Dear Lenten Pilgrims,

For the past few days, I have been with my clergy covenant group in Atlanta for one of our bi-annual retreats. It is a gathering I always cherish, connecting with my closest friends in ministry for a time of encouragement, learning, and play.

Yesterday, we were at the Candler School of Theology, the seminary of Emory University, where our covenant brother Dr. Brett Opalinski serves as the Assistant Dean of Methodist Studies. He invited us to meet with the first-year students in his Discipleship Seminar, to share with them about how our own spiritual practices shape our life and ministry, and how we lead others in deepening their discipleship.

Brett began our panel discussion reminding us that following Jesus involves both being and doing. It is both a conscious orientation toward the way of Jesus, and a faithful effort to practice that way. And as my friend Scott Smith said, many of us are good at being, but not at doing.

But both are necessary. Discipleship requires clarity about what Jesus wants us to become, as well as clarity about what Jesus is asking us to do. 

A LESSON FOR JOHN WESLEY

After John Wesley’s ill-fated missionary trip to Georgia, in which he not only failed to bring new people to Jesus but also feared for his life from a near-shipwreck, Wesley returned to England with a badly shaken faith.

He confessed to a German Moravian bishop named Peter Boehler how much he was struggling with his faith and his doubts. He was set to preach the next day and told Boehler that he was “clearly convinced of unbelief,” and was tempted to not preach. He wondered in his journal how he could “preach to others when he had not faith himself?”

He asked Boehler whether he should not preach, but Boehler said he should.

Wesley asked him, “But what can I preach?” Boehler replied, “Preach faith till you have it, and then, because you have it, you will preach faith.”

To put Boehler’s advice in broader terms of discipleship, practice the faith until you have faith. Then because you have it, you will practice faith. That nugget of insight reminded Wesley of the real importance of spiritual practices. We don’t do them in order to be saved. We do spiritual practices because we are saved. And then we do spiritual practices to be strengthened in our faith.

If you are in a place in your life where you feel like your faith is weak, or you are unsteadied by doubts or disbelief, then practice the faith until your faith is strong. And then then you can practice the faith because your faith is strong.

SPIRITUAL PRACTICES AT HYDE PARK

In this congregation, we talk about the Discipleship Pathway, which describes the seven spiritual practices that help us grow in our faith. There are three corporate practices that we do in community (Worship, Small Groups, Service) and four private practices that can be remembered with the acronym G.R.I.P.: (Give generously, Read Scripture, Invite Others, Pray.) You can learn more about these practices and find resources for how to develop them here.

You can also view last week’s sermon, where we explore these practices in the context of Jesus’ call to Peter to take up our cross and follow him.

During these days of Lent, and every day, may your life be enriched by attentiveness to the Holy Spirit and the daily diligence of spiritual practices. May you discover the reward of practicing the faith until you have it, and the joy of practicing the faith because you have it.

Grace and Peace,

​Dear Lenten Pilgrims,

In my journey of living into “savor” as my key word for Lent, I am sharing a prayer I experienced last weekend that I have found to be very meaningful.

Last Saturday, I attended an event in Orlando called “Exploration,” which gathered people from around the country who are exploring a call into ministry. It was incredibly inspiring in its hopeful vision of the future of the United Methodist Church.

In one of the opening worship services, my colleague and friend Rev. Debbie Allen offered this guided prayer, which was published by the spiritual resource Enfleshed.

It is a prayer meant to be prayed slowly and meditatively to allow the Holy Spirit to move in and between the phrases. You might simply choose to read the prayer to yourself silently, pausing along the way. You might be creative, audio recording yourself on your phone or other device, so that you can close your eyes as you receive the prayer in your own voice. Or you might have someone else do the same for you, as you experience the prayer together.

However you offer it to God, may this prayer be a blessing to you as it was to me.

“God Who Pays Attention”

By M. Jade Keiser

God who feels,

God who pays attention,

God who formed webs of life entangled,

Help me to notice today…

To notice my body – what it’s telling me it needs and wants.

To notice my neighbors – who they are and how they are.

