Dear RJC Friends - first off, this message is coming directly from Pastor Ed. In case you are wondering if this is legit, I'm writing this at my standing desk in my office and looking at a bunch of legos and Scout's dog bed in front of me.

The reason. I share that is because there is a scam message that many of you have received from someone impersonating me. I'm going to first tell you what to do and then I'll explain it. If you want the larger explanation, read the whole of the message. If you simply want to know what to do, read the bold-print part just below.

If you received a message that says it was from me that begins with

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Wishing you joy, peace, and a fresh reminder of God’s love today. ?" ....

this is not a message from me. It is a scam.

Do not reply and delete the message

If you did reply and have been asked to purchase gift cards and send the codes, do not do it

If you have purchased cards and sent the codes already, immediately contact wherever you purchased the gift cards and see if they can cancel them and refund your monies.

What to know going forward

NO ONE from the church staff will email you or text you and ask you to purchase gift cards or do help with an assistance request in this way.

Church staff will only email from the resoundingjoy.church email addresses or directly from our church management software (which will come from mailsystem@fluro.io).

If you have any question of whether a message you get from a church staff member is legit, do not reply to the message but instead start a new message or a call directly to that person.

This is unfortunately an all-too-common scam that is being directed at faith communities. LITERALLY EVERY Pastor, Rabbi, and Imam friend I know has had this happen within their faith communities. Here are two links that tell more detail about it.

FTC.gov 

United Methodist Church
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Ok - for those who want more detail read on.

A few notes about this scam:

Your email has not been hacked nor has mine. There is no personal information that has been stolen from you. There is no virus or malware that has inftected your device/computer.

The way that the scammers have done this is through a combination of freely available information on church websites, social media, etc and also using readily-available AI tools.

One vector for this is literally someone walking into the church on a Sunday morning and walking out with a church bulletin or a copy of the church directory. This is also why our church directory is not available on our church website but it is possible that someone could have walked in and picked up a paper copy.

As you can see from the links above there is little that authorities can do on this because the scammers create fake anonymous email addresses and once that email address is reported as a scammer, they just create a new one. Remind me to tell you sometime about the conversation I had about this with the Ft Thomas Police Department.

As I noted above, this has happened to EVERY faith community and every religious leader I know. It has happened with Lisa Allgood's messages from the Presbytery of Cincinnati, from colleagues here in Colerain, and the list goes on. Unfortunately, this is part of the world that we live in now.

In summary, if something feels weird, it probably is.

Pastor Ed

Friends, this photo has been working on me a lot since I photographed it on Monday.  It was a big part of my most recent Imago Scriptura post and I shared this:

On Monday, Winton Lake had flooded again and the benches were just above the waterline. In the photo, the bench isn’t moving, but the water is stirring all around it and reflecting the mottled clouds in the cyan sky. It was unique to see in person, but the photo that resulted…a sight to behold.

It speaks to me of rest, mystery, and wonder.  What does it speak to you?  One of those, rest, is something I'll share a bit more about below but I just wanted to also share a few quick reminders:

Practical Grace Non-Food Pantry - This Saturday is our next distribution day!  So we'd love to have you out to help share the joy of this ministry!  Come anytime between 930am and noon!  

Room at the Table - Billy Joel Tribute Band Concert - a week from Saturday is our first "outing" as part of our summer focus.  We'll be seeing Greg and Nancy Hudson's Billy Joel Tribute band in Glendale.  Info is in the latest ReSounds and in the worship bulletin.  

Sunday, June 28 - That Sunday we'll be back in the Fellowship Hall for worship for another meal.  But unlike the meal we shared this past Sunday (The Lord's Supper), we'll have a Sunday brunch that will be a part of the service itself.  Normal service time at 10:30am.  (This Sunday, June 21, we're in the sanctuary).  

Book Study Clarification - There was a bit of confusion about our two book studies going on this summer.  The Sunday groups are working with the book that was handed out to everyone - Meeting Jesus at the Table.  Those groups are at 9am and 1130am-ish.  The groups that are meeting at noon and 7pm on Thursday are going through The Future is Peace by Maoz Inon and Aziz Abu Sarah.  

