Spiritual Life
A6
Thursday, April 21, 2022
SPIRITUAL LIFE HIGHLIGHTS
The resurrection provides
us with everlasting peace
tional Church begins a new series
studying the Lord’s Prayer on
Sunday, April 24. Rev. Dr. Craig
Pesti-Strobel will share his mes-
sage, “The Prayer that Changes
Us,” exploring the power of the
prayer that Jesus taught his disci-
ples. Worship at “the big brown
church” begins at 11 a.m., and
Bible study is held at 9:30 a.m.
SUBMISSIONS
NORTHEASTERN OREGON
— For the Second Sunday of
Easter, April 24, Faith Lutheran
Church’s services will center
on John 20:19, 21 and 26, which
tells of Jesus greeting his disci-
ples with “Peace be with you.”
This is a consistent message of
the resurrected Lord because his
victory over sin, death and the
devil provides everlasting peace.
The sermon at Faith Lutheran
will focus upon his peace as he
sends us out to share his Gospel
(“good news”). Divine services
Churches and faith-based groups are
encouraged to submit Highlights for the
Spiritual Life page by noon Tuesday for
publication Thursday. Submit by email
to news@lagrandeobserver.com (with
Highlights in the subject line).
are scheduled for 10 a.m. in La
Grande and 2 p.m. in Enterprise.
Come to Christ, and don’t
come alone
New sermon series begins
on ‘The Prayer that
Changes Us’
NORTHEASTERN OREGON
— On Sunday, April 24, La
Grande Stake High Council
members of the Church of Jesus
ENTERPRISE — The Enter-
prise Community Congrega-
Christ of Latter-day Saints will
be speaking in area wards during
Sacrament Services on Sister
Bonnie H. Cordon’s talk titled
“Come Unto Christ and Don’t
Come Alone” from the October
2021 General Conference. Sister
Cordon serves as the Young
Women General President.
The “Come, Follow Me” lesson
for the week of April 25, based on
Exodus 24 and 31-34, will focus
on covenants made with the Lord
and how they help us follow his
commandments.
Carpet replacements are taking
place in buildings throughout
the stake, so be sure to check
with ward leaders for updates
before scheduling activities. The
Columbia River Temple in Rich-
land, Washington, will remain
closed through June 20.
Fellowship follows
in-person service
LA GRANDE — Zion
Lutheran Church meets for wor-
ship on Sunday, April 24, at 9 a.m.
Masks are not required, though
are recommended for those at risk.
A fellowship time will follow the
service. This week’s service will
not be available online.
The Earth is a gift — Finding connection with a pandemic pen pal
loving it one day each
TRISH
YERGES
year is not enough
OTHER VIEWS
LAURA
HUDSON
BELIEVING AND
BECOMING
hat place on our
planet is, for
you, a gift of
divine love?
For Englishman Folliott
S. Pierpoint, who wrote
one of my favorite hymns,
it was the hilltop outside
his native city where he
composed this verse in
1863: “For the beauty of
the Earth/ for the glory
of the skies/for the love,
which from our birth/over
and around us lies…”
Maybe for you, that
place is not a hilltop but
a river like the Grande
Ronde, where you enjoy
catching fi sh. Maybe it’s
the forest where you fi nd
morel mushrooms in sur-
prising places. Maybe
it’s your backyard, where
you delight in the birds
fl ocking to your birdfeeder.
Places of beauty,
wonder and joy can be
found everywhere. Picture
yours right now in your
mind’s eye and give thanks
for it in your heart. Better
yet, go outside, use all
your senses, and take time
to savor Earth’s beauty
with gratitude.
Gratitude is a core ele-
ment of any loving relation-
ship, and beyond mere sur-
vival, giving and receiving
love is our foundational
desire as human creatures.
Love provides us enduring
purpose, passion, courage
and power to face whatever
crises arise over the course
of our lives.
And it’s abundantly
clear that everyone
who loves Earth faces
numerous challenges. The
pollution of air and water,
plastics clogging up the
oceans, creatures facing
extinction and greenhouse
gasses causing climate
change — the list of prob-
lems seems endless.
At the root, though, they
W
all derive from a broken
relationship with creation
and its creator. Believing
ourselves to be owners,
we dispose of Earth as we
see fi t. But “the Earth is
the Lord’s, and all that is
in it,” writes the Psalmist,
and humans are also crea-
tures dependent on Earth’s
gifts for our own well-
being. We are made to par-
ticipate with God in loving
and blessing the world God
so loves.
Earth Day, celebrated
on April 22 since 1970, is
a rallying point for people
who love Earth. It is a day
to remember the places
and creatures we love
and to dedicate our ener-
gies to helping them sur-
vive. On this day, we can
implement some technical
changes. We can invest in
energy-effi cient light bulbs
and appliances. We can
commit to reduce, reuse
and recycle many of the
items we consume.
Yet the slogan “Earth
Day Every Day” makes
clear that one day each
year is not enough. Social
and economic systems
relentlessly shape human
behaviors such that we
continue to abuse Earth in
spite of our best intentions.
We need to make long-
term, adaptive changes to
the attitudes, habits and
practices comprising these
systems, so that all crea-
tures, humans included,
can not only survive
but thrive.
Adaptive change calls
for us to cultivate the spiri-
tual strengths of resilience
and endurance, to stay the
course while we develop
new ways of life. Love,
God’s love, revealed in the
beauty of Earth and all its
creatures, is the wellspring
of the spiritual grit and
grace we need, Earth Day
and every day.
█
his spring I partici-
pated in the Oregon
Humanities “Dear
Stranger” letter exchange
project designed to con-
nect Oregonians during the
pandemic.
