Dear friends in Christ,

As you page through this issue of the Chatter, you may notice a few changes. We (Council along with me and Kathy P in the office) are working to trim down and redesign the content of the Chatter for a variety of reasons. One reason, of course, is good stewardship, both of our natural resources (paper and energy) as well as our financial resources (postage, materials, employee time). The cost of printing and mailing the Chatter is not exorbitant, but those pages do add up! If we can save a few nickels and dimes here and there, it helps us use our resources wisely.

The second reason, and in some ways the deeper, more philosophical reason, has to do with how we promote good communication flow at St. Peter’s. Communication is like the blood that connects all the different parts of the congregation and beyond it in the whole body of Christ. That’s why our weekly email is called “The Pulse.” It brings necessary information that helps each part of the body to grow, to be healthier, and to be more connected as part of the whole.

Our world today is filled with unnecessary information. We are swimming in it, and sometimes we drown trying to sort out what is needed and what is not. The church is called to be different from the culture around us in what we say—not to just spit out soundbytes and “spin.” As your pastor, I’m sure there are times when I sound like Charlie Brown’s teacher (sorry!). But my goal is to give you necessary information, and to speak God’s truth that gives our lives meaning and purpose through the Holy Spirit. In fact, that’s what the Spirit calls all of us as Christians to do.

Likewise, we strive to make the Chatter a communication vehicle that builds up the body of Christ, helps it be healthier and more connected, and speaks the truth that gives our lives meaning: the truth that God created us, loves us, and has called us to be partners in healing the whole world with the love of Jesus. This truth goes deeper than a Tweet or a soundbyte—so some of this communication will be in-depth, reflective material to chew on and ponder. At the same time, I realize our brains are bombarded with information, which means we need to be thoughtful and strategic in our communications.

With that in mind, some of what was formerly in the Chatter has now been relocated, or will be relocated to our new website very shortly. Other things have been shortened, and we’ll be continuing to refine this process as we go. If you are missing something in particular, please reach out and ask and we’ll be glad to let you know where to find it. If you are not already getting the Pulse emails, you may want to sign up by emailing me at pastor@stpetersverona.org, as some things will be shifting to that avenue of communication.

Thanks for understanding as we work to be good stewards and proclaim the good news of God’s love in Jesus Christ to each other and to the world!

Together in Christ,
Pastor Katie Yahns