Eastminster Presbyterian

Here is the link to this week's service.... https://eastminster-york.org/worship-and-faith/broadcasts/

We will reopen for worship this Sunday, July 5! The 9 a.m. service will be held in the Outdoor Worship Center, weather permitting. Should the weather not cooperate, that service will be cancelled. The 11 a.m. service will be in the sanctuary, following guidelines for social distancing. ... Everyone is asked to wear a mask! ALSO, for those who are not comfortable worshiping in person, the 11 a.m. service will be live-streamed and may be accessed through our website at this link: https://eastminster-york.org/worship-and-faith/broadcasts/

Here is the link to the June 28th service https://eastminster-york.org/worship-and-faith/broadcasts/

Here is the link to today's service.... https://eastminster-york.org/worship-and-faith/broadcasts/

Here is the link to Sunday's service.... https://eastminster-york.org/worship-and-faith/broadcasts/

Here is the link to yesterday's service: https://eastminster-york.org/worship-and-faith/broadcasts/

Happy Wednesday! The following is a reflection from Pastor Lytch.... Usually during communion, after I’ve given the plates of bread to the servers, I’ll bow my head and close my eyes and feel the close presence of Christ surrounding me and filling me. Then, as the trays of juice are being served, I look out over the congregation and marvel at bonds of the Holy Spirit that join such a diverse group of people into one holy family. I can sense God’s love falling on each one, you...ng and old, overcoming all our differences, and uniting us as the body of Christ. This week, when we partake of the Lord’s Supper in different places and at different times while watching a video recording, I won’t be able to look out and see Jesus’ flock. That doesn’t mean that we aren’t together. Communion is never a completely personal sacrament. When we take communion to those who are confined in their homes or the hospital or a care facility, it is always taken by two or more deacons or elders who have been chosen by the church and approved by the session so it is clear that we never take the Lord’s Supper in isolation but share in a family meal that is not constrained by the limits of space and time but occurs within the infinite span of God’s loving grace. So this week when you celebrate the sacrament in your home, I encourage you to remember that even though we are eating bread that comes from many different places, whether Giant or Weiss or Turkey Hill, and though we are drinking different kinds of beverage, whether wine or grape juice or tap water, Christ’s Spirit is with us in those elements to make us one in him. And this week especially, let’s remember that the sacrifice of Christ was not just for those of us who partake of the sacrament in faith. He died for the whole world, to heal its wounds and divisions. Let us with courage confess whatever unintentional complicity we might have in injustices that we might not even be aware of, trusting that the blood of Christ cleanses even our hidden sins. Let us pray that the Prince of Peace would use us, his people, to stand up for reconciliation and resist division. Wherever we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, whether it’s in the sanctuary or in our dining room, we share it with all those who work and pray for justice and peace. Yours in Christ, Steve Lytch

Here is the link to Sunday's Worship Service https://eastminster-york.org/worship-and-faith/broadcasts/

From the transitional pastor: So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom. Psalm 90:12... While we’ve been unable to gather at 311 Haines Rd., we’ve been sending you these selections of inspirational music selected by Lois Moore along with some reflections from me or news updates from the session. I’ve shared with you how I’ve found comfort in Psalm 90 during these unusual times. The psalm begins by affirming that God is our eternal dwelling place (vv. 1-2). It then acknowledges the frailty of human life (vv. 3-6) and how we fail to live up to what God expects from us (vv. 7-8). It then asks that God give us the kind of awareness that leads to wisdom (v. 12). Maybe you’ve heard this description of the difference between knowledge and wisdom: Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, not a vegetable. Wisdom is not using it in a fruit salad. Wisdom is what lets us to make sense out of life so we can live in hope and joy. Often, the more we learn, the harder it is to make sense out of what we know. Psalm 90 affirms that God is all powerful and all loving. It also affirms that we are sinful and incur God’s wrath. People often get hung up on the conundrum of how an all-powerful and all-loving God can tolerate human suffering. Wisdom sees that God is with us in our suffering and is able to redeem it for God’s purposes, as God didn’t spare his only Son the pain of the cross, but redeemed his suffering by raising him from the dead. Wisdom is being fully aware of the facts and trusting in God anyway. In the time of the coronavirus, wisdom is doing whatever we can to mitigate both its health and its economic effects, while recognizing that there is a lot we still don’t know. Wisdom is not downplaying the harm that quarantine does to our mental health while seeing how God might use these difficult times to strengthen us. Wisdom is having genuine concern for the church because we can’t gather for worship, yet discovering new ways to be the blessed community of love and support that don’t rely on our buildings. Grace and peace, Steve

Here is the link to Sunday's worship service: https://eastminster-york.org/worship-and-faith/broadcasts/

Here is the link to yesterday's service: https://eastminster-york.org/5-17-20-online-worship-service/

For we are consumed by your anger; by your wrath we are overwhelmed. You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your countenance. Psalm 90: 7-8...Continue reading

Here is the link to today's service.... https://eastminster-york.org/5-10-20-online-service/