A New Puppy

Annie is an 8-week old Labradoodle puppy that we have added to our family. She is loving, snuggly and kind. She is also spastic, excitable, and very hyper. Basically, she is a puppy.

It has been many years since I have had a puppy. There have been a couple of things that I forgot.

1. Puppies don’t sleep through the night! She has gotten a lot better the past couple of nights, but the first few nights involved taking her out at least every two hours. It’s like having a newborn again!

2. Puppies explore everything with their mouths! I have been watching a ton of dog training videos on YouTube. One of them referred to puppies as “land sharks.” Puppies want to bite and chew non-stop. Bully sticks (a chew stick for puppies) have become our new best friend.

3. Puppies need a lot of sleep! They have spurts of intense energy but tire out quickly. Finding the balance between activity and rest is a moving target.

What puppy training tips do you have? Send me your best ones!

Bringing a puppy home means changing many (all?) of our daily routines to accommodate this new family member. This is reflective of the amount of changes our society has had to make the past 3 months.

The sermon text on Sunday will be Psalm 16. In a time of extreme change, Psalm 16 reminds us of a singular constant.

I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;

    apart from you I have no good thing.”

-Psalm 16:2

The psalmist is acknowledging that the presence of God in his life is the one constant even when everything else feels unstable. This is not to say that there is nothing good outside of God. Quite the opposite. So much of this world that God created for us is good and fun and full of wonder.

The point that the psalmist is making is this: In comparison to God, nothing else can compare to God’s goodness. This means when the rest of the world feels challenging or shaky (or when you are not feeling the goodness), remember the one constant.

You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.

You have the opportunity to return to God’s presence, your one constant, and rest in this love in the midst of a changing world.

This Sunday we will celebrate our graduates. I can’t help but wonder how it feels for our graduates to have their ceremonies canceled or moved virtually. What a big change! (If you are graduating, send us a picture to include in the slideshow to janeen@unitypres.org).

We will also recognize Memorial Day as we continue to thank our Veterans for the sacrifice they have made on our behalf.

Here are our streaming numbers for the past 3 weeks:

May 3 – 230 live, 100 later

May 10 — 189 live, 55 later

May 17— 205 live (no later numbers yet…)

These numbers represent the number of devices, not people, that are tuning into Unity’s services. Each device most likely represents between 1 and 3 people. Keep sharing the link and inviting others to join us on Sunday mornings. You are having a great impact!

“See” you on Sunday!

-Pastor David