Dear Church,

I hope you are doing well and having a great week. This week, our staff spent some time planning some logistics around Holy Week and Easter. It was a great week to do so as the Spring-like weather reminds us that Easter is just around the corner. It will not be long before the azaleas outside the Sanctuary are in full bloom, singing God’s grace.

My sermon this week is entitled “Be.” Did you know that be is the second most used word in the English language? It’s also an important word in a life of faith. There is a story about two diaries, one from a 19^th century railroad man and the other from his son. The diaries of this father and this son were discovered and researches undertook the task of reading each day side by side. On one particular spring day, the father and son went fishing.  The father wrote, “Went fishing with my son, didn’t catch anything, was away from work for too long, unproductive day.” The son wrote this about the same day.” Dad took me fishing today. Didn’t catch a thing. It was the best day of my life.” It’s amazing isn’t it how two people can see the same event so differently. This Sunday, we will look at a conversation with a similar theme between Nicodemus and Jesus.

I had the pleasure of attending Rev. Dr. Fred Craddock’s funeral service this past Monday. I wrote about the experience and some remembrances of Fred on my blog and I hope you will check those out as we continue to remember one of the great saints of the church universal.

I hope you will invite someone to church this week and I look forward to being the church together. Many of you asked for the Thomas Merton prayer from last Sunday, so I will close by sharing this beautiful prayer with you.

“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you

Grace and peace,

Danny