. You can read about him here. Of course, that was during COVID lockdown and we had no one in the pews.

George's message reflected on the sorry state of our world today. War, want, fear, and disaster crowd the headlines. And yet . . . we light the candle of Hope. Hope in our Saviour. 

Hope in the world is vain. Hope in the Lord is unfailing.

May this season of Advent bring hope to your home. 

It's a Theme

 The link for our live-streamed service this week is here

In preparing the report regarding this blog for the annual congregational meeting, I looked back over the past two years of posts and discovered a recurring theme -- hope.

Either that speaks to a want of originality on my part or to the fact that hope is at the very core of our being, both as a congregation and as Christians. Let's go with the latter.

So, here again, I direct you to portents of hope.

• Dr. Bonnie has loosened restrictions on weddings and funerals. For the many who have grieved alone in the past two years, the opportunity to hold full services of remembrance is huge.
• Spring is coming. My crocus are showing their sunny faces.
  
  
  
• Gladys has had her surgery and is home, using a walker, but getting better every day. She is filled with hope.
• Rev. Irwin is back in the pulpit. We hope for his continued good health.
• The rhubarb has started poking through the ground. Hope for a bountiful harvest and lots of pies, jams, and cobblers.
  
  
  
  
• After six weeks and SPH and two at the Gorge for rehabilitation, Kay is at home in The Peninsula. With her walker, she is able to manage the 100 steps from her room to the elevator and go down the the dining room. And, since the latest change to public health regulations, she can have visitors. (hint, hint.)
• Bible Study resumes this Wednesday.
• Our live-streamed services are bringing comfort and hope to members of the congregation unable to attend in person.

In the topical index to our hymn book, there are eleven hymns listed under the banner of hope but only five under suffering and tribulation. Hope runs rampant in our church.

This is hymn #443 in our Book of Praise. It's not a hymn we sing often, but I like the words. They are full of hope. 

Hope

The link to this week's worship service is here

I was rummaging through my music library this week and came upon the script for one of our Christmas musical plays, "Bethlehem

Tours."  The tale sends the characters through a number of improbable journeys in order to arrive in Bethlehem on Christmas Eve. Once they are all assembled in the Holy place, they sing "Hope is a Happening Here." In this case our hope surrounded the birth of Jesus.

The song comes from the children's musical "Bones" by William Anderson. The Living Flame choir performed that at SPPC some years ago too. In that story, the dry bones dance, offering hope that the Jewish people would return from exile, the temple would be rebuilt and their relationship with God restored. 

Here is a youtube clip by the New Creation Choir. The clip is the whole musical. To listen to just "Hope is a Happenin' Here" fast forward to around 31:00

 

As a Christian Church we always have hope, that's what the Good News is - hope. As Christ's followers, we are to bring light to the world, spread the good news, offer hope to a hurting people. 

During the pandemic, some have found it hard to feel hopeful. As month after month went by and case counts rose and restrictions tightened and we were locked out of in-person worship, hope wavered. 

But when Dr. Henry announced that churches could resume in-person worship, albeit with some restrictions, what sprang to my mind was 

"Oh, we've got hope. Glory Hallelujah,
Hope is a Happenin' here.
Spread the news.
Glory Hallelu there's nothing left to fear.
So don't hang your head, don't wobble your chin,
Don't even shed a tear,
Just shake your hands and rattle your bones
'Cause hope is a happenin' here!"

Have a great week. See you in church.

Our Hope

 The link for this week's live-streamed service is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SczYOyDl9PY&feature=youtu.be

I've been stumped about what to post on this week's blog. There is not much happening at the church since we are closed! Looking for inspiration I paged through the last ten years of February blogs. I found that Jerusha and Felicity celebrate birthdays this month, but all the other posts dealt with stuff like winter blahs, the annual congregational meeting and funerals! 

Given the current restrictions on meeting and travel, no one needs a post on winter blahs. The ACM is postponed until we can meet in person. Holding a funeral under COVID rules adds another layer of sorrow to the already bereaved. 

So, what do we need on this page in February 2021. I think the answer is hope. Researchers, doctors and psychologists vary in how they define hope but in general hope means a desire for things to change for the better, and to want that better situation very much. Hope implies that there is the possibility of a better future, according to the famed hope researcher C.R. Snyder. When things are dire and difficult, hope can keep us going. 

But hope is more than just wishing. Hope is active.

Hope keeps us involved. Hope helps us cope with troubles. Hope is a necessity for good mental health. Hope doesn't sit back and wait for COVID to end. Hope takes action. Hope looks for ways to make things better for each of us right now. That might mean a phone call or a card in the mailbox. If you live with others fixing a special treat for dinner is an act of hope. Even if you eat alone, or especially if you eat alone, fix yourself a special treat and raise your spirits.

Relationships are vital to a hopeful attitude. With COVID around, our relationships are curtailed but they are not impossible. I've spent more hours on the telephone in the past year than I have in the previous ten. It's not a perfect substitute for in-person meetings, but it is something and much better than nothing.