The theme of the let-
ters was set for partic-
ipant writers: “What is
your view of the future
and what lies ahead
beyond the here and now?
What are your hopes,
dreams or fears about
the future? Do you see a
future incorporating the
old ways or something
completely new?”
All letters were
addressed “Dear Stranger.”
I submitted my letter and
in late March, I fi nally
received a “Dear Stranger”
letter in the mail. We were
truly strangers because it
was the project coordinator
who matched us together.
T
Reading this letter was
like unwrapping a choc-
olate candy. My curious
eyes were delighted by the
beautiful penmanship. The
writer identifi ed herself as
Karen from Canby and that
she was excited to converse
about how we each pic-
tured our future.
As her letter revealed,
Karen has been mar-
ried happily for 42 years.
Despite this, she was very
aware of the troubled world
around her. She wrote,
“Things have been pro-
gressively getting worse
the last few years.” She
asked me, “How do you
feel about what’s going on
around us?”
Karen explained that
her source of comfort and
refuge from this world’s
troubles comes from Scrip-
tures like Psalm 46:1-2,
and she concluded, “I have
confi dence our Creator
sees. He cares and He will
help me. Sometimes the
adversity is removed or He
may give me the strength
to endure it.”
When both of her par-
ents died within a year of
each other, she wrote that
she endured the loss by
thinking about a future
world in which she will
be reunited with her res-
urrected parents as John
5:28-29 promises. Until
then, she admitted,
“Being patient can be dif-
fi cult since I miss them
so much.” Then she
asked, “How do you cope
with loss?”
Karen, who is one
of Jehovah’s Witnesses,
warmly closed her letter,
“I hope you will write me
back. I would love to get
acquainted with you.”
In the fi nal analysis,
the “Dear Stranger”
Oregon Humanities
project succeeded in con-
necting people through
good, old-fashioned letter
writing. If you get a letter
from someone you per-
sonally don’t know, write
back and make a new
friend during this ongoing
pandemic.
To participate in
a future round of
“Dear Stranger” letter
exchanges, visit www.
oregonhumanities.org/
programs/other-projects/
dear-stranger.
█
Trish Yerges is a freelance writer and
author from Elgin.
Do you want a job?
Or do you want a CAREER?
Join our winning team!
grh.org/careers
Are you looking for a career?
Our Health Information Management team has an excellent opportunity for a
Release of Information clerk . This full-time, day shift position interacts both
in person and over the phone with our patients, providing excellent customer
service and assisting with health information needs. You may also assist our
patients in navigating their information in MYCHART, our online patient portal.
The largest private employer in Union County, GRH is growing for the future.
Top 100 Critical Access Hospital in the Nation
~ 2011 ~ 2015 ~ 2016 ~ 2017 ~ 2021 ~ 2022 ~
Laura Elly Hudson is co-pastor of
the La Grande First Presbyterian
Church. You can find her at
www.lauraellyhudson.com.
Northeast Oregon Directory of Churches
Cove United
Methodist Church
1708 Jasper St., Cove, OR
North Powder
United
Methodist Church
390 E. St., North Powder, OR
JOIN US... Catch the Spirit!
Worship: 9:00 a.m. Cove
Worship: 10:00 a.m. N. Powder
SUMMERVILLE
BAPTIST CHURCH
Sunday Services:
Sunday School & Adult Bible Classes
9:45AM
Children’s Church & Worship Service
11:00AM
Family Worship Service
6:00PM
Wednesday:
Prayer Mtg, Children’s Bible Club, Youth
Group 7:00PM
A church for your whole family
Visit us at summervillebaptistchurch.org
First Christian
Church
(Disciples of Christ)
GRACE COMMUNITY
LUTHERAN CHURCH
The Place
901 Penn Avenue 963-2623 62848 Philynda Loop in Island City
lgdisciples@gmail.com
“We are called to Serve”
Bible Study
Sunday School for all ages - 9:00 am
9:00 a.m.
Sunday Worship 10:00 am
Worship
Phone: 541-568-4230
10:30 a.m.
grace.lutherancove@gmail.com
~Join us at The Lord’s Table~
Sunday Services
9:00 a.m.
10:00 a.m.
Sunday School
Worship Service
A Place where hope is found in Jesus
Join us in Fellowship & Worship
Saturday all age classes 9:30 am
Saturday Worship 11:00 am
1612 4th Street – 963-2498
www.lagrandeumc.org
www.imblercc@gmail.com
Adventist Church
“OPEN HEARTS, OPEN MINDS, OPEN DOORS”
For service information go to
440 Ruckman, Imbler 534-2201
La Grande Seventh-day
LA GRANDE UNITED
METHODIST CHURCH
Pastor Taylor Gould
Imbler
Christian
Church
2702 Adams Avenue, La Grande
963-4018
109 18th Street • 963-3402
Sunday School 9:15 a.m.
Sunday Worship 10:30 a.m.
lagrandeor.adventistchurch.org
Learning for Today and Eternity
Little Friends
Christian Preschool/Childcare 963-6390
La Grande Adventist Christian School
K-8th Grade 963-6203
FIRST LANDMARK
MISSIONARY BAPTIST
CHURCH
1812 1st St. La Grande
Pastor Dave Tierce • 541-605-0215
We use the King James Version Bible
Sunday School - 10:00 am
Worship 11:00 am
Sunday Evening Bible Study - 3:00 pm (Effective June 10)
Wednesday Evening - 6:30 pm
“Where you can find TRUTH according to the scriptures”
www.flmbclagrande.com
Services
This
Week