Thoughts From Our Pastor

Dear PPPC,

Last week in worship, we blessed the backpacks (and more importantly, the kids who carry them). It's a simple moment, and yet it's profound. We all hope the best for the next generations, we all pray the best for the youngest among us. Thinking of all those who have returned to school, in whatever setting that may be, here is a prayer for the 2026-2027 academic year. Pray it for someone you love, or a school that you love....and if you don't have someone dear to you in school, then pray it for the ones who stood in our church aisle, clutching their backpacks last Sunday.

God of all wisdom, we praise you for gifting us with curiosity and learning. Give to all students, teachers, and caregivers a clear sense of your love. May they feel your presence throughout this school year. Guide their choices, their quest for knowledge, and their relationships. Use their successes and failures as opportunities to grow in understanding of who you would have them to be. Continue to shape them, that they may walk in the way of Christ, grow strong in Spirit’s love for all people, and know the complete joy of life in you. In the name of Christ our Great Teacher, we pray. Amen.

...

The kids are back in school, and as of Tuesday at 8:05pm EST, it's officially fall.

Here in the Northern Hemisphere, Tuesday held the fall equinox, the moment when the sun shines directly above the equator of the earth, and our days will soon begin to hold more dark hours than light. I am thinking also of friends in the Southern Hemisphere as they mark the spring equinox and the beginning of days that hold more light than dark. Wherever in this world we are, may we know The Light in which we are always held, and may we carry this for one another. 

Here is a prayer for our autumn days (author anonymous):

O God of Creation, you have blessed us with the changing of the seasons.

As we welcome the autumn months,

may the earlier setting of the sun

remind us to take time to rest.

May the brilliant colors of the leaves

remind us of the wonder of your creation.

May the steam of our breath in the cool air

remind us that it is you who give us the breath of life.

May the first frost remind us that not everything we carry,

needs to be carried into every season. There is wisdom in letting go.

May the harvest from the fields remind us of the abundance we have been given and bounty we are to share with others.

May the dying of summer's spirit remind us of your great promise that death is temporary and life is eternal.

We praise you for your goodness forever and ever. Amen.

Yours for the journey,

Pastor Molly

Spotted on the church sidewalk this week - a reminder of the changing of time and seasons, from the glory of God's creation.