On Sunday October 7, 2018, 11 a.m., 604 Clover Valley Road in the town of Upper Lake the congregation of the Upper Lake Community Church (UM) will celebrate World Communion Sunday.
World Communion Sunday takes place the first Sunday of every October, promotes Christian unity and focuses on the observance of communion. It is a time for remembering that around the globe – in different languages, with different traditions and customs – the Lord’s Supper is celebrated. It is both a joyous and meaningful receiving of Jesus’ sacred meal and exposure to different Christian traditions from around the world.
As a truly global celebration we at the ULC Church have invited people from our congregation to have bread from their own ethnic heritages. This year in addition to their native breads, representing the Body of Christ, broken for us, part of the liturgy will be spoken in Tagalog, the native language of the Philippines, recited by Vicky Casido, French recited by Jean Pierre Zombil, and German recited by Tamara Newby.
World Communion Sunday is one of those moments in the church year that can pass by with little fanfare and without most of the people in your congregation really understanding what and why they celebrate that day. Let them know why World Communion Sunday is important and to continue celebrating the day—a day that has become much more than just a symbol in the worldwide communion of the Christian community. The more a congregation knows about World Communion Sunday, the more likely it is that it will have its intended effect.
Bible Study “Divine Reading” class
On Wednesday, 2018 Pastor Bob Green, minister to the Upper Lake Community Church (UM) led a bible study class in what is called “Lectio Divina”, which means “divine reading”. The class will be held every Wednesday at 10 a.m. at the Upper Lake Senior Support Services, 9410 Mendenhall Avenue. If you missed the last class you can join him at 6 p.m. on Wednesday in the fellowship hall at the Upper Lake Community Church (UM), 604 Clover Valley Road (corner of First Street and Clover Valley Road).
“Lectio Divina”, “divine reading” is a way of reading the Scriptures whereby we gradually let go of our own agenda and open ourselves to what God wants to say to us. In other words we “listen with the ear of our heart” and is a way to experience Scripture in a more deeply personal way.
There are four parts, or stages, to Lectio Divina. Reading, Reflection, Response and Rest. It is said that it is best to start by quieting your mind and heart and pray for the Spirits guidance.
The first part, Reading, is where there is a slow and gradual reading of a Scripture passage.
The second part, Reflection, is where we think about the text we have read and reflect upon it so that we take from it what God wants to give us.
The third part, Response, is where we leave our thinking aside and simply let our hearts speak to God. What is God trying to show us through a word or phrase?
The fourth stage, Rest, is where we let go not only of our own ideas but also our words and thoughts. We simply rest in the Word of God. We listen at the deepest level of our being to God who speaks within us with a still small voice and as we listen, we are gradually transformed from within. Hopefully we will take what we read in the Word of God into our daily lives.
It’s like eating: first we taste, then we chew on it and break it down, then we swallow and the food nourishes us and helps us to be healthy and grow and finally, after eating we are refreshed, restored and can rest.
