Encouragement (Page 2)
A More Excellent Way
September 18, 2024A Note from Pastor Jon Dear Friends, Unless you’ve been living under a rock, it’s hard to miss that election season is in full swing. We are just over six weeks away from the votes being counted in both federal and local elections. If there’s a season that I’m not too fond of, it’s this one. The divisive rhetoric, half-truths, and blatant fear-mongering for votes are not just disturbing — they’re often detestable. Personal attacks and sharp words…
Fall’s Invitations
September 11, 2024A Note from Lindsay Robinson Dear Friends, I was driving home the other day and noticed some of the trees that line the street had begun to change color. They were a lighter green with more hints of yellow starting to show. The leaves signifying to us that fall is upon us. This change in season coordinates with the start of the school year, and for me, it always feels like an invitation. Fall invites us to learn…
Liminal Space
September 4, 2024A Note from Pastor April Dear Friends, I’ve always been fascinated by the moments in time when things begin to shift. A word spoken at just the right time, a diagnosis that no one saw coming, an unexpected opportunity, a chance encounter, and sometimes just an idea or inspiration that leads us somewhere we hadn’t foreseen. Most of the time, we see these moments only in hindsight, reflecting on the spark, energy, or awakening that jolted us from…
Solidarity in the Journey of Growth, Revisited
August 28, 2024A Note from Pastor April Greatest Hits: Revisiting some previous Letters of Encouragement, in celebration of all God has done during these last four years! Dearly Beloved, On a week when we hear the news of Russia’s bombardment of missiles and strikes across Ukraine, I am reminded of where we were at the start of the war. The letter that I share with you below was written in March of 2022, just as the war in Ukraine was…
The Flow of Grace, Revisited
August 21, 2024A Note from Jon Esala Greatest Hists: Revisiting some previous Letters of Encouragement, in celebration of all God has done during these last four years! Dear Friends, A lot has changed in my own life since I first wrote this letter in February 2022. The biggest change of course is my son Emmett was born in January 2023. Now that he’s a year and a half, it’s hard to believe that there was ever a time he wasn’t…
Getting into the Particulars, Revisited
July 31, 2024A Note from Pastor AprilGreatest Hists: Revisiting some previous Letters of Encouragement, in celebration of all God has done during these last four years! Dear Friends, As I re-read the letter I wrote to you over two years ago, I couldn’t help but see the incredible connections to the week I just shared with ten of our young people and five other adult volunteers up at Lakeside Institute (youth camp). As the chaplain for the week, I had…
Excited!
July 24, 2024A Note from Pastor JonGreatest Hists: Revisiting some previous Letters of Encouragement, in celebration of all God has done during these last four years! Dear Friends, Just a couple of weeks ago we welcomed our friends from Pakistan back to Hilliard. As a part of their time here they met the children at our Vacation Bible School to tell stories of what it’s like to go to school in rural Pakistan and the many challenges that students must…
Holy Land Pilgrimage, Revisited
July 17, 2024A Note from Pastor JonGreatest Hists: Revisiting some previous Letters of Encouragement, in celebration of all God has done during these last four years! Dear Friends, It’s been just over 2 years since I returned from my pilgrimage to the Holy Land. My heart aches for the land in conflict and war and for the people and victims of war. The current climate in Israel/Palestine still does not in any way diminish my memory or experiences on the…
Inauguration, Revisited
July 10, 2024A Note from Pastor AprilGreatest Hists: Revisiting some previous Letters of Encouragement, in celebration of all God has done during these last four years! Dear Friends, This week our amazing VBS kids are experiencing our new curriculum, “Just Like Me.” One of the key lessons they are learning this week is how important it is for each of us to find and use our voices to advocate for others in our community. Like the garden that is in…
Start Close In, Revisited
July 3, 2024A Note from Pastor JonGreatest Hists: Revisiting some previous Letters of Encouragement, in celebration of all God has done during these last four years! Dear Friends, I wrote this way back in the fall of 2020 as I started my first internship at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. So much of this message still resonates with me today, four years later, even on a night when I am working a paid shift on call, writing a sermon, making a visit,…
Shared Moments, Revisited
June 26, 2024A Note from Pastor JonGreatest Hits Dear Friends, I wrote this letter to you upon the conclusion of my journey through my Masters of Practical Theology. I wonder, do we still appreciate the Shared Moment? // Originally sent January 13, 2021: The journey has finally come to its completion. I mean, I’m still waiting for Methodist Theological School in Ohio to officially award my degree sometime in February, but for all intents and purposes, I have met the…
You Belong, Revisited
June 19, 2024A Note from Pastor AprilGreatest Hits Dearest Friends, During this month of Pride, after we have celebrated our third anniversary of being a Reconciling Congregation, helped sponsor the Hilliard Pride Fest for the fourth year in a row, and provided musical leadership at last Friday’s Reconciling Ministry worship service, it’s beautiful to remember where we were two years ago on our first anniversary. Belonging The desire to create a space for belonging remains just as true today as…