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3/22/2016 0 Comments The Lighthouse - March 22, 2016 Journey to the Cross "Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!" As Jesus entered into Jerusalem, the crowds cheered him on and waved their palm branches. So we did the same this past Sunday in celebration of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem so many years ago. Palm Sunday is an exciting day and one of celebration, only just slightly less jubilant than the celebration we will have this Sunday with the Easter chorus "Christ the Lord is risen! Alleluia!" Yet this Holy Week in between is not one long, continuous party. The days from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday grow increasingly dark as we remember the conflicts, betrayal, and abandonment that fill Jesus' last week and eventually led to his death and burial. By week's end, things are as dark as can be. The Savior is dead, and all appears hopelessly lost. Although our worship from one Sunday to the next looks like joyful celebration, the journey to get there is the journey to the cross. That is what makes the celebration of Easter so powerful - that we had to go through darkness to see the great light. That is why we have special services on Thursday and Friday. Those services remind us that the celebration of Easter is celebration of light over darkness, life over death, love over fear and hate, and they are as essential to Easter as lilies and alleluias! It is the darkness of these days and the hopelessness they instill that makes us want to get up early on Sunday to see the sun rise and celebrate the rising of God's Son. I hope you will join us for our special Holy Week services this week so that we can celebrate the joy of Easter fully, remembering the journey to the cross to get there! Blessings on the journey, Jim Wilderness: Journey's EndLast Sunday's Sermon Snippet: Journey's End (1 Kings 19:9-18) Elijah was hiding in a cave at Horeb - the holy mountain where God had made covenant with the people of Israel. "What are you doing here, Elijah?" Elijah recounted the ways in which Israel had fallen away from God, how he was the only prophet left, and that his life was now threatened as well. God told him to go out to the mouth of the cave as God passed by. There was a great wind, an earthquake, and fire, but God was not in those things. In the still and quiet that followed, Elijah sensed God's presence and covered his face as God passed by. "What are you doing here, Elijah?" Elijah repeated his answer that he was now alone. While his long journey through the wilderness had convinced him he was alone and abandoned, Elijah was far from it. There were still prophets hidden by the faithful Obadiah, and then there were the faithful widow and her son - foreigners to Israel but faithful nonetheless. Elijah wanted a large sign that he was not alone, but God had given him still and quiet signs instead. God told Elijah to get back to work returning the way he came and anointing new kings to bring about God's purposes and a new prophet to succeed him in time. When we come from the wilderness to God's holy places feeling lost and alone, God transforms our way of thinking and our very lives as well so that we can go out to transform the world because we are not alone. Looking Ahead Easter will finally be here! Join us for beautiful flowers, powerful music, and a look at why "It Takes Many Easters!" Living in CommunityThanks to Keith for organizing our mowing schedule and to everyone who has already filled up all the weeks! We are blessed by your service! Thanks to Jodie for reading our gospel lesson this past Sunday! Thanks to Curt for preparing our picnic shelter at the park for use this season! Thanks to Dinah's and Pastor Jim's classes for picking up fallen branches in Bradburn Park! This Week at Port ChurchWednesday, March 23 9:30 am - 2:00 pm - Office Hours 6:00 pm - Wednesday at the Port - Last Session of the Spring Thursday, March 24 9:30 am - 12:00 noon - Office Hours 7 pm - Maundy Thursday Service Friday, March 25 12 noon - Good Friday Service at Bradburn Park Bring a chair and reflect on Jesus' story by the river. In case of bad weather, service will be at the church. Sunday, March 27 7 am - Sunrise Service at Bradburn Park 9:30 am - Worship Service with Communion "It Takes Many Easter" 11:00 am - Sunday School 11:30 am - Easter Egg Hunt Looking AheadYouth Sunday - April 3
VBS Training - May 22 Vacation Bible School - June 27-July 1
