Dear Friends of the Wholeness Service,
In the spirit of Valentine’s I greet you with the words of Paul to the Romans, “Who can separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels, not rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depths, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (8:35, 37-39). What an uplifting reminder of God’s love for us!
I read a very powerful statement in The Sun February 13th. Ms. Mokry was reflecting on hard times in their marriage, such as the death of their daughter, and how faith had helped. She said, “for those who believe, no explanation is necessary; for those who do not, none is possible.” I pray for the strength of all of our faith and for our persistence to stand in the gap for others. We thank you for your prayers for the Wholeness Service and for all who attend or participate.
Since our last prayer letter, we have had two losses of dear people. Jean Biggs, wife of George Biggs an initiator of these services and leader until 2017, and Katie Knodle, mother of our clarinetist, Amy Fitzgerald. Please keep George and Amy and their families in your prayers as they go through a time of loss and change.
We are grateful again for all of our leaders and volunteers at the January service where Rev. Dr. Martha Bessac led us in reflections on “shelter” as an aspect of hospitality and the healing hearth.
Thank you also to those who helped dismantle and reset up the sanctuary. We are grateful for your support. The ongoing efforts of each of you is critical to our success in facilitating sacred space where people can encounter the Holy Spirit and find safety, hope, and greater wholeness. Our world is in desperate need of sanctuaries of healing and wholeness.
In February Rev. Dr. Ann Hagmann’s meditation will be on prayer as the oxygen of our spiritual lives. Please keep her and all those preparing the service in your prayers. Also include those who can benefit from healing and wholeness.
Our next service is Sunday February 24th at 6:30 pm at First United Methodist Church. We hope to see you there! Please continue to keep all the leadership and participants in your prayers. And please let others know about our wholeness service opportunity. We are grateful to you for your interest and prayers.
In Christ’s love,
Rev. Dr. Ann Hagmann
