Watching the sun go down

Michele Marr

This summer one of the oldest churches in Huntington Beach is

trying something new, sunset devotions at the beach.

The idea first came to pastor Steve Isenman several years ago.

While he was senior pastor for the First United Methodist Church in

Costa Mesa, he would ride his bike from the church’s parsonage down

to the beach some evenings.

“I noticed how many people would stop whatever they were doing

when the sun set,” said Isenman It occurred to him then that the

outdoors, standing before the sunset, might be an ideal summer

setting for evening prayer and devotions.

This July Isenman, who is now senior pastor at the 98-year-old

First United Methodist Church in Huntington Beach, decided to try out

the idea. He designed a logo for what he named Sunset Devotion. Since

the first Wednesday in July, Isenman and others from his congregation

have put on their polo shirts to meet at the crosswalks at Pacific

Coast Highway and Main Street about a half hour before sunset. They

greet passersby and offer them a Sunset Devotion broadsheet.

Edrie Brinker and her husband Ty have been at the crosswalks

nearly every week. Edrie says she talks mostly to the people who make

eye contact with her.

Both Edrie and Ty find most people friendly. Many are from out of

state.

Others, he said, are in a rush.

Some members of the church who Edrie and Ty Brinker hadn’t known

well before have come down to the beach for the devotions and prayer.

“We’ve gotten better acquainted with some of our own members,”

Edrie said.

Isenman makes each week’s broadsheet of devotions short and

simple. The two-sided flier has a Psalm on the front and a greeting,

sometimes simply, “Enjoy the sunset,” sometimes, “Take a moment to

stop and enjoy this glorious display of God’s creation.” The Psalms

speak of the sun or sea. A few words of reflection, written by

Isenman, are printed on the back of the flier.

Harriett Nichols enjoys handing them out to pedestrians at the

crosswalks. She said she appreciates the opportunity to reach out to

people.

“I like people. I like to meet people,” said Nichols. “I enjoy the

beach. I like the sunset and the fellowship of my friends. And this

is a small thing I can do for Jesus, because he has done so much for

me.”

The church plans to continue its sunset devotions through August

and most likely September, too.

“It’s so very beautiful,” Edrie said. “The sunset is different

every night. We are blessed to live here where we can do this. We

stand there on the pier by the vast ocean with the surfers below.

When we walk back we always hear Corky Carol sing. He sings at Duke’s

every Wednesday night. That’s fun, too.”

The experience, said Edrie and Ty, enriches their lives and they

hope it enriches the lives of others.

The group meets on the pier near the lifeguard tower to watch the

sun go down, to recite the Psalm for the evening and to pray. They

spend 10 to 15 minutes together.

“One thing we’ve learned is, once the sun goes down, it’s really

dark,” Isenman said and laughed. “Wrapping up is not a problem. The

sunset takes care of that.”

* MICHELE MARR is a freelance writer and graphic designer from

Huntington Beach. She has been interested in religion and ethics for

as long as she can remember. She can be reached at

[email protected].