The Wired Word for 05/17/2026  🔗 **Source:** [The Wired Word for 05/17/2026]() > [!note]+ Document Notes > tags: > - #ChurchChange > - #PostCovidMinistry > - #PracticalTheology > Author: The Wired Word editorial team > Source: The Wired Word weekly adult curriculum (email lesson) > Reference: “How Churches Changed Since the Pandemic,” The Wired Word for May 17, 2026 > date created: {{date:YYYY-MM-DD}} {{time:HH:mm}} > --- > # Title: How Churches Changed Since the Pandemic – The Wired Word 05/17/2026 > ## Table of Contents: > - [📝 Summary](#-summary) > - [📖 Main Content](#-main-content) > - [🗒️ Notes](#-notes) > - [🧐 Theological Framework Analysis](#-theological-framework-analysis) > - [🏛️ Historical and Cultural Context](#-historical-and-cultural-context) > - [📜 Scriptural References and Interpretation](#-scriptural-references-and-interpretation) > - [⚖️ Logical and Rhetorical Analysis](#-logical-and-rhetorical-analysis) > - [💡 Practical Theology and Ethics](#-practical-theology-and-ethics) > - [📝 Comparative Analysis](#-comparative-analysis) > - [🌍 Global and Ecumenical Perspectives](#-global-and-ecumenical-perspectives) > - [🔄 Change Over Time](#-change-over-time) > - [🎯 Author's Goals and Audience](#-authors-goals-and-audience) > - [📖 References](#-references) > - [🗣️ Paraphrase](#-paraphrase) > - [📰 Newsletter](#-newsletter) > - [🧪 Hypotheses](#-hypotheses) > - [📊 Methodology](#-methodology) > - [❓ Questions](#-questions) > - [🔮 Future Research](#-future-research) > - [💡 Implications](#-implications) > - [🧠 Learning Styles Assessment](#-learning-styles-assessment) > - [📊 Accessibility Assessment](#-accessibility-assessment) > - [🌍 DEIB Assessment](#-deib-deib-diversity-equity-inclusion-and-belonging-assessment) > - [✅ Logical Validity](#-logical-validity) > - [🎯 Conclusion](#-conclusion) > --- > ## 📝 Summary: > The lesson connects post‑Covid congregational research with biblical narratives about change. Drawing on the EPIC project, it notes increased in‑person attendance after decades of decline, widespread adoption of livestreaming, and an influx of newcomers that catalyzes change. It frames pandemic disruption as an opportunity for Spirit‑led transition, using Abraham, Esther, Jesus’ wineskins, and Christ’s constancy to invite churches to embrace innovation while trusting God’s unchanging faithfulness. > --- > ## 📖 Main Content: > The lesson opens with an invitation to a combined class and Pentecost teaching, then summarizes research from the EPIC project at Hartford Institute for Religion Research on how congregations changed after Covid‑19, including online worship, attendance trends, and clergy and congregational adaptation ([research summary](https://read.readwise.io/read/01krkg27d5c3vdt8671bx0e81r?endLexposition=00000_0000H_00001_00000_00000-000K&startLexposition=00000_00000&emphasizeText=surveyed+thousands+of+church+attendees+across+more+than+80+denominations+to+explore+how+congregational+life+has+changed)). It highlights that around 75% of congregations embraced livestreaming, benefiting homebound, neurodivergent, and otherwise marginalized participants ([inclusivity of online worship](https://read.readwise.io/read/01krkg27d5c3vdt8671bx0e81r?endLexposition=00000_0000B_00000-005S&startLexposition=00000_00008&emphasizeText=neurodivergent+...+can+come+into+the+space+and+not+be+threatened)). > The article notes that while most still prefer in‑person worship, a significant minority regularly engages digitally. It cautions against using in‑person attendance as a “litmus test for devotion,” using a sports‑fan analogy, and underscores that many churchgoers have changed congregations or become new converts since the pandemic, bringing energy and openness to change ([newcomers as catalysts](https://read.readwise.io/read/01krkg27d5c3vdt8671bx0e81r?endLexposition=00000_0000H_00001_00000_00000-000K&startLexposition=00000_0000C&emphasizeText=Newcomers+typically+bring+fresh+energy+and+insights)). > Abbie Sharpe’s reflections on change as God‑given and growth‑oriented are used to set a theological frame: change can draw believers closer to Jesus and deepen trust in God’s promises in uncertainty ([three truths about change](https://read.readwise.io/read/01krkg27d5c3vdt8671bx0e81r?endLexposition=00000_0000Q_00000-001t&startLexposition=00000_0000I&emphasizeText=Change+is+how+God+made+the+world%2C+and+while+change+forces+us+into+the+unknown)). A set of “Big Questions” invites reflection on how specific congregations changed during the pandemic, how people’s participation shifted, what is irreplaceable about in‑person church, and how openness to innovation can be sustained. > The second half of the lesson “confronts the news with Scripture and hope,” moving through key biblical texts. Genesis 12 portrays Abraham’s call to leave the familiar without a map, modeling faith that trusts God with radical transition. Esther 4 frames Esther’s vulnerable position and call to risk as an example of being placed “for such a time as this,” especially in settings of oppression and threat ([Esther’s story re‑read as oppression narrative](https://read.readwise.io/read/01krkg27d5c3vdt8671bx0e81r?endLexposition=00000_0000X_00000-007l&startLexposition=00000_0000W_00000_00000_00001&emphasizeText=became+queen+through+what+today+might+be+called+a+sex+trafficking+ring)). > Mark 2’s “new wine in new wineskins” is applied to church practices that once nourished but no longer do so, inviting discernment about what needs to change to make space for new life‑giving ministry ([wineskins and change](https://read.readwise.io/read/01krkg27d5c3vdt8671bx0e81r?endLexposition=00000_0000e_00003-0002&startLexposition=00000_0000b&emphasizeText=What+practices+and+ideas+that+once+served+Christians+well+may+no+longer+nourish+the+soul%3F)). Hebrews 13:8 anchors all this flux in the constancy of Christ, reinforced by hymn lyrics and 2 Timothy 2:13. A story from a TWW team member about rapidly pivoting to virtual worship shows these themes in practice. > The lesson adds an extended section of quotes from *The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse*, which serve as prompts around identity, belovedness, community, courage, and encouragement, functioning as a contemporary parable of “Beloved Community.” It ends with practical suggestions, including adapting expectations, re‑engaging present communities, remembering divine faithfulness, and a prayer to the “Changeless God” amidst upheaval ([prayer of trust in God’s constancy](https://read.readwise.io/read/01krkg27d5c3vdt8671bx0e81r?endLexposition=00000_0001W_00000_00000-000Q&startLexposition=00000_0001Q&emphasizeText=Changeless+God%2C+thank+you+that+you+do+not+behave+in+arbitrary+ways)). > ### 🗒️ Notes > - **Pandemic impact & research** > - EPIC project surveyed thousands across 80+ denominations to track attendance, engagement, openness to change, and clergy well‑being ([research description](https://read.readwise.io/read/01krkg27d5c3vdt8671bx0e81r?endLexposition=00000_00007_00000-003k&startLexposition=00000_00000&emphasizeText=measured+trends+in+worship+attendance%2C+other+forms+of+commitment)). > - 75% of congregations adopted livestreaming; this broadened access, especially for homebound, immunocompromised, travelers, and neurodivergent people. > - In‑person attendance rose for the first time in 25 years but remains uneven; in‑person presence is not equated with devotion. > - About 40% of attendees joined their church in the past five years; nearly 10% are new converts, bringing fresh openness to change. > - **Theology of change** > - Abbie Sharpe: change is part of God’s design, sign of growth, opportunity for new experiences, and a prompt to trust God more deeply during uncertainty. > - The lesson states change is normal, inevitable, and sometimes painful, but can be navigated faithfully. > - Emphasis on using faith to trust God more fully in seasons of transition. > - **Reflection questions (Big Questions)** > - How each congregation changed during the pandemic; which shifts stuck. > - How individuals changed their participation and why. > - What is uniquely provided by in‑person church vs. online. > - How to cultivate lasting openness to innovation without requiring crisis. > - What spiritual truths sustain hope in transition. > - **Biblical case studies of transition** > - **Abra Dear Class Members, There is no Wired Word class this week. Please join us for a continental breakfast and discussion as we ccombine Sunday school classes and hear Pastor Caroline's lesson "What is Pentecost?" As we learn about how the church began, consider the research conducted on how congregations have changed since the Covid-19 pandemic to explore what our faith teaches us about navigating through life's transitions.  **How Churches Changed Since the Pandemic** ***The Wired Word*** **for the Week of May 17, 2026** **In the News** In late 2025, the Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations (EPIC) project at the Hartford Institute for Religion Research (HIRR) surveyed thousands of church attendees across more than 80 denominations to explore how congregational life has changed since the Covid-19 pandemic led to great restrictions on how people could interact with each other. The project measured trends in worship attendance, other forms of commitment to and engagement with congregations (such as volunteering and financial support), congregational openness to change, and clergy well-being. "Congregations have been through an extraordinary period of disruption," reported Dr. Allison Norton, co-investigator of the project. "Many have come out of it with greater clarity about who they are and what they're called to do." "Congregations don't like to change," said Scott Thumma, co-director of HIRR. "But what happened during the pandemic was this realization that, in fact, they were going to die if they didn't change. ... the pandemic made them break out of their old molds, try new things, and embrace this openness or this willingness to change." Thumma noted that almost 75% of congregations embraced online virtual livestreaming, which allowed homebound, immunocompromised, or traveling members to stay connected, and offered people looking for a spiritual home an anonymous way to check out a church before choosing to attend in person. "Or [anyone who is] neurodivergent ... can come into the space and not be threatened by it or overwhelmed by the smells or sounds," Thumma added. While three-quarters of churchgoers prefer attending services in person, more than a quarter participate in digital worship options regularly or occasionally. Families, younger adults, and people with work schedule conflicts find the opportunity to worship virtually appealing, when in-person participation is impossible or inconvenient. Worship attendance and connection to faith communities have been on a downward trajectory for decades, due to various societal forces, including sexual abuse scandals, financial fraud, changing demographics, and other factors. Recent research reveals that in-person worship attendance in American churches has increased for the first time in 25 years. But church leadership author Carey Nieuwhof suggested that in-person attendance should not be used as "a litmus test for devotion," any more than we would judge whether the only people who are true fans of a sports team are those who can afford to pay for tickets to sit in a stadium. About two in five surveyed church attenders joined their current congregation within the past five years. Many used the pandemic's stay-at-home period to reassess where their spiritual needs and personal goals might best be met, switching to new congregations. Nearly 10% were new converts. Newcomers typically bring fresh energy and insights, lowering resistance to change and becoming catalysts for new ministry forms and approaches. More on this story can be found at these links: [New Research Finds First Rise in U.S. Congregation Attendance in 25 Years, but Recovery Remains Uneven.](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPJ0RcXxonTjF8MGJRloh9uWt2tl8qGvnfztBzWFqg-2Fxto-2B0-2FLpcnKmf5IKQz1EfmovejwFqBC8rTtMMvND7hFWsi5jOb9SOwTER6kZR6Tlmfw4cG_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5kz10EA48LqL4aJltSUL7gCqp2g4tNGSqDWXjMwoUXP-2Bne1OZRfR3QXOiKVeTLu8-2BnwX-2BiaKabzU5wAgSmMEzDbz5WsPWI2FOefBmfaYxQOVZ-2F7TmP9KG71btLXFLj2rTyzc8OicDfH-2Bo70UH0kzh9o2zdxx9WHDKtw3xlcqzAhb0Z0zxMyySzEtazY8qlpykmL-2FKflNyWaUnHm0ITWa97s-3D) [*Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations*](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPJ0RcXxonTjF8MGJRloh9uWt2tl8qGvnfztBzWFqg-2Fxto-2B0-2FLpcnKmf5IKQz1EfmovejwFqBC8rTtMMvND7hFWsi5jOb9SOwTER6kZR6TlmfAGVr_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5p5t7RzZj6fu49qqDjpBqF7LgA-2BwyEzjpZrSrzt1I3tgednbs1Ff73YVxrzx6K2R1QJVpRGBtwoOjDjj9Z7S2tO54O1K-2BUtBLlxBEIdOtkN5tObnA6VkxEBmR12MulLD4a6JGAZYGS5XCeqIDBvXEbJsHaPA1VGDxNne8QGWZUyKt0l7nH-2B5i9cfHyAbJ4gxTcXhg4tEJPOOacbbOuFxGeo-3D) [Churches and Covid-19: Key Trends in Congregational Life Since the Pandemic.](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPNaxpwP-2BthoM18pT0J9QKRC8dPOOWd-2BvJAFU5aJkmVyGf1yIfYy5h1kVnifXyhH-2FxA-3D-3DKJy9_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5tSvNkw1v1WPkCrgRl5pg93-2BSUeift1koGybT0nd-2FgGJXn-2BLwMeK2bwv5vGX4K7eS3FyRun1-2BOn-2BFhF4a0lUw7-2FUaDl1pb8EhL8vxfSkZMfkFZuvy7GLAuu42MK6JC4VsYrW-2FHBVlc7hujOwBaYoVY6V0MGZ2-2FyAMpoFfecXJLv4Asl7SMHq7BNDmbSvBxi6POjrey0b3o1L92jrd6ioJgA-3D) [*MDPI*](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPNaxpwP-2BthoM18pT0J9QKRC8dPOOWd-2BvJAFU5aJkmVyGf1yIfYy5h1kVnifXyhH-2FxA-3D-3DqG9r_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5iM4dZZ84CPuX2djjAW-2Bn8FoGguRX7UmZKi7C-2BYRVzuK5wlNY4c9r9uHE8FLZNXItwZuqId3io-2BstHWxdCt4zGGq-2FOiY6lsQEwGloQdrMF67GmzwIFNiohhKNz0DXw7rCkA3D4wh9Z2iU7i9fwo-2BoV-2F-2BU70-2FSvFKzyGYy-2FdTQ0OEHlxNc4R7lOebB0bAh0pGA7-2Fv82-2BYCYMSDfl3bANzr6o-3D) [Five Years After the Start of the Covid Pandemic, Here Are Three Ways Congregations Continue to Be Affected.](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPLTFfUZA1L-2F9ggeclJtTK7W-2BRS5Fd6m3Js0JRp07jksnXWjsWeiNbP6reTn87F-2F7c1DFEmbrrmMw-2B8QydmvM-2Bi4zRSbov2hf4FJOs1WXVDHmatW9cWT2UhKjFmVW9Iqcf1pOXmg0waFBEFsEKS9V6T4fJ-2FW1r8OnCW1YWXUUF4IEowQU_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5l0Ti5j0aU3J2g7tlqVY4XUt8xaR-2F5P-2FHOs30-2Fe9cxCKmVOARw5wmjGuSEb-2BhLhSr8KSdlekI3tPMY5eWlZNGICvudFkAjIOEf-2BHXLAv8kAL6AefiaqIVgt6t-2Fie39xva3NAGvsEC00orO2soDh9FXnlo2D2iK4a-2Bln5KukJSUqjNnLWnhaJ2D0uAIKeEmuE87NUkNQNbAbgHUm4jUPHT0Q-3D) [*Faith and Leadership*](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPLTFfUZA1L-2F9ggeclJtTK7W-2BRS5Fd6m3Js0JRp07jksnXWjsWeiNbP6reTn87F-2F7c1DFEmbrrmMw-2B8QydmvM-2Bi4zRSbov2hf4FJOs1WXVDHmatW9cWT2UhKjFmVW9Iqcf1pOXmg0waFBEFsEKS9V6T4fJ-2FW1r8OnCW1YWXUUF4IErDx4_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5jOY2leQLVPEhsUnK5QrXkBCB0Z3TSyUzvPNePxg-2FM23Bc4urs6Kns7y6KWIgjMA7Ck3t81CHEeo9dVDu5v-2F7xciTGv2hVmy-2B3JsRV4Gbl-2FMu8F2qwHWpjvidutM4ERHT8n85e6X8QuPqrkZnqa-2F5Z9ogtjWnK5Dn58yE1Omt0YIfwriVseJMGrMmdIBye1IOkuFIKF69yHzqhsKQDi-2FVhE-3D) [5 Years Later: America Looks Back at the Impact of Covid-19/How the Covid-19 Pandemic Affected U.S. Religious Life.](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPCfhlFgA3XkLL-2FQ1xTwG0fjUBqF1CGE1z0A3dYYobhrPZamP7MxnCxbVSt6J7aLNQFZ8p7R-2FQYVV-2FqwLt8BrsUGVOk7-2F3ynFXv3NeFSBvToEABeWMuSrtuHHfF8vh15Lxg-3D-3D2pmY_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5oUqAHdFi0ADBQ9rP-2F71au2az1SLboDGOfrOsC3QQWGNnBhsDE5fcYp0rcCjHdAr29SZZcvzBLgHlpy062YSnZvZdy-2FDpxl-2BVLGQKcgyYTSioZiO-2F8eE4jHQ7j-2B8LQ8XmvpWlWisYdj-2F0ZrjjhiphWmFX7PTgz0knd5HkWDW8hX5Y48AJahOts6lNYM8rUC372to6enC-2FP70yiagEgUSvU4-3D) [*Pew Research Center*](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPCfhlFgA3XkLL-2FQ1xTwG0fjUBqF1CGE1z0A3dYYobhrPZamP7MxnCxbVSt6J7aLNQFZ8p7R-2FQYVV-2FqwLt8BrsUGVOk7-2F3ynFXv3NeFSBvToEABeWMuSrtuHHfF8vh15Lxg-3D-3D_fT5_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5kyem1hQrHd8LJwJaiUgiuxTBzuXmfkj3TYJVVUUkHVsYM7ymidILJvUWuXHz9-2B2DcEB-2BINU-2FUN3LznPIVf-2Bzbrjf9XIs1-2BAwQHu9b-2F5jY5Uh8-2BVIyOPj0QFO8uIP-2BjUeIbxGGTfWvXp4x0yJywnIoR0wTRYrV3Ct9ZvM0AMa-2FsUQO4kRe8OBV1wOD0b2QZfG5rn-2B7x-2BXz0g2rfRiO4MkVI-3D) **Applying the News Story** In her article, ["Three Truths to Help Us Embrace Change,"](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPFwwghD6dEOfV2gBz7cZvHfBY6B7MFUXUj2wBkCDtd7zfRVOmDc0pO1A7rmgjjBMqV-2BM5xFsffwGofitpWXJA8I-3DBI50_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5qTDeO1rAw7VGG0e-2BnH16ssQRiV2D-2BflHX6VGaC19-2FXQXI3OBpgAIfndrz4HO5zdQIdakseLULwkoweBJiSah0gknifxN8sX4kDul3746PtmepgWMfEof5F-2BiVKnd6PbX0eAC0eswqcgD2cCOxdnDM4LDvwsI5PpYRWlJJgTfwOlFPZxyMsaN0oiziS-2BEaib9pdRg9KI9jg18uXrs99JN7k-3D) Abbie Sharpe writes, "Change is how God made the world, and while change forces us into the unknown, change isn't something we have to fear. ... Change is a sign of growth. ... an opportunity for new experiences. ... Change draws us closer to Jesus. ... Use times of uncertainty to trust God and his promises. ..." Change is normal, necessary and inevitable. Some change we welcome, but other change we may find unpleasant, even painful and unwanted. We can resist change, or choose to move forward into whatever change may entail. Let's explore ways our faith can help us learn to trust God more fully in times of transition. **The Big Questions** 1. How did your congregation change in the wake of the pandemic? Which shifts were temporary, and which have become permanent? 