I've learned to "zoom." The blasted technology keeps getting in the way, but when I finally see a loved one's face on the screen, my heart lifts. I hope for a better future.

E-mails can keep relationships alive, even from a distance. I have developed a very close friendship with a woman in Australia. We met in an on-line course and exchanged progress reports once a week. The course lasted six weeks but our friendship has lasted for years. We've met in person only twice, when she visited B.C. yet our friendship is rich and sustaining. I look forward to Mondays because that's the day I'll hear from her. 

One of the complaints I hear about our lives these days is the monotony. Each day seems the same as the last until we lose track of the days of the week and settle into lethargy. Hope can move you from that dark place. Hope is a motivator. Hope pushes you to reach for something better. Hope beckons you outside to enjoy a sunny day. A sunny day encourages gratitude. Gratitude opens your mind to God.

And here we have the greatest gift of all. 

fire at Notre Dame

While the secular world may wish for an end to the pandemic that hope may be filled with doubt. Our hope is founded on God's promise and there is no doubt that God keeps His promises. Scripture abounds with these assurances.

Psalm 46:1-3 God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
 Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” 

Romans 5:5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

Proverbs 23:18 There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.

 We have many worldly hopes -- and on the pandemic front Dr. Henry hinted that church services may resume soon -- but our true hope rests in Jesus Christ. Trust in Him. Hope in Him and you will know joy and peace and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Out with the Old

 

Last week the decorating committee took down the Christmas tree in the sanctuary and repacked the nativity sets in their boxes. The surviving poinsettias are in the narthex and available for anyone who wants one. 

The outdoor lights came down as well but our "hope" sign is still hanging on the front of the church.  There have been various calls for people to keep their outdoor Christmas lights on well into February as a means to boost people's spirits and lighten the darkness.  That seems like a good cause for a church to embrace, so, as you drive by our empty building for the next few weeks you'll see "hope" gleaming in the dark.

You may remember that we had a pretty heavy snowfall before Christmas. At the time most of us were preoccupied with the power outage. It wasn't until later that we noticed the heavy snow, winds and torrential rain caused havoc with our trees.

A small, deciduous bush uprooted behind the shed, pushing over another shrub quite close to the south wall of the church building. More seriously, a mature fir

tree broke off about sixty feet up and dropped a thirty foot section very close to the gazebo. It also snagged some smaller trees which are now dangerously bowed over the gazebo.

Tore has been working to clean up the mess from the downed trees. These snagged and bowed ones are dangerous and require a professional to take them down.

In a normal year we would be worrying about having to cancel services because of bad weather or ice in the parking lot. Is it good news that, this year, services were cancelled already?


Happy January!

 

How are We Doing?

The link for this week's on-line worship service is: https://youtu.be/YmAwFB8RSZs

 As the pandemic lingers into the fall and winter, the question, "how are we doing?" leads the newscast most days. Health officials want to know if they have enough protective equipment for their workers and beds for their patients. Administrators want to know if the outbreaks in schools are contained and whether students are learning their course work. Psychologists assess the public and individual mood. "How are we doing?" has become more than a polite greeting. 

At SPPC the answer to "how are we doing?" is somewhat hopeful. 

--We have held in-person worship services since the end of June, including two communion services. 

--There have been no cases of covid reported among the congregation. Now that winter is here, we've closed the doors so the sanctuary is warm but we must be extra vigilant about Covid protocols.

--Worship committee has met and is considering ways to celebrate Christmas while keeping our distance and remembering that singing is a "dangerous activity."

-- Our "youtube" services are reaching a wider community than our in-person services ever did.

-- Our building is being used

•  for several concerts by the Die Mahler Group and Raven Baroque. Thank you to those musicians for the gift of music.
• for family dinners
• for a small book club group
• for the North Saanich Residents Association
• for an all candidates meeting
• for voting on Oct. 24
• for a Tai Chi group that meets regularly in the parking lot

Of course, there are not so hopeful answers to the question as well. We have lost much loved members of the congregation but have been unable to hold large funerals. We all grieve these losses and regret deeply that we cannot offer the comfort of fellowship to families.

We have lost community. No Friendship Coffee, no Fellowship Coffee, no Bible Study, no out-to-lunch bunch, no hugs.  Individual phone calls, informal coffee dates, after church chat in the parking lot help to fill the gap, but cannot replace the lost programs.

We're all feeling a bit tired, a bit grumpy and a bit frightened about what comes next. 

And yet we know that: 

While in prison, the Apostle Paul wrote:

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Ephesians 3:20-21 

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When Israel had turned away from God and faced the threat of the Assyrian Empire, Isaiah wrote: 

. . .Thus says the Lord,  "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.3 For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour. "Isaiah 43: 1-3

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Yesterday was Reformation Sunday. We should remember that during the Middle Ages, when the Plague killed one third of Europe's population,  Martin Luther wrote: 

 “I shall ask God mercifully to protect us. Then I shall fumigate, help purify the air, administer medicine and take it. I shall avoid places and persons where my presence is not needed in order not to become contaminated and thus perchance inflict and pollute others and so cause their death as a result of my negligence. If God should wish to take me, he will surely find me and I have done what he has expected of me and so I am not responsible for either my own death or the death of others. If my neighbour needs me however I shall not avoid place or person but will go freely as stated above. See this is such a God-fearing faith because it is neither brash nor foolhardy and does not tempt God.”

