The Spire Online

Welcome to the online version of the Spire.

If you prefer a printable version, view and download a printable PDF copy of any previous issue here.


Embrace Westminster

By Brian Eccher On Wednesday, December 13, Westminster held the first "A Quiet Christmas," which promised a time to slow down and reflect amidst the frenzy of the holiday season. As my wife and I entered the candlelit sanctuary for the service, my mind was still decompressing from the workday and we took our seats near the aisle. I had volunteered for a reading, assumed the spot at the…

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A Covenant Between Westminster and the Endowment & Special Gifts Fund

By Rob Wagner, Past Chair Deborah Waller, Chair God made a covenant to Abraham that he and generations to follow would receive great blessings. Westminster's Endowment is a form of a generational covenant from our "Westminster ancestors" meant to bless our church well into the future. In 2019, Westminster was faced with very difficult decisions relating to financial malfeasance from our…

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Promises Fulfilled

By Roberta Sarraf Refugee Resettlement Team In Genesis, the rainbow is a sign of a covenant between God and his people, promising care and protection. In legal terms, a covenant is a written agreement promising the performance of certain actions. When Westminster’s Refugee Resettlement Team executed a written agreement to sponsor a family, we made a covenant in both senses of the word. We p…

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Stewardship

By Broc Sleek Stewardship Commission As we enter the season of Lent, our church family embarks on a spiritual journey of introspection and renewal. This year's theme, "Covenant," encourages us to reflect upon the promises, agreements, and ways of behaving that God desires of us. In other words, why we do what we do as Christians. Throughout the year, especially around the holidays and…

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From the Office of Jo Forrest: Advent 2023

The Advent rituals of decorating, cookie baking, card writing, and Christmas planning usually lift my spirits. To bless an early nightfall, I’d light a candle and turn up the tunes. This year, that all seems frivolous. The horrific wars that are fought on foreign shores weigh on my heart. Our elected leaders seem to draw lines in the sand rather than try to draw us together. We bicker over the e…

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My Encounter with Joy

By Becky Boyer, Director of Youth Ministry I am always asking the youth to look out for where God is working in their everyday lives. For example, where do they see people being kind to one another and being Jesus’ hands or feet to someone. It is my hope that it will open their eyes to the world around them and help them think about how the Holy Spirit is moving every day. A couple of weeks ago I…

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Mary, Blessed and Bold

By Sara Kyle Sara is the editor of the Spire and organizer of the Westminster Seminars As we turn our focus to the coming – advent – of Christ, an encouraging starting point is Mary’s joyful and yet humble song in response to the news that she will bear the Christ Child. Mary’s song of praise (Luke 1:46-55) is known as the Magnificat, after the opening phrase: “My soul magnifies the Lord.” Magnify in …

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Weary But Joyful

By Ed Sutter, Senior Director of Christian Education “How does a weary world rejoice?” It truly is a fantastic question, isn’t it? It strikes me as particularly poignant because we so rarely (if ever) equate the two feelings. Weary but joyful. Worn out but jubilant. Bedraggled but delighted. The ideas seem to oppose one another. So, how does a weary world rejoice? Well, if we remain stuck in seman…

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