I spoke with Bishop Fisher this week.  He was scheduled to join us for Pentecost on May 31, something all our confirmands and those who want to join Holy Spirit have been excited about for some time.  Unfortunately, we won’t yet be back in person, but I am excited to share that he will still be our preacher for that day!  In the adult Confirmation/Reception class I explained that the hat a bishop wears is called a Mitre.  Its unique shape with two points ascending is meant to represent the flames of the fire that rested on the apostles when the Holy Spirit moved through the community giving birth to the church in Acts chapter 2. 

I arrived home this afternoon after preparing all the details for this coming Sunday morning, to my kids who wanted to make me lunch.  It took me a second to "be a good sport" in the face of a desired gift of kindness, but the real gift came with lunch.  As a clergy dad, I try to keep many of the details of my kiddos' life somewhat private.  It isn't their fault that their dad is a somewhat public person and every child should have some control over what people know about their process of growing up.  But, I can't help but share that when I got the drawing of my daughter and me and opened it to find out that I'm perceived to be sweeter than a cupcake, I was pulled right back into remembering the most important part of what I am doing right now.  I am doing everything that I can within reason to care for all of you.  What is different about my family is that I get to do so for them in person and almost all the time right now which means their reality of staying at home in the time of quarantine is deeply influenced by how we are living together.  The beauty of being reminded by my daughter that this is not a one way street of Sarah and I taking care of our kids warmed my heart beyond description. 

Grace and peace be with you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

I pray this Spirit Shot finds you doing well and taking care of yourself. 

I have been seeing some pictures of your Easter Lilies starting to emerge from the ground.  We at the rectory are holding our breath in hopes that I didn't plant ours too deeply and that our front yard gets enough sun!  Either way, Happy Easter!  It has also been an exciting week as welcomed new life in the way of two new babies in our church family!  Congratulations to the Salazars and the Lesters!

After jokingly sending a meme to some friends yesterday from the movie Groundhog Day that said "It's going to be cold, it's going to be gray, and it is gonna last you for the rest of your life," I woke up this morning in a pretty good mood.  I was reflecting with Sarah on why that might be and realized that yesterday afternoon and evening I had the chance to see some of you on Zoom for the Check in with Fr. Josh time and our confirmation/reception class.  Being in relationship and in touch with people you love, enjoy, and/or appreciate is something that I have always believed to be important for wellbeing, meaning, and health, but in this time of staying home and social distancing my previous belief has been starkly confirmed. 

Greetings to you all. I pray you are hanging in there a we continue to stay in our homes. It was so great to hear from so many of you after Easter that you felt connected through our worship services and your Easter surprise. In this weird liminal time, it is my hope we can stay connected as much as possible. I have a few logistical things that I wanted to wait until after Easter to share with you.

Grace and peace be with you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

I pray this note finds you doing well in the midst of this very unusual Holy Week! 

I have noticed a deep yearning for change in so much of what I see in those I encounter through screens and phone calls.  I have come to know the same yearning in myself as well.  The ongoing process of social distancing brings with it a struggle to get everything done while nothing is easy and though time seems to crawl right now, I find that my days don't seem to be composed of enough time.  Part of this is the fact that everything takes longer.  A Zoom meeting seems to last twice as long and preparing worship at least as long. Please don't misunderstand me.  I am not complaining.  Instead, I think naming the reality allows us to see what it is that we hope for.  What do we miss, what do we need?

Grace and peace be with you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

I am writing you in the midst of a worldwide situation that has turned much of what we regarded as normal upside down.  It is my experience that days feel like weeks and as I seek to take it one step at a time, I don't ever seem to be able to get to all the things I desire to do.  In this realization, I am reminded that the work of this life is never completed and that we can all only do the best we can to tend to what is before us.  And so, all of our clergy are seeking to serve you.  You are the most important part of the ministry before us.  We desire for Holy Spirit to be your place of blessing in the midst of a world turned upside down.