This November, we are sharing stories of why members and friends of WCUC are a part of this community.

When I first came to this church the Sunday Fellowship program attracted me to join the church. The WCUC congregation accepts everyone. WCUC is a community where I feel comfortable; I feel I belong here. The congregation is kind, loving. I go to church because at church we get to practice doing what Jesus teaches us in the Bible, to love your neighbor.

This November, we are sharing stories of why members and friends of WCUC are a part of this community.

We have found a warm welcome at West Concord Union Church. We joined in 2014 for many good reasons: accessibility for the disabled, especially the splendid elevator; the ministry of Sunday Fellowship that overflows and blesses everyone; prayer which is honest and inclusive of the sufferings of our neighbors; a progressive and loving pastor; the Open and Affirming covenant of the congregation; and a sense of joy, good humor, and surprise in worship. We are thankful for this good church. We are grateful that we can offer our pledge of support in the coming year for its mission and ministry as part of the Body of Christ.

Having been away from the church for the better part of 20 years, I joined WCUC in 1988. I discovered WCUC as my employer, Middlesex Savings Bank, provided financing to support renovations to this building. What I found here was an intimate, vibrant church, teeming with vitality and activity, and it has been, and surely will continue to be, a congregation that is a living affirmation of God’s call to service. Over the years, this has given me pause to contemplate my formative days at the Wellesley Village Church, and how my late mother, Jane, taught me the power of individuals to help others through a helping hand or other simple acts of kindness. When she died unexpectedly in 1989, I was determined to embrace and carry out her values and her life in service to others inside and outside the church – as she felt she was called by God to do.

Some of my favorite memories of my Mom’s charitable works involved service to the Wellesley Friendly Aid Society, driving cancer patients to treatment, delivering meals on wheels, and running the Village Church Rummage Sale, an annual church fundraiser from which many of my “outfits” as a child (and that of my four siblings) had their origins. Her work was quite similar to what we see here: A quiet, yet abiding concern for the well-being of others, answering His call. Jane would be so pleased to know that I had re-established a faith connection with a place that shares her values and that pursues God’s call for us to serve others.

One of my own favorite service projects in retirement – one of my own “calls”, as it were – is the mentoring initiative I have established for students at Concord-Carlisle High School, introduced last school year, and serving 23 students in its inaugural semester. This program seeks to provide intergenerational connections between students and adult business and professional leaders in our community, through a life and professional skills curriculum. It is my hope that any student participant, regardless of their personal circumstances, can come away with a feeling that many things are possible in life through perseverance, determination and personal effort. Strong support for this program has come from the Concord-Carlisle Community Chest and the Concord Education Fund and many others in the community. That includes the almost 30 adults, both active and retired professionals, who offered their availability as mentors last year. These mentors in doing so have themselves answered a call to service. Just as this is a way for a program to help younger people find their way, so too is WCUC a place that helps us find our way in support of God’s call. I know Jane would have been pleased.

This November, we are sharing stories of why members and friends of WCUC are a part of this community.

I love WCUC because of its community and opportunity for involvement. Our church welcomes everyone with open arms, and the congregation is filled with people who genuinely care and accept you for who you are. This attitude translates to what the church does outside of worship, which includes service projects, involving congregation members of all ages, that help many different people and organizations.

The story of the Widow’s Two Mites puzzled me when, as a young child, I first heard it. That an adult might have only two small coins to her name was hard to believe. Yet the real point of the story was clear: She “cast in all that she had.”

I was fortunate to grow up in a household where the principle of giving was the foundation of how my parents lived. Not only did they devote themselves to caring for others—Dad was a rural general practitioner working literally 24/7, Mother ran the office while managing the household (including six children). They also explicitly subscribed to the principle of tithing, though for them giving away a tenth was a mere baseline. Even tithing falls far short of what that nameless Widow did. My parents basically took 10% off the top and only then thought about what the family could afford.My good fortune lay in being taught that what we had and what we “deserved” were not the same. God’s gifts to us were meant to be shared. I still believe this.

The urge to share begins with seeing the world around us as God’s creation. We did nothing to earn this, let alone deserve it: God gave it to us. Surely that’s reason enough to give—to share with those more needy, to participate in making God’s world reflect that of God in each of us. In church, especially at this time of year, we call this “Congregational Giving.”

