Are you looking for a way to prompt spiritual growth and connect with others during the Lenten season? The Nurture Commission has an opportunity for you!
There will be an online discussion forum to go along with the Brethren Press Lenten devotional that extends from Ash Wednesday, February 22 through Easter Sunday, April 9. Here’s how the six-week devotional can work for you. Pick up a copy of the booklet, My Soul, My Life, My All, by Liz Bidgood Enders, available at the church at no charge to you, or you can order one from Brethren Press for $4.50, digital or print. Then, throughout Lent, you read the daily devotional entry and recommended Bible verses.
The online discussion forum offers an additional element of connection through discussion with others. From the church website, at your convenience, any time of the day or night, you click on the devotional discussion forum tab from the church’s website to read the daily reflection question and others’ thoughts about the devotional entry. Enter your own thoughts and responses as you feel led. The beauty is that you can do all of this in just a few minutes and whenever it suits your schedule! There is no Zoom or in-person time schedule, but the opportunity to connect is available on screen daily for all. With each additional person who participates, the more connections we make as a spiritual community.
The Brethren Press describes the devotional: “As we move through Lent, the words of scripture challenge us to engage our bodies in service, our hearts in devotion and our very being in seeking understanding as we grow in love for God and others.” The devotions can prompt us into personal growth in time with the seasons of nature, changing from the dormancy of winter to the rebirth of spring. An added element of intrigue this season is that the author, Liz Bidgood Enders, is a local pastor of a CoB church in Harrisburg and will be at Etown CoB on March 12 as a guest preacher.
The Nurture Commission is always striving for ways to include those who attend our church online. The discussion forum can be a great way to get to know people from across the full spectrum of our congregation. We hope to hear from many of you in the online forum!
Submitted by Ellen Flury, Nurture Commission