Hope is a fire
Matthew 3: 1-12 New Ark United Church of Christ, Newark, DE November 30, 2025 Photo of a woodshed made from a faded red storage container with the words "When times are dark, build a CRACKLING FIRE and gather good people" by Silas House, painted in light blue paint. Photo by Mark Whitley https://www.instagram.com/markwhitleystudio/ Before the perfect storm that was the Halloween gale of 1991, the blizzard of ‘78 was the worst nor’easter to hit Massachusetts in over a century. It wasn’t just a nor’easter, it was hurricane-force winds with high tide occurring during a super moon, flooding along the coast, and over two feet of snowfall in just under two days. Thousands of vehicles were abandoned on I-95 alone. Some people had to evacuate from their homes and fled to emergency shelters, as well as makeshift ones like churches and movie theaters. It was a harrowing time for first responders, National Guard personnel, and snowplow drivers. But for a middle-class 12-year-old...