2. How, if at all, did you change how you participated in church activities in the past several years, and what prompted those changes? 3. What do people need from their own church that they can't get online? Compare and contrast the benefits and disadvantages of in-person versus virtual participation in church life. 4. How can congregations cultivate a sustained openness to innovation that doesn't require the catalyst of a crisis? 5. What spiritual truths sustain you and give you hope in times of transition? **Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope**Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion: **Genesis 12:1, 4***Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. ..." So Abram went, as the LORD had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.* (For context, read [Genesis 12:1-9](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxdxvwvUIbrGNsYJ-2B9LkHJNYJKmFd-2BQhWZfz4MlmcJjG6PUPIbL8YSxKTHhUAoW2L8UWdo_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5qtMtLY-2BGdxYZjvO5wqNsaTQ3QqEHruwvCLBKLKal7bWHsAbnPkx-2B1Dwk0Qmn3jCixcUwLveZuEvIAobObmW31eqXUig-2BhajqfsOEy20Il3yKkM9kLDf-2B0HvnEV5Ztf-2BwZEeRQo-2BuYi5QSqcEY805C-2FmbT3Q-2FvAP2IJ5hdFizalOeqkiLd4ks5e5G6FgBFuFQKEHi0HfX4ma945RLQA8t3Y-3D).) God promised to make Abraham (Abram) a great nation, to bless him and make him a blessing. But before Abraham could receive those blessings, he had to be willing to leave everything that was familiar, home, country and family, to follow where God would lead him. He had no map, no itinerary, no compass. All he had was God's promise to show him the way to a new land. The writer of the book of Hebrews says, "By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance, and he set out, not knowing where he was going" (Hebrews 11:8). > **Questions:** When, if ever, have you found it necessary to make a major change in your life, in order to discover some new purpose God had for you? What challenges did you face while making that transition? What role did faith play in that experience? How did God bless you and make you a blessing to others as you followed the leading of the Spirit? **Esther 4:13-14***Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, "Do not think that in the king's palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this."* (For context, read [Esther 4:6-17](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxxXPNpVHit5-2BPG0H6e8QLgYc9S2FRNZLso3auKojy7eu8HkmutFdsofviCtY2DIrq1ggd_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5iTnZFdX18Jh8AJH37fQg1CbiSbl646RJ0x9eTveYqVD72mA9wOdPRjyljNry3kzX-2F3JCS8ZUTuRXsL4zCVLbHqKGgSj6dzG9ks2WAn8Q4erXDf0Rtiehn0mUxmeYspXPeNUyESWXtDnsZXZtKLNs5VMRX8vn6btOaStSwOl2hpI3xWoTBBG9l7y7t-2BDNv7k7E18TlpbeR-2BLyitz63cl704-3D).) The story of Esther reads like the narrative of an oppressed people. She was an orphan, raised by Mordecai, without even the right to her own Hebrew name (Hadassah). Scripture tells us they had been ripped from their home in Judah and carried off to Babylon. Then she was added to the king's harem (without any right to refuse the "honor") and became queen through what today might be called a sex trafficking ring (unless we would prefer the euphemistic term, "a beauty pageant"). On top of that, her people were targeted by a high-ranking official for elimination by genocide. Esther's first thought was of self-preservation: She knew that if she went to the king without having been summoned by him, she risked her life for her presumptiveness. But she began to believe that God might have placed her in her high position "for just such a time as this." > **Questions:** When the pandemic began, what were your concerns? Could you see any sense of purpose for you to be living in such a tumultuous time of change? If so, how would you describe that purpose? **Mark 2:21-22***[Jesus said,] "No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak; otherwise, the patch pulls away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. Similarly, no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost, and so are the skins, but one puts new wine into fresh wineskins."* (For context, read [Mark 2:18-28](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxkb2y3v2wTA3mWzql5ftOlTj9v7vj-2BkOULPOHpDFI5ar08N-2FxinNAZKBGMSbMspPR-37G_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5mSsT4-2BlIV0FIf-2BYfrPuA8ZBe-2BqkjyG7dX4JhBcb9cZBjh0rKSgJAYsIObTZxZBeYho-2Bkwktw5MqZWkxrYoUxCIQDWfubZiR9CbE9MQ-2FIU72FmhfOkImoUo2s6ePKik2STymm4DCj-2B5ObuTzS7BM6EtKLpVNV1Jn3phthLkwO2OAefwUBF9feKpr86gkpF1tjzlVvAcCjnmFSfFFzxzPtmg-3D).) Jesus uses these proverbs about patching a cloak and storing wine to illustrate a spiritual truth. People questioned his pedagogy and practices because they differed from what they expected from a rabbi. John's disciples and the Pharisees practiced fasting, but Jesus' disciples did not (v. 18). And when they were going through grain fields one Sabbath, Jesus' disciples began to pluck heads of grain, which the Pharisees considered a violation of laws against working on the Sabbath. Jesus wasn't against fasting, and certainly believed in keeping the Sabbath holy, but he reinterpreted those practices, which were meant to bring honor to God and rest, not added burdens, to God's creatures. > **Questions:** What practices and ideas that once served Christians well may no longer nourish the soul? How can churches make room for new life-giving insights and ways of being and doing ministry? **Hebrews 13:8** *Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.* (For context, read [Hebrews 13:5-8](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxfhOLPuUklFplPPD2VWbSPNs8xfjyoGJYdh0h5QHsSZLkOQhBWLfN7wwD46Vd2R-2BgZ4L1_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5plEfC-2FcqdxEwz2sd5z2xkptaPsM8nKMcnUNMCHqTpaoW1kn96V0SKJezdAL4SCm-2FMqf6zCALdFYvg0iG51-2F6KY0JlqT4NAmi923I81JBjCLGQ8o5x4okc6Jt-2F1JiI0-2Fw3pa-2BEl-2Fuw6RsTm8C8xxM5fa3mOZAAdWbJKU93qpZRJ-2B-2BMw-2B98JcaUR208EBInq47A9VyStE36kMZGG53VIfSPk-3D).) In the words of the hymnwriter, "On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand." This text reminds us that through all the changes of life, Christ is constant. Some have identified him with what the poet T.S. Eliot called "the still point of the turning world." His character doesn't change even when everything and everyone else does. He is not fickle or untrustworthy. As Paul says, "if we are faithless, he remains faithful -- he cannot deny himself" (2 Timothy 2:13). > **Questions:** If you fully embraced this truth, what difference would it make in how you live? In how you cope with upsets and upheavals? **For Further Discussion** 1. TWW Team Member Frank Ramirez offered this recollection about how the pandemic impacted their church: "The day before things shut down the church, board members and deacons met after worship and decided that the next Sunday, gloved individuals would hand out cookies and coffee. The next day we learned we could have a maximum of ten people in any meeting, and were to be masked and separated. By Thursday we went virtual, something we had never done. Because we had insufficient bandwidth for live streaming, the worship leader, two musicians and I entered by different doors, while the AV guy filmed the worship service, all of us distancing from each other. It was downloaded to Facebook Sunday morning. That virtual service continues to this day, even after we were finally able to resume in-person worship. In Revelation, the heavens are rolled back, and John the Revelator, from the prison island of Patmos, participates in virtual worship in heaven's court." 