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3/16/2016 0 Comments March 16th, 2016 Holy Week Holy Week is the celebration of Jesus' last week of life. On Palm Sunday, a week before Easter, we celebrate Jesus' arrival in Jerusalem as the crowds waved palm branches to honor him on his way. Later in the week, we celebrate Maundy Thursday when Jesus shared one last meal with his disciples and gave them a new commandment to follow (the Latin word for commandment is mandatum, where we get the name Maundy). The following day, Good Friday, is when we remember Jesus' death upon the cross and burial; while it may not seem a good day, it is a part the good news of Jesus' loving sacrifice for us. Easter Sunday is a joyful day in which we celebrate Jesus' Resurrection and the promise of new life from his triumph over death. Over the next week, we have several opportunities to worship and remember the life, death, and joyful resurrection of Jesus Christ. Palm Sunday, March 20, 9:30 am In our regular worship service, join in as the children lead us in praise waving palm branches in honor of Jesus! Maundy Thursday, March 24, 7 pm Join us for a special service of footwashing, communion, and hearing Jesus' final words to his disciples and to us. Good Friday, March 25, 12 noon Bring a chair and come out to Bradburn Park on the South River to hear the story of Jesus' crucifixion and reflect on God's grace. Easter Sunrise, March 27, 7 am Join your brothers and sisters from Port Church and Grottoes UMC as we sing praise and watch the sunrise from Bradburn Park! Muffins and coffee will be served to keep us warm! Please park at the church if you are able so that we can reserve parking at the park for our elderly and handicapped guests. Easter Sunday, March 27, 9:30 Alleluia! The Lord is risen! Join us for singing, joyful praise, and celebrating that our Savior lives! An Easter Egg Hunt will also be held for children at 11:30 during our Sunday School time, so bring your kids, grandkids, and neighbors! I hope you will join us throughout the week! Blessings on the journey, Jim Wilderness: Giving Up Last Sunday's Sermon Snippet: Giving Up (1 Kings 19:1-8) Elijah had won such a victory over the prophets of Ba'al and had called for the return of the rain after long years of drought, but the joy of triumph did not last long. As soon as King Ahab told Queen Jezebel about what Elijah had done, she vowed to kill him in vengeance. Elijah fled as fast as he could over a hundred miles to Beersheba, a town on the edge of the wilderness - the Negev. Leaving his servant there, he wandered for another day into the wilderness and collapsed under a broom tree. He was ready to give up - it was all more than he could take. How could he ever end this constant persecution? He could hide for a while and then face another battle, possibly even win it. But what then? There would always be someone like Jezebel to persecute God's faithful. So Elijah gave up on his calling, gave up on God, and prayed for God to let him die there. Although he had given up on God, God had not given up on him. God sent an angel to feed and give drink to Elijah. The angel awoke him with a tender touch once and then again to encourage him to eat. The second time, the angel pointed him toward a future and a hope - a journey to be made to God's holy mountain three hundred miles away. Elijah ate and regained enough strength for the long journey - forty days, three hundred miles - to meet his God! There are times when we all, like Elijah, feel like giving up. When we give up on God, God never gives up on us! Looking Ahead Elijah made the long journey to Horeb - God's holy mountain - and sought shelter in a cave. There he would meet God and be sent out from the wilderness. Join us this Sunday as we reach "Journey's End"! Living in CommunityCongratulations to Jordan and the Spotswood Girls Basketball Team on their state championship! This Week at Port ChurchWednesday, March 16 9:30 am - 2:00 pm - Office Hours 6:00 pm - Wednesday at the Port Thursday, March 17 9:30 am - 12:00 noon - Office Hours Friday, March 18 6:15 - 8:30 pm - CPR & AED Class at Weaver's Karate Preregistration required - contact Dinah for more details. Sunday, March 20 9:30 am - Worship Service "Wilderness: Journey's End" 11:00 am - Sunday School 6:00 pm - Confirmation Class at Ciro's Looking AheadLast Week for Wednesday at the Port Spring Session - March 23
Maundy Thursday Service - March 24, 7 pm Good Friday Service - March 25, 12 noon Easter Sunrise Service - March 27, 7 am Youth Sunday - April 3 VBS Training - May 22 Vacation Bible School - June 27-July 1 3/9/2016 0 Comments March 09th, 2016 A Taste of Spring With the warm weather this week, we are getting a wonderful taste of spring, and it is hard not to be overjoyed by it all. I pray that you will find a way to enjoy this blessing of warmth, sunshine, and the earth reawakening from its slumber this week! In the bulb there is a flower; in the seed, an apple tree; in cocoons, a hidden promise; butterflies will soon be free! In the cold and snow of winter there's a spring that waits to be, unrevealed until its season, omething God alone can see. - Hymn of