THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Ritual. ​One of the things I’m often telling parents and Christian Educators about faith formation and children is the importance of ritual. Rituals don’t have to be fancy. A prayer before dinner, a blessing before bed, a moment of gratitude in the afternoon. What are your routines? One way to enhance your spiritual practice is to connect things you do every day to a moment of gratitude or prayer. Instead of creating a new routine, tack on a spiritual practice to your existing one. Before you take a first sip of coffee, think of three things you are grateful for. As you brush your teeth, say a prayer for someone who’s on your heart. Do you have a favorite faith practice or ritual? I’d love to hear about it. 
 
 
LINKS YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN: 

● All the Things We Have to Grieve Now​ - I thought this article in The Atlantic was useful and powerful.

● The Butterfly Hug​ is an easy way to practice peace and calm. As you “flap the wings” say a prayer “God is with me,” perhaps. 

● Some of you EPC members got me hooked on The Daily podcast from the NYT. I thought ​THIS EPISODE​ about tea and toast was just lovely. (Note, there is some adult language in it, so maybe listen with headphones if you have children around.) 
 
 
CARD SHOWER:  ​We grieve with Marion Young who has lost her youngest son, Greg, to COVID-19. Let’s see how many cards we can send? Marion’s address is: ​321 Elm Avenue Elmhurst, IL 60126. ​Don’t know what to say? It’s ok. Sometimes simple is best. “Thinking of you during your time of loss, and praying for you and your family” will mean a lot. 

 THESE DAYS:​ We got them fairly late, but the ​These Days ​ devotionals are ready for you to pick up at the circle drive at church. 
 

CHALK THE WALK: ​When the weather is nice, help us leave messages of hope for our community on our circle driveway. 
 
WEDNESDAY ZOOM MEETINGS: All meetings start at 7:00 p.m.  
 
May 13th - Tori, the therapy dog tricks from 7:15-7:35 - This week will be perfect for all ages. We’ll start our time with checkins and end with prayer. In the middle, we’ll get to see Tori’s fantastic tricks! 
 
May 20th - TBD (Do you have an idea? Let me know!) 
 

May 27th - ​The Art of Living​ book discussion. 
 

Zoom Meeting Link is: ​https://zoom​ ​.us/j/515981426 
 

PRAYER WALL​: Add to our growing prayer wall, ​HERE​. 
 
 
Love to all, in Christ, 
 
Pastor Traci