Let us come before the LORD with thanksgiving.
Psalm 95
This week we celebrated Stewardship Sunday, reflecting on the blessing our parish is to our members and in the life of the community. As part of the celebration, we invited members and “regulars” to make a financial commitment to the parish for 2020. And I am happy to say that even more people stepped forward in support than in previous years, including many online commitments. If you have not yet made your commitment, you can give here. This robust response is most encouraging and guarantees that our parish will remain strong and continue to move forward in our mission to Love God, Love Others, Make Disciples. For this commitment we give thanks.
As part of our celebration, we introduced two memorials here on our campus. The first is a section of the old steeple from the original church that was salvaged during construction and erected opposite our main entrance. A plaque now attached to the steeple commemorates the accomplishment of the founding pastor and parishioners in their stewardship of this parish in their generation. For their effort and achievement, we give thanks.
Elsewhere, our Vision Café, adjacent to our new church, commemorates the “Vision Campaign” to plan and fund the church’s construction. On Stewardship Sunday we unveiled a memorial to all those who supported that unprecedented campaign, allowing us to complete the project entirely debt-free. While no particular names are included, the memorial and the café space itself are dedicated to the shared sacrifice and achievement of all our parishioners. For each of them, we give thanks.
This Thanksgiving all of us at Nativity give thanks for the stewardship, support, and service of our parishioners, past and present.
We “have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you always in prayer.” – Ephesians 1:16
