The Faith We Sing - This Is Me

One of the things we are all so proud of here at MCCGSL is our choir! This is a big weekend of special choir events.

First, I hope you are among the 400 people who got a ticket to Pride Night at Busch Stadium this Friday! Our choir rendition of the National Anthem is one of the most beautiful I've ever heard, and I hope you will be there to celebrate this very special honor of singing at the Pride night game.

Secondly, everyone is certainly invited to join us on Sunday for the conclusion of this summer's The Faith We Sing Series. The choir will be singing several songs this week, making this service a very special musical treat! Our focus for the last Sunday of this series will be on the song, "This is Me," from the movie The Greatest Showman. It will be show-stopper of a Sunday, and I know I speak for Jerry and the choir when I say I hope we will see you this weekend!

The Faith We Sing - Shallow

This Sunday our "The Faith We Sing" series will take us into some deep territory. Far away from the lollipops and rainbows of "Over the Rainbow," the story of the song "Shallow" and the latest version of the film "A Star is Born" take us into the trials and struggles that come with love, fame, and addiction.

New relationships are easy. They splash and play in the shallow end, and you can end them at any point without losing much, if anything. But once you wade out into the deep of life with a partner, a church, a job...really anything...the stakes get much higher. Join us on Sunday when we look at what it means to follow God when we are "far from the shallow now."

The Faith We Sing - Because You Loved Me

After nearly two weeks of traveling, I am so excited to get home and be back with you this Sunday as we continue our trip through "Songs Made Famous by a Movie! This Sunday, we will look at the song that made Celine Dion famous...and no it is not that song from Titanic! Join us as we look take a look at the song "Because You Loved Me," which was made famous by the film "Up Close and Personal," which starred Robert Redford and Michelle Pfeiffer.

This film which follows the careers of two news reporters has some interesting connections to the changes we are seeing in today's news reporting. More than a story about news, this is really a story about the power of love. Hence the song, "Because You Loved Me."

Whose life has been changed because you loved them? Who changed your life by loving you? There is lots to consider this week as we join together in worship because each of our lives have been changed by the unconditional love of God!

The Faith We Sing - Over the Rainbow

This Sunday we begin a four-week series that you will love! We are looking at four different films and four songs that were made famous by those films. This Sunday our choir will take us "Over the Rainbow" with the Wizard of Oz...a film and song with powerful themes that resonate with our faith.

Later in the month, we will look at music by Celine Dion, Lady Gaga, and The Greatest Showman. Over these next four weeks, the films and songs will bring us themes about the power of love, the damaging effects of addiction, and the importance of discovering your truest self. Join us on this journey. It will be worth every minute. ...And it might just change your life for the better!

Standing in Unity, Marching in Solidarity

As many of you are likely aware, over the last few weeks there has been a fundamental breakdown of communication and promises have been broken between the leadership of Pride STL and our local Trans community. If you are not aware of the background, this statement from James Croft at the Ethical Society of St. Louis does a great job of explaining that background.

Today, I met with Trans members of our congregation along with members of our Pride Team, and I am grateful for their vulnerable input, loving hearts, and sage guidance. I want to share with you what our MCC response will be this weekend in light of the recent events.

1.) I will be marching in Friday's Trans and Gender Free Pride March that is sponsored by MTUG (Metro Trans Umbrella Group). I invite any of you who would like to join me to do so. It is important that we stand in solidarity with MTUG and show MCC's inclusive love of God. It is deeply disappointing that MTUG could not lead us in the parade downtown as our Grand Marshall. We want to let them know we see them, we hear them, and we lovingly stand with and behind them.

2.) We will keep our booth open all weekend at both Tower Grove and Downtown Pride as we want to be able to engage with members of the community to continue sharing the Good News of God's love for LGBTQIA+ people. Given the rejections of LGBTQIA+ people that have happened in other Christian Churches this year, our loving, affirming voice is as important this year as ever.

3.) We will still co-lead our Interfaith Pride Service in the park (at 10am!), for nothing about God's love or the importance of having healthy spiritual lives has changed. God still meets us all exactly where we are, and that is the richest place to be!

