Aerial shot of Trinity Church by Merrick Whitson
Dear Trinity Church,
I am so grateful for the chance to worship all-together this month. The sanctuary is so happy, full of joyful singing, robust liturgy, prayers and noisy reminders of our diverse body. It feels like we are on the “home stretch” of Covid-19. This is my sweet spot. When the end of a difficult time is near I kick in my resolve to finish strong. I want to cross the finish line and never look back. That race is over! But lingering symptoms of last year’s challenges may remain. In a recent podcast on trauma-informed parenting, Abby Wong-Hefter encourages listeners to pay attention to ourselves and our kids over the next few months. Fatigue, impatience, coping, and isolating are some possible responses to the last 16 months. It is important to be empathetic and take time to BREATHE (aka pray!). If there are unusual patterns developing in your children, it may be time to get help. Did you know we have several counselors at Trinity Church? Pastor Matt and Pastor Carson are available to listen and pray throughout the week. I offer Godly Play midweek. During communion, our prayer team offers your requests at the back of the Sanctuary. This may be a time to reflect on what you learned or experienced over the pandemic. Is there a memorial you want to create? As many in our nation are making significant life changes, I wonder what God’s invitation may be as we return to “normal”? We also wonder what God wants for Trinity Church. We are exploring prayer in Evensong, Sunday morning prayer teams, monthly blessings for different groups in our church, and prayers for the people. Please pray for God’s leading for Trinity Church concerning worship times, small groups, parish outreach, youth ministry and Sunday school this fall. And remember our WBBC hosts who begin their search for a new pastor following Pastor David Morrow’s retirement in June. At the start of the pandemic I was encouraged by Jeremiah 29 - to continue our ordinary lives planting, harvesting, marrying, having children and seeking the peace and prosperity of the city. I returned to the passage this morning. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
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Lord, help us to call on you, to come and pray and to seek you with all of our hearts. Amen.
Love, Julia
What a year it's been! And we couldn't have done it without our amazing team of over 100 volunteers.
If you volunteered on a ministry team since Covid started, we invite you to an evening where we can celebrate and commemorate all that God did in our church this past year...
On Wednesday, July 28 @ 6pm, we are hosting a dinner at the church for anyone who has volunteered in the past year. We want to show our appreciation for you, hear each other share stories, give encouragement, and cast vision for this next year as Christ's body, working together.
Please RSVP below. We look forward to seeing you!
If you missed Evensong and Backyard church in June, don't despair :) there are two left! Be sure to mark your calendars for July 25th and August 29th. Sign up for Backyard Church @ 9:00 here.
Save the dates - details coming soon!
Family Camp - Sunday August 15th - We'll spend the whole day at Tall Timber Ranch to play, worship and feast in this beautiful setting.
Baptism Sunday - Sunday September 12th - If you are interested in baptism for yourself or your children contact Pastor Matt or Pastor Carson for more information.
Small Groups - Several small groups will begin this Fall. If you are interested in leading a group contact Pastor Carson.
PS - If you missed the Summer News video update you can watch it here. A few chuckles guaranteed :).
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