Pastor’s Note 04/14/22
5 In your relationships with one another,
have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God
something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Philippians 2:5-8
At sometime in our lives, we will go through pain. It will be different for each of us during different seasons of our lives but in this world, we will experience the groaning of suffering and pain.
It might be physical pain caused by an ailment. It might be an emotional pain because of the loss of a loved one. It might be the heavy weight of life’s circumstances – the loss of a job, a financial crunch because of unforeseen medical bills, a strained relationship. Then we listen to the news and hear about the pain and suffering in our world with wars, inflation and continued concerns over the COVID virus, at times it may feel like the peeling of an onion where each peeled layer reveals a deeper level of pain. These layers of pain can cause us to experience groaning. When words are no longer forth coming, we groan because our agony of suffering and pain is too great.
I read an inciteful electronic magazine, Cultivare (https://www.cultivare.net) on this topic of pain and the groaning we may experience in life. It may provide some insights on how we deal with the groaning in our lives, especially as people of faith.
As Christians, we are not immune from pain. Situations arise within our lives that cause us to cry out but there is good news in the midst of our suffering and pain. Pain is what Christ endured on our behalf when he was “obedient to death – even death on a cross.”
As we come to the final days of Holy Week, to Good Friday and Holy Saturday, may we remember Christ’s pain and suffering on our behalf but may we also celebrate His overcoming death on Resurrection Sunday.
Know that I am praying for you and for our church and I hope to see you at our upcoming services – our Maundy Thursday evening service at 6pm, our noon day Stations of the Cross presentation, Good Friday evening at 6pm and then on Sunday, for our Easter Celebration at 9:30am!
Pastor’s Note 04/07/22
This Sunday is Palm Sunday and the beginning of Holy Week.
The most important week of the Christian calendar starts on Sunday and we have something taking place every day next week.
- Monday thru Friday at noon, we will have a short communion service. Friday’s service will also include a multi-media presentation of the Stations of the Cross.
- On Thursday, we will have a 6pm Maundy Thursday Service with communion.
- On Good Friday, at 6pm we have a service remembering Christ’s sacrifice for our sins by dying on a cross. This can be an emotionally packed service as we listen and see nails be driven into a cross.
- On Easter Sunday, we will have a celebratory service remembering Christ’s resurrection, with lots of great music and excitement. Of course we will have some goodies to eat after the service to enjoy.
Who will you invite to these services and to Easter this year?
Holy Week and Easter Sunday are the perfect times to share about the great love that God has for us and it is the perfect time to invite others to hear about God’s love story and His desire to see the world know about His love.
So, is there a family member, a friend, a co-worker that might be open to coming with you to Easter services at LCPC? Let me encourage you pray about who you might invite and may we make this Easter time where God’s love shines through as we remember the resurrection of His son Jesus Christ.
I am praying for our week together and I hope to see you.