Mark 11:22 “Jesus answered them ‘Have faith in God.'”

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Pastor Geri Hamlen
Greetings and welcome to Trinity! It is my pleasure to meet you here in the cyber-world of our website, and if I have not met you in person, I surely would like to. Please accept my invitation to you to join us for one of our upcoming worship services. That's a great way to start to get to know the Trinity family. If you have any questions or would like to know more, please drop us an email at pastorimtrinity@gmail.com or call the church office, 906/774-2545. We look forward to meeting you!
PASTOR'S PONDERINGS....March 2023.
2023 is moving through this winter season with windy snow storms followed by
brilliant sunshine and blue skies. Here at Trinity, we continue to seek the movement of
God’s Holy Spirit in this community of faith. The financial challenges of 2022 have
made it clear that the past is NOT necessarily the best predictor of the future. (Of course,
there is a connecting thread of grace-filled generosity through the wonderful monetary
gifts that are part of the this Church’s history both past and recent!) At the same time,
duplicating the past doesn’t seem either possible or effective as a way forward.
Trinity has rich and vivid memories of Sunday School and Youth Groups and
Women’s Teas and potlucks. The Sanctuary is saturated with the fading vibrations of
beautiful choir music and inspiring worship events and pews filled with families and their
children. The excitement of building renovations and restoration of pews is part of our
heritage. Many of you can probably name other events and experiences of God’s love
that you remember happening here at this church.
The challenge is that the world around us has changed. The peak era for Church
attendance and involvement is, by now, several decades behind us. The aging of the
congregation is almost in lock-step with the increasing demands on children and families
to participate in so many optional activities outside the church. The pandemic has altered
our lifestyle in subtle and significant ways in terms of a reluctance to gather with large
groups and an emphasis on ‘staying safe’ over ‘taking risks.’
So where does that leave Trinity? We find ourselves in a season of contemplation
and prayer as we seek God’s guidance for our next steps. What would God have us do
and be in this Dickinson County area to share God’s love? How can we serve each other
and the community with meaningful service in such a time as this? How can we adapt
our worship to the needs of those who still come faithfully on Sunday mornings to
experience the presence of our Risen Lord and the fellowship of those we know and love
and maybe are just meeting for the first time? How can we maintain financial stability?
The Daydream Believers group that met on January 22 did wonderful work in
putting together ideas for ‘Writing the Next Chapters’ at Trinity. See the light green
sheet in this mailing that lists more than 50 concepts, projects, directions for us to
consider as we look ahead. Adapting to change is not easy, but it can be exciting and
life-giving. That’s what I saw as we ate pizza and imagined a future for Trinity within
the context of this current day and age. It was fun! And we’re going to do it again!
Please save the date, Sunday March 19, to join us after church for a potluck
meal, further discussion, and decisions. Your prayers, ideas, thoughts are valuable and
important to us and to God. We are God’s people for this time and place, being led to
Spring, to Easter, to New Life! Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Pastor Geri
When we are able to build open spaces in the same way
we have learned to pile on the logs, then we can come to see how it is fuel,
and absence of the fuel together, that make fire possible.
We only need to lay a log
lightly from time to time.
A fire grows simply because the space is there, with openings in which the flame
that knows just how it wants to burn
can find its way.