Parking Lot Resurfacing - The parking lot and driveway are in process of being resurfaced.  Part of it has been completed but they are not going to be able to finish likely until Friday since rain is in the forecast for tonight into tomorrow and it needs to be 100% dry before they can do it.  They are going to do as much as they can today and then should finish up on Friday so all should be good for Practical Grace and for Sunday worship.  

RJC Logo-wear - show out in the community!  More details here of what is available and how to order.  

Ok, reminders done, let's talk about rest and recovery...

I have not always been as consistent with exercise as I am now and over the last few years I have had to learn how to manage my exercise load in order to not only stay consistent with exercise but also give my body the time and space it needs to recover.  As much as I'd like to go all out each day when I'm exercising, I've learned the hard way that's not going to work long term.  So here's how my weekly routine looks now.  

• Each day, Scout and I get in two walks - a longer one in the morning and a shorter one at night (the morning also usually functions as sermon prep time as well as I don't generally "write" my sermons but instead talk them out throughout the week).  
• I run on the treadmill Mon-Fri and a lighter/shorter run on Saturday but no running on Sunday. 
• I do yoga each day - varying intensity. 
• Mondays and Thursdays I do 20-30 minutes of kickboxing
• Tuesdays and Fridays are weights
• Wednesdays - Pilates

So in there you'll notice that Wednesdays are lighter days as are Saturdays and Sundays.  Those are days when I intentionally set aside time to recover.  And you know what, my body is healthier for it.  

So why am I sharing all this?  Its not because I'm bragging about how fit I am but it ties in with what we've experienced the last two Sundays and what we'll be doing this Sunday.  

This summer, we're playing around with a slightly different order of worship and we are experimenting with some things of how we share the message/reflection/sermon part of the service.  The last two sermons have been rather different than what most folks have been used to.  

One was a good bit of dialogue back and forth with me and the congregation in the sanctuary.  The other, this past Sunday in the Fellowship Hall, was a lot of time in small groups that we formed as the service began.  While I had quite a few folks share that they really appreciated "shaking things up" I also realize that, like my exercise routine, we need to have some rest/recovery times as well.  

So this Sunday, while we're in the sanctuary, we'll still be following the "Today's Menu" flow of the service but the sermon will be a more of what a "normal" sermon time is like.  

Healthy growth is a combination of pushing beyond what we're used to and also letting our bodies recover and restore.  This is the same whether we're talking about physical exercise or spiritual exercise.  

See you Sunday, if not before.  

Grace, Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy,

Pastor Ed

Thanks for helping to make RJC more visible in the community!  Below are images of the options and here's the link for the online ordering form

RJC Logowear Ordering

Friends, this morning's sunrise was begging to be shared.  Wow.  And I almost decided to not go to the lake this morning.  So glad I did.  Above is a panorama of 8 photos stitched together and then below are a few others from the morning.  

The heavens are telling the glory of God... Psalm 19:1

I've had several requests since yesterday morning for a copy of Scout's commencement address so I wanted to share that here as well.  :-)

Here's a link to the manuscript that mostly follows what was shared

Scout's Commencement Address - 1 Timothy 6

And here's the video from Sunday - the sermon is about 20ish minutes into the service

Friends, I'm still on a bit of a Pentecost "high" from last Sunday. What a beautiful celebration and gathering! I loved having the celebration of our time together in the languages of Amharic, English, and the languages of love and community. Above is a short video that Lori recorded to give just a taste of what we shared in the service.

Pentecost is still with us in what we are sharing this coming Sunday as we will bless recent graduates, ordain and install our servant leaders for the year ahead, and receive a "commencement address" from a very special guest.

I was richly blessed this morning by a prayer I read in the daily email from the Center for Action and Contemplation. It was sent in by one of the readers of their messages.

Come Holy Spirit, ever renewing, God beyond the one we thought we knew. Flowing like water, free as the wind, found in the margins, not in the text, hidden in corners, seen when not looking, present in absence, but found in Jesus…. Come, Holy Spirit, break down the walls of the words we know. Teach us to speak God’s love in new tongues … to everyone, everywhere…. Come, Holy Spirit, let us know we are not weighed down by all our yesterdays, but may soar with you, wind, fire, can, will, live now in the freedom of resurrection given us through Jesus, our Lord. Amen.

