Let us share the gifts to share, and accept the gifts of others gratefully and without judgment. Let us drink from the cup of life, in remembrance of all those who comprise life’s drink. Let us lift our eyes to the multitudes who have been, who are, and who have yet to be. Let it be not forgotten that what we deserve, others deserve also.
> > > > > ^ < < < < < It is said that the monuments of this world pass quickly away. Kingdoms fall, cities fall, dust and forest reclaim their own. Let us be good and true to one another, for ideals outlive transient things. Let us give and share and work with one another so that, long after our passing, it might be said: "They strived for what they believed in, and lived always according to the best that was in them." < < < < < ^ > > > > >
Each time we gather in faith, our thoughts are best able to reach for the stars when our feet are firmly planted on solid ground. (The Offering will now be received.)
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The wheel of each day brings us concerns, duties, moments grand and petty. Let us endeavor to remain centered before life’s distractions. Let us go about our business with cheer and industry. Let us return to our beds each night content, not with victory or defeat, but in the peace that comes of honest effort, sincerely given.
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Religious community does not just happen. Every church is a body of covenanted seekers, sharing their enthusiasm and their resources, their love and their substance, their inspiration and their perspiration.
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All that we possess, merely symbolizes who we are. Possessions may come to us as a result of our own hard labor or simple good fortune. There are, after all, forces affecting each life beyond manipulation or even understanding. When we donate to good cause, that too is a symbol: of our intent to be our best selves; of our dedication and vision; of possibilities sensed if not seen, reaching forward to a time beyond our own temporary life.