Last week, as I stood with a group of people who are interested in exploring membership at Bedford Presbyterian Church, I was reminded of an old family friend named Dr. Margaret Channin. Dr. Channin was a good friend of my grandparents, and she would often come out with fun and folksy sayings. I remember that one of Dr. Channin’s sayings was, “I get kind of chesty about my friends.” This was her way of saying how proud she was of her friends – they made her want to stick out her chest with pride.
Well, as I listened to the many stories that people shared about where they were from, what had led them to BPC, and what they love about our church, I couldn’t help but feel a bit “chesty” about our church! It’s true! I’m so thankful and proud of who we are that it makes me want to stick out my chest and say, “I’m so proud of you!”
Now, unlike our Roman Catholic cousins, we Protestants don’t have a list of the seven deadly sins, but I am well aware of the dangers of having too much pride. At the same time, pride mixed with a heap of humble gratitude is not a bad thing.
Recently, our Session celebrated a milestone that made all of us proud and grateful: Bedford Presbyterian Church is now an official “Earth Care Congregation of the Presbyterian Church (USA).” Within our denomination, there are congregations that choose to put a focus on caring for God’s creation and make a concerted effort to do so. Many of these congregations will fill out an application and make a commitment to take certain steps to take care of the earth by conserving energy, reducing the use of fossil fuels, making wise choices when it comes to lawn care, and setting an example in their communities.
`To read more about Earth Care Congregations, click HERE.
After a year of studying the process, BPC’s Green Team, under the leadership of Brian Martel, put our application together and sent it in. As of March 3, we received word that our application has been approved! This makes BPC one of only two PC(USA) Earth Care Congregations in the State of New Hampshire and makes us part of a nationwide network of congregations who are joining together to take care of God’s creation in a deep and committed way. I’m so proud and thankful that we have been taking steps toward energy sustainability over the past few years, and I am so proud of and grateful for what the future holds.
About a month from now – sometime in April of 2025 – crews from Revision Energy will be on-site, installing BPC’s new solar panel array. This will involve some construction on our back lawn, some extra equipment in our parking lot, and a trench dug across the parking lot to the building. Our hope is that sometime in the month of May, we will get the go-ahead from Eversource to turn our new system on and begin producing electricity from the sun – sending it back into the electrical grid.
I’m so excited and proud and thankful for all of this that I admit I’m more than a little “chesty,” but I know that any good we are able to do as a congregation is a gift from God through the Holy Spirit. So, thanks be to God and thanks be to all of you who have made this wonderful progress possible!
See you in church!
Grace and Peace,
John
Prepare for Worship
This Week: “Faith and Works – Everything [in] Between (Week 2)”
- Pick up or request a mailed copy of the Lenten Devotional Book – Everything [in] Between
- Read Luke 10:38-42
- Read or sing Hymn # 697 – “Take My Life, and Let it Be”