Like many children, my siblings and I were given weekly allowances. You’ll get some idea how old I am when I tell you mine for some time was 25?! Of that it was understood that 10? was to go in the church collection plate (a whopping 40%, but still far short of the Widow’s Standard). I cannot claim I have kept up the 40% rate—but my understanding of stewardship grew apace. I saw my parents additionally devoting incalculable amounts of time, energy, and talent to the church, but also to numerous other causes and projects that lifted them beyond themselves.

Parental modeling taught me that we have—by the grace of God—in order to share. Crucial to the Widow’s Legacy is that giving matters and that no gift is too small. Giving, sharing, supporting each other: This is surely what turns a group of individuals into a community of God’s people.

This November, we are sharing stories of why members and friends of WCUC are a part of this community.

We attend this church to be part of a community where we are inspired to do greater good. Our church is a community where individuals are cared for, gifts are used effectively, and we are challenged to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. WCUC is a place where people can engage in enriching, rewarding relationships, learning about others and living life together, through good times and bad. At church we find God during Sunday services, but also at other times, during random interactions with fellow parishioners, whether we are sharing music, coffee, or paperwork. We have opportunities to serve and be served by people of all ages and backgrounds. Church brings a message of hope that we happily share with our congregation.

I’m fairly new to this church, but so far it’s been how I think religion should be: welcoming to everyone. I grew up in another Christian tradition, and early this year I began feeling uncomfortable with the homophobia I saw during a church event. No matter what they told me, I couldn’t shake the idea that this went against God’s intention of being loving and accepting of all people. So I began searching, and with a little time, I found a place that was close by and Open and Affirming: WCUC.

So when I got the chance, I went to experience worship hour. It was what I’d hoped for: a good atmosphere, nice people, and a safe place. It was loving and respectful, not harsh and judgmental. I have always liked singing: it’s one of my favorite ways to worship God, and I loved that aspect. I eventually began feeling differently about Sunday mornings: I could treat them as a positive thing, and look forward to it rather than feeling dread. This year, I’ve been closer to God than I’ve ever been, and as I’ll talk about soon, I see Him almost everywhere.

I soon had the opportunity to join youth group, and it’s one I’m glad I took. We read passages from the Bible, often following a theme, and they get me really thinking about God and the world and what I can do to make it better. We recently did the Crop Walk, and since that and the talks we’ve done about hunger, I’ve been trying not to take everything I have for granted because otherwise I won’t recognize when people need help.

And as for where I see God: I see Him in so many places. I’m a photographer, and I see Him in everything that I try to capture, especially the things like dead plants that tend to get overlooked, but are just as beautiful as everything else when in the right light. And I see Him in the kids I babysit, who are so genuinely accepting and kind to everyone they meet. I see him in good people, and in places like this where His mission is carried out. I see him in the little things, in the places I sometimes have to look twice at to truly notice.

Recently, I have been thinking of my life as a collection of chapters of relative equilibrium and predictability interspersed with transitional periods when my life is less settled. It is during these periods of transition that I have felt the Holy Spirit’s presence more fully in my life. It seems that Holy Spirit serves as a guide and support during periods of disequilibrium and change in my life. Right now, I am in a period of transition. This transition resulted from a combination of factors. In September, our youngest child left to go to college so that my husband and I are experiencing being empty-nesters after 24 years of the joys and challenges of raising three children. In addition, I made the decision to leave my teaching career after 29 wonderful years of working in boarding schools as a math teacher and dorm supervisor. This change in my work has resulted in a significant change in lifestyle. We no longer live on campus in a dormitory and I no longer have the constant human contact and heavy demands associated with living and working in a close-knit boarding school community.

This transition period has been hard for me at times and wonderful at other times. It seems to me that every major transition in my life has been accompanied by both losses and by opportunities for growth. I am grieving the loss of the community in which we lived for so many years and the loss of the presence of our children at home. However, this transition period has allowed me the opportunity to explore my interests and passions and consider various paths for my next career. Imagining my future work is both nerve-wracking and exciting. There are practical considerations, like health insurance and mortgage payments, but there is also an opportunity for me to reach inside of myself and clarify my values and priorities for my life ahead. I have appreciated the love and support of my husband, my children, my friends and this church community as I grapple with these issues. Through these relationships in my life, the Holy Spirit is working in me to allow me the space and time to grieve the losses and to guide me and hold me as I reflect and discern. The Holy Spirit’s presence is helping me to have the courage, calm and energy I need to embrace fully this transition period and plan for the next chapter in my life. I feel very grateful for this love and spiritual support in my life.

