Tending the Light

Excerpts from Pastor Bethan's first sermon @ St. Philip's:

We are going to learn together...We are not beginning from nothing....God has been at work here: ....there is light here.

Our calling is to tend that light - to nurture it - to make room for it to grow.  And to trust that God is still at work among us.

Whatever the future brings, we already know something about where to begin.  We begin with love, with grace, and with caring for one another and the community around us.  So as we start this new chapter together, my hope is not that we will become a congregation that never gets tired, my hope is not that we never make mistakes or never experience uncertainty - those would be unrealistic goals.  My hope is that we will become a community who knows how to keep tending the light.  A community where people can ask questions and find belonging, bring their doubts and their faith, willing to try new things without forgetting what gifts we've already received. 

We don't know what lies ahead but we know that God has been faithful.  We know that Christ is present with us.  And we know we have been given enough light and enough oil to take the next faithful step. And thanks be to God for that.