2. How might the tale of [The Boy, The Mole, The Fox, and The Horse](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPPXTV2R-2Bm0Kz58iOCQYIq19VN-2F5uPi6aoBUwvAYTOufu1RHF3ONnq-2BIAPhIS7OYLcQ-3D-3DZ6Fg_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5iAJw1Df1HPGkX5jLQucyiHTnUVlLTnRMZTIyGd0-2FrgC-2B0E6TK5pXbfTSYG9udhPwpA9iOTStNlE24szSguh0umPi-2BOK7r2CccrnzNDWowgfTjDrT-2FXS4vNJJ1ndGFZEGYE3TTxdAChSX5I1x-2FTEvMjL5mcbj8bNOrXFEuuFlkkSAeTWj9dl292RpE0E-2BD05OjhoVTxRumdg9ZZp7wCEw94-3D) (Video Audiobook 54:46) serve as a metaphor for the Beloved Community God is creating? 3. Which of these quotes from *The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse*, if any, reflect conversations you have had with the people of God? **Identity** 1. "Do you have any other advice?" asked the boy. "Don't measure how valuable you are by the way you are treated," said the horse. 2. "Always remember you matter, you're important and you are loved, and you bring to this world things no one else can." 3. "When things get difficult, remember who you are." "Who am I?" asked the boy. "You are loved," said the horse. 4. "Sometimes I think you believe in me more than I do," said the boy. "You'll catch up," said the horse. 5. "I'm so small," said the mole. "Yes," said the boy, "but you make a huge difference." 6. "Sometimes I worry you'll all realize I'm ordinary," said the boy. "Love doesn't need you to be extraordinary," said the mole. **Community, Love** 1. "This is easily my favorite place," said the mole. "Why?" asked the boy. "Because you are all here." 2. "Sometimes I want to say I love you all," said the mole, "but I find it difficult. ... so I say something like I'm glad we are all here." ... "We are so glad you are here, too," said the boy. 3. "What do you think success is?" asked the boy. "To love," said the mole. 4. "We don't know about tomorrow, all we need to know is that we love each other." 5. "So you know all about me?" asked the boy. "Yes," said the horse. "And you still love me?" "We love you all the more." 6. "You fell -- but I've got you." 7. "Life is difficult -- but you are loved." 8. "I've realized why we are here," whispered the boy. "For cake?" asked the mole. "To love," said the boy. "And be loved," said the horse. **Courage** 1. "Sometimes just getting up and carrying on is brave and magnificent," said the horse. 2. "What is the bravest thing you've ever said?" asked the boy. "Help," said the horse. "Asking for help isn't giving up. It's refusing to give up." **Encouragement** 1. "What do we do when our hearts hurt?" asked the boy. "We wrap them with friendship, shared tears and time, till they wake hopeful and happy again." 2. "I can't see a way through," said the boy. "Can you see your next step?" "Yes." "Just take that," said the horse. 3. "We have such a long way to go," sighed the boy. "Yes, but look how far we've come," said the horse. **Responding to the News** 1. Rather than focusing on the past, ask what God might want to teach us through this new experience. As cross-cultural worker Eva Burkholder wrote in [Embracing Inevitable Change](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPEp511HN2nZBjnkCqe8q8DS4YncrieoB4P-2BF7Jdro5MYsg42mJdhLAx2s52o9kcUYw-3D-3DJXm6_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5vmAS0odGUhAcprVsGvRWm-2FQTd2yYj8iJGW-2FOklapAp-2Fj1w2tuOFlDC8Il9zfunJsmPwz9Wl-2FyCfHv-2B31JxokjJ5mMVSQSxzv0Y8C9ATrbSdzsHpmfuhRDnrVbIqHBq9jLUJEHL4OX2eY0OIs-2Fyujlcdj0cCHLhstZZjQR9z3BnHo3OvGADwuWbZZhMhaMKOSfcAu2JELU5P8gdFhreDpR0-3D), "adapt your expectations" and "reengage," choosing to find joy in "what you have now and whoever is in your current community." 2. Read or sing together ["Great Is Thy Faithfulness"](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPDuIuAqj1aFAiBgIKlrBhVECj2DkLcGbf5lBivC5rUdXxOwdxtYJ7Y6g8BsPC6yalsixqve5UkIdt8T0eLqY9Ic-3D_dAN_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5qzlyFuW-2F2uq8UHGRhlPbOuctaanLkpUUqR8nykVHh78tgySQxbjD8hKIeYMgq55pUgAL2UN48KtH0k-2F3i7wrlnLA5dmk5ndXu9JMz6T6ziaoRhH42-2F1RgQe9x-2Bv-2FgEAqO6PAjT38aswCng9j0wntuV-2BXtnmV1Jr1fMmFhxmpSjSACLDL4s0DiolNXO9SDxdoo6M2xQvX2FuBlYJmgVeFI4-3D) or ["O God, Our Help In Ages Past,"](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPDuIuAqj1aFAiBgIKlrBhVGgRESnzBwuZLUN4K5P0cLvdrhoip4gECqREaQLF7m0Mj1i6YOuZvYhbN8f1fet99g-3DbQSQ_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5s-2FoQ4b0PbeNYFqlQYXICwko27dIFnr6wKolXRizXftajpXe3N-2Fnqtz6PWZFWv2XZS29efrH0b0zoKtFKDLMPB-2Fs7jySzJRcYaD4DCfS9VPsbI31SFTTjX1yrLHEcdBNfyeN2Dt2cCMnTQjcRjTeuATfqba1AtKcvn0pK2lJ0NufS-2BLO-2F3vULbm02tVNwLt8NyjkwoXf89VbtAOCp1KTHLA-3D) or listen to ["You Have Been Good,"](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPPXTV2R-2Bm0Kz58iOCQYIq1-2Fppcj5JrbT9CVZEfggybxqz4hKGo8Ol1PCpkCZ6-2BDuhw-3D-3Dl53H_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5qMdYY1iVJxreAd7fk9SD0OERNEnairnUU6GVPbqX8jZ8U5nHRBDju6wbbgwGJfVG29n7kV8iDvGHtHe1LicnEPPHdcnjG-2BHfkxmU30HZdaD4-2BtGtZjYmnePjMGZkj7-2FbORiYKkMDF9D-2FEWzp5c41u3B4Nb6-2FQhD058gGcchcAVQQjAsdTfy-2F05c-2BeJozQpejKXT-2B8T6c5sYqSSNvV-2FfiLI-3D) by Twila Paris, as you reflect on the faithfulness of God throughout the vicissitudes of life. **Prayer** suggested by [Malachi 3:6](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxDMgpQ-2BHG6czOM2FIIR2W5z6EqF8Gq4GBZ-2BLiMoU0GlDA1fJqm61ZklcqxousjK6Ickbc_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5qc9Flim0nhAAyOIcr9BSX09S8GWyV-2FxJKX-2Fv-2Bb5JvSmEn-2Bj3IyZ5EgktAZKAXnbPdIyaILD3OdWjks5Csn-2FHSY7hoxVAv-2FAZf5Bxw8A3YEqg8UOTJ45jfmS7x0htlbdMEQmLx5s83S9AKcQPF1pPbKseGfz6-2F6h3zM-2BwtTQlxDp-2FbiZqPROiAT740-2B2g8R1MHVkiXCVG7G4-2FAr-2B1XqoTWA-3D); [James 1:17](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxNIqZG-2B-2B-2BvBBz5qy3Z-2Fu6207l-2Fp-2BSctN4MYFxiKcSc3iVMXIeytYJS09wzhGvYrr9exYk_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5jCtgU5XX-2BnYnXx2U-2FvIgXoW97z3T1dYPuZUmYA1lBShc99vYMaIFDimJ7Ymexcytll1pvf5QeLhGu4NIeQbezg67KBu6CUAOAsfOHCzUIekEvwQB4V0wKwBCcznNNEfniuMUb9vcNEel3GM-2F0QMP-2BxEifXNgXaiGj9E67gEWwoeW93IQyfUNJ12pBD1up-2FLUkRlYCD3xF0nQycNmdhXCN8-3D); [Psalm 46:1-3](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxZDVUf-2FxEyKZ-2F-2F0bLo5JnGH8B19K8EoWwpHEsN1wSnlqL8m34z5fyY8Wf6dDBGRqtu_zF_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5txt8GqK4uAh-2BhMjkT7oP-2FdjoOygMFZo-2Bt2R5IfTAK2WvUgbQMYJLz1kivUxRfNZcHmLP9bULMELKXXKdpyqsjacB1if6T4I9WLWVqp0nUUlJAup9i6GBla8lKU7NSOu-2FvVQSNorPBsD1I6K7lSF19D11YyQ5515n9El8iGuuT-2Fk50OUzUQ-2FFaD942ae50KSiw0oSxbAqU8mSkuR-2Bx7Ib9s-3D) Changeless God, thank you that you do not behave in arbitrary ways, changing events like the phases of the moon or the weather or the seasons. You keep your promises, and are faithful and true. Teach us to trust you, and not to fear, though the earth change and the mountains fall into the sea. Amen! **Copyright 2026 Communication Resources** [Unsubscribe From This List](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/asm/unsubscribe/?user_id=14323725&data=H8BQ7YhvI1CxEge_9SHl7qDEwXZFekfuYRb_TWVscZRoMDAwdTAwMDtTDCtX1_IK8C0PHA40aWsY7yi7_JYyp23E7idrtxN5a7mduvQ7Pee5NR4fR-pPaHJylBojbA7hlFiuRNxgWe29z5Dkd_Oa_8GbDCbZCi6SUiBZ6tQ3wzTtwxs44xxHJynf4HFgS0wKolkYrYAG4nBP5D0ivfFTf79_nuPDP1K4bT7zGSNVFhXyjuRK1v31UmXT-SvJYym6fCYuo0mTktxop_KPNpFGyB8SFn7Yf9Jz1gN2XMtR9K1w6flE6MnwNWHuyRhNczbQVyokA-D3kFI7Xuw5iN0b_2-ftRJqepkD7a7dH-mTI9a69UR9ZWhYsse_oztLwn44mzf6EVONFh4CZvhENb0TcNvK5lxTtjYObIdSjOWJ86v8mbVzh6iyQniUPkkUCZwJKvA1KEUYlj-yMQN6k5lm888mP9hsF_PmnVUUbozT88_lwu9_UgJcDyyYI6XLxusw7Kqd1ZjzjQKVOloGCfSCHWCwJWAlD4ff5e87NrVsZ9V34eq2bMAUfdInwA1CRhBGncBQo1Zwx0RcCPJAN1lt8khkWnb_pv7AipN46NnncZ7pIW1R8T5v2JKGdrTH0AApyd1EnE1gwct5B2gVT2xKzhYp6_foxotf) <div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Dear Class Members,</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;">There is no Wired Word class this week. Please join us for a continental breakfast and discussion as we ccombine Sunday school classes and hear Pastor Caroline's lesson "What is Pentecost?" As we learn about how the church began, consider the research conducted on how congregations have changed since the Covid-19 pandemic to explore what our faith teaches us about navigating through life's transitions<span style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">. </span></p><br/><p align="center"><img alt="" src="https://www.thewiredword.com/\_img/tww\_logo\_email.jpg"/></p> <p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 18.