Nourishing our minds and spirit starts in our shared Sunday morning worship – one of several times for members and friends to come together in community for discovering and expanding upon their individual searches for truth and meaning. This year, along with listening to the music provided by our new Music Director, Katherine Harris, we pondered such questions as these with Rev. Larry Peers:

What would be included in your “song no one sang” to you, referencing Heather McGee’s book, The Sum of Us, and the gains made when people come together across races and differences?
Can we find ways to tap into our imaginations to innovate for the sake of building peace? What are the perspectives and practices in the art and the soul of building peace in the various contexts of our life, communities, and world?
What are the global challenges that require us to have a broader imagination and to engage in acts of steadfast courage?
What do we mean by the religious language we use?
What stories are you living? What are the stories that we have and that we tend to tell and retell? What are the stories that “have” us?
What if we are hardwired for kindness?”
In what ways can we testify to the power of perseverance in our own lives and our common lives?
How do we acknowledge the loss of so many during this pandemic time?
What does it mean to hold an intention? How is an intention different from a resolution? How do our intentions for ourselves and our world shape us? What are the necessary next steps for an intention to be embodied?
What is the holistic spirituality that informed Dr. King?
What are the essential practices for renegotiating our lives?
What awakenings lie before us individually and as a congregation? How do we best support one another in the journey ahead?
What is your grounding statement; what anchors each of us and how we are in the world, what we do in the world?

Beyond Sunday morning, we have other forms of nourishing minds and spirits, some of which include meditation groups, our Library, the Children’s and Youth Exploration programs, our Soul Matters groups, including our newest Creativity Matters group that focuses on creative ways of exploring the monthly Soul Matters topics, and LifeStream @ FirstUnitarianWilmington.

What did these Sunday morning questions inspire in you? How have your mind and spirit expanded? Have you considered what anchors you during this pandemic time and the role of First Unitarian? What intentions do you have for First Unitarian in our quest to nourish minds and spirits?

Here’s what Dale Stratton says: “First U provides a supportive community and an environment with challenging opportunities to explore on my ongoing spiritual journey.”

YOUR GIFT MAKES A DIFFERENCE.

Pledged with intention, given with intention, it carries with it energy and possibility, now and in the future. Please pledge and give as generously as you can to this year’s stewardship campaign.

So far, we have raised $232,460 toward our goal of $490,000 to support our church next church year, 2022-2023. We have heard from 57 families so far. If you have not yet pledged, please visit our web page, First UU Wilmington – “Giving with Intention” – Annual Campaign for Stewardship. There you will find information on how to pledge, along with more information about pledging, including the UUA’s Giving Guide and automated giving. If you are ready to pledge online, please click here.