Cold Spring Church
780 Seashore Road
Cold Spring, NJ 08204 USA
609-884-4065
God who is always present with us and for us, of all that is seen and unseen, our anxiety rises as the invisible coronavirus spreads. We worry about the impact of this illness on healthcare workers, older adults, those already physically fragile, the vulnerable among us and people whose livelihoods are tied to the regular movement of people and commerce. We recognize in this moment how inextricably connected we are to one another and we hope that this unmistakable realization will shape all our actions in ways that foster the common good, increase compassion and expand communal care.
As people in positions of leadership in religious communities, educational institutions, hospitals, government and local communities face difficult choices about how to address the complex challenges this virus brings, grant them wisdom and courage. Knowing that we are flawed and that our knowledge is incomplete, make us humble in our judgment, patient with one another, and gracious toward those tasked with the burden of making hard decisions in the days ahead.
Bring healing to the sick, strength to the caregivers, comfort to those who mourn, peace to those in quarantine and mercy to all of your beloved creation. Amen.
Adapted from Presbyterian Outlook, March 9, 2020
Who’s thirsty? You know when your body is parched. Without skipping a beat, you reach for water. “Ahhh… Yes!,” you say. Water is the most important resource in the world. Did you know that in one year, the average American residence uses over 100,000 gallons? Wow! But sadly, unsafe water kills 200 children every hour. In some countries, less than half the population has access to clean water.
In recognition of World Water Day (March 22), we will be introduced to Living Waters for the World, a ministry of the Presbyterian Church to help share clean water and the love of Christ around the world. Volunteers have installed 1,000 clean water systems in 26 countries. Look for information in our bulletin this week about Living Waters for the World that continues to train and support volunteer teams from churches like ours. If you’re interested in joining a team, or forming one, please let us know!
Pastor Kevin’s Lenten message this week transports us to a foreign country where Jesus meets a woman who had come to a well to drink. But it was her spiritual thirst that was quenched with living water. You can quench your spiritual thirst this week, too, as we discover that no where and no one is off limits for his transformative love, his living water, or his salvation. Come and see!