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">How Churches Changed Since the Pandemic</span></strong></p> <p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">The Wired Word</span></em></strong><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;"> for the Week of May 17, 2026</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">In the News</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">In late 2025, the Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations (EPIC) project at the Hartford Institute for Religion Research (HIRR) surveyed thousands of church attendees across more than 80 denominations to explore how congregational life has changed since the Covid-19 pandemic led to great restrictions on how people could interact with each other. The project measured trends in worship attendance, other forms of commitment to and engagement with congregations (such as volunteering and financial support), congregational openness to change, and clergy well-being. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Congregations have been through an extraordinary period of disruption," reported Dr. Allison Norton, co-investigator of the project. "Many have come out of it with greater clarity about who they are and what they're called to do." </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Congregations don't like to change," said Scott Thumma, co-director of HIRR. "But what happened during the pandemic was this realization that, in fact, they were going to die if they didn't change. ... the pandemic made them break out of their old molds, try new things, and embrace this openness or this willingness to change."</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Thumma noted that almost 75% of congregations embraced online virtual livestreaming, which allowed homebound, immunocompromised, or traveling members to stay connected, and offered people looking for a spiritual home an anonymous way to check out a church before choosing to attend in person. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Or [anyone who is] neurodivergent ... can come into the space and not be threatened by it or overwhelmed by the smells or sounds," Thumma added. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">While three-quarters of churchgoers prefer attending services in person, more than a quarter participate in digital worship options regularly or occasionally. Families, younger adults, and people with work schedule conflicts find the opportunity to worship virtually appealing, when in-person participation is impossible or inconvenient. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Worship attendance and connection to faith communities have been on a downward trajectory for decades, due to various societal forces, including sexual abuse scandals, financial fraud, changing demographics, and other factors. Recent research reveals that in-person worship attendance in American churches has increased for the first time in 25 years. But church leadership author Carey Nieuwhof suggested that in-person attendance should not be used as "a litmus test for devotion," any more than we would judge whether the only people who are true fans of a sports team are those who can afford to pay for tickets to sit in a stadium.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">About two in five surveyed church attenders joined their current congregation within the past five years. Many used the pandemic's stay-at-home period to reassess where their spiritual needs and personal goals might best be met, switching to new congregations. Nearly 10% were new converts. Newcomers typically bring fresh energy and insights, lowering resistance to change and becoming catalysts for new ministry forms and approaches. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">More on this story can be found at these links:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPJ0RcXxonTjF8MGJRloh9uWt2tl8qGvnfztBzWFqg-2Fxto-2B0-2FLpcnKmf5IKQz1EfmovejwFqBC8rTtMMvND7hFWsi5jOb9SOwTER6kZR6Tlmfw4cG\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5kz10EA48LqL4aJltSUL7gCqp2g4tNGSqDWXjMwoUXP-2Bne1OZRfR3QXOiKVeTLu8-2BnwX-2BiaKabzU5wAgSmMEzDbz5WsPWI2FOefBmfaYxQOVZ-2F7TmP9KG71btLXFLj2rTyzc8OicDfH-2Bo70UH0kzh9o2zdxx9WHDKtw3xlcqzAhb0Z0zxMyySzEtazY8qlpykmL-2FKflNyWaUnHm0ITWa97s-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">New Research Finds First Rise in U.S. Congregation Attendance in 25 Years, but Recovery Remains Uneven. </span></a><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPJ0RcXxonTjF8MGJRloh9uWt2tl8qGvnfztBzWFqg-2Fxto-2B0-2FLpcnKmf5IKQz1EfmovejwFqBC8rTtMMvND7hFWsi5jOb9SOwTER6kZR6TlmfAGVr\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5p5t7RzZj6fu49qqDjpBqF7LgA-2BwyEzjpZrSrzt1I3tgednbs1Ff73YVxrzx6K2R1QJVpRGBtwoOjDjj9Z7S2tO54O1K-2BUtBLlxBEIdOtkN5tObnA6VkxEBmR12MulLD4a6JGAZYGS5XCeqIDBvXEbJsHaPA1VGDxNne8QGWZUyKt0l7nH-2B5i9cfHyAbJ4gxTcXhg4tEJPOOacbbOuFxGeo-3D"><em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations</span></em></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPNaxpwP-2BthoM18pT0J9QKRC8dPOOWd-2BvJAFU5aJkmVyGf1yIfYy5h1kVnifXyhH-2FxA-3D-3DKJy9\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5tSvNkw1v1WPkCrgRl5pg93-2BSUeift1koGybT0nd-2FgGJXn-2BLwMeK2bwv5vGX4K7eS3FyRun1-2BOn-2BFhF4a0lUw7-2FUaDl1pb8EhL8vxfSkZMfkFZuvy7GLAuu42MK6JC4VsYrW-2FHBVlc7hujOwBaYoVY6V0MGZ2-2FyAMpoFfecXJLv4Asl7SMHq7BNDmbSvBxi6POjrey0b3o1L92jrd6ioJgA-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Churches and Covid-19: Key Trends in Congregational Life Since the Pandemic. </span></a><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPNaxpwP-2BthoM18pT0J9QKRC8dPOOWd-2BvJAFU5aJkmVyGf1yIfYy5h1kVnifXyhH-2FxA-3D-3DqG9r\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5iM4dZZ84CPuX2djjAW-2Bn8FoGguRX7UmZKi7C-2BYRVzuK5wlNY4c9r9uHE8FLZNXItwZuqId3io-2BstHWxdCt4zGGq-2FOiY6lsQEwGloQdrMF67GmzwIFNiohhKNz0DXw7rCkA3D4wh9Z2iU7i9fwo-2BoV-2F-2BU70-2FSvFKzyGYy-2FdTQ0OEHlxNc4R7lOebB0bAh0pGA7-2Fv82-2BYCYMSDfl3bANzr6o-3D"><em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">MDPI</span></em></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPLTFfUZA1L-2F9ggeclJtTK7W-2BRS5Fd6m3Js0JRp07jksnXWjsWeiNbP6reTn87F-2F7c1DFEmbrrmMw-2B8QydmvM-2Bi4zRSbov2hf4FJOs1WXVDHmatW9cWT2UhKjFmVW9Iqcf1pOXmg0waFBEFsEKS9V6T4fJ-2FW1r8OnCW1YWXUUF4IEowQU\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5l0Ti5j0aU3J2g7tlqVY4XUt8xaR-2F5P-2FHOs30-2Fe9cxCKmVOARw5wmjGuSEb-2BhLhSr8KSdlekI3tPMY5eWlZNGICvudFkAjIOEf-2BHXLAv8kAL6AefiaqIVgt6t-2Fie39xva3NAGvsEC00orO2soDh9FXnlo2D2iK4a-2Bln5KukJSUqjNnLWnhaJ2D0uAIKeEmuE87NUkNQNbAbgHUm4jUPHT0Q-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Five Years After the Start of the Covid Pandemic, Here Are Three Ways Congregations Continue to Be Affected. </span></a><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPLTFfUZA1L-2F9ggeclJtTK7W-2BRS5Fd6m3Js0JRp07jksnXWjsWeiNbP6reTn87F-2F7c1DFEmbrrmMw-2B8QydmvM-2Bi4zRSbov2hf4FJOs1WXVDHmatW9cWT2UhKjFmVW9Iqcf1pOXmg0waFBEFsEKS9V6T4fJ-2FW1r8OnCW1YWXUUF4IErDx4\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5jOY2leQLVPEhsUnK5QrXkBCB0Z3TSyUzvPNePxg-2FM23Bc4urs6Kns7y6KWIgjMA7Ck3t81CHEeo9dVDu5v-2F7xciTGv2hVmy-2B3JsRV4Gbl-2FMu8F2qwHWpjvidutM4ERHT8n85e6X8QuPqrkZnqa-2F5Z9ogtjWnK5Dn58yE1Omt0YIfwriVseJMGrMmdIBye1IOkuFIKF69yHzqhsKQDi-2FVhE-3D"><em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Faith and Leadership</span></em></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPCfhlFgA3XkLL-2FQ1xTwG0fjUBqF1CGE1z0A3dYYobhrPZamP7MxnCxbVSt6J7aLNQFZ8p7R-2FQYVV-2FqwLt8BrsUGVOk7-2F3ynFXv3NeFSBvToEABeWMuSrtuHHfF8vh15Lxg-3D-3D2pmY\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5oUqAHdFi0ADBQ9rP-2F71au2az1SLboDGOfrOsC3QQWGNnBhsDE5fcYp0rcCjHdAr29SZZcvzBLgHlpy062YSnZvZdy-2FDpxl-2BVLGQKcgyYTSioZiO-2F8eE4jHQ7j-2B8LQ8XmvpWlWisYdj-2F0ZrjjhiphWmFX7PTgz0knd5HkWDW8hX5Y48AJahOts6lNYM8rUC372to6enC-2FP70yiagEgUSvU4-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">5 Years Later: America Looks Back at the Impact of Covid-19/How the Covid-19 Pandemic Affected U.S. Religious