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In the face of this pandemic, the moderator of our church wrote:

“I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than those who watch for the morning, more than those who watch for the morning” (Psalm 130:5–6).

Thank you for the peace and comfort that comes from knowing that we are not alone. God, grant us patience as we wait; grant us courage as we serve you and care for one another; grant us hope as we trust in you for the future.  -- The Rev. Amanda Currie, Moderator of the 2019 General Assembly, Presbyterian Church in Canada

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      How are we doing? I don't know, but I do know we are not alone. We live in God's world and He knows the plans He has for us, plans to prosper us and not to harm us, plans to give us hope and a future."Jeremiah 29:11

As a season's pass holder, I've been enjoying music at the Butchart Gardens this summer. It's a wonderful way to spend an evening, and a great chance to hear groups I wouldn't normally subscribe to.   So far, I've sampled jazz, classical, dixieland, blues, Celtic, folk, a boys choir, and country and western.  Still to come is the Victoria Symphony and a ballet company.  
In addition to the music, I enjoy the people --and dog-- watching. Little children love to run on the grass as darkness falls.  The dogs put their heads down and wait quietly.  I wonder sometimes if the music hurts their ears.  Everyone has extra coats and blankets, which they'll share with strangers.  When it rains, the Gardens hands out umbrellas. 
Rev. Irwin often reminds us that church should be a foretaste of heaven.  My evenings at the Butcharts remind me that God has blessed us in this world as well as giving us the promise of the world to come.

At church we're being treated to variety as well.  While Rev. Irwin is on holiday we're having four different guests fill the pulpit, each with his unique perspective on the gospel and the church.  
Last week it was Rev. Harold McNabb, a retired Presbyterian minister who has served in various communities in British Columbia, including West Shore Presbyterian and the Victoria Chinese Presbyterian Church.  He preached on hope.  At a time when mainline churches face declining membership, he reminded us that the church is the "Bride of Christ."  It cannot fail.  It may evolve, but it can not fail.

This Sunday, we heard from Pastor George Hodgson.  He served for many years at Friendship Community Church.  When he retired, he liked to say his job didn't change much, he just stopped being paid.  It's nice to know, as pulpit supply, he'll be getting a pay cheque.  Pastor George also led the service at SPH in the afternoon, since it was our turn, once again, to minister in that venue.

Next Sunday, we'll hear from Alan Taylor, a long-time elder at Saanichton Bible Fellowship.  I spoke with him about his background and learned he has always given of his time and talent to the church.  He earns a living as a painter.

Finally, on the last Sunday of Rev. Irwin's vacation, we'll have Rev. Noel Kinnon in the pulpit.  Rev. Kinnon is a former minister at SPPC and is frequently called upon to fill out pulpit.  We'll see him as an old friend.

The adage is, "a change is as good as a rest."  So, while our minister enjoys his well-earned rest, the congregation gets "a change."

Happy summer.

Joy Cometh in the Morning

1. The day thou gavest, Lord, is ended,

The darkness falls at Thy behest;

To Thee our morning hymns ascended,

Thy praise shall hallow now our rest.

Sorrow has come to our congregation.  This week we hold services for two of our faithful members who have passed away. 

2. We thank Thee that Thy Church unsleeping,

While earth rolls onward into light,

Through all the world her watch is keeping,

And rests not now by day or night.

Many funeral professionals use these three points to explain the purpose of a funeral

• Help the bereaved family, and their community, publicly acknowledge the death of one of their own.
•  Support the grieving family by surrounding them with caring friends, co-workers, and neighbours.
•  Move the deceased from one social status to another.

3. As o'er each continent and island

The dawn leads on another day,

The voice of prayer is never silent,

Nor dies the strain of praise away.

I have no complaint with the points listed above, but I believe, in the context of the church they fall short.  A congregation supports the bereaved, provides a forum for remembering and acknowledges the passage of a person from one stage of life to the next.  But faith offers more.

4. The sun, that bids us rest, is waking

Our brethren 'neath the western sky,

And hour by hour fresh lips are making

Thy wondrous doings heard on high.

Faith offers reassurance.  

Jesus said, "In my father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you."  John 14:2

Faith offers comfort. 

"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away." Rev. 21:4

Faith offers hope. 

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

⁴ To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you," 1 Peter 1: 4-5

Faith offers joy.
"Weeping may endure for the night; but joy cometh in the morning." Ps. 30: 5b

5. So be it, Lord; Thy throne shall never,

Like earth's proud empires, pass away:

But stand, and rule, and grow for ever,

Till all Thy creatures own Thy sway.

                                           The Day Thou Gavest  Author: John Ellerton (1870)

                                                                                Tune: ST. CLEMENT (Scholefield)

SIGNS OF HOPE

Annual Congregation Meeting voted to increase allocation to Presbyterians Sharing.