St. Paul's United Church of Christ

For 120 years, the Christmas Fund for the Veterans of the Cross and the Emergency Fund has been a tangible expression of God’s love. One of the four Special Mission Offerings of the United Church of Christ, the Christmas Fund provides UCC congregations and members an opportunity to reach out in loving compassion, providing assistance to those who have so faithfully served our Church and who now and themselves facing unexpected financial needs.

Dear St. Paul’s Friends and Family,

The art of waiting is one of those skills that we have to develop early in life. I remember waiting for my dad to come home from the farm every night when I was a kid. My heart still feels glad, even after all of these years, when I think of the sound of dad’s 1977 Ford F-150 pulling into the driveway at the end of the day. “Daddy’s home!” I would triumphantly declare as I ran to the top of the cellar stairs to wait for him.

I’m sure that each of you have your own “waiting” story. Thinking about those times of waiting can bring back all kinds of memories. Wonder and relief at the end of waiting or pain and sorrow when our waiting doesn’t turn out as we had hoped. The holiday season is full of these sorts of emotions and of course, waiting. Just ask any 8 year old about this time of year and you’ll quickly learn that anticipatory waiting is hard. Wonderful questions arise out of waiting. How many more days until Christmas? What will Santa bring me? Will I get that totally awesome new toy or another scratchy sweater? When do we get to leave grandma’s house and go home and open presents?

Although these questions may seem frivolous to grown-ups, the emotions that accompany them can be profound. They are the same kinds of emotions that all of us experience when our waiting gets more serious. We wait for test results that will shape our lives and health. We wait for reconciliation with a friend or loved one. We wait for things to get better

or hold our breath because we just know things could get worse. We wait for redemption, a kind word, and most of all, grace. In short, we wait for someone or something to touch our lives in a healing and positive way. Waiting is great as long as the surprise at the end of the wait is life-affirming.

I think it’s appropriate that in the midst of our waiting we celebrate a coming. Advent, after all, means “coming.” God comes into the world in Jesus Christ. Not only does Jesus come into the world on a Christmas long ago, but he comes into our lives through the Holy Spirit every day. Christ comes into our lives as we spend each day working, playing, hoping, and waiting. Perhaps the miracle of Christmas is that God comes to us and shares in our lives. God knows our waiting: our hope, anxiety, pain, and joy.

Take a moment and think about your life. What are you waiting for? What are you experiencing? Jesus has come to you and is with you regardless of the sadness, guilt, sorrow, or fear that you may be experiencing. The same God who brought life out of death in Jesus, brings life out of death in our world today. God is born into the world each day through the Holy Spirit’s coming and dwelling with us.

Emmanuel, God-with-us, has come, is coming, and will come to us for all eternity. May God give you rest and peace in this holy and crazy season of life.

Blessings,

Pastor Matt

The current COVID-19/Corona Virus pandemic has forced many individuals, businesses, and organizations to rethink how to accomplish day-to-day functions.  The church is no different.  

St. Paul’s continues to do vital ministry:

• Reaching out to the homebound & lonely
• Caring for the sick
• Comforting the dying & their families
• Working with the Somerset Area School District, Meals on Wheels, Somerset Area Ministries, and other agencies to ensure our most vulnerable community members are fed everyday
• Online children’s programming
• Online fellowship events
• Live-streaming and videos of worship services on Facebook & YouTube
• Launching a COVID-19 community mission fund to assist those in need because of social distancing, job loss, and illness
• Honoring our monthly mission partners

A number of our members and friends have asked for an online way to give, so we are pleased to offer this service through tithe.ly.  You can make a gift by accessing our website (see the “Give” button on the homepage or the button below), www.stpaulsuccsomerset.org.  You may also download the free tithe.ly app to your smartphone or tablet and customize it to meet your needs.  Although the service is free to the church, credit card and transaction fees are assessed to each gift, so when making an online contribution through tithe.ly, please consider using the bank funds transfer feature, which has the lowest fee of one percent per transaction.  For your convenience, you may also select the reoccurring gift option if you would like to make regular gifts to the church.  If you have any questions or need assistance using this service, please do not hesitate to contact Cindy, our financial secretary.  And as always, we still accept and appreciate your mail-in contributions!

We value your continued thoughts and prayers during these challenging times.  On behalf of the staff, and lay leadership of our church, we wish you good health and strength as we encounter each day together.  Relying on God and one another, we will get through this!

Blessings,

Pastor Matt