To be persuasive, we must be believable; to be believable, we must be credible; to be credible, we must be truthful. –Edward R. Murrow WHEREAS Spring Creek United Church of Christ is a community of Christians that strives to be "...inclusive, reconciling and caring in our ministry to each other and to the wider community..." [from our mission statement], and WHEREAS our members are people of faith who believe each of us is in need of God's love, guidance and grace, THEREFORE, be it resolved that we are Open and Affirming (ONA) to all people who seek God's blessing, regardless of ability, age, gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, or national origin. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, we commit o

Dwelling on "what might have been" does not help us get to "what might be." Being born...dying...and being reborn again. "Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead ..." "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you" (v. 2) ? (Holy Conjunction) You will be caught between a "rock and a hard place...You will find yourself being overwhelmed with the issues of life and faith"...AND when you are, I will be there. Connect to the rhythm of God thru worship, prayer, singing and dancing to the glory of God in our lives of faith in Jesus as our Light to the World... The words above represent our journey in January. In our January sermon series, Jesus, January, and Jaz

We have been talking about the use of Holy Conjunctions in our sermon series, "Jesus, January, and Jazz." We have identified that conjunction as "and." We can look back at the failures of the past, and still look hopefully to the possibilities of the future — as individuals and a community of faith. This Sunday we will be talking about "Holy Compounds." The one in particular we will look at is found in Psalm 36 when we read: 5 Your steadfastlove, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. 6 Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your judgments are like the great deep; you save humans and animals alike, O Lord. 7 How precious is your steadfastlo

"The problem with quotes on the Internet is that no one can confirm their authenticity." — Abraham Lincoln If there is one thing that is true about that statement is the fact there is "continuity" of these quotes on social media. We read them and say, "That sure is the truth." Then we look at the author of the quote and we can only shake our heads and laugh. There is a continuity, as well, to how people might respond by quotes given to the Bible. We can fall for the speaker's adamant declaration that a quote is true, only to be found to be incorrect. However, is that what we want from continuity? Do we always want to "fact-check" quotes? Can't people just speak the truth? Let's face it, reli

In 1582, Pope Gregory adjusted the calendar so that January became the first month of the year. And in 1752, the British and the colonies adopted the same calendar which we call the Gregorian calendar. So, it's January, a month that evokes mention of the Roman god Janus, the "two-faced" who looks for new beginnings, opportunities and transitions, and one who looked backwards. This is a perfect moment to consider which direction we're going as we face the year unfolding before us. In last week's article, I stated that jazz musicians find a rhythm, a sense of urgency within their music. However, they are also willing to be "illuminated" by embellishing a melody. It seems, that jazz musicians f