Churches

Good day dear hearts, I love you. This past Sunday, September 24th we celebrated 100 years of our church building located at 1361 Main Street, next to the Dollar General. There is a hymn we sing from time to time titled, "We are the Church", and there is a line we sing that goes like this, "The church is not a building, a church is not a steeple, a church is a people." And that is what we celebrated. We celebrated the legacy created by the people of God over the past 100 years. Our 100-year-old church is alive and well. We are committed to continue bringing the light of God into our community and we invite the people of our community to join us in this continuing legacy.

So, let's talk about legacy. Legacy focuses on what has been endured, on what has been accomplished, on what has been accumulated. Legacy is about passing things of lasting value to those who live on after us. The concept of legacy is important because it helps us understand our roots and provides a sense of continuity. A legacy allows you to build on it or make amends for a past wrong.

All of us have been left with a legacy. It doesn't have to be a million dollars, but some materially valueless item can be worth a million dollars. For example, my life growing up is far different than many of you reading this. I was born in Manhattan (NYC). I lived in mid-town Manhattan, while my grandparents, uncles, aunts and a ton of cousins lived in downtown Manhattan known as "Little Italy". Every Saturday and Sunday morning we got on a bus and went to Little Italy to be with family. We numbered in the low 20s and we spent every weekend together, floating from one apartment to the other as everyone lived in the same building or the one next to it. The legacy for me was a strong sense of family value within my family and now, has carried over to within my own family and our church.

Legacy means a lot to God. In fact, the topic of legacy is mentioned 87 times in the Bible. I'd like to reference the book Exodus of the Old Testament, which was written by Moses. Chapter 20 is titled the "Ten Commandments". While most of the commandments listed are one liners such as, "Thou shall not kill," or "Thou shall not commit adultery," the fourth commandment not only gives you the commandment but an explanation as to what happens if one fails to follow this commandment. Exodus 20:4-6. While I'm quoting vs. 4-6 I want to quote vs. 1 first. "And God spoke these words." Vs. 4-6, "You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven or on the earth or beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them." For the moment we are in the middle of vs. 5 which is the end of the commandment. We pick up in the middle of vs. 5 and this is where God tells us why this commandment exists and what happens when we fail in this commandment. Middle of vs. 5-6. "For I the Lord thy God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sins of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments." We are reading about generational curses but also of a generational legacy. The generational curse can be broken, so we are not bound to this. My point is that a legacy does not need to be individualistic, it can be a legacy for a nation.

Paul writes a letter to his young protégé; Timothy, some call it a book, some call it an Epistle. And in the very beginning of the letter in chap. 1-2 the apostle Paul makes an appeal to be loyal to God's Word and then specifically in chap. 2, he advises Timothy and us to be equipped to pass on the faith. Before the Bible was written the people of God were required to pass down God's legacy verbally. It was the legacy of those who verbally passed down the Word, which has made it so powerful and lasting. God has left us with a tremendous legacy which continues to grow today. God has given us His church, that's you and me, a tremendous responsibility; to make disciples in every nation. This involves using the gifts the Holy spirit has given us such as preaching, teaching, healing, nurturing and many other gifts. What are you doing to contribute to God's legacy? What are you doing to build your own legacy for your family and God's people.

O Lord, we thank you for the legacy you have given us. Bless our community. Watch over our children. Heal the sick and broken hearted. Let your spirit continue to hover over our community.

Contact me anytime. Pastor Vince Chiaramonte, 570-853-3988, Susquehanna Christian Community Church 1361 Main Street, or email: clearmountain2158@gmail.com.

The Susquehanna Christian Community Church, 1361 Main Street, Susquehanna celebrated on Sunday, September 24, 2023 with a special church service in honor of its church building that was erected 100 years ago this year. Ground breaking was Sunday, April 1, 1923.

The church that they had been using was located on Washington Street, from 1851 to 1924. The contractor, Alfred Badgley did great work on the church building. This new church was sorely needed because the old church was starting to fall apart, needing constant repairs and it couldn't handle all the people that were coming out each Sunday.

The special service was opened with a special prayer and dedication by Robin Truex. There were several inspirational songs that the congregation sang and a special message by Pastor Vince Chiaramonte celebrating 100 Years and looking forward to serving the community for another 100.

After the service everyone headed to the basement to the community dinning hall where delicious homemade food was cooked and refreshments were served along with great fellowship. Between the morning service at 10:00am and the noon special service, we had just a little over 50 people who came out to help celebrate.