Good morning church,
Would you believe it, there was a little patch of frozen water on my deck this morning, – pretty unusual for May 9! After a mild winter, we are getting some late frosts. I am attaching for you the picture of our Mother’s Day gift for you, for all of you. You can pick it up tomorrow morning at our drive-through at church between 11:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon. During this time of prolonged social distancing, we want to give people an opportunity to see their church and see some familiar faces at least once a month. The Mother’s Day gift is not just for the moms among us. It is for everyone, as we remember the special women in our lives who raised us. The seeds can be put into soil somewhere around your home; they will turn into beautiful flowers. The gift includes a marker. The bag comes with seeds, a marker, and a nice little sign that you can stick in the ground to remember your mother or grandmother. As we did on Palm Sunday, we ask that you enter from the upper Parking Lot (2nd Street) and exit on the lower Parking Lot (Montgomery Ave). There will also be an opportunity to drop off your church offering. I don’t know how many pictures were directly sent to Lisa M., but I am guessing that we received well over fifty beautiful pictures for our Mother’s Day picture show, our prelude to tomorrow’s service, posted at 9:00 a.m. Enjoy, it’s going to be fun!
In all the major newspapers there are remembrances of the 75th anniversary of the end of WW II. I always pay attention to those historical markers. This year it reminded me of the amazing speed with which my native country recovered from total destruction. I am grateful that Americans were kind and gracious enough to support that major rebuilding project, which also included the rebuilding of a functioning and stable democracy. It was an act of tremendous wisdom and reconciliation instead of revenge, which would have been understandable given the sacrifices that were made. I am pretty sure that none of the people who were left in ruins could have hoped for such an outcome at the time. And now, in this time of uncertainty, job losses and recession, it reminds me that communities can recover pretty quickly if we all work together. I was born 22 years after the end of that war and while my family wasn’t affluent, we lacked nothing important.
Sadly, yesterday our dear church member and friend Lois G. died. She had lived at the Willow Court Personal Care Facility in Springhouse Estates. A few weeks ago she had been diagnosed with COVID 19, but her symptoms were very mild and she later tested negative. Lois died of health complications that she had endured for a number of years. The sad part is that everybody was so isolated during this time. Her three children were able to visit with her once last week as her health visibly declined, which provided at least some comfort. Lois was a great lady. She sang in our church choir for many years with her beautiful soprano voice. She was married to Pastor Fred G. for over sixty years; he went home to the Lord last year. She missed him terribly and I can still remember her calling him “Frederic!” (It usually meant he was in trouble.) There will be a graveside service for family only next Saturday, May 16, in the cemetery of former Zion Lutheran Church in Flourtown. Fred was pastor of that church for a long time. Lois leaves behind her three children – Lisa, Kirsten and Ethan, several grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. She was 87 years old. May she rest in peace!
I want to thank MaryAnn L. She sent me a small bag with home-made cloth masks, crosses featured on them, in light blue for hope. They are much better than what we had at home. Thank you, Maryann, that was very thoughtful and helpful!
Today is the birthday of Annaliese C. Happy birthday, Annie!!!
Later today, at 1:00 p.m. we will have our first-ever virtual new member orientation. Here is the Zoom invitation:
I hope today will be as nice as it looks right now.
Be blessed and be safe! Pastor Andreas Wagner