LENT 2021 - A NEW KIND OF JOURNEY

After nearly a full year of pandemic and isolation, the great events of the Christian calendar call the Church to new levels of committed and creative ministry. The changes faced as we sheltered in place opened up new avenues of outreach via technology, made clear the gaps that type of outreach produced, and clarified the hunger we as beings of social connection can feel.

As we step into the week of Ash Wednesday - that time of repentance and intentional spiritual growth - vaccines are on the horizon, new ideas are allowing vastly separated people to come together to learn, worship, and connect. 

The UMC offers some 10 ideas in celebrating Lent at this page.

At home family crafts help make the meaning of Lent become visual.(here)   Additional home and family activities can be found at this page.

Use this Lenten season to intentionally "reconnect" using some old school methods:

Phone trees to bring a short word of hope and care to those isolated due to age, health, or other concerns.

A short, cheerful, and news filled letter to church friends and members. Newsletters need be only 1 page long and have all the news, hope, and connection as a longer one.

Establish a church wide "pray-in-place" where no matter where people are they will know that at the same time they join with so many others to pray. Noon is a good choice for this. Pray the Lord's Prayer or some other short prayer adding your voice to others in common purpose.

We can empathize with the Groundhog who crawls out of his warm den and sees his shadow or does not see his shadow. The last months have been for some like living in a burrow underground, isolate, alone, fearful, anxious, ill or otherwise oppressed. Now, as spring approaches (spiritually and metaphorically) let us crawl out and put on the clothes of hope, faith, and love.

Make this year's Lent a new kind of journey...let us achieve new levels of personal growth in faith and acts of love for others, and show clearly that the glory of the Resurrection Morning is a powerful force in a world beset by troubles.

Who is that masked man or woman?

 Living in the pandemic the wearing of face masks has become a normal act. They are lifesaving for many and a necessity for some.  They also have some down sides when trying to maintain social distancing and re-open or return to normal life.There are several facts that people in ministry or

working with the public in any capacity. should consider.

1.WITH A MASK ON FACIAL EXPRESSIONS ARE LOST.

I do so miss seeing a smiling face! We read so much in our communication by the lift of a lip or eyebrow to inform us as to the state of the other: are they grumpy, mad, tired, bored, happy? Who knows? I have fantasized about those old church-fans, the ones on sticks and made of paper, with a smile or word to express something beyond eyes above a piece of cloth and mumbled phrases.

2. WITH THE MASK ON WORDS ARE NOT CLEAR

The feedback to your own ears is such that you think you are speaking louder than you really are. The cloth captures and holds your words. One must speak louder, with greater attention to clarity and elecution but without sounding disgruntled or abrupt. A narrow and tricky path to trod that can be.

3.WITH THE MASK ON PEOPLE ARE ANNONYMOUS

Some introverts love the masks for that reason but for many others there is the feeling a large carton of rubber duckies have been dumped into a small pond and are bobbing around all looking exactly the same.  Name tags are helpful and for some a necessity. A name tag invites notice and says "I want to be seen as a person - an individual."

4. WITH THE MASK ON WE ARE ALL CLUELESS

With the attention and focus on social distancing there has been a pulling back of all types of connection.  Handshakes are often frowned on and close contact likewise. Close conversations at six feet are next to impossible!! The void should be filled with contact in other forms: phone calls, emails, Facebook pages, YouTube services.   The church newsletter, sent via email, is a perfect tool to keep connection in place, encourage people, and share life's joys and concerns.  Each small group should be seen as a focused ministry group and be actively ministering to the people in their circle. Each person a ripple in a large and ever expanding pool of ministry!

Opening the Church

Most churches stay closed all week long.  Open the church doors and invite people inside by developing a rotating reason for them to visit:

Open a prayer room. Leave a basket for notes to be left asking others to pray.

Organize an art display of local church or community artists around a devotional theme. The images do not have to be of religious subjects but images that reflect a theme of the devotion (hope, joy, love, etc.). Invite people to place penny votes for each piece of art and funds raised go to a local charitable cause.

Establish a "stations of the Cross" style pray journey with visual, sound and tactile objects to move through the cycles of the Christian year.


Organize a Mission or Outreach into the community work day to
- prepare or organize foods for blessings boxes
- pack or distribute sack lunches to shut in's -
- organize games to go (rotating board games - make sure all can be cleansed)
- reading bags (a washable bag and washable toy with a books suitable for children to read alone or read to a sibling, a Top it Off (baseball caps in the spring and summer and stocking caps in fall and winter) give away or pick up station....

Ideas and Images

Using ZOOM to connect

How to log into a meeting -

A Lenten Journey

A few years ago I did this video while attending Barnard Memorial Church in Holdenville, Ok. In the 1980's a set of talented church people had painted these large and impressive images to illustrate the scenes of Christ on his journey to the Cross and Beyond.  We set them up, invited the community and then experienced something a little different that Lenten season. Now, given the special times and situations, it seemed timely to share it once more.

IDEAS FOR BLESSING IN A CHALLENGING TIME

Ideas from the Board of Laity, OKUMC. Blessing Ideas; BoL Friends,

"Ideas that might be useful, especially those of us that feel like we need to be helping others in a time when that is a real challenge.

Our daily blessing checklist

By Janey Thomas

This is an opportunity to leave your home for a short period of time. This allows you some time to get some sunshine and fresh air. We are not encouraging you to leave your vehicle. Stay safe & stay healthy.

Sunday:

-watch online church with your family.

-play a board game with your family.

Monday:

-go to your local courthouse; pray for your local leaders as well as our state, nation and world leaders.

-leave a friendly note on your neighbors’ front porch.

Tuesday:

-go to your local hospital; pray for the medical teams.

-call someone you see only on Sunday at church. Check on them.

Wednesday:

-go to your local school; pray for administration, staff, faculty and students who are now experiencing distance learning.

-sit outside, be still and listen. What do you hear?

Thursday:

-Consider a local nursing home; pray for the staff and the patients; , especially as loved ones aren’t able to visit them at this time.

-send a card to a loved one.

Friday:

-go to a local restaurant; pray for the owners, management and the workers, especially in these hard times.

-ask yourself: where have you seen God this week?

Saturday:

-drive by your church and pray for your pastor, your staff, the Oklahoma United Methodist Conference Bishop-Jimmy Nunn and our Oklahoma Annual Conference.

-invite someone new to join you tomorrow online to watch your church.

From Maurice Hawthorne

We have been told to wash our hands thoroughly to keep disease spread to a minimum and protect ourselves. It has been recommended to wash with soap and water for at least 20 seconds and to judge the time by singing "Happy Birthday" through once (or more recently - twice).

An alternate suggestion is to sing the Doxology to help time the washing, and it will remind us who really is in charge, AND to praise Him at the same time.

Doxology: Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; praise him, all creatures here below; praise him above, ye heavenly host; praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen

*You will need to sing it twice to achieve the 40 seconds wash time.

Chuck Stewart