Dear Church Family,
This weekend marks one of the major celebrations in the American calendar—Super Bowl Sunday. The hype, the energy, the passion is remarkable.
I noticed an article this week talking about the seriousness with which  many NFL players take the Christian faith.  For example, three quarters of the quarterbacks outwardly confess they are evangelical Christians.
A  colleague of mine in Virginia was the chaplain to the Washington Football team.  He said despite the outsized incomes and adoration football players receive, despite the emotional intensity and single-minded devotion to the game most players display,  the spiritual needs of the players is real.  There are family issues, fear of getting injured, personal jealousies and rivalries, seemingly capricious decisions of coaches and owners,  the concern for what happens when the usually short career is over.   The world is not always as glamorous as it appears from the outside.  The need to keep God at the center is no less important for them than us.
We don’t have a strong stake in this particular game, but are looking forward, as we do every year, to watching.  If you are football fans I hope you will enjoy it too. 
But first, of course, God calls us to worship. We’re continuing to focus on the gospel lectionary readings, which are from Luke. The texts are Proverbs 6:6-11 and Luke 6:17-26.  The sermon is titled “Christ and the Poor.” 
I look forward to seeing many of you in church.
Peace  and Joy, 
Rich