Life. </span></a><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPCfhlFgA3XkLL-2FQ1xTwG0fjUBqF1CGE1z0A3dYYobhrPZamP7MxnCxbVSt6J7aLNQFZ8p7R-2FQYVV-2FqwLt8BrsUGVOk7-2F3ynFXv3NeFSBvToEABeWMuSrtuHHfF8vh15Lxg-3D-3D\_fT5\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5kyem1hQrHd8LJwJaiUgiuxTBzuXmfkj3TYJVVUUkHVsYM7ymidILJvUWuXHz9-2B2DcEB-2BINU-2FUN3LznPIVf-2Bzbrjf9XIs1-2BAwQHu9b-2F5jY5Uh8-2BVIyOPj0QFO8uIP-2BjUeIbxGGTfWvXp4x0yJywnIoR0wTRYrV3Ct9ZvM0AMa-2FsUQO4kRe8OBV1wOD0b2QZfG5rn-2B7x-2BXz0g2rfRiO4MkVI-3D"><em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Pew Research Center</span></em></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Applying the News Story </span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">In her article, </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPFwwghD6dEOfV2gBz7cZvHfBY6B7MFUXUj2wBkCDtd7zfRVOmDc0pO1A7rmgjjBMqV-2BM5xFsffwGofitpWXJA8I-3DBI50\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5qTDeO1rAw7VGG0e-2BnH16ssQRiV2D-2BflHX6VGaC19-2FXQXI3OBpgAIfndrz4HO5zdQIdakseLULwkoweBJiSah0gknifxN8sX4kDul3746PtmepgWMfEof5F-2BiVKnd6PbX0eAC0eswqcgD2cCOxdnDM4LDvwsI5PpYRWlJJgTfwOlFPZxyMsaN0oiziS-2BEaib9pdRg9KI9jg18uXrs99JN7k-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Three Truths to Help Us Embrace Change,"</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;"> Abbie Sharpe writes, "Change is how God made the world, and while change forces us into the unknown, change isn't something we have to fear. ... Change is a sign of growth. ... an opportunity for new experiences. ...<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Change draws us closer to Jesus. ... Use times of uncertainty to trust God and his promises. ..."</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Change is normal, necessary and inevitable. Some change we welcome, but other change we may find unpleasant, even painful and unwanted. We can resist change, or choose to move forward into whatever change may entail. Let's explore ways our faith can help us learn to trust God more fully in times of transition. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">The Big Questions</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">1. How did your congregation change in the wake of the pandemic? Which shifts were temporary, and which have become permanent?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">2. How, if at all, did you change how you participated in church activities in the past several years, and what prompted those changes?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">3. What do people need from their own church that they can't get online? Compare and contrast the benefits and disadvantages of in-person versus virtual participation in church life.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">4. How can congregations cultivate a sustained openness to innovation that doesn't require the catalyst of a crisis? </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">5. What spiritual truths sustain you and give you hope in times of transition?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope<br/></span></strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Genesis 12:1, 4<br/></span></u></strong><em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. ..." So Abram went, as the LORD had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. </span></em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">(For context, read </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxdxvwvUIbrGNsYJ-2B9LkHJNYJKmFd-2BQhWZfz4MlmcJjG6PUPIbL8YSxKTHhUAoW2L8UWdo\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5qtMtLY-2BGdxYZjvO5wqNsaTQ3QqEHruwvCLBKLKal7bWHsAbnPkx-2B1Dwk0Qmn3jCixcUwLveZuEvIAobObmW31eqXUig-2BhajqfsOEy20Il3yKkM9kLDf-2B0HvnEV5Ztf-2BwZEeRQo-2BuYi5QSqcEY805C-2FmbT3Q-2FvAP2IJ5hdFizalOeqkiLd4ks5e5G6FgBFuFQKEHi0HfX4ma945RLQA8t3Y-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Genesis 12:1-9</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">.) </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">God promised to make Abraham (Abram) a great nation, to bless him and make him a blessing. But before Abraham could receive those blessings, he had to be willing to leave everything that was familiar, home, country and family, to follow where God would lead him. He had no map, no itinerary, no compass. All he had was God's promise to show him the way to a new land. The writer of the book of Hebrews says, "By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance, and he set out, not knowing where he was going" (Hebrews 11:8).</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Questions: </span></strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">When, if ever, have you found it necessary to make a major change in your life, in order to discover some new purpose God had for you? What challenges did you face while making that transition? What role did faith play in that experience? How did God bless you and make you a blessing to others as you followed the leading of the Spirit?</span></p> </blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Esther 4:13-14<br/></span></u></strong><em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, "Do not think that in the king's palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this." </span></em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">(For context, read </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxxXPNpVHit5-2BPG0H6e8QLgYc9S2FRNZLso3auKojy7eu8HkmutFdsofviCtY2DIrq1ggd\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5iTnZFdX18Jh8AJH37fQg1CbiSbl646RJ0x9eTveYqVD72mA9wOdPRjyljNry3kzX-2F3JCS8ZUTuRXsL4zCVLbHqKGgSj6dzG9ks2WAn8Q4erXDf0Rtiehn0mUxmeYspXPeNUyESWXtDnsZXZtKLNs5VMRX8vn6btOaStSwOl2hpI3xWoTBBG9l7y7t-2BDNv7k7E18TlpbeR-2BLyitz63cl704-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Esther 4:6-17</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">.)</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">The story of Esther reads like the narrative of an oppressed people. She was an orphan, raised by Mordecai, without even the right to her own Hebrew name (Hadassah). Scripture tells us they had been ripped from their home in Judah and carried off to Babylon. Then she was added to the king's harem (without any right to refuse the "honor") and became queen through what today might be called a sex trafficking ring (unless we would prefer the euphemistic term, "a beauty pageant").</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">On top of that, her people were targeted by a high-ranking official for elimination by genocide. Esther's first thought was of self-preservation: She knew that if she went to the king without having been summoned by him, she risked her life for her presumptiveness. But she began to believe that God might have placed her in her high position "for just such a time as this."</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Questions: </span></strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">When the pandemic began, what were your concerns? Could you see any sense of purpose for you to be living in such a tumultuous time of change? If so, how would you describe that purpose?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">     </span></span></p> </blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Mark 2:21-22<br/></span></u></strong><em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">[Jesus said,] "No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak; otherwise, the patch pulls away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. Similarly, no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost, and so are the skins, but one puts new wine into fresh wineskins." </span></em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">(For context, read </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxkb2y3v2wTA3mWzql5ftOlTj9v7vj-2BkOULPOHpDFI5ar08N-2FxinNAZKBGMSbMspPR-37G\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5mSsT4-2BlIV0FIf-2BYfrPuA8ZBe-2BqkjyG7dX4JhBcb9cZBjh0rKSgJAYsIObTZxZBeYho-2Bkwktw5MqZWkxrYoUxCIQDWfubZiR9CbE9MQ-2FIU72FmhfOkImoUo2s6ePKik2STymm4DCj-2B5ObuTzS7BM6EtKLpVNV1Jn3phthLkwO2OAefwUBF9feKpr86gkpF1tjzlVvAcCjnmFSfFFzxzPtmg-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Mark 2:18-28</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">.) </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Jesus uses these proverbs about patching a cloak and storing wine to illustrate a spiritual truth. People questioned his pedagogy and practices because they differed from what they expected from a rabbi. John's disciples and the Pharisees practiced