You are a congregation that has a long and very active history of responsiveness and mission-mindedness. So this Lent, I’m hoping you’ll join me in a small scale giving effort, so that together we can make a difference for others. I’ve attached a link for a Lenten Coin Calendar, which invites you to give coins daily according to different patterns—a coin for every box of cereal you have on one day, a coin for every flashlight the next. But even if you simply put in one coin each day during Lent, the coins will add up.

And on Easter Sunday, as part of our celebration of the Resurrection, we can bring all of those coins together. The funds will be pooled and counted, and together we can send the money to the Mission Barn, which has just purchased a necessary new facility, having outgrown the old. You may already know that the Mission Barn coordinates some of our Western Pennsylvania United Methodist disaster relief, including cleaning buckets and hygiene kits. They also build wheelchair ramps, so that people who need increased accessibility into their homes don’t have to go into debt to hire a contractor. Funding this new facility helps pay off the mortgage faster so that the Mission Barn can concentrate all of their funds on helping.

So your Lenten coin calendar will accomplish several things: it’s a daily gratitude practice (noticing what you have), it’s a way of coming together as a congregation over something that matters deeply, and it’s a way of honoring God by sharing the gifts you have been given. I look forward to seeing what we can do together.

I’ll see you in church—

Becky

https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/articles/coins-for-lent-2023?utm_source=Discipleship+Ministries+Email+Newsletters&utm_campaign=4dbb5e7595-Equipping+Disciples+8%2F5%2F21_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_f939527158-4dbb5e7595-416628792&mc_cid=4dbb5e7595&mc_eid=139d07c461

https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/gbod-assets/generic/LentenCoinCalendar_2023rev2.pdf

Prayer

God of love,

You invite us into relationship with you,

And you teach us to seek you in all things.

Help us to notice the many ways that you reach toward us

with love and blessing.

Help us to remember that you seek all people,

And teach us to seek their well-being alongside our own.

As we notice our gifts, and give you thanks,

Help us to share those gifts,

knowing that you love our neighbors too.

Help us to share your mercy and your love,

And teach us to live into our identity as your beloved children,

Learning to live as Jesus lived,

noticing, sharing, and blessing.

Amen.