First Congregational Church UCC Harwich

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Pastor’s January Newsletter

January 7, 2014 by FCCH Staff

For years my pat response to questions about our seasonal New England weather is to say that I like winter…until I don’t.

Maybe I’m weird, but I like the cold weather, the dim overcast skies, and even the early dark! (My favorite temperature this time of year is 25 degrees!) I think of those old European paintings of a simple thatched-roof cottage set at night in a snowy forest, with smoke drifting out of its chimney, and a yellowish glow emanating from its windows. It speaks of hearth and home, of the warm and cozy, of inner light.

It stands in studied contrast to the bleached out, burned out days of summer, of the blazing sun’s sheer relentlessness and unyielding tenacity. Winter, instead, bequeaths clouds both moody and complex, along with the contemplative interplay of a wan sky and the hushed earth, yielding a multiplicity of shades, both light and dark.

It is a time to consider, to step back for but a moment to assess our otherwise distracted lives, to let God intercede for us while our defenses are momentarily down. It is a time to connect with what is most basic, God, family, and, not to put too fine a point on it, what is most meaningful in life, to question why we are even here, and what our true purpose might be.

This, along with the greater than normal expectations of the Christmas/Epiphany season – of togetherness, happiness, and wholeness – can make it a difficult time. For when we step back to actively listen to our lives, and if they are found wanting in whatever way, our sense of isolation and distress can be greatly magnified.

Yet this season is premised on the sure belief that the light of God has come into our darkened world, ready to transform it, and us, in ways that reflect God’s heavenly glory. And the darkness, we are assured, shall not overcome it. In this is renewal, and hope, born of the simple promise of God’s steadfast, unending love. Even the soon-to-be burst of springtime colors, sights, and sounds is implicit in this improbable time. And our consolation is to be found therein.

Grace and peace,

Thomas C. Leinbach, Pastor

Filed Under: Letter

Sunday Worship

We are an Open and Affirming congregation of the United Church of Christ.

During the health pandemic, we invite worshippers to join us on Sundays at 10:30 am. We meet in safety for a 45-minute service on our (encrypted) video-conference platform.

How to Find Us

Past Sermons

Sermon: Plan? What Plan?

December 27, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Worry, Be Happy

December 18, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Thoughts for 3 a.m.

December 11, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: The Moods of Christian Life

December 5, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Who Are We to Judge?

November 27, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Keeping One’s Marbles amid the Whistling Tree Frogs

November 20, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Interpreting the Bible

November 7, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Luther, Schmuther!

October 30, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: A Mechanistic God

October 16, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Knowing Who We Are

October 12, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: The Freedom of Constraint

October 2, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Daytime TV and Bonbons

September 25, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Mind Your Own Knitting

September 18, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Stasis, Novelty or Reform

September 11, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Decisions, Decisions

September 5, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Everyone’s Got One

August 28, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Self-Righteousness, Othering, and Violence

August 21, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Oh, This!

August 14, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: From Heel to Healer

August 8, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Unexpectedly

July 31, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Surviving Hope

July 25, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Prevenient Grace

July 17, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: The Strange Persistence of Guilt

July 11, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Freedom

July 3, 2017 By FCCH Staff

Sermon: Looking for the Lord

June 26, 2017 By FCCH Staff

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