L I V I N G S T O N E S P R I S O N C O N G R E G A T I O N A U G U S T 7 , 2 0 2 0

Volume 1, Issue 17 www.livingstonesprisoncongregation.com Aug. 7, 2020

LSPC is a joint ministry of the

congregations of the Southwestern Washington

Synod-ELCA and a member of Prison

Congregations of America

Rev. Chr is Ode P a s t o r

L iv ingStonesPastor @outlook.com

Sandi Nolte Pastoral Ministries Assistant

LivingStonesAssistant @outlook.com

L i v i n g S t o n e s B o a r d o f D i r e c t o r s

2 0 2 0 - 2 1

As t r id , v ic e - c ha i r

D oug, treasurer

J i m , m em b e r

K r is , s ec r e ta r y

M a lc o l m , m em b e r

M ary , m em b e r

Melanie, synod advisor

T ere sa , c ha ir

L iv i n g St o ne s

P r i so n Co n g r e ga t io n

c/o Faith Lutheran Church

1 2 12 Co n n ec t i o n S t .

S h e l t o n, W A 9 85 84

. . .you also, like living stones, are being built in to a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood,

offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. . .1 Peter 2:5

a publication of Living Stones Prison Congregation—special WCC edition

To my brothers in Christ, the men of Living Stones. I hope and pray this finds you well: you hold in your hands a revised version of our quarterly newsletter, The Rock. As we cannot gather together in our usual way, we are using this as a means to support and hearten one another. As allowed/appropriate, you are encouraged

to share this with others. /Pastor Chris Ode

The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. . . .

The Lord upholds all who fall and lifts up those who bow down.

Psalm 145: 8 and 14

God is great and God is good! In his goodness and compassion the Lord cares for all who are hurting. God picks us up when we fall and holds us upright when we are bent over with life’s burdens. God’s grace, compas-sion and love are for all! The Message says it like this: “God is all mercy and grace --- not quick to anger, is rich in love. . . God gives a hand to those who are down on their luck, gives a fresh start to those ready to quit.” We are invited into the world of God’s reign, where power is the gracious, compassionate, faithful love of God. A world in which forgiveness is given and a new life in Christ is possible. When we believe and trust in Jesus we are acquitted, not destroyed; given a whole and lasting life, not death. Let us lay our burdens

down at the feet of Jesus and accept the love and life God gives us.

The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord’s face shine on you with grace and mercy. The Lord look upon you with favor and give you peace.

God’s love is for all by Intern Pastor Mary

For I am convinced that

neither death nor life, neither

angels nor demons, neither the

present nor the future, nor any

powers, neither height nor

depth, nor anything else in all

creation, will be able to separate

us from the love of God that is

in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39

L I V I N G S T O N E S P R I S O N C O N G R E G A T I O N A U G U S T 7 , 2 0 2 0

A grain of mustard seed by your brother in Christ, Pat

Quail not! by Rev. Todd Penson

The Gospel recently was Matthew 13: 31-32: “The king-dom of heaven is like a grain of

mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field. Which is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs . . .” A tiny seed can create a big and useful plant. I read of about a man who needed a kidney transplant; his father was a match, but he really needed one from someone about his age. His brother was willing, but he wasn’t a perfect match. So, his brother donated the kidney in a “chain reaction.” It went to someone who did match, and someone else donated on behalf of that person, and so on, till someone donated one that did

match his brother. One thing created a chain of good things. Less positively, one person with a virus trans-mitted it to others and they to more, till it went glob-al, and here we are. What if we concentrated on starting the spread of positive things? What could we do to spread joy, or comfort, or faith to others, and request they do the same? Like (in your own personal way): “friend, here’s something I think is great about you”, (or “here’s something I can do for you”) and if you like that, feel free to do the same to others,” Wouldn’t it be nice to start a positive “epidemic?” Hoping someone spreads something good your way, and knowing, if you ask, God will!

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus,

who was crucified”. . . Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” Matthew 28: 5, 10 Our home has been blessed with the presence of quail. Sometimes they run in front of our car or next to our fence. We were trimming our grapefruit tree (in Tucson) today when we heard the familiar voice of our neighbor Don calling to us from our side fence. We stopped trimming and had a pleasant conversa-tion, observing the current social distancing rules as we did so. Last week we had noticed he had his motion-activated camera in his front yard and we asked him what he was photographing there. He said that quail were getting into his bushes and he was deciding how to get rid of them. Tyger and I actually enjoy having quail around, especially when a new brood has hatched, and we see a mother quail running across the street followed by six to ten tiny new-born quail running in tempo with “mamma.” Often we see adult quails run with great elegance, their heads held up high. During our lunch on the patio, our conversation turned to quail and Tyger said she wondered if the

word quail was ever used as a verb. She pulled out her smart phone, and discovered that yes, it did have an historic verb form. A fifteenth century usage of middle-English origin meant “to fear.” During the Easter season when Christians hear the Easter stories from the Gospels in celebrative Easter worship services, I recall Matthew’s account of the empty tomb and Jesus’ words to the women who came to that tomb the first Easter. “Fear not,” he said (Matthew 28:5, 10). I think of our current national and international situation with the coronavirus and all the side difficulties that are accompanying it. We wake up each day cautious to not do something that will endanger us or our family, neighbors, and friends. So I invite you to add to your sigh of comfort at Jesus words, “Fear not,” the words, “QUAIL NOT!” Then every time you see a Quail, repeat those words, “Quail not!” Hopefully, this will add a smile on your face to the heart-calming words of Jesus, FEAR NOT!

Prayer: God of love, you cast out our fears. Your love expands to fill all available space, so no room for fear is left! Fill the “social distance” spaces between us, our family members and our friends with your presence. Help us, O God, to QUAIL NOT! Amen.