A Simple QuestionFebruary 20, 2019 
Written by Emily HeathOne man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been there a long time, he said to him, 'Do you want to be made well?'"- John 5:5-6

There is a common saying in recovery communities used when someone relapses and returns to alcohol or drugs: "Well, maybe they just needed to do a little more research."

It is certainly gallows humor, but there's some truth there. As much as you can lead someone in the right direction, show them the tools that will help them make better choices, and support them all you can, in the end nothing will help someone to recover unless they want to recover.

When Jesus comes to a man who has been lying at the pool of Bethesda for 38 years he asks him a deceptively simple question: "Do you want to get well?"

The man doesn't answer him. Instead he tells him what was keeping him from getting well. Jesus seems to ignore these things and says simply, "Stand up, take your mat, and walk."

It's important not to equate physical disability with "getting well" in other senses. Jesus did the physical healing that not even modern medicine can do. But I sometimes wonder what Jesus would say to others who have been hanging around the pool for 38 years, for whom recovery is very much a choice.

To put it in recovery terms, no one chooses to be an alcoholic. That's a disease over which no one has power. But when you're sober, you can absolutely choose whether or not to relapse because in the end no one forces a drink down your throat. 

In other words, "Do you want to get well?"

And I sometimes wonder what he would ask congregations who have been kicking the metaphorical can down the road for years and years, bemoaning a culture that has passed them by, blaming a changing world for declining membership.

"Do you want to get well?"

Truly, we who are "still sick and suffering" (and that includes the church) are not responsible for some things. But we are responsible for working with God towards our own recovery.

Prayer

Great Physician, help me to say "yes" when you offer your healing to me. Amen.
About the Author
Emily C. Heath is the Senior Pastor of The Congregational Church in Exeter (New Hampshire) and the author most recently of Courageous Faith: How to Rise and Resist in a Time of Fear.

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I share this "Daily Devotional" with you because it is a perspective I never imagined as I read the story of this man long ill.  
Rev. Heath also brings up the condition of the church.  We can see church mergers and closings in so many communities.  We recognize that attendance wasn't what it once used to be.
Is the problem only with people no longer being sufficiently "religious" or is part of the problem that churches are not where people are looking for "religious"?
Do we want to be made well?, Rev. Heath asks.
I would ask you to keep this Daily Devotional in mind and maybe think about joining us on Saturday from 11AM - 1PM as we have invited Rev. Corey Sanderson to come and talk with us about church growth.
Rev. Sanderson has built a church from the ground up, where nothing was he helped to establish a congregation.  I again invite you to come by and let's talk about this topic.  
And hot soup will be served to boot.
Rev. Randy

Thank you to everyone who supported our Kindness for Kids (K4K) breakfast this morning.  K4K is a program of the church’s Benevolence Committee.  Its purpose is to help Hatfield’s public-school students participate in school activities that they may otherwise not be able to because of financial difficulty. 

The organizers of the K4K breakfast were Melody Edwards, Leeanne Rubeck and Amy Novak.  We thank them for all of their enthusiasm and hard work.  We appreciate also the many volunteers who came forward from Hatfield Congregational Church, including Maddie and Morgan from our Confirmation class.  I’ll see if they won’t let me post their names.

Leeanne and Art Rubeck were a huge help in the kitchen.  Leeanne invited so many of her fellow parishioners from Our Lady of Grace Roman Catholic Church to come over and we appreciate their support.  Being only a few days shy of Valentine’s Day, a card-making area was set up for our youngest guests, and we thank Ali and Brooke for supervising this activity.

We were truly blessed by the generous support of the Hatfield Lion’s Club and Goggin’s Realty.  The Lion’s Club donated $500 to the K4K fund and added eight gift cards to the Texas Road House Restaurant in Hadley. 

​The Goggins Real Estate Agency contributed $250, and on top of that four employees came and worked with us at the breakfast.  They were:  Micki Sanderson, Tess Coburn, Rachel Simpson and Julie Rosten.  Every month Goggins’ employees volunteer at a local charitable event.  