fasting, but Jesus' disciples did not (v. 18). And when they were going through grain fields one Sabbath, Jesus' disciples began to pluck heads of grain, which the Pharisees considered a violation of laws against working on the Sabbath. Jesus wasn't against fasting, and certainly believed in keeping the Sabbath holy, but he reinterpreted those practices, which were meant to bring honor to God and rest, not added burdens, to God's creatures. </span></p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Questions: </span></strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">What practices and ideas that once served Christians well may no longer nourish the soul? How can churches make room for new life-giving insights and ways of being and doing ministry? </span></p> </blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Hebrews 13:8</span></u></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. </span></em><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">(For context, read </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxfhOLPuUklFplPPD2VWbSPNs8xfjyoGJYdh0h5QHsSZLkOQhBWLfN7wwD46Vd2R-2BgZ4L1\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5plEfC-2FcqdxEwz2sd5z2xkptaPsM8nKMcnUNMCHqTpaoW1kn96V0SKJezdAL4SCm-2FMqf6zCALdFYvg0iG51-2F6KY0JlqT4NAmi923I81JBjCLGQ8o5x4okc6Jt-2F1JiI0-2Fw3pa-2BEl-2Fuw6RsTm8C8xxM5fa3mOZAAdWbJKU93qpZRJ-2B-2BMw-2B98JcaUR208EBInq47A9VyStE36kMZGG53VIfSPk-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Hebrews 13:5-8</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">.)</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">In the words of the hymnwriter, "On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand." This text reminds us that through all the changes of life, Christ is constant. Some have identified him with what the poet T.S. Eliot called "the still point of the turning world." His character doesn't change even when everything and everyone else does. He is not fickle or untrustworthy. As Paul says, "if we are faithless, he remains faithful -- he cannot deny himself" (2 Timothy 2:13). </span></p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Questions: </span></strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">If you fully embraced this truth, what difference would it make in how you live? In how you cope with upsets and upheavals? </span></p> </blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">For Further Discussion</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">1. TWW Team Member Frank Ramirez offered this recollection about how the pandemic impacted their church: "The day before things shut down the church, board members and deacons met after worship and decided that the next Sunday, gloved individuals would hand out cookies and coffee. The next day we learned we could have a maximum of ten people in any meeting, and were to be masked and separated. By Thursday we went virtual, something we had never done. Because we had insufficient bandwidth for live streaming, the worship leader, two musicians and I entered by different doors, while the AV guy filmed the worship service, all of us distancing from each other. It was downloaded to Facebook Sunday morning. That virtual service continues to this day, even after we were finally able to resume in-person worship. In Revelation, the heavens are rolled back, and John the Revelator, from the prison island of Patmos, participates in virtual worship in heaven's court."</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">2. How might the tale of </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPPXTV2R-2Bm0Kz58iOCQYIq19VN-2F5uPi6aoBUwvAYTOufu1RHF3ONnq-2BIAPhIS7OYLcQ-3D-3DZ6Fg\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5iAJw1Df1HPGkX5jLQucyiHTnUVlLTnRMZTIyGd0-2FrgC-2B0E6TK5pXbfTSYG9udhPwpA9iOTStNlE24szSguh0umPi-2BOK7r2CccrnzNDWowgfTjDrT-2FXS4vNJJ1ndGFZEGYE3TTxdAChSX5I1x-2FTEvMjL5mcbj8bNOrXFEuuFlkkSAeTWj9dl292RpE0E-2BD05OjhoVTxRumdg9ZZp7wCEw94-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">The Boy, The Mole, The Fox, and The Horse</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;"> (Video Audiobook 54:46) serve as a metaphor for the Beloved Community God is creating?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">3. Which of these quotes from <em>The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse</em>, if any, reflect conversations you have had with the people of God? </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Identity</span></strong></p> <ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Do you have any other advice?" asked the boy.</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Don't measure how valuable you are by the way you are treated," said the horse.</span></p> <ol start="2" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Always remember you matter, you're important and you are loved, and you bring to this world things no one else can."</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"When things get difficult, remember who you are."</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Who am I?" asked the boy.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"You are loved," said the horse.</span></p> <ol start="4" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Sometimes I think you believe in me more than I do," said the boy.</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"You'll catch up," said the horse.</span></p> <ol start="5" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"I'm so small," said the mole. </span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Yes," said the boy, "but you make a huge difference."</span></p> <ol start="6" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Sometimes I worry you'll all realize I'm ordinary," said the boy.</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Love doesn't need you to be extraordinary," said the mole.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Community, Love</span></strong></p> <ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"This is easily my favorite place," said the mole.</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Why?" asked the boy.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Because you are all here."</span></p> <ol start="2" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Sometimes I want to say I love you all," said the mole, "but I find it difficult. ... so I say something like I'm glad we are all here." ...</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"We are so glad you are here, too," said the boy.</span></p> <ol start="3" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"What do you think success is?" asked the boy. </span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"To love," said the mole.</span></p> <ol start="4" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"We don't know about tomorrow, all we need to know is that we love each other."</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"So you know all about me?" asked the boy.</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Yes," said the horse.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"And you still love me?"</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"We love you all the more."</span></p> <ol start="6" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"You fell -- but I've got you."</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Life is difficult -- but you are loved."</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"I've realized why we are here," whispered the boy.</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"For cake?" asked the mole.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"To love," said the boy.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"And be loved," said the horse.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Courage</span></strong></p> <ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Sometimes just getting up and carrying on is brave and magnificent," said the horse.</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"What is the bravest thing you've ever said?" asked the boy.</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Help," said the horse.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Asking for help isn't giving up. It's refusing to give up."