Our Pastor
The Reverend J. Howard Cepelak

The Reverend J. Howard Cepelak is a native of Woodbury, Connecticut. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Gettysburg College, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, and a Master of Divinity degree from Andover Newton Theological School in Newton Centre, Massachusetts. He did graduate work at Westminster/Cheshunt College and The Faculty of Divinity at Cambridge University, Cambridge, England. He was formerly Associate Pastor of Grace Congregational Church in Framingham, Massachusetts, and Senior Pastor at Pawtucket Congregational Church in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.

January 2011
Message from the Pastor

Fast and Pray
An All-Church Fast
and Day of Prayer for Church Growth
Friday, January 28th

Trinity Church's Board of Deacons has established a Day of Fasting and Prayer for church growth to be held on Friday, January 28th. The day will conclude with The Sacrament of Holy Communion, celebrated in our sanctuary at 6:30 pm which will end the fast. We fast for a deeper, higher and richer communion with Christ, so ending with the Sacrament is most appropriate.

Fasting is not a part of most mainline Protestant tradition other than a symbolic "fast" during Lent by "giving up something for Lent." Such a fast is really just abstinence from sweets or in some cases from meat or something else. Other than that, fasting has not been a significant practice in our churches.

But fasting should be. Our Lord assumes that His disciples will fast and pray. He said in Matt.6: 16, When you fast.... - not if you fast. Following Hebrew tradition and practice, Jesus sanctified all fasting with His forty day fast in the wilderness in which He rebuked Satan. Although extreme fasting can reduce one's physical strength, the most important part of fasting is to increase spiritual strength as the wilderness fast most certainly demonstrated.

Fasting is always intimately connected with prayer. The Matt 6:16 passage follows Jesus instruction to His disciples regarding prayer when He gave them - and us -The Lord's Prayer. His instruction regarding both fasting and prayer comes within the context that those who fast and pray should do so NOT to draw attention to themselves in a public display of false righteousness. Rather, fasting and prayer is to draw us away from ourselves (and from even our essential physical needs) to focus more powerfully on God to whom the fast is directed. In His wilderness fast, our Lord said, Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds front the mouth of God. (Matt.4: 4) We live (and live eternally) on the Word of God first. Again, the significance of Holy Communion to end our fast comes clear. The bread of the sacrament is the Body of Christ and the bread of life - including eternal life. He is our true food.

One can fast simply to come closer to God for the goodness of that closeness. But one can dedicate a fast to a specific purpose - not to attempt to force God's hand to do something for which we have petitioned, but to manifest to Him our sincerity in the petition and our willingness to have Him use us in the achievement of the request. That's the purpose of our all-church fast - to show God that we're serious about our request and that we are even more serious about His using us to realize our petition that Trinity Church grow. Growth here means, first of all, growth in our own faithfulness and secondly growth in numbers. The church's highest purpose is to worship God in Christ in the inspiration and power of the Holy Spirit and then to serve Him. The church's highest mission is the proclamation of His Holy Word. This is especially important in an age in which His Word is either ridiculed or ignored. Truly, without faith in His Living Word, all is lost.

One can fast in many ways - complete abstinence from all food and drink or limited abstinence. One may drink water, juice, coffee or tea and not eat at all - or eat very lightly such as one piece of bread. It's best to not eat at all. Those on medical diets should not fast in a way to impair their health. But one can always fast in some significant manner.

This is a one day fast. We should fast from morning to evening, breaking the fast with the Sacrament

You will be receiving a special mailing regarding our all-church fast including prayers to be used throughout the day.

Mark your calendars.
Friday. January 28th from morning to evening with
The Sacrament of Holy Communion at 6:30 pm.

JHC

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