On The Table

Hi church,

Sorry for the late post, and happy Thanksgiving weekend!!!

I don't believe we have anything in particular planned, except for time spent with loved ones, in gratitude for God's many gifts.

But here's a biggie we can add to our prayers of thanks: God's coming to us as a human being. This Sunday, the 29th, is actually the first Sunday of Advent, the season in which we prepare our hearts for the coming of God incarnate. If you feel called to do so, spend part of Sunday in worship, beginning this preparation, this waiting, this anticipation. If you want, invite us along, or tell us afterward what you heard from the Spirit and from God's people.

Almighty and gracious Father, we give you thanks for the fruits of the earth in their season and for the labors of those who harvest them. Make us, we pray, faithful stewards of your great bounty, for the provision of our necessities and the relief of all who are in need, to the glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

In gratitude,
Mike Croghan

Labels: Advent, Thanksgiving

Hello, friends. In our regularly irregular Common Table schedule, we come to the fourth week in November-- a time to get away from the confines of Jammin' Java and to try to do some good in the world.

This week's update comes from our own Vince Gamma:





It's getting to be that time of year where we give thanks, give gifts, and give a piece of ourselves (well, maybe even a little more so than we normally do). With that in mind, we will convene for one of our periodic Service Days this Sunday, meeting at the Gamma’s (5121 8th Rd N, Arlington, VA) at 1 PM to partake in an Operation Christmas Child (http://www.samaritanspurse.org/) shoebox stuffing event. Come with a shoebox (if you've got one) and some shoebox stuffing goodies so that we may assemble them together with love for our little brothers and sisters abroad. Bring some meat for the grill, a side dish, and a beverage and join us for some sweet fellowship in Jesus afterwards. Or just bring yourself - that would be the best thing!

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A big thanks to Vince and Suzy for organizing our herd of cats into a force for good this weekend! We hope to see you Sunday.

Mike Stavlund

It's been almost a week, and I'm still humming two tunes from last Friday's Lamb Center Karaoke. One is that classic tune from Creed, "Ca-aan Yoou Take Meigh High-yuh", which is a serious earworm by any measure, simultaneously catchy and irritating for it's cheesy lyrics. But the other was the Dolly Parton/ Whitney Houston song "I Will Always Love You," which was sung with such precision and devotion that I was completely undone. Wow, I love me some Lamb Center Karaoke. Thanks to Mike Croghan and many others who led that event for this past season.

This Sunday, in yet another example of rampant collaboration and courageous participation, one of our newish members is leading out. Join us at Jammin' Java at 10am this Sunday as the recent star of our virtual, unauthorized theology pub and all around great guy Craig leads us in a consideration of the many facets of Jesus. We'll look at the ways Jesus is understood by various religious groups, the ways in we have perceived him, and how all of this sells the real Jesus short. It promises to be an informative, enjoyable, and fun engagement with Jesus and one another.

And don't forget that the 9:30 (a.m.) Club, a open-source blend of musical and other worship, will be meeting at (wait for it...) 9:30am that day. Come on out to play, or participate, or just enjoy the environment.

Hope to see you there,
Mike Stavlund

Hi church,

Well, it's November. Not sure how that happened. Nothing much we can do about it, though. And it's feeling like a gorgeous autumn!

Three things on the Table this week:

1) Friday evening, we'll be gathering at The Lamb Center for our final karaoke night of the year. Come at 6:30 for prayer and pizza, and stay for song, joy, and chutzpah. At 8, it's all over - at least until the spring!

2) Saturday morning, at 10am, the "Next Steps Team" will meet to work on discerning a process for figuring out where we're going next as a community. Please say a prayer for Liz, Erin, Jackie, Amy, Mike, and Mike as we try to hear the Spirit's voice in our midst.

3) Sunday morning at 9:30am, please join us at Jammin' Java for the "9:30am Club" - a free and open time of worshipful music and anything else folks want to bring - prayer, poetry, etc. - it's all good! After that, at 10am, we'll gather for our regular worship service, which will also be musical - a simple, contemplative time of silence and chanting in the tradition of the Taize community.

That's it for now. Hope God is smiling on this season in all of our lives.

Peace,
Mike Croghan

Labels: karaoke, lamb center, music