Happy Easter

Jesus is risen.  Jesus is Lord.  Life wins.  We are forgiven. The tomb is empty.  Never do we again have to live in fear, worry or under judgment.

These are pictures of the garden tomb site outside the Jerusalem walls.  It is a place of quiet,

a place of peace, a place of pilgrimage.  45 of us got to visit the tomb last month.  May you go there in your heart right now and sense the presence of the risen Christ.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Easter parking

Good morning.  Tomorrow is Easter.  Please join me in making room for others.  Please park at the cancer center and take the shuttle in to the building.  Staff, choir and Hospitality members can please park at Delta Woods.  Please leave spots up close for those who really need them or for those who are visiting.

Please attend an hour other than 10:10.  we have a sunrise service at 630.  The services at 8, 905 and 1115 will be just the same and just as good as 10:10.  Services will also be held in the worship center at 905, 1010 and 1115.  We expect the 1010 hour to be a zoo so please come earlier or at 1115.

Thanks for all that you do to make room for others.  Thanks for all that you do to help us fulfill our mission.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Good Friday

Our annual Good Friday service is a highlight for me and for many.  Quiet, contemplative and deep are three words that I would use to describe the service.  Narration, song and pictures tell again the story of Jesus on the cross.

You are welcome and encouraged to join us tonight at 7pm.

Maundy Thursday

Today is Maundy Thursday.  It is the day that we remember Jesus' last supper with his disciples.  We will celebrate this event tonight with a special service at 7pm in the Sanctuary.  Holy Communion will be served.

You are encouraged to attend.

What ever you do this week, please be mindful of the suffering and death of our Lord.

to get or give

To get or give, to take or give, to give or receive.  It is a question that we wrestle with every moment of every day. Those who are takers may think that they get more, but it is still better to give than to receive.

Givers of time, givers of love, givers of money, givers of effort are always much happier than ungivers.  Yes you can grow tired of giving, you can feel like you give too much, you can be in a work place or a marriage where you get little in return, but it is still better to give.

Givers are filled with joy.  Their giving keeps their focus on others and off of themselves.  Those who give have discovered the secret of joy in this life.  We were created to give, to live outside of ourselves.

It's a beautiful day in God's world be sure to see the good.

nothing new

Ecclesiastes reminds us, "there is nothing new under the sun."  Nothing new.  Same old stuff.  Yet we preachers are expected to bring a new spin, a new angle, a new idea in our sermons.  It's kind of funny because the story is still the same.  2,000 years and the story has not changed.

For that matter, we humans get bored with life because we want to be entertained.  We want something new.  Some new angle on life.  Well, it is the same stuff, the same old stuff, but let us be sure to remember that it is good stuff.  Life is good stuff.  We grow accustomed to it all and get bored, but don't ever forget how good it is.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Thank you

I can't say thank you enough.  For those of you who worked so hard to make yesterday a great day at Woods Chapel.  Some came up at 6am and helped to shovel snow.  Several staff stayed in hotels or with friends to make sure that they could get here.

Everyone was flexible.  We had to make a lot of adjustments due to the weather.  At the end of the day, it was a great day and will hold many fond memories.

Attendance was down of course, but over 150 homes watched the services on live web stream. 

As always, the best part of all of it is the kind ways that you all go out of your way to accommodate others and be the hands and feet of Jesus.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Snow Days at Church

Schools get snow days, some churches get snow days, Woods Chapel does not.  I have tried to imagine what kind of storm might happen that we would close the church, but I cannot.

Eight inches of snow last night?  We have people who are bringing their snow blowers to make sure the sidewalks are clear.  Good team of folks.  If you read this at 530am today, you may want to slip up here and help them out.  Bring a shovel.

I have always believed that there is a special blessing for those who come to church when the going is difficult.  Rule number one is be safe.  Rule number two is, the church doors are open.

I have never remembered such a special weather visitation on Palm Sunday.

Its a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

tournament time

So it is March madness.  NCAA tournament time.  I find it interesting how much ego we humans put into the outcome of a game. 

The best and worst comes out of people when they are watching their team play.  Some folks root against teams they hate.  Some folks are braggadocios.  Some display great sportsmanship and class.

