Newsletters

Creator Connection August 2026

“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did,

but people will never forget how you made them feel.”— Maya Angelou

From the Pastor’s Desk

Coming Home: Learning to Become Home

Throughout this year, we have been exploring what it means to come home to God—and what it means for us to become home for one another.

Coming home is not simply returning to a familiar place. It is learning to recognize where God is already present. It is discovering that God has been seeking us, feeding us, holding us, and making room for us all along.

The Gospel readings during August carry us further into that discovery.

The month begins in a deserted place, where a large crowd has followed Jesus. Evening comes. The people are hungry. The disciples see a problem and suggest that Jesus send everyone away.

Jesus says, “They need not go away.”

That may be one of the clearest descriptions of the Church’s calling: They need not go away.

There is room here. There is food here. There is grace enough here.

The disciples do not have much—five loaves and two fish—but Jesus receives what they bring, blesses it, breaks it, and gives it back to them. In his hands, what seems inadequate becomes enough to feed thousands.

Home begins there: not in abundance we manufacture, but in gifts Christ receives and shares.

The following Sunday, the disciples are far from shore in a boat battered by wind and waves. Jesus comes toward them across the water. They are terrified because they do not recognize him.

“Take heart,” he says. “It is I; do not be afraid.”

Sometimes coming home means discovering that Christ is present in the very place where we thought we were alone. Peter steps onto the water, loses his courage, and begins to sink. He cries, “Lord, save me!”

Jesus immediately reaches out his hand.

Our faith is not measured by how long we can remain above the waves. Faith is knowing whose name to call when we begin to sink—and trusting the hand already reaching toward us.

Then the circle widens.

A Canaanite woman comes to Jesus asking mercy for her daughter. She is an outsider—someone the disciples would rather send away. But she refuses to disappear. Her persistent faith reveals that God’s table is wider than the disciples imagined.

Isaiah hears God promise to gather still others besides those already gathered. God’s house will be “a house of prayer for all peoples.”

Coming home to God cannot mean closing the door behind us. God is always making room for someone we have not yet learned to welcome.

By the fourth Sunday, Jesus asks his disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter answers, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

That confession becomes a foundation. Yet Paul reminds us that the Church is not built around one person’s importance. We are one body with many members, each carrying different gifts. We belong to Christ, and therefore we belong to one another.

Finally, Jesus begins to show his disciples that his way leads toward Jerusalem, suffering, the cross, and resurrection. Coming home does not protect us from every difficult road. It gives us someone to follow upon it. Paul describes that life plainly: Let love be genuine. Show hospitality to strangers. Rejoice with those who rejoice. Weep with those who weep. Overcome evil with good.

This is how coming home becomes a practice.

Christ feeds us when we are hungry, reaches for us when we are sinking, makes room for those still outside, joins us into one body, and teaches us the costly habits of love.

We come home to God so that, by God’s grace, others may find a home among us.

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Bob

THE GIFT OF BEING NOTICED

August is often one of the hottest months of the year. While many of us are moving from one air-conditioned place to another, there are countless people who continue working outdoors each day in the Mississippi heat.

One group that often comes to my mind is our sanitation workers. Week after week, they perform an essential service that benefits every neighborhood, often with little recognition. A simple wave, a sincere “thank you,” or even a cold bottle of water can remind them that their hard work is seen and appreciated.

That same kindness can also be extended within our own church family to our parishioners who are no longer able to join us in worship each Sunday. Our homebound parishioners remain an important part of our Creator family, and while we faithfully remember them in our Prayers of the People, we don’t want them to feel forgotten. A personal note, a phone call, or a short visit from any of us can mean more than we may ever know.

This month, please remember these members of our Creator family who are at home: Wallis Schutt, Mary Hulsebosch, Lee Carre, Tommy Mills, and Lynn Judah. If you would like a phone number or mailing address to send a card or make a call or arrange a visit, please send me an email or give me a call or text.

As we move through these hot August days, let’s each make it a goal to reach out to one person.

Kindness rarely requires grand gestures. More often, it begins with simply noticing someone who could use a little encouragement. The smallest act of compassion can become the brightest part of another person’s day. Whether it’s thanking someone whose work often goes unnoticed or reaching out to someone who would enjoy hearing a familiar voice, every act of kindness reminds another person that they are seen, remembered, and valued. – Beth Braley

CREATOR’S AUGUST CHALLENGE

This month, make someone smile!

Smile at five people you don’t know.
Call a friend or family member “just because.”
Send one card of encouragement.
Visit someone who would enjoy company.
Thank someone who serves our community.
Leave the world just a little brighter than you found it.

FINANCIAL STATUS June: Income/$ 10,088.10– Expenses/ 14,165.39

FAITH IN ACTION

Help support the Clinton Christian Community Center (4C’s) and Mississippi College Student Food Bank with non-perishable food items each Sunday. Baskets are marked in the Narthex.

NO AUGUST BIRTHDAYS OR ANNIVERSARIES.