No matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you are welcome here at University Congregational United Church of Christ. Young, old, sure of your path, or still searching --- we invite you to join us in imagining love and justice - as Jesus did - in acting to change the world.
Our in-person worship service starts at 10 am and includes hymns, prayers, scripture reading and a sermon. It usually lasts about an hour. During the 10 am service we also offer live-streaming to a nearby room that offers those with compromised immune systems to be more isolated. We also offer a separate space for children, with supervised play and crafts during the 10 am service. Sections of the 10 am service are programed into the 5 pm digital service, which is offered as a "vespers."
We are an inter-generational church and strive to be family-friendly, with an active ministry for children and youth. All ages are welcome in worship. We also offer nursery and child-care, Younger children begin the 10 am service with us and usually leave after about 15 minutes. Older children have the option of leaving for a special sermon time. Junior high and high school youth meet at 9 am and then often sit together in worship. Give us a call at 206-524-2322 for more specifics.
Wheelchair Access: The front entry is wheelchair accessible as are the rest rooms. Please don't hesitate to ask for assistance.
Last week I found myself searching for guidance from Jesus on bicycling . I was shocked he never mentions it. Biking was probably just too dangerous for him, what with those sandals and long robes. But think how much faster he could have spread the Good News with his peloton of disciples.
I am not one to give up easily when searching Scripture—unless I don’t have Internet access. If that’s the case, I will keep searching only after I’ve rented a crane to lift my Bible With Apocrypha and Concordance off the shelf.
I was looking for guidance on cycling because we were on vacation and doing a long bike ride over some pretty rocky roads. (I love that in an ice cream but not so much on a bike path.) ANYway, I soon realized that the best way to ride these roads with the least amount of pain, stress and consternation was to hold on to the handlebars loosely and to rise up a bit out of the seat.
You experienced cyclists out there are shouting, “Duh!” so loud my ears are bleeding. The thing is, this kind of riding is totally counter-intuitive. Everything in you is saying, “Brace yourself! Hold on tight! Squeeze, tense, be strong.” But when you “post” or unweight your butt there is so much less pain over the bumps and potholes.
This doesn’t mean you close your eyes and hope for the best. It means you keep focus, relax and float just above the saddle and keep pedaling. See where I am going with this?
All of us have ridden rocky roads in our lives; times when we were afraid and prayed not to crash. Sometimes we did crash. But we got back on and kept moving forward. And after a few times we learned exactly this skill: hold things loosely and lightly; float, unweight, keep pedaling. Pedaling, moving forward is important. Unless you’re a highly skilled cyclist who was born in Spandex, if you stop moving forward you fall.
If you know nothing about the Tour de France, let me just say two things. One is that no rider gets ahead without the peloton, the bunch of riders around them. Riders in a group save energy by riding close to other riders. Second, anything can happen in a road race: flat tires, rain, brutal heat, and . . . bystanders. Last year a bystander caused the entire peloton to crash!
This extremely challenging Tour de Church that we are on right now is testing everyone’s skill, strength and endurance. More important, it’s testing our capacity to love, to forgive and to hold accountable. But the good news is that we’ve been training for it! As a community we have prayed, served, studied Scripture and worshipped together. We are the peloton. By staying close to one another we are comforted and strengthened so we can keep pedaling, hold things loosely and lightly and unweight our butts!
We are on a rocky, dusty, curvy road and often we cannot see very far ahead or around the bend. And although Jesus doesn’t say anything about cycling, Proverbs 3:5-6 does:
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge God, and God will make straight your paths.”
So yeah, often we can’t see what’s around the corner. We can’t know so we trust.
Since I couldn’t get an appropriate remark from Jesus (comment below if you find one!), I’ll quote my other favorite guy, Bruce Lee. Yeah, I know, he is not considered the son of God. Still, can you argue with this?
“Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.
Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.”
If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves. How can you not love that? Water is not weak. He points out that it can flow or crash. Think of Snoqualmie Falls! There are times when we must be mighty like the falls and times when we must be soothing like a creek. Be like water, my friends.
And just for the record, I did discover a Biblical reference to bicycle road racing: Ezekiel 1:21.
“When they moved, the others moved; when they stopped, the others stopped; and when they rose from the earth, the wheels rose along with them, for a living spirit was in the wheels.”
Sounds like the Tour de France to me.
Debra – this is all great cycling advice. Perhaps your next career is to take over for Phil Liggett when he retires!
You are a wonderful writer Debra and you’ve said some wise words here. “We are ONE in the Spirit…”
You are a wonderful writer Debra, and you’ve said some wise words here. “We are ONE in the Spirit…”
… for a living spirit was in the wheels.
What a lovely image. Thank you for this. <3
I love the way you build metaphors. The imaging is perfect for this moment in time.
Debra,
Another time when your glorious wit is loving guidance and inspiring. Thamk you for sharing yur gift of ministry.and about biking…who knew!
It’s a gift to me to be able to ponder and share these things in the midst of this loving community. Thank you all for sharing your wisdom and humor!
I remember Catherine Foote telling about her motorcycle riding lessons. The instructor told her not to focus on what she wanted to miss, for then she would certainly hit it. Instead she must focus on where she was heading. That advice helps me back down my narrow driveway, and it also helps deter my negativity and focus on where I am going. What a terrific blog!
Debra. You knocked it out of the park. Thanks for this wonderful metaphor. Perfect and full of hope. Hugs.
Holy smokes Debra. This made me want to pull out my old spandex with the chamois insert. Another great analogy with a twist of life lesson. Keep writing my friend. The world and UCUCC need these helpful words. I love you and celebrate your gifts.
Timely, helpful and needed, Deb, thank you. The little I want to add without taking away any of these powerful words is that one only changes what one acknowledges. Speaking for myself, I often reach out knowing I do not know it all. My father often reminded me that if you think you know a good percent of all subject matters, then you are dead. He added that only dead people do not learn new skills. At times, I might need to depend on someone who has been a peloton– a word I did not know existed till now?. And, not planning to travel to France for Tour de France after Rabuor. I am depending on you my brothers and sisters to continue to be our UCUCC peloton as we move forward.
Blessings of hope and love as we journey together. And, thank you Deb, this piece does leave me feeling hopeful!
Loyce, thanks for pointing this out. Awareness is 99% of the change process, right? But if we don’t even recognize that we need to change or that we need change, then nothing will happen.
Your wit and truth telling are a credit to the Church . I appreciate your contributions!
Thanks for your clear-thinking analogies. Although we can imagine it for others, Carol’s and my bodies are no longer able to ride bikes in a race or even for a mile or two and we are trying to keep our minds free of noise and concern over the sins of the world. Adopting water’s ability to conform to any shape and to be able to flow is important in these times, although water can be heated or cooled beyond comfort levels and water can become clouded when psychological problems and runaway egos overtake a clear mind. The Buddha said, “The one who wanders independent in the world, free from opinions and viewpoints, does not grasp them and enter into disputations and arguments. As the lotus rises on its stalk unsoiled by the mud and the water, so the wise one speaks of peace and is unstained by the opinions of the world.” This peace and calmness of mind is what Carol and I seek in our “dessert years.”
Thank you, Debra, this is just what I needed to read. So much truth there. I recently was hiking down a steep and rocky trail, and as soon as I started to hurry, the rocks beneath my feet started to slide, and I fell in slow motion. Fortunately, it wasn’t a bad fall. But when I hiked this week, on another steep and rocky trail, I told myself not to rush. It was kind of like you’re describing, I think. I slowed down, paid attention, and everything came out better. Thank you.