Songs of worship echo with prayers for Connecticut during Sunday services

WHITEFISH BAY -- The school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School was the focus of church sermons across the country on Sunday, December 16th. On Friday, 20-year-old Adam Lanza entered the school and killed 20 students and six adults, before turning the gun on himself. Churches in Milwaukee used Sunday as a day to reflect after this tragedy that has affected people across the nation.

Songs of worship echoed through the United Methodist Church in Whitefish Bay, and amidst the prayers was reflection on a national tragedy.

Pastor Susan Patterson-Sumwalt says the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut has stirred emotions and left people with so many questions.

"Life has been difficult this past week. Our hearts are filled with all kinds of emotion and pain. I think people are looking to figure out how to process this," Patterson-Sumwalt said.

After this tragedy, Patterson-Sumwalt says it's not the time to reflect on the darkness and evil in the world, but instead, the light. 

"God calls us to be filled with that light, and to be that light in the world," Patterson-Sumwalt said.

Patterson-Sumwalt says the best comfort for those in Milwaukee is to offer prayers to those grieving in Connecticut. 

"We can certainly be in prayer. People continue to say that they feel prayers and feel that it gives them the strength to stand when they can't on their own," Patterson-Sumwalt said.

In difficult times, Patterson-Sumwalt offers a powerful message she says will help people heal.

"Love is stronger than hate, and good is stronger than evil, and hope is stronger than despair," Patterson-Sumwalt said.

The United Methodist Church in Whitefish Bay is collecting teddy bears to send to those in Connecticut. They say it is a way to show they care.

CLICK HERE to read more about the Newtown, CT mass shooting on FOX6Now.com