May is a month of endings and beginnings. In some ways, we transition to summer during this month. While the city school system is still in session, the weather begins to warm and many of the church programs begin to shift. On Memorial Day weekend, we move to combined summer service. It just happens to be Pentecost Sunday, and we will conclude a five month series on the Gospel of John. And then the following week, we begin a new sermon series on Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi. Endings and beginnings.
Pentecost is the birthday of the church. Jesus has ascended into heaven, and the Holy Spirit comes to empower the church for all that is ahead. It must have been an exciting time with so many new dynamics. New people came into the church, God was working and moving in powerful ways. Yet the change must have been challenging for some. Jesus was no longer present in the flesh. The church was facing persecution. I wonder if some of the disciples longed to go back to the way things were. But Jesus had told them that they were being sent out in the same way that the Father had sent him. And the end of one era meant the beginning of a new one.
As we step into the month of May, as we consider what Pentecost meant for the early church, the dynamic of transition is at the forefront of our minds. The next week, we will step into a new sermon series on Philippians. The date is May 31. Did you know that the cornerstone of our church building was laid on May 30, 1871? That means that when we gather to worship on May 31, 2026, we will be gathering just a day after the 155th anniversary of our cornerstone. Can you imagine standing on the corner of Main Street and Gibson on that day? How much change and transition has our world experienced since that day?
Change is never easy. It was not easy for the disciples, and I am sure that there have been seasons of change in The United Church that have been disruptive and even contentious. But God is always in the business of moving His mission forward. Paul encourages the church at Philippi, “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 1:6) God has been working through a people at the corner of Main and Gibson for 155 years. He is not finished yet. And He continues to prompt us toward new beginnings.
As the trees begin to green in the month of May, celebrate the new beginning of spring. But also remember that we don’t have to be afraid of transitions. He breathed life into the early church. He sustained Paul and the Philippians through hardship. He planted a congregation at this corner 155 years ago. He is still at work. Let’s trust Him together through every ending and beginning He brings our way.
Worship Schedule
- May 03 - Consider how Jesus, the Christ, is The Way, The Truth, The Life (John 14:1-14)
Additional Readings: Psalm 31:1-5, 15-16, 1 Peter 2:2-10 - May 10 - Love, Obey, Abide (John 14:15-21)
Additional Readings: Psalm 66:8-20, 1 Peter 3:13-22 - May 17 - The Prayer Before the Cross (John 17:1-11)
Additional Readings: Psalm 68:1-10, 32-35, 1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11 - May 24 - Sent and Equipped (John 20:19-23)
Additional Readings: Psalm 104:24-34, 35b, 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13 - May 31 - 155 Years and Counting (Philippians 1:1-11)
Additional Readings: Psalm 145:1-9, Romans 8:28-39
