Pastor's Message - June 2026

~Pressing On~

“But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind

and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on…”

~Philippians 3:13-14

Dear Members and Friends,

Well, our 75th anniversary celebrations are behind us, and they were every bit as joyful and energizing as we’d hoped. Now I have about two dozen thank-you cards to write to all the folks who made the festivities such a success: donors, musicians, volunteers, church members, former pastors who traveled great distances to be with us… Who am I

forgetting? If you invite me back for the 100th anniversary, in 25 years, I’ll be happy to come, assuming I’m still on this side of the turf… I’ll show up, eat, talk, and leave, and I’ll be very glad that I’m not in charge of any of it! Anniversaries are joyful but exhausting.

The main question on our minds at this point is, What now? We’ve just celebrated the uniqueness of our congregation. It was a boost for morale and a reminder of our identity and calling. Groups have personalities, just as individuals do. Bower Hill Church really is a special place, with a long history of working to heal the world and a culture of

acceptance, generosity, and mission.

An ancient Jewish proverb says, “Memory and hope abide together.” That’s to say, when we cast a backward glance at God’s goodness in our lives, it gives us hope because God also holds our future. Paul, in the verse at the top of this page, seems to be telling us to forget the past. But he’s speaking specifically about the life he lived before coming to faith. His point is that we must press on toward the future. We included some forward-looking elements in our 75th anniversary celebrations, most especially our speaker series, “Faith Forward: The Future of Congregational Life.” An Episcopalian who attended all three events in the series said, “Most churches celebrate their anniversaries in the parish hall. You’ve made your anniversary into a gift to the community.” That was our intention because that’s the kind of church we are.

And so, I pose the question again: What now? It’s time for Bower Hill Church to get creative about how we engage with our community. It’s time for us to focus, to name the things that drive us, and to try some new approaches to mission and ministry. It’s time to get in a huddle and come up with a plan. Videos of the speaker series will soon be available on our website. We’ll let you know when they appear because we’re hoping that everyone who was unable to attend the series will watch them. We’ll be setting up times to gather and respond to the things we’ve learned. Stay tuned for more about that. But in the meantime, let’s talk. What are your thoughts? What did the anniversary

celebrations do for you? What did you enjoy about them? What did you learn? How are we going to press on?

Christ’s Peace,

~Brian