How can we tune in to God’s message for us more clearly?

Aloha! Wow, did we have a fabulous Jazzikapila concert last Sunday! If you were there, you know what a fun and inspiring musical celebration it was, courtesy of our musician, Zach Hamada, our choir members Bette Kalohi (who planned the event), Alanna Burke-Smith, Nancy Chun, and Sara Ridge, with Rick Hamada joining us as co-emcee. And thanks to our AV team, Claire Parcon and Andrea Casey too! We all left uplifted and joyful after the memorable performance. Please feel free to share your feedback with Zach and the choir to help them plan future events.

IMPORTANT: If you are interested about the future of our Diocese and who our next bishop will be, please plan to join us for a “Heart-to-Heart” talk story to share your questions and opinions with the Search Committee on Saturday (TOMORROW), July 26, at 10 a.m. here in Sumida Hall. You can also participate virtually on Zoom—please email Alofa Carpenter at [email protected] to register if you want to join the Zoom.

Then on Sunday after worship, anyone who is able and interested can come to my office to talk more about what you would like to see in our new bishop. We have some questions the Search Committee would like us to answer as they continue to do the challenging work of creating a profile and launching the search. I hope you’ll join me then! Please keep the Search Committee and Standing Committee of the Diocese in your prayers.

Last Sunday we explored Amos 8:1-12, Psalm 52, and Luke 10:38-42. Amos described another image God gave him about Israel—a basket of summer fruit that looks nice, can be delicious, but it is just about to start rotting. That’s what was happening to Israel because they were ignoring God’s will, particularly in their greed, dishonesty, and lack of care for the poor and needy. Psalm 52 gave us another image: a green olive tree deeply rooted into God’s will. Like Martha in Luke 10, we tend to worry and get distracted by many things! Have you been able to focus more on God, and build your roots more deeply into God’s will this past week?

This Sunday we’ll dig into Psalm 85 and Luke 11:1-13. Do you remember the rabbit ears on our old TV sets? If you are of a certain age you do! It could be maddening to try to “tune in” to the station you wanted to watch. The same thing can happen with God—we just can’t seem to tune in to God’s signal, God’s message for us, God’s will for our lives. Jesus calls us to be persistent in prayer while we wait to hear God. How do we do that? Let’s try to figure that out together.

This Sunday we’ll also continue our series of “Ministry Minutes” during the announcements time, to bring you up to date about the various ministries happening at St. Timothy’s. Last Sunday we heard from Sue Ann Wargo about the Eucharistic Minister and Lector ministry, and this week we’ll hear from Brandon Casey about the STEAM ministry.

So please join us on Sunday morning at 9 in the Chapel, or worship with us on Facebook Live.

Dear sisters and brothers, you are in my prayers, and I ask for your prayers for St. Timothy’s Church, for our dedicated staff and devoted lay leaders and ministers, and for your vicar. May God bless you and your loved ones always. 

Aloha Ke Akua!
Fr. Pete+