Announcements
Mark
Your Calendars--
On Wednesday, April 2 @ 6:45 we will have a representative from Jews
for Jesus to explain how the traditional Passover meal foreshadowed
Jesus' death & resurrection.
Potluck!--
This Sunday!
Devotionals--
If you're interested in having all of the New Testament daily
devotionals on your e-reader, they can be purchased on Amazon. Just
click here for 6 years worth of devotionals that cover the entire New
Testament.
Community
Kitchen Spot
There
are a lot of hungry and homeless children of God and the community
needs some help feeding them. If you would like to help out, please
bring the following items to church this Sunday & put them on the
bookshelf.
Plastic
Forks, Knives, Spoons
Dinner
Napkins
Heavy
Duty Sectional Dinner Plates
Dessert
Plates
New
Hope News
Sunday
School—Don
Kaller is going to be teaching the adult Sunday School class in March
& April.
Easter
Egg Hunt—Sunday,
April 20 @ 10. Please bring plastic eggs filled with non-chocolate
candy to the Narthex over the next few weeks!
Pray
For:
Norma
Capone
Peggy
& John L.
For
Nelson, Judy's brother
For
those who mourn, that they may recognize the presence of the risen
Christ with them, and that they may lean into the promise of
resurrection.
For
the kids in confirmation class: Ashley, R.J., Chase, Jade &
Jackson
Links
Keith's
Random Thoughts
A week ago, you never
would have believed that it would have been possible to fit a riding
lawnmower into my mother's garage. It was filled with stuff, from
raccoon traps to a snowblower to a chainsaw to a sled. There was
room for the cars, but little else.
I'll admit to a moment
of trepidation before I rolled up my sleeves to get working. (Ok, it
actually entailed putting on a sweatshirt, since it was cold, but
that metaphor doesn't work as well.) The tractor needed to fit,
because otherwise the mice in the barn would make a home in it, and
they're much better at breaking things than fixing it. (Just
think—if we could harness the destructive power of small critters
and put that to use fixing things like potholes and leaking pipes...
But I digress.)
I moved a lot of things
around. I tried a few things that didn't work. I made multiple
trips to Lowe's. It took 3 days before I was finally happy with the
general structure of things, and even then I had to do some minor
adjustments to make sure that everything fit. New things needed to
be added. Old things needed to be discarded. Existing things needed
to be re-imagined and re-purposed.
Sounds a bit like a
spiritual life, doesn't it?
First, we have to know
our priority. What do you want your life to be about? What are the
most important things? What absolutely has to fit? (At first
glance, you may wonder how something else will fit in to your
already-packed life. It may not the way you live now. But with
changes, you can fit new priorities in if you're willing to
de-prioritize other things.)
Secondly, you have to
take some things apart, move things around, to see what the empty
space looks like. You might be astonished how much room you have if
you take everything out, and then it might go back in much more
orderly.
Finally, you have to be
willing to discard some things, to try new things, and to admit that
some ideas won't work. They may work for a neighbor or friend, but
it's ok if they don't work for you. Not all of us are meant to spend
hours in meditation. That's ok. Find what works. Make room for it.
You might be surprised at the results of intentional action.
Text
for this Sunday
Acts
14:8-20
(Common
English Bible)
In
Lystra there was a certain man who lacked strength in his legs. He
had been crippled since birth and had never walked. Sitting there, he
9 heard Paul speaking. Paul stared at him and saw that he believed he
could be healed.
10
Raising his voice, Paul said, “Stand up straight on your feet!”
He jumped up and began to walk.
11
Seeing what Paul had done, the crowd shouted in the Lycaonian
language, “The gods have taken human form and come down to visit
us!” 12 They referred to Barnabas as Zeus and to Paul as Hermes,
since Paul was the main speaker. 13 The priest of Zeus, whose temple
was located just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the
city gates. Along with the crowds, he wanted to offer sacrifices to
them.
14
When the Lord’s messengers Barnabas and Paul found out about this,
they tore their clothes in protest and rushed out into the crowd.
They shouted, 15 “People, what are you doing? We are humans too,
just like you! We are proclaiming the good news to you: turn to the
living God and away from such worthless things. He made the heaven,
the earth, the sea, and everything in them.[a] 16 In the past, he
permitted every nation to go its own way. 17 Nevertheless, he hasn’t
left himself without a witness. He has blessed you by giving you rain
from above as well as seasonal harvests, and satisfying you with food
and happiness.” 18 Even with these words, they barely kept the
crowds from sacrificing to them.
19
Jews from Antioch and Iconium arrived and won the crowds over. They
stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing he was dead.
20 When the disciples surrounded him, he got up and entered the city
again. The following day he left with Barnabas for Derbe.
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