When I was a little girl, I used to love listening to my mother practice her church anthems. God spoke to me through the beauty of her singing. To a child with an older father and a mother with a failing heart, God was my permanent heavenly Father…”Jesus loves you, yes!!!” that early Sunday school hymn. He let me know that I had strengths and weaknesses but that with His care I would be all right.

My need for closeness to God has kept me thirsting for spirituality and music. I’ve shared the company of Episcopal, Presbyterian, Congregational, Unitarian pastors, choirs over the years and thanks to WCUC have returned to the Congregational fold.

Five years ago my husband was diagnosed with Alzheimers which we managed for quite a while with adult day care and aides. I stopped going to church. When it became impossible to care for Bob at home, he was evaluated at Metro West and after a week placed at Beaumont in Natick. Several choir members and volunteer singers came and sang with the patients. I loved singing” Amazing Grace” with them and knew I would return to church.

My experiences visiting the Alzheimer’s units at Beaumont and now at the VA in Bedford has enriched my life and given me a deeper faith in the goodness of people and in our purpose on earth. At these facilities, I met beautiful people from many countries: aides, nurses and dear, sometimes funny, sometimes frightened patients that you just had to love. Watching all the nurses, aides, daughter’s and wives, care for these childlike elders, made the gentle kindness of Jesus come alive for me. Alex dancing Marie to her room, Silvia singing to Jack as she dressed him, holding a hand and telling her that you loved her too.

Paraphrased from a writing by Maya Angelo. “ I’ve learned that everyday you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug or pat on the back. I’ve learned that people forget what you said but will never forget how you made them feel.” I pray that all these dear ones feel Jesus Love through kindnesses and when the priest comes to bless them, that they will all believe and not fear the passing.

WCUC has the same beautiful people. I love coming into such a sharing and caring community and want to grow more to be like you.

Back when we all had screen names, mine was “Churchlady.” In fact, I still use “Churchlady” as my laptop password. I took the name mostly as a light-hearted reference to that old Dana Carvey character on Saturday Night Live. Dana, himself, had been a member of our former Lutheran church in San Mateo as a boy, so our congregation had a lot of fun with the character. With her buttoned up manner and her single strand of pearls, we were pretty sure she was Old School Lutheran. And we loved her.

But the term “Church Lady” has another, fonder meaning for me. Not the character of comedy, but the real women and men throughout my life who, in one way or another, helped grow me into who I am. I visited one of my Church Ladies about six weeks ago while back in my hometown – her name happens to be Ruth, as well. She is now 96 years old, legally blind, and living in an assisted living facility, but she knew me immediately. She had been my Junior High and Senior High School Sunday School teacher – so you know already that there is a special place in heaven for her.  As far back as I can remember, she could make me feel special with just her smile. Even after I graduated, she followed and prayed for my life. She invited my boyfriend and me to her home. She helped serve the sliced ham and macaroni salad at our church basement wedding reception. Even after all these years, I am still “one of her own.”

The best part of my visit with her last month was having the opportunity to tell my Church Lady how much I love her. What a difference her faith and honesty and unconditional love have made in my life. I told her about the importance of the church in my life, and I told her about my “churchlady” password. God was in the room as we laughed together.

I tell you this, partly as a testament to the power of a spiritual mentor in the life of a kid – because it IS so significant – but mostly to admit that I’ve never outgrown my need for one. I want to tell you that God continues to touch me in the most precious ways through my interactions with YOU, my church men, ladies, and children. When Dave was trying to outrun a cancer that seemed to run always just a little faster, God said “Don’t worry; I got this,” … and God’s voice sounded at lot like yours. When my grandchildren snuggle and wiggle, and sing hymns as best they can, and say “the bread of life” and ”the cup of blessing” to each other during worship, God smiles … and God’s face looks a lot like yours. When I face difficult conversations with loved ones, as I’ve done recently, God’s hand steadies me … and God’s touch feels a lot like yours.

We are as God to one another. I guess a person could do life without the support of church people, but I’m glad I’ve never had to. I praise God today for God’s presence in my life through you. May you wear your “churchlady” and “churchman” labels with pride. Amen.