This Sunday, after the benediction and postlude, we will also have a Memorial Day remembrance time. It will be a time to remember those who have given of themselves in service to our country, for others, and in the faith. Please plan to stay after the worship service concludes for this special time of prayer and remembrance.

This Saturday is the Art-O-Rama event for Cincinnati Fusion Ensemble.  It is a silent auction of original art by renowned artist William Helvey.  Music by CFE musicians will also fill the spaces where the art will be displayed.  Refreshments will also be provided.  Funds from the silent auctions are donations to the CFE's high school / college prep scholarship program.

Just a reminder that our summer Room at the Table focus begins in June!  Our services will all center on the table stories of Jesus.   We'll be focusing on the radically inclusive welcoming table that Jesus sets for all.  Some Sundays we will be in the sanctuary and some we will be in the Fellowship Hall for our services.  We also will have special events throughout the summer to simply come together with one another and also to invite others to join in.  One of those events will be Saturday night, June 27 for Nancy and Greg Hudson's Billy Joel Tribute Band as they perform in Greenhills!  

In addition, our Sunday morning small groups will be digging into a book called Meeting Jesus at the Table (which was the inspiration for this series) and then on Thursdays (starting June 11), there will be a daytime small group from 12-1 and an evening one from 7-8 going into how coming to the table can bring enemies together.  In those groups we will be reading and sharing about the book The Future is Peace.  I have copies of this book if you would like one.  

One of the amazing things about Jesus' table is that there is somehow always always always room for more.  

Grace, Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy,
Pastor Ed

So, that "brief break" ended up being a bit longer than planned.  But we're back!  

There's so much new life around Winton Lake right now.  If you want to just soak up some cuteness, be at the lake about 30 minutes after sunrise and in the cove by the main center, you'll see so many little goslings running around with their parents.  It is so beautiful.  Just don't get too close to the parental geese or you might get hissed at or charged at (both happened to me this week as this photographer just wanted to get a little bit closer).  

I loved this little one especially - popping out their wings that aren't yet big enough to fly but someday they will be.  Its like that in the Realm of God - we are promised that the realm of God is here but we also reocnigze that it isn't yet here fully.  We're still waiting for the renewal and restoration of all things.  Just like that litlte one is trying to get their wings to start doing what wings are meant to do.  

I'm heading out of town in a few hours for Zoë's graduation in Atlanta while Amy and Eldra head north tomorrow for Zach's.  Before heading out, I wanted to just share a few reminders for whats coming up on the 24th and 31st.  This Sunday, I'm excited for the super duo of Jean Denny as the RJC liturgist and Rev. Meshach Kanyion as preacher joining our musicians in leading Sunday's service!  

Grace, Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy,

Pastor Ed

On the 24th, we are going to have quite a Sunday.  We will be sharing a service with our friends from Pillar of Truth on their last Sunday sharing the RJC building.  Our service is going to be in both English and Amharic (with translations as much as possible) and we will also be offering blessings to one another on the next stages of ministry for each of our congregations.  This will all be done in the spirit of Pentecost - the day of remembering the coming of the Holy Spirit that we read about in Acts 2.  

Following the service, we will be sharing an Ethiopian/American potluck meal.  We're not assigning people to parts of the meal - just bring a main, a side, or a dessert and we'll see what comes together.  All the food will be in Fellowship Hall as will a lot of tables and chairs but we will likely overflow out into some other rooms and into the Gathering Area.  A nice problem to have!  

Come Holy Spirit Come!

እንደ መንፈስ ቅዱስ

Our service on May 31 will also be quite a bit different than our normal.  We have several additional things "happening" that morning

• A brief congregational meeting at the start to elect one more Deacon
• A blessing for recent graduates
• Ordination and Installation of our Elders and Deacons

And then following the conclusion of the worship portion of our time together, we will have a time to remember and honor those who have given their lives in service to our country.

Just a note that there will be about a week break in my little "notes" for the Bible in a Year.  We'll resume with Wednesday, May 20!  

