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"Sightseeing?" or "Pilgrimage?"

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"Sightseeing?” Or “Pilgrimage?" Epiphany Sunday  1/5/25  Hodgdon UMC Life is a Pilgrimage! The year 2024 quietly said goodbye, and 2025 has already walked five days with me on this journey of life. I didn’t push time away, nor did I invite the new year to come. Yet here we are, walking together. Life is like that. Many things happen without us asking. Sometimes, unexpected and unwelcome events fall into our lives. That’s why life is not a sightseeing trip but a pilgrimage . It’s not about passing by and glancing at things with our eyes or walking according to our own plans. Instead, it’s about walking along the path given to us, using our feet to move forward. It’s not about walking where we want to go, but walking where God leads us. On this journey, we meet people and situations that help us see ourselves more clearly. We learn to walk with others and to feel awe for someone greater than us. [1]   Abraham’s Pilgrimage God called Abraham on a pilgrimage to ...
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The Sound of Harmony

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  * Handbell Choir at Gardner Pastor Joyce Kang 12.21.24. Church Conference   Last Sunday, the beautiful sound of bells filled the Gardner Nursing Home. It seemed impossible three months ago because we didn’t have enough people. Yet, seven dedicated individuals, including conductor Mary Miller, gathered for an hour every Thursday to pray and practice. A bell choir is an instrument of teamwork—waiting, teaching, and supporting one another. If one person makes a mistake, it affects the whole harmony. From the 4th grade of elementary school to the “7th grade of life” (over 70 years old), we became friends and companions, encouraging each other. I took over the seven bells at Bass Cliffs that Lydia played last year. Initially, it felt overwhelming; I was used to ringing only three bells. However I focused on what was essential in each song and played only what I could manage. Sometimes I hit the bells too quickly, and sometimes I missed entire measures. Yet, gradually, I learned. ...
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