Wild, Wonderful, Red-Hot Summer Adventure

josie
Jun 7
3 min read

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful; and kindle in them the fire of your love. Alleluia.

Dear families,

Tomorrow we celebrate Pentecost, the third of our major feasts at church (along with Christmas and Easter)—and it's a great chance to DO something since we might not have longstanding Pentecost traditions in our families or in the culture at large.

At Incarnation, children help to lead the Pentecost service through reading, processions, and paper airplane making; and we each have the opportunity to light a candle and ask for a specific gift of the Spirit (from Isaiah 11, listed at the end of this post in case you'd like to discuss more with your family before or after).

We'll mark this feast with flames and red; international food at a Pentecost Potluck Picnic before church; processions, post-its, paper airplanes! You could have fun bringing the feast home by incorporating any of these elements: fire (candles, bonfire, flambé dessert!), wind (flying kites, opening the windows), many languages (international praise playlist?!), red (decorations, food, solo cups); the birthday of the Church (cupcakes!). . .

Nursery care with volunteers won't be available on Pentecost, but the nursery itself will be open and available for parents to use for a break from all the excitement.

Summer Adventure . . .

Pentecost marks a shift from our atrium year into summer-mode and Ordinary Time, so it works out alright to be shifting into a new building right about now! Here's what children and families can look forward to at church after Pentecost:

Mustard Seed Nursery: The beautiful, enticing, wonder-full nursery in our new building will be available for children 4 and under throughout the summer. (As noted above, Pentecost is a good opportunity for a parent and child to check out the new space together.)
Wild Wonder: Each Sunday before church, all ages will gather on the playground beginning at 10:45 for a relaxed time of creation appreciation. Your family can sign up here to contribute to this cosmic show and tell!
Life with God—A Summer Adventure for Families: Designed for families with children 9 and older, the Life with God reading challenge will lead adults and children through the catechism—reading, responding, wondering, praying together—with prizes along the way, and a celebration at the Fall Retreat. Booklets will be available to pick up at church beginning on Pentecost.
Wild Wonder Camp with Natural Leaders: Again this year we're partnering with Natural Leaders for a week of playing and praying in the woods (AKA not yo' mama's VBS!) for children 7 and older the week of August 11. Contact Josie for registration info.

See you on Pentecost!

love—Josie

Isaiah 11:2-3

And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,

the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,

the Spirit of counsel and might,

the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.

Wisdom

To be wise in the ways of God
To recognize the path and call of God,
To value what’s important

Understanding

To understand God’s will
To see things clearly
To have insight into the mysteries of faith

Counsel

To listen to God in our hearts
To receive God’s guidance about what should be done, and how to do it

Strength—or might

To go on even when it’s hard
To have the strength to love God and to do God’s will

Knowledge

To learn more deeply about God
To know God’s love more and more each day
To know God’s reflection in all of creation

Wonder—and awe, or fear of the Lord

To be aware of God’s greatness
To live in reverent amazement

Delight—piety, or reverence

To humbly delight in the Lord
To delight in God’s presence