Life is complicated. Just take a look at your calendar and your to-do list. Appointments and obligations overlap each other. There aren't enough hours in a day or days in a week to accomplish even a portion of the tasks you'd like to (need to?) get done. Work requires more of you than you have to give. Spouses, children, parents and friends all want something from you. Add to everything the strain of living and working in the 'COVID Era,' and life is busy, stressful - and complicated. Your spiritual life doesn't have to be. An encouraging, life-giving, uplifting faith is really very simple. The early church gave us a simple model for a life of faith with Jesus that offers hope and power for living, even in today's complicated world. This simple life of faith includes connecting with God through worship, growing in faith through study and relationship with Jesus, and ultimately showing God's work in us through loving acts of service. It's really very simple - connect, grow, serve to discover and share a life-changing, life-giving faith. Worship link: https://youtu.be/OSk-gyBLmZo
Frustrations abound when people around us don't think like we think and do things like we would have them be done. And we might (jokingly) exclaim, "Wouldn't the world be a much better place if everyone just thought and acted like me?!" Of course, the world would not be a better place if that were the case. In fact, it might be that the world would come to a screeching halt if we were all alike! If we were all engineers, who would create the music and art that inspires us? If we were all teachers, who would grow the food and make the clothes we need. It takes everyone doing what they do best for us each and all to enjoy a functioning, safe community. And the church is no different. If in the Body of Christ (another name for the church) we were all stellar administrators, who would lead the worship music and prepare the worship space and Communion elements? What if we were all the best at keeping the building in good order and fixing broken things, who would welcome newcomers, visit the sick, and teach the children? As it is, in God's wisdom, God has created each one in the Body of Christ to bring, do and be, what only that person can bring, do and be. God has created each one with special and unique abilities and gifts designed to benefit the Body and ultimately the world. What part are you in the Body of Christ? We aren't complete without you! Worship Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSAGN-sJFD4
It's common to see on a mom's social media feed, a photo of their child with the caption, "My heart." Shorthand for expressing how deeply she loves her child; how committed she is to that child; how very much her mind, her life, her work, her efforts, are invested in her children. Sweethearts sign their notes to each other with a heart - it's a symbol of their love and affection. One source claims that the red heart emoji ❤️ is the second most used emoji the world over (second only to the joy smiley face emoji, represented by a teary-eyed laughing face [ ] ). For much of human history, the heart has been considered the seat of human emotion, and the place where those things most dear to us reside. In a worship series titled "Matters of the Heart" that Pastor Elizabeth Gilbert will launch on July 12, she will share some of the things most dear to her in her life with Jesus and in her ministry. In "Matters of the Heart" Pastor Elizabeth will reveal the heart Christ has given her for the stranger, for worship, for the unique gifts Jesus has given each of us, and for our life together in community. Union Chapel Worship will continue online at least through the Sundays of July. You'll find worship each week posted on Union Chapel's YouTube Channel (search YouTube for Union Chapel Indy), as well as linked to the church's Facebook page, facebook.com/UnionChapelIndy. Worship Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZ01vmnBuLk