So Wednesday morning, I was out with Scout at Winton Lake and there was a really uniquely beautiful moment. The lake was a bit flooded from the overnight rain and one of the paths had about an inch or so of water. As Scout and I walked on the dry portion, I noticed this single leaf floating. It looked like it was not only floating on water, but also floating on air because the water was so clear beneath it. I stopped for a minute or so and just watched it before I took out my phone to record this moment. If you need a moment of zen, of calm, of gentle movements of God's Spirit, click the video above...

In Eugene Peterson's Message translation of the Bible, he translates Matthew 11:28-30 like this:

Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

God's unforced rhythms of grace...Amen.

Friends, the rest of May is going to be FULL but it is going to be so good with so much to celebrate of God's work.

The Help Squad had an amazing night on Tuesday night for their annual fundraiser - this year called Cinco de Neon. Local 12 did a great feature on it! Check it out!

Cinco de Neon - The Help Squad 

Sundays Coming Up - Each Sunday coming up in May has something really unique...

• May 10 - Our focus in worship this coming Sunday is the one stained glass symbol that isn't directly drawn from a story in the Bible...any guesses what it might be? We'll be talking about "origin stories" drawn from the window and from the book of Acts.
• May 17 - I am going to be out of town as I'll be in Atlanta at Zoë's graduation while Amy will be with Eldra at Zach's graduation in Wooster! That Sunday, Rev. Meshach Kanyion will be back for helping lead in worship!
• May 24 - This is our last Sunday with Pillar of Truth sharing the building and it is also Pentecost Sunday. We'll be sharing a combined service with our two congregations where the service will be partly in English and partly in Amharic. After the service we will share an Ethiopian/American potluck in the Fellowship Hall (and likely overflowing to other rooms too). More details to come about what to bring, but do plan to be there for what will be a morning of gratitude for God's work through all people.
• May 31 - We are moving Memorial Day to this Sunday because of everything happening on the 24th and we will have a time aafter the conclusion of the service to remember and give thanks for thsoe who have given their lives in service to our country. During the service we will be blessings recent graduates and ordaining and installing the next class of servant leaders in our congregation - our deacons and ruling elders.

Hard to believe but once we get through May, we are into summer! Our summer focus will be on the table stories of Jesus. We'll be spending time around literal tables in worship and other times each week. We'll be eating together, celebrating together, and sharing together. It is also a reminder that, in the Realm of God, there's ALWAYS more room at the table. ALWAYS. So who will you invite to our services? To the local free concerts we'll go to? To the book studies that will be happening as well? Always room at the table!

During our Room at the Table focus this summer, I am going to offer a midweek small group time to read and reflect on the recent book, The Future is Peace, by Aziz Abu Sarah and Maoz Inon. Here's how the book is described on bookshop.org 

In The Future Is Peace Sarah and Inon take readers on a transformative weeklong journey across a sacred and bloodstained land. Facing competing narratives, they explore how compassion and unity can pull humanity back from the precipice of blind hatred. Throughout their travels, they have been constantly asked: In the face of so much loss, how can we ever find hope? Their answer is always the same. One cannot find hope. We must create it.

This book is a rebuttal to a broken world and a bold challenge to the belief that more violence can ever bring security. Told with unflinching honesty, their story is proof that peace is not a naive dream, but a courageous choice—for reconciliation to heal the wounds of revenge, for partnerships to change a destiny of war, and for empathy to save us from drowning in sorrow.

The book speaks not only to the conflict in Israel and Palestine but also speaks to how we engage with one another across the divides that are present among us - political, social, religious, etc. It is very much a book about what it means to welcome all people to "the table."

There will be one study over lunch hour during the week and one in the evening. I am still finalizing days and times but I wanted to let you know about the book and the studies. If you would like to participate and would like me to order a copy of the book for you, click below.

The Future is Peace - Summer 2026

There's more to share (always) but if you made it this far, good job! Just one last thing...it is that season in nature for new life! There are goslings palooza at Winton Lake right now - here are a few that Scout and I saw on Thursday morning...

Grace, Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy,
Pastor Ed

Good morning friends! There was so much happening at RJC on Thursday! It was our day hosting the 513 Relief Bus and we had people everywhere in the building. People were sharing, receiving, learning, helping, serving, and so much more. So many different groups and organizations were here to provide resources for people and the energy and spirit was so wonderful. Scout, the church dog, was also here providing some good dog therapy support. So many people were a part of making it happen, but notably I want to thank Doris Haubner for heading it up and making it all come together.

