Litchfield Community Church,Presbyterian

09/05/2026

For this Tuesday's Bible Study, Grace has asked me to give my testimony, which begins with the events surrounding 9/11.

Pastor Mark

08/29/2026

08/25/2026

😢

Known for her outsize persona, appearance and talent, she rose from rural poverty to become a top-selling singer, songwriter and entrepreneur.

08/21/2026

Thank you to all who donated to our Annual Back to School supply drive 🚌🍎📚✏️

08/11/2026

Worship 08-16-2026, 10 AM, all welcome!
Scripture: Isaiah 56:1, 6-8; Matthew 15: 10-21-28
Sermon: “What is Faith, Part I”

We’ve come around full circle in the 3-year cycle of the Lectionary, and we’re back to Joseph being reunited with his brothers, so it’s time to pick a new theme to help guide the selection of scriptures in the coming weeks. When I started preaching regularly at Litchfield I had in mind a overarching theme for each of the 3 years in the lectionary cycle: the foundational narratives of the faith, making connections between the Old and New Testaments to show the consistency of the message throughout, and finally what a life of faith looks like. I have really enjoyed preaching on these themes and I learned a lot and grew in my own faith, but I didn’t have a clue where to go next, certainly not for the next three years. But something struck me when I read the text from Romans this past Sunday:

Romans 10:14-17 (NRSV) But how are they to call on one in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in one of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone to proclaim him? And how are they to proclaim him unless they are sent? … So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.

From this text I understand that faith does not come from within, not from the heart (though it takes up residence there), and certainly not from the mind, it is a gift that comes to us through the Word made flesh. So I think I will be digging through what faith is. I’m calling this coming Sunday’s sermon Part I, but I have no idea how many more parts if any there will be (hazard of having a day job, it doesn’t leave room for much long term planning 🤣).

About the image:

Woman of Canaan
ARTIST: Watanabe, Sadao, 1913-1996

NOTES: Watanabe placed biblical subjects in a Japanese context rendered in the mingei (folk art) approach.

CREATION DATE ca. 1940-1996
SCRIPTURES Matthew 15:(10-20), 21-28

(it’s getting hard to find good images for some of these texts, ultimately I chose this one for it’s interesting vibe — perhaps I should have better reasons, but sometimes you just have to go where the Spirit moves 😊)

Mark <
Pastor, Litchfield Community Church Presbyterian

08/07/2026

Here are the schools wish lists of items they would love to have on hand to help students succeed this year! Any donation is helpful and appreciated… I’ve also created an Amazon registry to help https://www.amazon.com/registries/gl/guest-view/377OT08T2PNRF?ref_=cm_sw_r_apin_ggr-subnav-share_TE3TKT4J28QAEYQD45H9&language=en-US

08/03/2026

Donations may be left in bins at the church @ 259 Charles Bancroft highway, Litchfield Town Hall, Aaron Cutler Memorial Library & McQuesten’s Farm❤️📚✏️

07/28/2026

Worship 08-02-2026 — All Welcome!
Communion Sunday

Scripture: Genesis 32:22-31; Isaiah 55:1-5
Sermon: “Wrestling with God”
(doomed to fail, but we do it anyway, all the time)

(image AI generated: https://www.magnific.com/premium-ai-image/jacob-wrestling-with-angel-peniel-generative-ai_144309860.htm)