</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Encouragement</span></strong></p> <ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l2 level1 lfo1; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"What do we do when our hearts hurt?" asked the boy.</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"We wrap them with friendship, shared tears and time, till they wake hopeful and happy again."</span></p> <ol start="2" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l2 level1 lfo1; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"I can't see a way through," said the boy.</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Can you see your next step?"</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Yes."</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Just take that," said the horse.</span></p> <ol start="3" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="a"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l2 level1 lfo1; margin: 0in 0in 0in .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"We have such a long way to go," sighed the boy.</span></li> </ol> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt .5in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Yes, but look how far we've come," said the horse.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Responding to the News</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">1. Rather than focusing on the past, ask what God might want to teach us through this new experience. As cross-cultural worker Eva Burkholder wrote in </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPEp511HN2nZBjnkCqe8q8DS4YncrieoB4P-2BF7Jdro5MYsg42mJdhLAx2s52o9kcUYw-3D-3DJXm6\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5vmAS0odGUhAcprVsGvRWm-2FQTd2yYj8iJGW-2FOklapAp-2Fj1w2tuOFlDC8Il9zfunJsmPwz9Wl-2FyCfHv-2B31JxokjJ5mMVSQSxzv0Y8C9ATrbSdzsHpmfuhRDnrVbIqHBq9jLUJEHL4OX2eY0OIs-2Fyujlcdj0cCHLhstZZjQR9z3BnHo3OvGADwuWbZZhMhaMKOSfcAu2JELU5P8gdFhreDpR0-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Embracing Inevitable Change</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">, "adapt your expectations" and "reengage," choosing to find joy in "what you have now and whoever is in your current community."</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">2. Read or sing together </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPDuIuAqj1aFAiBgIKlrBhVECj2DkLcGbf5lBivC5rUdXxOwdxtYJ7Y6g8BsPC6yalsixqve5UkIdt8T0eLqY9Ic-3D\_dAN\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5qzlyFuW-2F2uq8UHGRhlPbOuctaanLkpUUqR8nykVHh78tgySQxbjD8hKIeYMgq55pUgAL2UN48KtH0k-2F3i7wrlnLA5dmk5ndXu9JMz6T6ziaoRhH42-2F1RgQe9x-2Bv-2FgEAqO6PAjT38aswCng9j0wntuV-2BXtnmV1Jr1fMmFhxmpSjSACLDL4s0DiolNXO9SDxdoo6M2xQvX2FuBlYJmgVeFI4-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"Great Is Thy Faithfulness"</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;"> or </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPDuIuAqj1aFAiBgIKlrBhVGgRESnzBwuZLUN4K5P0cLvdrhoip4gECqREaQLF7m0Mj1i6YOuZvYhbN8f1fet99g-3DbQSQ\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5s-2FoQ4b0PbeNYFqlQYXICwko27dIFnr6wKolXRizXftajpXe3N-2Fnqtz6PWZFWv2XZS29efrH0b0zoKtFKDLMPB-2Fs7jySzJRcYaD4DCfS9VPsbI31SFTTjX1yrLHEcdBNfyeN2Dt2cCMnTQjcRjTeuATfqba1AtKcvn0pK2lJ0NufS-2BLO-2F3vULbm02tVNwLt8NyjkwoXf89VbtAOCp1KTHLA-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"O God, Our Help In Ages Past,"</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;"> or listen to </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPPXTV2R-2Bm0Kz58iOCQYIq1-2Fppcj5JrbT9CVZEfggybxqz4hKGo8Ol1PCpkCZ6-2BDuhw-3D-3Dl53H\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5qMdYY1iVJxreAd7fk9SD0OERNEnairnUU6GVPbqX8jZ8U5nHRBDju6wbbgwGJfVG29n7kV8iDvGHtHe1LicnEPPHdcnjG-2BHfkxmU30HZdaD4-2BtGtZjYmnePjMGZkj7-2FbORiYKkMDF9D-2FEWzp5c41u3B4Nb6-2FQhD058gGcchcAVQQjAsdTfy-2F05c-2BeJozQpejKXT-2B8T6c5sYqSSNvV-2FfiLI-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">"You Have Been Good,"</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;"> by Twila Paris, as you reflect on the faithfulness of God throughout the vicissitudes of life.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Prayer </span></strong><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">suggested by </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxDMgpQ-2BHG6czOM2FIIR2W5z6EqF8Gq4GBZ-2BLiMoU0GlDA1fJqm61ZklcqxousjK6Ickbc\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5qc9Flim0nhAAyOIcr9BSX09S8GWyV-2FxJKX-2Fv-2Bb5JvSmEn-2Bj3IyZ5EgktAZKAXnbPdIyaILD3OdWjks5Csn-2FHSY7hoxVAv-2FAZf5Bxw8A3YEqg8UOTJ45jfmS7x0htlbdMEQmLx5s83S9AKcQPF1pPbKseGfz6-2F6h3zM-2BwtTQlxDp-2FbiZqPROiAT740-2B2g8R1MHVkiXCVG7G4-2FAr-2B1XqoTWA-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Malachi 3:6</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">; </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxNIqZG-2B-2B-2BvBBz5qy3Z-2Fu6207l-2Fp-2BSctN4MYFxiKcSc3iVMXIeytYJS09wzhGvYrr9exYk\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5jCtgU5XX-2BnYnXx2U-2FvIgXoW97z3T1dYPuZUmYA1lBShc99vYMaIFDimJ7Ymexcytll1pvf5QeLhGu4NIeQbezg67KBu6CUAOAsfOHCzUIekEvwQB4V0wKwBCcznNNEfniuMUb9vcNEel3GM-2F0QMP-2BxEifXNgXaiGj9E67gEWwoeW93IQyfUNJ12pBD1up-2FLUkRlYCD3xF0nQycNmdhXCN8-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">James 1:17</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">; </span><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxZDVUf-2FxEyKZ-2F-2F0bLo5JnGH8B19K8EoWwpHEsN1wSnlqL8m34z5fyY8Wf6dDBGRqtu\_zF\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmTYD4YDjIIBR5oWFTR0-2BHhweCQZsETnalqKGuQEiuuZXSfi-2FQ7eH2e-2BLHuQkyriq5txt8GqK4uAh-2BhMjkT7oP-2FdjoOygMFZo-2Bt2R5IfTAK2WvUgbQMYJLz1kivUxRfNZcHmLP9bULMELKXXKdpyqsjacB1if6T4I9WLWVqp0nUUlJAup9i6GBla8lKU7NSOu-2FvVQSNorPBsD1I6K7lSF19D11YyQ5515n9El8iGuuT-2Fk50OUzUQ-2FFaD942ae50KSiw0oSxbAqU8mSkuR-2Bx7Ib9s-3D"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #1155cc; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Psalm 46:1-3</span></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Changeless God, thank you that you do not behave in arbitrary ways, changing events like the phases of the moon or the weather or the seasons. You keep your promises, and are faithful and true. Teach us to trust you, and not to fear, though the earth change and the mountains fall into the sea. Amen!</span></p> <p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; margin: 0in 0in 10.0pt 0in;"><strong><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Copyright 2026 Communication Resources</span></strong></p><br/><br/><p style="font-size: 11px;"><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/asm/unsubscribe/?user\_id=14323725&amp;data=H8BQ7YhvI1CxEge\_9SHl7qDEwXZFekfuYRb\_TWVscZRoMDAwdTAwMDtTDCtX1\_IK8C0PHA40aWsY7yi7\_JYyp23E7idrtxN5a7mduvQ7Pee5NR4fR-pPaHJylBojbA7hlFiuRNxgWe29z5Dkd\_Oa\_8GbDCbZCi6SUiBZ6tQ3wzTtwxs44xxHJynf4HFgS0wKolkYrYAG4nBP5D0ivfFTf79\_nuPDP1K4bT7zGSNVFhXyjuRK1v31UmXT-SvJYym6fCYuo0mTktxop\_KPNpFGyB8SFn7Yf9Jz1gN2XMtR9K1w6flE6MnwNWHuyRhNczbQVyokA-D3kFI7Xuw5iN0b\_2-ftRJqepkD7a7dH-mTI9a69UR9ZWhYsse\_oztLwn44mzf6EVONFh4CZvhENb0TcNvK5lxTtjYObIdSjOWJ86v8mbVzh6iyQniUPkkUCZwJKvA1KEUYlj-yMQN6k5lm888mP9hsF\_PmnVUUbozT88\_lwu9\_UgJcDyyYI6XLxusw7Kqd1ZjzjQKVOloGCfSCHWCwJWAlD4ff5e87NrVsZ9V34eq2bMAUfdInwA1CRhBGncBQo1Zwx0RcCPJAN1lt8khkWnb\_pv7AipN46NnncZ7pIW1R8T5v2JKGdrTH0AApyd1EnE1gwct5B2gVT2xKzhYp6\_foxotf">Unsubscribe From This List</a></p><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/wf/open?upn=u001.ri3TO7QGEXgsxcVdo6-2BoAGTuuWiDEfH5lVjP7AVQ-2Bcl7JaDKdeJ1ydQkXpTFAEqRD2SOncm40jgMuVls37ZLseTP-2Bc5kaLjFJf1Q3kw4FZdt1YoCkYWvLa1l-2BT-2F-2F8yIUiLbFHrmn64p2Xwmffzl3edR6Ty8TRKnThBIufHec6MYr94WZQxWVvMWvfNqNZdVSm2JpSP2sJuJ7h3Z8Ne0G7pXgZg2Ru1VY57a0Yrf9HOFdBoSoO0pmQvZEOQGGWNaOOnl0UY94EhIrjZQn5t7c-2B28XsG8ppuaxQyuijkImws-2BO4iJHpC1q1LXhEVimlx2MgXjMplDmovKJaSePzRxEa-2F4H2w7tb-2Fh74azG7zxeBrvUynQfygycca0yHKZR8PWp4GUidK109XhznjHG7z6dyUC-2BC1Rz4SJ-2BGQ1zNNtv9v5Hl51VwTM8Lb4YBYR-2FBzW-2Fnk0xgwQTBtgNsD51v0rRVQY2DxRrGpQBcMuZ60qNFZWc-2BHbKLaJSZBAldnwyYRiK" style="height:1px !important;width:1px !important;border-width:0 !important;margin-top:0 !important;margin-bottom:0 !important;margin-right:0 !important;margin-left:0 !important;padding-top:0 !important;padding-bottom:0 !important;padding-right:0 !important;padding-left:0 !important;" width="1"/> </div>, The Wired Word for 05/17/2026, The Wired Word, 01krkg27d5c3vdt8671bx0e81r.