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Rev. Gordon Rankin Conference Minister This week I offer a little change of pace. October is Clergy Appreciation Month. I am endlessly grateful for, and proud of, the efforts and impacts of all our Authorized Ministers (Ordained, Commissioned, or Licensed) who serve in and on behalf of United Church of Christ in settings all across New Hampshire. I know you all are too. This week I offer a simple prayer. I hope it is used in churches over the next couple of weeks, voiced

Rev. Linda Hirst Acting Associate Conference Minister We are being bombarded with political attack ads in the state of Maine as voting day, Nov. 3, approaches. We have been for months. I imagine you have been, too. We have started to mute them or even turn off the TV even when the ones supporting our candidate are on. It’s gotten to be too much. I can feel my soul being squashed (or sucked out of my body) with each passing day. After months of being told the world is going

Conference Minister Rev. Gordon Rankin 10.7.26 Two weekends ago, I was privileged to attend the Southern New England Conference Meeting at the DCU Center in Worchester. While there I got to hear the Georgia Senator, the Reverend Dr. Rafeal Warnock, deliver the keynote address. He also offered the Sunday morning sermon. His opening story from that sermon is one that I’ve not been able to shake since. Dr. Warnock talked about the traditional greeting of the Maasai Warriors of

Conference Minister Rev. Gordon Rankin 9.9.26 “Sculpting every move you compose a symphony. You plead to everyone, ‘see the art in me’”. These are lyrics from the chorus of the song Art in Me by the Christian Contemporary Musicians, Jars of Clay. For eleven years now, I have been part of a Community of Practice with other Conference Minister colleagues. It has been the same Community of Practice though some folks have gone and others have come. There are so many things this

Conference Minister Rev. Gordon Rankin 9.2.26 Twenty-four years ago, I spent a week of my summer serving as a chaplain at Silver Lake Conference Center. Usually, I preferred to serve as a dean. However, that particular summer, my wife and I were at the point in our adoption process that I needed the flexibility in schedule that being a chaplain allowed. During my week as a chaplain, I became particularly well acquainted with a young girl named Jess. Jess was in one of our..

Acting Associate Conference Minister Rev. Linda Hirst 08.26.26 I used to imagine retiring to western NC. My family is in Hendersonville, and I love everything about it there: the mountains, the rivers, and the slower life (which I’m sure I'm imagining). I have shared my thoughts with Brad, whose response has been decidedly lukewarm. While he loves that part of the country, he is hesitant about moving, and it’s all because of this one thing: community. We’ve lived in Maine