Greetings St. Philip’s UCC and St. John UCC!

Welcome to the inaugural issue of our shared monthly newsletter! St. Philip’s has a regular monthly newsletter and St. John has not had a regular newsletter for quite a while. So… drumroll please… we’re trying something new! For the next few months, we’ll try sharing a newsletter for BOTH churches and see how it goes.

You will find in the newsletter information that is specific to each congregation. We think it will be helpful for each church to know what the other is up to. Of course, everyone is invited to participate in everything. If St. John has something going on that folks from St. Philip’s are interested in attending, come on down and join the fun—and vice versa! And if St. Philip’s has something happening that St. John wants to try out for themselves—go for it! Let’s share ideas, inspire one another, and support each other in our mutual ministry together!

The wisdom from Ecclesiastes seems relevant for us to consider: two are better than one! We need good friends in our lives—I think the same applies to churches. Congregations need good friends too. God created humans to need other humans—why would we think churches are any different? St. John and St. Philip’s, this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship!

So take a look at what’s happening in your own congregation, but don’t skip over what’s happening in the other church. Maybe you’ll find a way to connect with new friends or maybe you won’t. Either way, I invite you to pray for one another, encourage and support the mission and ministry of one another, and imagine the possibilities on the horizon for this budding new friendship between our churches.

And if you have ideas or thoughts about what you’d like to see in our new shared newsletter or if you get inspired and have ideas for how our churches can grow their friendship and mutually support one another, please share them with me!

I’m blessed to be in ministry with ALL of you! Thanks for that gift! I can’t wait for you to experience that gift in one another too!

Peace and Blessings,
Pastor Laura