One of the most beloved of our UCH outreaches is South Hayward Parish, a service which UCH and several other churches in the area had enough foresight and compassion to bring into being over 50 years ago.

Memories have a way of opening doors within us; some doors we close immediately!  Some memory doors we open with joy, eagerness, and sometimes with reverence. Most of these latter doors – the ones we want to open & not linger on their threshold, seem to invite us to re-enter fully into the room of that memory.  Behind those doors we probably experienced sheer goodness in some form or other.

What is your immediate reaction when you see a detour sign? “Oh, no!” “I’m going to be late!”  “Not again!”  Typical reasons for a detour include: Road construction, flooded area ahead, road or bridge is washed out or inaccessible, on-coming traffic ahead, or an accident blocks the way.

Complaining about the inconvenience does not remove the detour, nor does it change the fact that the detour was provided as a safety precaution.

Can you imagine how the disciples felt about being called to be companions with Jesus, this charismatic person who spoke surprising things about God’s love to crowds gathered around him? 

I struggle at times with my son's passion for baseball. I have posted about the behavior of some of the folkx in Future Stars and Little League- the way they bully and yell at the each other, take it all so seriously, and have taught my son new turns of phrase like "that sucks" or "we're screwed," or have told him to "walk it off" or "don't rub it" when he is really hurting to the point of tears (I have stepped in and will continue to do so).

It’s never going to be finished, is it?

      Never going to change

          that split between the haves and the have-nots

              so obvious throughout the centuries