Promise by Natalie Sleeth Blessings on the journey, Jim Wilderness: Out of Hiding Last Sunday's Sermon Snippet: Out of Hiding (1 Kings 18:1-19:2) This week, we find Elijah finally ready to confront the King Ahab and show that he has been wrong to stray away from God. Having been sustained by God and now truly becoming God's servant, Elijah is brimming with confidence. It is evident in his instruction to Obadiah to tell Ahab he is coming, in his accusation of Ahab for the trouble he has caused, in his suggestion of a contest to see whether God or Ba'al can light an altar, in his taunts of the rival prophets, and in his pouring water over his own altar. God lights up Elijah's altar, showing who is the true God, and Elijah goes to Ahab to tell him the rain will return to the land. As a cloud finally appears on the horizon bringing a great storm, Elijah is strengthened by the Spirit to run to Jezreel ahead of Ahab's chariot to take his rightful place in Ahab's palace as God's prophet. He has won the battle and, he thinks, the war against those who would lead Israel astray. Yet no sooner does he prepare to celebrate than word comes that Queen Jezebel has vowed to end his life. With a simple threat, Elijah, who had already come through so much, is sent back into hiding and into despair. How can this ever end? Why doesn't God just finish it once and for all? We can relate because this is real life - just when we think we have come through one ordeal and we think the wilderness journey over, something else often arises that is even worse. Sometimes things have to get worse before they get better. And yet, even in the valley of the shadow of death, God is with us to comfort and protect us! Looking Ahead With victory and vindication within his grasp, Elijah was sent into hiding again by Jezebel's furious threat. How would Elijah handle this setback? Would he remain confidently defiant or finally give up as a broken man? Join us this Sunday as we consider "Giving Up" in the wilderness. CPR & First Aid Classes Dinah is offering CPR and First Aid Classes to folks in our congregation in conjunction with a training at Weaver's Karate in Grottoes. Both classes will be located at Weaver's Karate in Grottoes. The class is a two year certification with American Heart Association. The course is free for teenagers and minimal charge for adults (whatever her costs are). Contact Dinah for more details. Pre-registration is required. The dates are: Friday, March 18, CPR and AED, Class 6:15-8:30 Friday, April 1, First Aid Class, 5:30 - 9:00 Last Week to Order Lilies!This Sunday is the last day to order lilies in time for Easter! Lilies can be placed in memory or honor of loved ones. Fill our sanctuary with glorious flowers to celebrate our Lord's Resurrection! Please contact Pam with your orders and questions. Living in CommunityThank you to Keith for repairing the steps to the office door! Thanks to Lauren, Rad, Tyler, Chris, and Meg for sharing our Scripture on Sunday in such dramatic fashion! If you know of a college student graduating this spring who is a member of or attends our church, please contact Sue Good. This Week at Port ChurchTuesday, March 8 7:00 pm - Council Meeting Wednesday, March 9 9:30 am - 2:00 pm - Office Hours 6:00 pm - Wednesday at the Port Thursday, March 10 9:30 am - 12:00 noon - Office Hours Sunday, March 13 9:30 am - Worship Service "Wilderness: Giving Up" 11:00 am - Sunday School 6:00 pm - Confirmation Class at Ciro's Looking AheadLast Week for Wednesday at the Port Spring Session - March 23
Maundy Thursday Service - March 24, 7 pm Good Friday Service - March 25, 12 noon Easter Sunrise Service - March 27, 7 am Youth Sunday - April 3 VBS Training - May 22 Vacation Bible School - June 27-July 1 3/2/2016 0 Comments March 02nd, 2016 By Our Love Super Tuesday has come and gone, and we are one step closer to knowing what the general election will look like this fall. It appears, though, that we are no closer to the end of all the ugliness that this election has brought on. I cannot remember an election cycle in my lifetime as ugly and mean in personal attacks as this one, and I have to say that it saddens me that this is the state of political discourse in our nation. In the midst of Tuesday's primaries and all the sensational news stories it brought on, a fellow pastor shared a story what he witnessed at one of the polling stations here in Virginia. As he sat his car reading a message on his phone before getting out, he looked up to see a bit of a commotion there in front of the polling station. An elderly person had fallen between the curb and their car, and an election official and several bystanders quickly rushed to aid the person. What the pastor noted was that the two folks who reached down to help the person up. One wore a t-shirt for a candidate from one party, and