Worship

Grace and peace to you on this final week of the Season of Epiphany. Throughout the last seven weeks we have experienced the light and love of Jesus and sought the ways we are called to follow Jesus and be Jesus’ light and love for our neighbors.

This coming Wednesday, February 22, we will enter a new season of the Church year--Lent. Lent is a time in which we get ready to receive the mystery of Easter, the day when life emerges out of death, heaven draws ever closer to earth, and the grace of God flows into our hearts.  During Lent we let go of practices that separate us from God and one another and take on practices that draw us closer to God and others. In doing so we open our hearts to allow God's grace to shape us as living members of the body of Christ.

As I reflect on practices that draw me closer to God, I turn to Sunday worship. Sunday worship is when I most regularly feel close to God. For some, attending church on Sundays—whether in person or online—anchors their week. It is a time to acknowledge our dependence on the One who made us and loves us most and open ourselves to be filled once again to go out and begin a new week. For others, while worshiping in community may be part of our spiritual practice, we don’t feel drawn to a practice of attending church every week. For still others, attending church on Sundays has fallen in a long list of priorities. We may attend occasionally.

Sunday morning worship has always been a wellspring of life for me. Whether it is in singing hymns, listening to stories of Jesus, sharing a meal, or engaging in caring conversations, it is the time when my soul settles most fully in the presence of God. I have vivid memories as a child of Sunday mornings with my teachers who showed me Jesus' unconditional love, my friends who accepted me as I was, and my family as we gathered to celebrate the Lord's Day with friends. Attending church on Sundays has always been life-giving.

The Gospels and Epistles are clear. Jesus himself made going to synagogue a priority. Early Christians gathered weekly on the Lord’s Day to pray and break bread together. There is something about coming together in community regularly that opens us up in ways that can let God’s grace in to shape our lives.

During this Holy Lent, I encourage you to give yourself the gift of attending church on Sundays. Make worshiping in community a priority in your life. Come and be with friends and God, the One who loves you most. As you do, your heart will be opened to receive God's grace and peace. You will draw closer to God and your heart will become prepared to receive the mystery of Easter. Give yourself this gift.

See you in Church.

The Rev. Jenifer Gamber, Rector

St. Peter's Episcopal Church