“Who are you?” That was the question, and the answer was
always the same. “I’m Aidan,” or “I’m Sarah.”
“And who exactly is Aidan; who is
Sarah?” Grafflin, first grade, favorite
class, best friend, afterschool swimming . . .
We discovered that who we are—all that we are—is signed by the name we
bear.
Next, a rapid-fire reading of
names had each kid jump up at the sound of their name. And with the whole crowd on its feet, we
asked, “Where did you get your name?”
“It was given to us.”
The name we bear--sign of who we
are and all that we are—was given to us.
Because who we are and all that we are is gift.
Today, Jesus hears the Father
call him by name, “Son.” Who he is and
all that he is—gift of the Father. Freely
given with a faith that he will be everything that pleases the Father. And freely accepted with an obedience to do
everything that pleases the Father.
Turns out that there’s not much
“freely’ in all this giving. We can’t
just take the gift and run. If we jump
up at the sound of our names and hear the gift in ourselves, then to be who we
are and all that we are we must make gifts of ourselves.
Jesus is baptized today in the
hearing of this gift; there will come a day when he will be baptized in all of its
giving.
Altar Servers
In our first round of altar
server training in the fall, we added some excellent servers. You already see them regularly in the
sanctuary. Now, it’s time to add some
more.
Scheduling the training sessions
is always a challenge. I am proposing
that we hold our sessions after the regular KidsRelig elementary sessions from
4:50 to 5:15 PM. And let’s start on the
day after the MLK Holiday, January 22.
So, here’s the Altar Server Training Sessions
Schedule:
January
22, 23 and 24: 4:50 to 5:15 PM
January
29, 30 and 31: 4:50 to 5:15 PM
February
5, 6 and 7: 4:50 to 5:15 PM
This should get us ready for Lent
and the Easter Season.
Love,
Deacon Charlie
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