​We need also to thank the Hampshire Gazette Newspaper.  They ran an article in the Gazette in advance of our breakfast and helped us to get the word out about the event and K4K.  Here, again, is the link to the article:  https://www.gazettenet.com/Kindness-for-Kids-program-in-Hatfield-holding-benefit-breakfast-23269289  The posted article on our FaceBook page has already received over 500 hits.  The Gazette sent a photographer to the breakfast and we are looking forward to seeing those pictures next week.

Lastly, the initial count on the proceeds we made at the breakfast, 100% of which will benefit students in need in the Hatfield public schools, is $1,450!  Thank you to everyone who donated, worked and attended the breakfast to make this possible.
Rev. Randy

Last year five of us attended the Super Saturday event. I thought it was exciting and informative. We even followed up by inviting Rev. Corey Sanderson to come to our church to continue speaking about mission and outreach. And he's coming for his second visit on Saturday, February 23rd. We'll be serving soup that day too.
If you may be interested in attending this year's Super Saturday, please visit the link below, and then let Rev. Randy know if you want to attend.

https://www.macucc.org/eventdetail/11156586?
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Kindness for Kids (K4K) is a charitable program sponsored by our church’s Benevolence Committee. Its sole purpose is to help the students at the Hatfield Elementary School. Sometimes a family may face a financial difficulty in one way or another that would hinder or prevent their child(ren) from participating in a school or after-school activity. Our K4K donations are entrusted to the school administration for disbursement. When the school recognizes such a need in a student, the administration may decide to use K4K funds to assist the family.

A Valentines themed Pancake Breakfast Fundraiser is planned for Saturday, February 9th from 8:30 – 10:00am in the church dining room.  A card-making table will be set-up so that our younger attendees may make a card to share with someone they care about. A suggested per ticket donation for the breakfast is $8.00, and of course additional donations will be accepted with a smile.

​Tickets may be purchased at Hatfield Congregational Church on Sundays or reach out to Melody or Rev. Randy.  Please make checks payable to “FCC Hatfield Benevolence Fund.”  Tickets may also be purchased online by copying and pasting this link in your browser:  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/valentines-day-breakfast-fundraiser-tickets-54183905520.  This breakfast is open to the community at large. 

We are working in conjunction with the Hatfield Elementary School and with Our Lady of Grace Roman Catholic Church. If you would like to help work this breakfast, please contact Rev. Randy or Melody Edwards: (413)320-2089/mephany@hotmail.com.

We also wish to thank the Hatfield Fire Fighters’ Association. After their very successful summer bonfire, they donated a majority of the proceeds to benefit the Town of Hatfield and also to some charitable organizations outside of town. As part of this giving campaign, the Fire Fighters Association chose to donate $1,000 to the K4K program! Again, we thank them for their generosity.
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​It was 50 years ago today that Apollo 8 emerged from traversing the dark side of the moon. This was a first. The world waited anxiously as they went into a forced silence behind the moon, unable to communicate with earth. 

They were completely separated. When they reemerged, there were shouts of relief, and then the astronauts took a first-ever picture of the earth rising over the moon's horizon. 

Apollo 8 went from separation to sharing a profound photo of our shared identity and our shared home. For all of the differences that we insist separate us, the photo above reminds us of our essential identity.

Likewise, when God enters our world in the ordinariness of Jesus' birth, all creation is sanctified, all human life is revealed as cherished by God, and hopefully we can begin to better realize our shared communion. 

May Christmas help us all to appreciate the blessing of creation and the blessing of each other. May Christmas renew our love of God who loves us as much as His willingness to leap from heaven and into the humble Bethlehem manger.
May peace and joy fill your hearts and homes this Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and remain with you all long afterwards. 

And of course, know that you are all welcome to join us this Christmas Eve at 7PM as we gather in Jesus' house to celebrate Jesus' birthday with song, Scripture and community.
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A Blessed Christmas to You!