4.) In response to recent events, rather than have our normal, very colorful, "glitter and rainbow explosion" Pride Float, we will be driving an un-decorated truck and trailer in the parade. We will have a very large white sign on the trailer with one simple statement in black letters. It will read, "Still Marching for Equality..." We will play calm, hopeful worship music (instead of things like the song "Happy") to draw attention to our intentional, prayerful belief in the ongoing need for true equality for everyone. Our marches will be invited to make simple, one-color signs with messages of love, unity, and prayer to display as we march.

This change to our float shows our willingness to listen and hear the testimonies of the most marginalized among us and hold all the tensions and disagreements that are found across our rainbow people. Even 50 years since Stonewall and after many strides forward in the pursuit of equality, we can all agree that there is more marching and more work to do for full equality to be realized.

I hope you will participate in these Pride events this weekend. This is a poignant moment in which we are invited to share the wisdom and guidance that we find in and through our faith. Let your light and love shine.

With Loving Solidarity and Unrelenting Hope,

Pastor Wes

The Hurrier I Go

The recently widowed woman said to her wise friend, "Belafonte was a good man. He worked his fanny off six and seven days a week. Sometimes, in addition to his business, he had to work one or two other jobs just to provide for us. I wonder if he got into heaven. I hope he did."

"I see," said her wise friend. "Did he go to church with you?"

"No, you don’t understand," said the widow. "Sunday mornings were when he caught up on his sleep…if he wasn’t working."

"Oh," said her wise friend, "He could have taken more time to be with God. But, I’m sure God is taking good care of him now."

"Hmmph…God," said the widow. "When was God was ever there for him?"

This brief story may spark the question for you: How on earth am I ever supposed to find time for God? My life is jam packed. I barely have time to breathe. So, I’m supposed to take time to study scripture, maybe read a devotional, and pray? Really? I move way too fast for all of that. Isn’t that what church is for?

Consider this fragment of the 23rd Psalm once more: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me…” You may have never thought of the very familiar verse this way, but you don’t have to go to extraordinary lengths to be with God. You don’t have to set aside time you don’t have. All you have to do is pay attention to the fact that God is right here with you.

ALL. THE. TIME.

HERE.

WITH YOU.

Let that sink in for a moment. All you have to do is think or talk. God is listening to every single word, monitoring every single thought during your extremely committed and busy life. When life seems overwhelming, pause momentarily and remember this fact: God is spending time with you every single moment of your life. Every moment. Now, stop and ask yourself again that question about how you’re supposed to carve out time for God. When God feels so far away, when you find yourself wondering how to find more time to spend with God, remember to let yourself relax into God’s constant presence in your life. God’s got this.

Join Us As We Slow Down for Lent

If you have not yet signed up for our daily Lenten reflections, I wanted to share a sample with you in case you still want to join us. Here is the devotional thought for tomorrow:

 Fridays are such a mixed bag when it comes to trying to connect with our unhurried God. On the one hand, it is a day that, at least for many, represents the last bit of work for the week and the possibility of some weekend rest on the horizon...something that could help us find the unhurried God. However, too often we end up balancing so many commitments that our weekends, and our Fridays specifically, can be even fuller than our weekdays. We often end up tacking on extra Friday evening activities and commitments, we try to add in some time to clean up the house or do some laundry, or we pull even longer hours than normal trying to wrap up some work that the boss said we had to finish by the end of the week. For those in retail it is even worse as Friday signals the beginning of the busiest time of the week--far from a time for rest. 

 Wherever you are in your day, week, or weekend plans, can you take a few minutes now to intentionally slow your pace? Here is one idea for you to try. Since there are 48 hours in a typical 2-day weekend, I encourage you to find a still place to sit and prayerfully slow down as you count 48 breaths: in and out 1, in and out 2, in and out 3. If you’ve been racing to and fro, let this be a chance to slow your breathing down a bit. The Holy Spirit is described as the breath of God. God breathed life into Adam’s nostrils in Genesis 2. Let's take these 48 breaths and use them to reflect on the way that God’s Holy Spirit is constantly breathing life into our bodies.

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