I will share one notable moment for me - There was a woman who, after picking up her resources, asked if someone could pray with her. I met with her for about 30 minutes and talked through some circumstances in her life and then I gave her one of my photo notecards and prayed for her to receive the fullness of Jesus' promised peace in what she is facing in her life. I gave her the card as a way to continue to hold to the prayer that we shared. I am going to continue that prayer for her and I invite you to do the same.

All of this...this is why we do what we do.

This past Sunday, we held a special congregational meeting to elect those who will be serving as Deacons and as Ruling Elders here at RJC! These are who we elected on Sunday (and there's one more person who has reached out asking if she could be a Deacon as well - she's not listed here but we will update once Session calls a special meeting to elect her). Note that the varied terms are because we need to stagger terms as these are our first "official" Deacons and Session.

Deacons
Tena Sparks (1 year term)
Susan Stoepel (2 year term)
Sharon Stratman (2 year term)
Margaret Hillman (2 year term)
Dianne Holtzapple (3 year term)
Sue Judis (3 year term)
Terre Ries (3 year term)

Session
Lee Sanders (1 year term)
Barb Furkin (1 year term)
Doris Nell (1 year term)
Cari Wynne (2 year term)
Donna Hadley (2 year term)
Lynn Bradley (2 year term)
Ryan Hamilton (3 year term)
Kimberly Cornett (3 year term)
Lori McDonough (3 year term)

Thanks to each who said yes to the prayerful call to serve and we invite you to be praying for each of these servant-leaders for how God will be at work in and through them for our common ministry!

The above is not my finest photo but it isn't about the quality of the photo but instead what's in the photo! About a week or so ago, I noticed that this patch near the entrance of RJC was getting rather weedy including one REALLY BIG pokey week right up toward the front. I noted to myself to bring some gloves on a future day and at least yank that one. But before I could do it, I saw that someone(s) had come and done even more than just pulled one big ugly weed but had cleaned the whole thing out and planted these beautiful flowers! I also noticed that similar flowers had been planted around the base of CharaJoy, our church tree! I later learned that it was Barb F and Sue J who did this. So, THANK YOU! Your work is seen and it makes a difference!

Sunday May 24 is going to be quite a Sunday here at RJC! It is not only the end of the Easter season with the celebration of Pentecost but it is also the last Sunday that our friends from Pillar of Truth will be sharing the building with us. To bless them in their next season of ministry, we are going to be sharing a combined worship service and then a shared potluck meal afterward. We'll send details about the potluck as we get a bit closer but please plan to be here for what will be a really beautiful, unique, and Spirit-filled morning!

We are a part of the Presbytery of Cincinnati and are connected in ministry to our fellow PCUSA congregations in the city of Cincinnati but also a bit west into Indiana, south into Northern Kentucky, and a good ways east of Cincinnati as well. Each week, the Presbytery sends out two newsletters - one called Currents that shares about the activities and the goings-on in the Presbytery and the other called Still Waters that is a collection of resources for spiritual growth, discipleship, and reflection. Here are the two most recent issues:

Currents - Monday, April 27 
Still Waters - Thursday, April 30

This Sunday, we will be focusing on the above stained glass for our service and during the service we will have our first baptism at RJC! It is going to be a wonderful morning! I hope to see you there!

By the time you receive this on Friday, the storage POD in the parking lot will be gone (or will be gone later in the day). The POD has been emptied out by the hard work of a BUNCH of people and it is ready to go back to the company. What this will enable us to do is resurface and re-stripe the parking lot, which is so desperately needed. So be sure to notice and celebrate that it is gone!

Scout is a mix of a bluetick hound and a beagle which means that her nose is always on at full-power and when she smells something she moves into her "hunting dog" mode even though she's never been hunting. The above photo is from Glenwood Gardens a few mornings ago. I don't know what she smelled, heard, or simply felt, but she was locked in an paying attention!

So I'll leave y'all with this...how are you paying attention in your life today? To God? To the movement of the Spirit? To those that God has put into your life?

Grace, Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy,
Pastor Ed