Dear Beloved Christ the King Community,
Today is Epiphany, the day that commemorates the coming of the Magi to the infant Christ, the manifestation of God incarnate. Yesterday, we blessed the space of our spiritual home, marking this journey to encounter God who both resides with us and is also active outside our walls.
Our staff and congregation council spent time together in a space apart this past week, at our camping ministry Lutherhill. We gathered around the theme, “We are in this Together,” rooted in 1 Cor 12:14-26, a passage about the body of Christ that recognizes and honors all parts of the body as unique and necessary. During our time together, we listened, we discerned, and we planned, setting priorities for the next 90 days. We see God working in our midst in very concrete ways, and we reflected on the entire body of our spiritual home and the diversity of perspectives and gifts that we collectively hold.
Photo: Kim Williams, Deacon Aimee Elles, and CTK Festival Committee Chair Karli McGowen present our friends Matt Kindsvatter and Curtis Bradbury from Lutherhill with a donation this past Sunday after our Epiphany Worship Services.
I am encouraged and excited about this upcoming year and ask that you also reflect and discern how your unique gifts can be offered as we continue to participate in God’s mission in our community.
Please also continue to pray for and offer encouragement and support to our staff and congregation council in their commitment to serve. Our officers for 2025 include:
Finally, I wanted to share with you a poem by ordained Methodist minister, Jan Richardson, which considers the metaphor of the coming year as a house, which is blessed. May this year bring you grace and peace and joy.
Grace and peace, and even more joy,
Pastor Jennifer
The Year as a House: A Blessing
Think of the year
as a house:
door flung wide
in welcome,
threshold swept
and waiting,
a graced spaciousness
opening and offering itself
to you.
Let it be blessed
in every room.
Let it be hallowed
in every corner.
Let every nook
be a refuge
and every object
set to holy use.