Our March calendar is a full one as we walk
through the 40 days of Lent, with special worship services, the Thursday Night
Lenten Series, performances of the Living Last Supper, and opportunities for
service, all to help each of us observe a Holy Lent as a time of reflection,
introspection, and spiritual renewal.
On Sunday the 8th we’ll gather as
community to pack meals for Stop Hunger Now. If you were part of the effort
last year, you’ll remember how amazingly quickly we packed 10,000 meals. We’re
hoping to do more this year.
On Sunday the 15th, we’ll gather in
worship to reaffirm the covenant made in our baptisms. Even if we were too young to
remember, through the waters of baptism we were born anew in Christ, washed
clean, and graced with the Holy Spirit to lead us, guide us, and energize us.
On Sunday the 22nd, we’ll arrange
our Sanctuary in circles of 12 again to celebrate communion. Within each
circle, each of us will be served, and each of us will serve, each circle a
reflection of the group of disciples gathered in the Upper Room for their final
meal together with our Lord.
Holy Week will be particularly busy, starting,
of course, with our Palm Sunday worship services. On Tuesday and Wednesday
evenings, the men of our church will perform “The Living Last Supper”. It’s been four years since we last had this wonderful, moving portrayal
of our Lord’s final moments with his disciples. Don’t miss this special
presentation offered at 7:30 pm each evening in our Sanctuary.
Then we’ll gather on Thursday evening, April
2, for our Maundy Thursday Tenebrae service. We will walk with our Lord to the
cross, and remember how the world walked in darkness for three days following
Jesus’ crucifixion.
And then we’ll gather joyfully on Easter
Sunday to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord, our voices raised in shouts,
“He is risen,” as we wave our alleluia wands.
Make Lent a time of learning, a time of
reflection, and a time of renewal. In a self-indulgent, “selfie” age, Lent is
not about giving up chocolate or ice cream or pizza; it is about “spiritual
housekeeping”, as we sweep away the things that clutter our spiritual lives so
we can draw closer to God. I agree with the writer who said that the purpose of
Lent is to arouse within us a sense of gratitude for all God’s blessings,
including the mercy offered us in the forgiveness of our sins. And then from that
gratitude, Lent arouses us to act in works of love and justice.
If you
remove the yoke from among you,
the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil,
if you offer your food to the
hungry
and satisfy the needs of the afflicted,
then your light shall rise in the darkness
and your gloom be like the noonday.
and satisfy the needs of the afflicted,
then your light shall rise in the darkness
and your gloom be like the noonday.
The Lord will guide you continually,
and satisfy your needs in parched places,
and make your bones strong;
and you shall be like a watered garden,
like a spring of water,
whose waters never fail.
and satisfy your needs in parched places,
and make your bones strong;
and you shall be like a watered garden,
like a spring of water,
whose waters never fail.
Isaiah 58:9
Grace & peace,
Pastor Skip
