Dear Friends in Faith,
Did you make a New Year’s Resolution for 2015? Have you broken it yet?! Like many people, I want to be more faithful to my exercise program and eat more nutritious food. I can’t say I’ve fully kept my resolution so far, but I’m trying. Frederick and Mary Ann Brussat give us a different perspective on New Year’s Resolutions with their Spiritually Literate New Year’s Resolution. Look through the list below to see if you connect with any of their suggestions!
And please scroll down further to read about the upcoming activities of our Faith community.
Your Friend in Faith,
Pastor Krista Beth
Spiritually Literate New Year’s Resolutions by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
1. I will live in the present moment. I will not obsess about the past or worry about the future.
2. I will cultivate the art of making connections. I will pay attention to how my life is intimately related to all life on the planet.
3. I will be thankful for all the blessings in my life. I will spell out my days with a grammar of gratitude.
4. I will practice hospitality in a world where too often strangers are feared, enemies are hated, and the “other” is shunned. I will welcome guests and alien ideas with graciousness.
5. I will seek liberty and justice for all. I will work for a free and a fair world.
6. I will add to the planet’s fund of good will by practicing little acts of kindness, brief words of encouragement, and manifold expressions of courtesy.
7. I will cultivate the skill of deep listening. I will remember that all things in the world want to be heard, as do the many voices inside me.
8. I will practice reverence for life by seeing the sacred in, with, and under all things of the world.
9. I will give up trying to hide, deny, or escape from my imperfections. I will listen to what my shadow side has to say to me.
10. I will be willing to learn from the spiritual teachers all around me, however unlikely or unlike me they may be.
Pastor Krista Beth’s Schedule
Next week I plan to keep my regular Office and Open Hours.
Sunday Service January 11
Theme: Baptism of the Lord: Divine Love
Scripture: Genesis 1:1-5, Mark 1:4-11
Sermon: The Start of Things
Sunday Evening Adult Study ~ The Book of Esther: Holy Gumption
Pastor Krista Beth will lead a Sunday Evening Adult Study focusing on The Book of Esther. We will meet Sundays January 11- February 15 from 5:30-6:30pm in the Upper Elementary Room. We will discuss questions including: Who was Esther? What does her story have to do with our faith? What can we learn from Esther to deepen our faith? How is Esther’s historical context similar to our context today? All are welcome!
Celebrate 100 pounds of food delivered to the Food Shelf for December! Donations of food can br brought on Sunday and left in the shopping cart in the entryway.
Interfaith Educational Opportunity: Rabbi Jan Salzman and Carol Fournier will be offering Journey to Wholeness: Multifaith Encounters in Deep Spirituality beginning January 25, 2015. See attached flyer for more information. 2015 JTW_Brochure_Final
Meals Needed for Ripple Youth Ministry Tuesday Evening Meetings. Click the link for more information: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rcXMrn6vr3_UfYAe9zTw0LhB2AqVZ-mnDgXU-n8NV8o/edit?usp=sharing
Faith United Methodist Church is actively seeking a Part-Time Administrative Assistant
Mornings 20 hours/wk
Contact: Lois D’Arcangelo
parlld@myfairpoint.net or 985-2995
We are the Deodorant Church! JUMP (Joint Urban Ministries Project) depends on us to provide deodorant to share with members of the community in need. (The Dollar Store is a great place to buy deodorant.) There is a basket on the Outreach Table in the Gathering Space where donations of deodorant can be placed. Thank you!
Krista Beth
*If you wish to be removed from this distribution list, please let me know by replying to this e-mail. Thanks!
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Rev. Krista Beth Atwood
Faith United Methodist Church
899 Dorset St.
South Burlington, VT 05403
(802) 863-6764
www.faithsbvt.org
Office Hours: Monday – Thursday 10:00am – 12:00pm (Off on Friday)
Open Hours: Monday 3:30pm-5:30pm Barnes and Noble Cafe on Dorset St.
“What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8
