I have been thinking about the idea of limits this week.  There are so many limitations that surround us today.  Some limits, like speed limits, are for our safety.  Others, like weight limits on your luggage, are more of an annoyance (but also for the safety of the baggage handlers).  There are time limits on parking meters which can be a bad thing if you forget to pay attention.  Sometimes we have physical limitations that keep us from participating fully.   

There are limits that you can control.  I often put limits on my evening social media scroll, which is a good thing!  My Netflix has limits, after so long it asks if I am still watching (the answer is always YES!).  I limit my accessibility by turning my phone on silent when I am out with friends.  When cleaning house I set a timer to limit my cleaning so I don’t fall into the rabbit trail of other projects that may present themselves.

But I also think there are personal limits we set, intentionally or unintentionally.  Occasionally our time has limits: when that neighbor stops you as you are heading out to run errands, or that one friend calls just as you were sitting down to eat dinner.  I think my patience has limits which get tested often by the little things.  How about you?  What limits do you have?  Where have you set your limits?

So here is what I am pondering…what limits do we have on our love?  Should our love have limits?  My default mode is always with my heart first followed sometimes by my brain.  I am someone who wears my heart on my sleeve and sometimes love (wholeheartedly) too deeply which has led to hurt and heartbreak.  We are told in scripture to guard our hearts (Proverbs 4:23), but that is not a license to withhold love.  So what does love without limits look like?

Blessings,
Pastor Jenni

This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. (John 15:12)

On Tuesdays I bring my pup Merriweather with me to the office.  She loves to come run around, say hi to Susan and whomever else may be in the building.  Her favorite thing to do, besides sleeping on my desk,  is walking around the campus, looking for bunnies, chasing the birds, and smelling all the new smells.  Yesterday as we walked around outside, I stopped to smell the roses.  Currently the Memorial Garden is in full bloom and the roses are gorgeous!  I have always loved rose gardens. They remind me of my childhood.  My grandmother and my mom always had such big beautiful fragrant rose blossoms almost year round (you can do that in warm dry climates!)

Now, I am not a very good gardener, I don’t have a green thumb and probably more importantly I am not a very successful gardener because I forget to water my plants. But, I do know there is more to gardening than just watering! I watched my grandmother and my mom tend rose bushes when I was young. Pruning the bushes during their growing season and cutting them way back during their dormant season. At first glance I thought they were just cutting branches with no rhyme or reason and when I offered to help, I was shown the proper way to prune a rose bush. It is a very methodical job, pruning…being sure not to cut off healthy branches but cutting right above the bud which allows more nutrients to the bud while removing the non-productive portion of the branch. Pruning is promoting better growth by cutting away the branches that are no longer producing flowers. The result of a good pruning is a very full beautiful rose bush!

Pruning is a painful but necessary process.  There are times in our lives where God is doing some pruning, cutting off the life-draining things to make room for the life-giving things!  This Sunday we look at another of Jesus’ “I AM” statements.  I am the Vine, you are the branches.  Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. How are you bearing fruit?  Where might you need pruning so you can bear more fruit?

Blessings,
Pastor Jenni

I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower.
He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit.
Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit.
(John 15:1-2)

I spent last week amongst the tall redwood trees in the Santa Cruz mountains of Northern California.  The camp I was at happens to be one of my favorite places on Earth!  I have so many memories of that place…I attended camp there with my family every summer, I worked on summer staff all through college, and have attended pastor camp there off and on for the last 20 years.

For me this is a place where I am known deeply to the core of who I am.  As a child it was spending time with friends who attended the same week of camp every year.  As a young adult it was the place where I felt my call to ministry and the place where my faith became my own (and no longer my parents.)  As a pastor this has become the place where I am known by peers, supported in my ministry, encouraged in my struggles and loved deeply through friendships that have walked with me in the highs and lows of my life.

This is also a place where I feel the most connected to God.  Sitting amongst the trees, looking towards the heavens.  Listening to the trickle of the stream as it turns into the rush of the waterfall.  Watching the birds and the squirrels as they go about their daily tasks.  All of these things work together to remind me of how great God is – so creative, so powerful, and such an eye for detail. The more time I spent alone with God last week, the more I was reminded of how much God cares for me, even in the smallest of details.

This Sunday we will be taking a look at one of Jesus’ “I am” statements found in John’s Gospel. I am the Good Shepherd, he says, I know my sheep and my sheep know me.  It is an amazing thing to be known.  To have someone not just know your name but to also know your story.  And in knowing your story they also know you deeply and love you unconditionally…this is the Good Shepherd.  Friends, we have a God that knows us, all of us – every part – and still loves us!  We have a God that watches over us, cares for us, and was willing to lay his life down for us!   

I hope you have a place where you are reminded of God’s great love for you.  A place where you can see God’s goodness and experience God’s presence in new and amazing ways.

Blessings,
Pastor Jenni 

I am the good shepherd. I know my own, and my own know me. (John 10:14)

This week I am spending quality time amongst the Redwood trees in the Santa Cruz mountains of Northern California.  This is one of my favorite places ON EARTH!  I love the smell, the crisp morning air, and being able to spend time basking in the beauty of God’s creation! 

I am attending an annual pastor’s conference with many friends and colleagues that I attended seminary with decades ago.  It is always such a wonderful time to connect with colleagues, share ministry resources, support one another, laugh together, and “unplug” from the hustle and bustle of daily life.

My goal for this week away is twofold.  First, is to rest!  To take time to let my mind and body relax after the busyness leading up to Easter.  Second, is to reset!  To find my center and retune myself – body, mind, and spirit – so that I am restored and ready to give my best to serving God at Emmanuel.

As a part of this week, I will be circling back to focus on my star word for 2024,  Imagine!  I will continue to dream and think of all the possibilities we can achieve when we rely on God to fulfill them.  I will continue to ponder new ways to partner with our leaders and with you on how to make them a reality.  I believe this is such a great word for this year as we continue this adventure of ministry together.  As we reflect on who we are as a church and imagine the possibilities as we begin to live that out together. 

On Sunday, April 21, I invite you to join in worship and be prepared to stay after for a “State of the Church address.”  Our Treasurer, Tom Jenney will give us a brief report on how we are doing financially thus far this year.  We are also planning a time for Q & A as we look forward and dream together about who we are as a church and how God is using us in our community.  I believe this is an important conversation for the life of our community of faith and look forward to hearing from you.

Ephesians 3:20 - Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine.  What a great reminder that God is able to do so much more than we could possibly imagine…when we let God be God!  What a beautiful word of encouragement to put our hopes and dreams in the hands of the One who created the world!  What a wonderful thought to continue to carry forward as we look to  a future into this new year that is filled with so much opportunity and potential!

Blessings,

Pastor Jenni

Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Eph 3:21)

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