Dear Edgeboro Family & Friends,

A change of seasons is upon us, and though most of us want that change to be winter into spring, that one is a little farther off than the one that I’m referring to (though I hope not much farther!). Epiphany is almost over and Lent will begin on Ash Wednesday, March 6th. (Join us for worship that evening at 7:00pm.) With Lent, and Easter, comes different programming opportunities to engage in that come in the form of worship, Sunday School programs, and fellowship activities like Lenten soup dinners and Lent Madness—all of this, and more, is mentioned in this newsletter. Another one of these opportunities that comes with the season is our Wednesday Lenten series. This year, the series will help us engage in a particular Moravian tradition, but to introduce it, I would like to start with another Moravian tradition—the Moravian Daily Text.

When reading from the Daily Text, I always have to remind myself that these texts were chosen well in advance. The texts for 2019 were chosen in April 2017. For me, remembering that allows more room for the Spirit of God to speak through the texts because it eliminates any question of ―staging‖ any of the texts to conveniently fit the day or time. The New Testament text for the first day of Lent (March 6) is from Luke 1:46-48: ―My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.‖ These are some of Mary’s words after she finds out she is going to give birth to Jesus. She feels very strongly in this moment that God is in her life, that when she speaks of her life, she speaks about God, and that her story magnifies God and is a part of God’s story itself. Sometimes we don’t feel very strongly about that in our own lives, but if we believe that God is with us always, then all of what was true for Mary’s life is true for our lives as well. Each of our stories can reveal who God is and how God is working today.

Oh, how appropriate the Daily Text is, because this is the idea that will carry us through our Lebenslauf Workshop Wednesday Lenten Series. Moravians have used lebenslaufs (German—‖life’s course‖) for centuries to witness to how God acts in the lives of real people and real stories. Here, we will learn together how to tell our lebenslaufs and then we will have opportunities to share them with each other and respond to others in meaningful ways. Not only will we have an opportunity to get to know some of our fellow church members who have worshipped with us for years, but more importantly, we can practice talking about our faith and how it has shaped us. Listeners also play a very important role because sometimes it takes someone else to notice something and point it out for us to realize exactly how God has been at work in our lives.

With only an hour each Wednesday, not everyone is going to get to share their lebenslauf each week. Most of the time, we will be in the important role of a listener. Therefore, your attendance is encouraged as we support each other with our stories.

As we transition into Lent together, may God continue to mold and shape our lives to magnify God’s love.

Grace & Peace,
Pastor Dan