Christmas Service

We had a fantastic Christmas service on Friday!  We had three themes, each consisting of three skits.  The themes were glory & beauty, suffering & frustration, and romance & intimacy.  The skits were illustrating these things in our world from different perspectives -- from that of a scientist, a high school literature classroom, and a musician's studio.  Preston then tied it all together with an explication of Matthew 2 as the wise men bring things of this world to Jesus - things which are of this world and yet point to his glory, his suffering, and the love for us that brought him to take on humanity.  It was particularly fun to listen to the high school students playing themselves in the literature skit since they didn't really have lines but were actually discussing the poetry.  I spent quite a few hours on the bulletin inserting pictures and quotes.  Many thanks to the people who helped me find all of those quotes.  I'll try to find a way to attach it for you to peruse.  Merry Christmas y'all!

Here are a few pictures of the choir, homily, and skits.

ministry celebration

Last week, we held a lawn picnic and ministry celebration.  This involved all of the service teams and most of the programs of the church setting up a table of the front lawn with flyers and decoration.  There was a passport for every kid which they could get stamped at the different tables.  It was a lot of work and a lot of fun.  This allowed members to see what all of the other teams were up to, newcomers to see all that we do, and every team to be prepared for the year with flyers and potentially new team members. 

I was manning a table showcasing the communications and publications team, website team, alumni team, and theWindow, our newsletter.  A lot of work has gone on in the past year.  I really encourage you to check out the new and improved website which has been one of my major goals this year:  cpcnewhaven.org.

Update on the Hill congregation

The Hill church has begun holding Sunday worship services now.  They are renting office space in a church building in the Hill and are using the Boys & Girls Club as their worship space.  They have had a few times the cooperative store has been open (this is like a garage sale - or tag sale as they say around here - but all of the items being sold were donations and the profits go towards paying those who staffed the store), the mentoring program is up and running, and we are beginning to think about next year's sports camps. 

As the weather gets colder there will be a new challenge for this fledgling church -- transportation.  Cars are much more of a luxury in New Haven than most of America.  The city was laid out back in the horse and buggy days and downtown is quite walkable.  Consequently parking is ridiculously hard to find and property taxes are incredibly high.  Most undergrads go without cars as do many grad students and many of the city's poor.  However, once the weather gets cold and snowy, people only go where they have to.  No one feels too bad for the undergrads since they live on campus and can suck it up and walk the quarter mile to class, but for those who don't have adequate clothes and those for whom church is 2 or 3 miles away, this can become a big deal especially for the small children.  A local school recently had to close its doors and is looking to sell its mini-bus for under $10,000.  If they can raise the funds, the Hill congregation would love to purchase the vehicle and pick up members every Sunday morning.

Kevin's ordination

Last night, Kevin Nelson was ordained!  He has been serving as the pastor of university ministry for the past year at CPC and going through all the testing involved in ordination.  We were very excited to celebrate that ordination last night and to vow to support him in this calling.  Picture coming.

the sanctuary

I am sick and laid up on the couch so expect several posts.

I realized today that I promised a photo of the completed sanctuary.  This is my favorite one.  It has been a real joy having this painting in our worship space. 

Who is this Junius fellow?

If any of you are wondering about who this guy is in my wedding photos, let me point you to a recording of him telling you about himself:  Junius' testimony
Junius team-taught a church history class this past Spring.  The staff asked Junius and Mark to conclude the class with their personal reflections on how their study of church history has affected their faith.  The recording is from the day Junius shared.

wedding shots

I have been a wee bit busy lately so I haven't written, but here is a shot or two of what I've been up to.  For more about the wedding, check out the wedding blog.

The New Sign

Yay!!! We have a new church sign. This has been quite long in the coming between all of the decisions to be made about the sign and obtaining the money with which to get the sign, but it is finally here! The new one is bigger, faces sideways from the original so that it can be read by those driving as well as those on the sidewalk. I have included a photo taken of Junius and I with the old sign in February. Knowing that we were getting a new one any day now the sign had fallen into disrepair so look closely and you will see broken glass, faded wording, rotten trim, and mud. The new sign is simpler and therefore less likely to fall apart.

in VA

Hey y'all,

Junius and I are in Virginia right now preparing for his mother's funeral. It has been a rough week. We came down when we heard she had entered the hospital but she probably never knew we were here. Please be in prayer for Junius and his brother, Ralphael, as well as their extended family and her friends. Thank you so much for your concern.

Rebekah