Chaos or Community?

It is the new year – again.  Sure, we are all a year older and maybe only a little wiser. Still, the new year is full of promise and opportunity and hope.

So how was 2023 for you?  Chaos or Community? Think about it.  Does it feel like mostly chaos in your life this past year?  Some things, many things, are out of our control. We cannot fix everything or even prepare for the worst, no matter how much we want to or how hard we try.

One thing we can always count on although we may not have seen it at the time, is God’s sustaining Grace. It may only be visible in hindsight but it was surely there all along. God is in the business of creating a universe from nothingness, order from dis-array, beauty from ashes and community from even tragedy or misfortune.

When our lives are messy, we may want to hide and pull ourselves up by our boot straps and figure it out ourselves. A better option is to take a chance on being a little bit vulnerable and open ourselves up to community.  No one says it is easy – especially at first or if we have been burned, or kept to ourselves for a long time. But it does get easier. The risks start to feel smaller and less important.  And to paraphrase a wonderful adage: community divides sorrow and multiplies joy. 

But it is also the feeling we get when we live, work, suffer or play together. It is the feeling of wholeness, of belonging, and of well-being that we all need, want, and live for.

This year, we have the opportunity to embrace “I Am Because We Are”, to pass it on “From God to Me to You,” to be ” Instruments of Peace,” and to keep “Opening the Closed Door.” 

Let’s do this! 
Together.

Matthew 19:26
With God, all things are possible.

Matthew 18:20
For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.

Galations 6:2
 Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

Join us at Jazz @ Emmanuel January 14th at 5:00 PM in the Sanctuary – a place of community and safety in the Love of God and others.

February 11th – I am because We Are
March 10th – From God to Me to You
April 14th – Instruments of Peace
May 12th – Opening the Closed Door

Musicians:
Dr. James Johnson, Jr – piano
Pamela Johnson – vocals
Benjamin May – bass
James Johnson III, drums
Lou Schreiber – reeds

Jazz at Emmanuel
as only Jazz @ Emmanuel can.
JOIN US!

AS ALWAYS…
The Second Sunday of the Month, September – May
5 PM IN THE SANCTUARY

Jazz @ Emmanuel is underwritten in part by WRCT 88.3 FM, and relies on the generosity of worshippers and Jazz enthusiasts like you.
Thank you.

Next Month, Join us February 11th for “I Am Because We Are”
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