To notice the creatures and creations around me – each as a valuable life of their own.

You know my limitations – what is enough or too much

To be aware of at once.

To connect with.

To feel. To hold.

Do not allow me to rush pass what needs or deserves my attention.

Neither let me be overwhelmed by trying to bear more than my share.

Just help me to be alive to what is,

alive to you within and around.

Amen. 

Dear Hyde Park Family,

What are the defining moments of your life?

All of us can point to memories that we consider pivotal in shaping who we are today. Perhaps you think of the day you got married, the birth of a child, or the moment you survived a near-death episode. These moments change you, leaving an indelible imprint.

For Jesus, the transfiguration was a defining moment in his life. On a mountaintop with his three closest friends, Jesus appeared glowing white, accompanied by Elijah and Moses. And he heard a voice from heaven: “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

The synoptic gospel writers tell this story about halfway in their gospels, to suggest that the transfiguration was not just important to the life of Jesus, it was important to the salvation story of all humanity. The presence of Elijah and Moses, the words heard at Christ’s baptism, and the allusion to mountaintop experiences throughout the Bible all point to the grand sweep of salvation history.

The transfiguration story is therefore a defining moment for all those who walk the life of faith. Will we choose to stay on the mountaintop, as Peter, James, and John preferred, or will we enter a life of self-sacrifice, commitment, and surrender to God?

Wesleyan Christians refer to the daily decisions to follow Jesus as the process of sanctification. It is the grace-empowered journey of slowly being conformed to the image of Christ in every aspect of our lives. Catherine Livingston was a nineteenth-century Methodist married to the preacher Freeborn Garretson. In an entry in her personal diary, she reflected on the defining moment in her life, when she chose to identify with Christ, in his death and resurrection:

I find myself more than ever engaged for sanctification. I desire to rest in nothing short of this great privilege. I want to serve my God with a perfect heart and willing mind. I have long seen a great beauty in this doctrine, and long to bear witness to the truth of it. I last night dreamed I was crucified. Be it so, Lord Jesus! Let me die that I may live, and that my life may be hid with you. Such a day of heaviness and travail of soul I have not experienced in a long time. (Garretson Family papers, UMC Archives, Drew University)

 
This Sunday, we celebrate Transfiguration Sunday, the final Sunday before the season of Lent. Join us for this important last step of preparation before we begin our journey to the cross.

In the words of Peter on the mountain, “Lord, it is good for us to be here.”

Grace and Peace,

Dear Hyde Park Family,

Last Sunday night, we had our annual Leadership Gathering of elected committee members and ministry area volunteers. It was a time of connecting with other leaders in the church, learning about our church’s organizational structure, and anticipating the year ahead.

Our guest was our Bishop Tom Berlin, who offered insights into leadership in a large church, the hopeful future of our denomination, and reflections on the resurrection based on his book, The Third Day: Living the Resurrection, which we gave as a gift to all our leaders.

It also included my annual “State of the Church” address, in which I observed the many reasons to be grateful for over the past year, and offered the opportunities and challenges for us in the year ahead.

So, in lieu of a longer Midweek Message, I encourage you to watch my address here.

Thank you to our amazing collection of leaders and volunteers, as we embark on an exciting year ahead.

Grace and Peace,

Dear Hyde Park Family,

Like many of you, I watched the 80s NBC sitcom “The Golden Girls,” about a group of four elderly women who forged a deep and enduring friendship. You might also remember the opening lines of their theme song:

Thank you for being a friend.

Travel down the road and back again.

Your heart is true, you’re a pal and a confidant.

Many of our most popular television shows explored the beauty of true friendships, from “Cheers” (“Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your name”) to “Friends” (“I’ll be there for you / When the rain starts to fall”) and even as far back as Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood (“Won’t you be my neighbor?”)

We all grew up knowing the value of having a close group of friends to be by our side, to help us face the highs and lows of life.

So, what’s gone wrong?

Many studies over recent years have chronicled our current “Friendship Recession.” The American Perspectives Survey, conducted by the Survey Center of American Life, (American Enterprise Institute, 2021) found that Americans have fewer closer friendships than they did in 1990, talk to their friends less often, and rely less on friends for personal support.

Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic is a factor, but there are other explanations for this downward trend, including the fact that Americans are working longer hours and traveling more for work than before, diminishing time to make and maintain solid friendships. (American Enterprise Institute, 2021)

THIS SUNDAY: STRONGER FRIENDSHIPS

We will explore the value of friendships this Sunday as part of our current worship series “You are Not Alone.” We will gain insight from passages from the Bible’s wisdom literature – Ecclesiastes and Proverbs – including these famous verses: “Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their toil.” (Ecclesiastes 5:9) and “Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.” (Proverbs 27:9)

We will also learn from the great C.S. Lewis, who wrote an essay on friendship in his book, “The Four Loves:”

“Friendship arises out of mere Companionship when two or more of the companions discover that they have in common some insight or interest or even taste which the others do not share and which, till that moment, each believed to be his own unique treasure (or burden). The typical expression of opening Friendship would be something like, “What? You too? I thought I was the only one … It is when two such persons discover one another, when, whether with immense difficulties and semi-articulate fumblings or with what would seem to us amazing and elliptical speed, they share their vision – it is then that Friendship is born. And instantly they stand together in an immense solitude.” (C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves)

See you Sunday, as we rediscover the power of friendship, and learn ways to strengthen them.

Grace and Peace,

Dear Hyde Park Faithful:

As we begin a new year of ministry at the church, we want to say, “Thank you!” Because of your generosity and faithfulness, this church made a profound impact in our community and around the world in 2023.

• On Christmas Eve, 2,500 worshippers heard the good news of Christ’s birth, culminating a week of various services in which 4,000 people worshipped with us.
• Our Harnish Center has served as a cold weather shelter eight times last year and already once this year, serving up to 80 persons each night.
• Weekly worship attendance continues to be at or above pre-pandemic levels, and reaching new people through our online service, our Hyde Park services, and our 1001 gathering at The Portico.
• Our children, youth, and Small Blessings preschool ministries have done amazing ministry to the young people and families in our congregation. We also opened a brand-new, beautiful playground on the Hyde Park campus.
• We served over 9,000 meals at the Hyde Park and Portico campuses to people experiencing homelessness. We are also among the first institutions to receive Breadcoin to serve our unhoused guests, which you can read about [PROVIDE LINK, BELOW]
• We gained over 90 new members, welcomed 28 baptisms, and had over 3,000 hours of personal contact through our congregational care volunteers.
• Our most recent generosity campaign has brought in over 40 new commitments, and over 140 people who are increasing their pledge from last year.
• And because of your faithful giving, we were able to finish 2023 with a surplus, enabling us to cover all our church expenditures and fund major improvements.

This spirit of joy and excitement is captured beautifully by a woman named Donna N., who said, “After leaving the church where I had grown up and served for more than 50 years, I didn’t know if I would ever find a place that felt like home again. Then a friend invited me to Hyde Park and after one visit, I knew I was home.”

You helped us finish last year strong, and you are helping us make 2024 even more amazing. This Sunday, at our annual church conference, the Finance Committee will propose a budget that meets our threshold of being underwritten by your pledges. It once again promises to be an exciting year of ministries and programs for our community and our world.

Thank you, Hyde Park, for making a difference, and for making God’s love real!

With Gratitude,

THIS SUNDAY: STRONGER FAMILIES

We continue our worship series “You are Not Alone” by exploring our most personal relationships of all: those within our own families. We’ll listen for what Paul said to the Ephesians, and discover ways to strengthen our relationships with our own family members.

FOSTERING CONNECTIONS SEMINAR THIS WEDNESDAY

Coinciding with our January sermon series “You Are Not Alone,” we will be offering another FREE seminar by licensed psychologist, Dr. Erica J. Clark. It takes place on Wednesday, Jan. 24, at 6:30pm. She will be discussing a variety of topics including fostering new connections, communicating effectively, building healthy boundaries and navigating conflict. Learn more and register here.