Saturday, April 18, 2020
Hello.
It seems that my “Mid-Week Message” has become an “End-of-Week Message.” I was waiting for the latest St. Louis City and County Stay-at-Home Guidelines. As you probably know by now, Dr. Sam Page recently announced an extension until mid-May. We will continue to follow St. Louis County guidelines. We had a busy spring and summer planned at First Unity, and we will just have to reschedule events as when we can and as we can.
UPDATES
- 15 people have expressed a willingness to join First Unity. We were planning to joyfully welcome them into membership on Palm Sunday. We will reschedule that asap.
- Our Annual Meeting was scheduled for April 29. That, too, will be rescheduled as soon as possible.
- The Ordination service and celebration originally scheduled for May 16 & 17 will be held on July 25 & 26. The times and locations are all the same.
- Martha Creek will not be joining us the weekend of June 13-14. I am disappointed and praying that we will be able to reschedule at a later date.
- The Unity People’s Conference scheduled for the week of June 15 is also cancelled.
IN GRATITUDE
Thanks to all of you who have financially continued to support our spiritual community at this time with tithes and love offerings in the form of automatic withdrawals, Paypal contributions, and checks. Most of our major expenses such as insurance, building loan payments, and utilities continue whether we are physically meeting or not! FYI – Sara is working at church on Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays and I am usually there on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, so it is safe to send checks to church. Several people have asked about this. Finally, let’s all come together in prayer to hold prosperity consciousness for First Unity and the world.
I am also SO grateful to those who have made it possible for us to provide abbreviated Sunday services each week. Thanks to Kathy Boyd, Videographer who has contributed many hours to putting the services together; Carol Ellerman, our amazing webmaster; Anne Hartupee, our inspiring Licensed Unity Teacher; Dean and Vicki Weigart, along with Westley for making Dean’s solo possible; and Prayer Chaplains who will be reading The Daily Word. This week we thank Gladys Young for doing this.
Sunday’s message is entitled, “The Fishing Expedition” and we will have some amazing singers for the ending song.
REFLECTIONS
The Chinese word for crisis consists of two characters: wei, which represents “danger,” and ji, which means “a turning or changing point; opportunity.” May this COVID-19 situation serve as an opportunity for all of us to realize our oneness and our amazing connection with the Divine, one another, and all of humankind. Stay safe; stay centered; stay connected. Truly we are all in this together.
The following is from Rev. Linda Martella-Whitsett, Vice-President of Unity Prayer and Practice at Unity World Headquarters.
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Dear Friend:
Let’s pause together for a moment of spiritual awareness in prayer.
With every cycle of breath, we participate in a reliable pattern of divine release and renewal.
The past, with its potential and its concerns, is behind us as we meet the next creative moment.
We are centered in God, our source of orderly thought and action.
We are resilient.
We are spiritually strong.
Established in the idea of divine order, we adjust our energy, shift our awareness, and uplift our attitude.
Our experience is transformed.
And so it is!
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Love and prayers to all,
Jan