the other wore a button in support of a candidate from the other party. Two opposing viewpoints came together to help the one in need. No harsh words or insults thrown. No threats. Just two neighbors being just that - a neighbor to the one in need of help. In these days when the powers that be and those who seek power would have us fighting it out amongst ourselves, let us remember that Jesus said we will be known as his by our love for one another - not by our political views, not by our votes, but by our love. May we all be willing to put aside the things that divide us long enough to remember that we are called to love another as he has loved us! Blessings on the journey, Jim Wilderness: Becoming God's Servant Throughout this season of Lent - a time of spiritual reflection and growth, we are travelling alongside the prophet Elijah to see how his journey through the wilderness formed him to be the prophet God was calling him to be. Last Sunday's Sermon Snippet: Becoming God'sServant (1 Kings 17:17-24) Elijah and the widow with whom he was staying in the town of Zarephath were getting by on the jar of flour and jug of oil that miraculously never ran out. All the while, Elijah was just waiting and waiting for the time come for him to return to Israel and confront King Ahab again. Up to this point in his ministry, Elijah had just passively followed God and received what he needed from God. That is until tragedy struck. The widow's son fell ill and was dying. She accused Elijah of bringing this tragedy on her family by bringing God's focus on them, including whatever sin they may have in their lives. Elijah heard no word from God on what to do, and so, for the first time, he took matters into his own hands and did the only thing he knew to do. He prayed to God - and not just any prayer! He confronted God with his own anger and confusion over what God was letting happen to this boy and his family, and then he prayed three times over him to demand God return the boy's life to him. God heard the prayer, and the boy was healed. For the first time, Elijah was confronted with what it takes to become God's servant. While it takes some amount of faith to simply follow God and do whatever - sometimes crazy - things God asks of us, it takes even more faith to confront God with our deepest feelings, to wrestle with God, and to stick with God no matter what happens. God wants us to have an active faith that converses and wrestles with God rather than just a passive faith that takes whatever comes our way. Like so many others in Scripture, Elijah was finally becoming the servant of God he was called to be by wrestling with God. Looking Ahead Elijah was finally ready for the confrontation he always knew was coming. He had hidden long enough in the wilderness from the troubles that had surrounded him for years, and he was ready to come of out of hiding! With confidence and a deeper faith, he again confronted Ahab and the prophets of Baal. Then just as it seemed like all was well and that he had carried the day as the rains returned, the bottom fell out. Join us this Sunday as we hear what happens as Elijah comes "Out of Hiding"! Order Easter Lilies Now! Easter will be here before we know it, so now is the time to order your lilies to fill our sanctuary on that beautiful morning! You can place your lilies in honor or memory of those dear to you. Please see Pam Hargrave for more details. VBS UpdateSeveral changes are coming to Vacation Bible School this year, and we want to keep you up-to-date. Due to work on the school, the gym at South River will not be available to us, so we are adjusting a few things. We will not serve dinner beforehand but will serve a heavy snack as a part of the rotation for all of our classes. Registration and drop-off will happen at the front entrance of the school, and pick-up will happen in designated classrooms at the close of the night. We are excited that these changes will help us to keep better track of the kids and ensure their safety. While it will take some work to implement these changes and adjust to not having the gym this year, we are excited for the new opportunities that they open for us as well. If you have any questions or thoughts about these changes, please feel free to talk with Dinah or Susie. This Week at Port ChurchWednesday, March 2 9:30 am - 2:00 pm - Office Hours 6:00 pm - Wednesday at the Port Everyone is invited to join the youth for a special presentation by Heather Baker on her mission work in Guatemala! Thursday, March 3 9:30 am - 12:00 noon - Office Hours Sunday, March 6 9:30 am - Worship Service "Wilderness: Out of Hiding" 11:00 am - Sunday School 6:00 pm - Confirmation Class at Ciro's Looking AheadYouth Sunday - April 3
VBS Training - May 22 Vacation Bible School - June 27-July 1 |
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