Basketball season comes and basketball season goes.  We are all much happier when our self worth is not tied to the outcome of a game.  Even if your team goes 2-24 on the season, God still loves you.  Let's keep our lives in perspective.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

G.K. Chesterton

I have been reading a book about G.K. Chesterton.  He was an English author who lived about 100 years ago.  A very bright man, Chesterton is known for his defence of the faith and his pursuit of joy and common sense.

One of my favorite sayings of his is "the world is full of wonders.....the problem is that we humans have forgotten how to wonder." 

All around you are the wonders of our God.  What will you wonder at today?

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Home

Judy Garland said it best.  There's no place like home. 

After passing thru Israeli security, a 12 hour flight to Newark, customs, a long layover, terminal changes- twice, and another three hour flight to KC, our Holy Land group is finally home.

The dog and cats were glad to see me.  My wife was glad to see me.  Several employees at church were glad to see me!  Very exciting!

We had a great trip.  The 45 folks from our trip were all wonderful.  That should not surprise you.  We had a great bunch, and if any of you are reading this that went on the trip, I really mean it, you guys were great.

Well, I slept from 9pm to 5am.  It was a great night.  Work to do at home this morning and then I am back in the office at 8am.

There's no place like home.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Holy Land 8

Animals that we saw.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Holy Land 7

Flowers.  The Holy Land is a beautiful place, full of many different kinds of flowers and trees.  The climate is much warmer and so there are all kinds of things that grow there all year round that we only see in the warm season, or cannot grow at all.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Holy Land 6

Jerusalem.  What a beautiful city.  We walked today where Jesus walked.  It is hard to describe the feeling.  It was a touching, heartwarming, moving day.

Mosque on Temple Mount

Dome of the Rock, temple mount

Zion Gate

Armenian Church of St. James the lesser

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Holy Land 5

More Ruins.
the name of this place is Beit She’an

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Holy Land 4

Churches.  Oh, the beautiful churches that we have seen. Oh how the world strives to reach God.  Oh how worshippers seek to find him and to tell him of their love.

 

Joppa

 Nazareth

Nazareth

 Mount of Beatitudes

Oh how the heart and mind of the creation continues to yearn for the Creator.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Holy Land 3

Ruins
Our guide keeps saying, it is against the law to ruin the ruins that have already been ruined.

crusader ruins at cesarea by the sea

amphitheatre at sephoris

roman road at sephoris

capernum synagogue

One man's ruins is another man's inspiration.

It's a beautiful day in God's world be sure to see the ruins as good.

Holy Land 2

I am not sure what day it is.  But our trip is so fantastic.  The 45 folks from Woods Chapel are so wonderful.  You guys are such a great church family.

Today we rode on the sea of Galilee.  Here are some pics.

sunrise over galilee

Eric Kennedy is the King of the world

boats on Galilee

peaceful rest spot at Capernum

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

Holy Land

Good Morning-

it looks like I have missed a day in posting.  Sorry about that, but between an 8 hour time difference and a 15 hour plane flight, I am not sure what time it is where.

We had a wonderful first day.  Long flight.  But good flight.  Everyone made the trip safely except one, pray for Nancy who is in the hospital in KC.

Today we arrived here about 4pm Israel time.  We saw the ruins of Joppa where Jonah ran away and was later swallowed by a fish.

We rode in a bus for a long time.  We had a great dinner.

We are exhausted so I am going to bed.  Read some great stuff on the plane about GK Chesterton.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

wedding

I officiated at a wedding on Saturday night.  [this post is not about the Holy Land, because we are travelling today.] Anyway, I officated at a wedding on Saturday night.  Good folks.  I enjoy weddings a lot when I can tell that the bride and groom love each other.

Usually when the bride walks down the isle, I think of the bride and groom and true love.  I think of my own dear wife.  Saturday as the bride was walking down the isle, I thought for the first time about the father of the bride.  Here he is, walking his little girl down the isle.  I started to cry.  Although none of my children have weddings scheduled, they are probably on the horizon in the next few years.

I saw myself in this man's shoes.  I was both happy and sad.  What changes life brings to us!  It is also interesting how I made that moment about me.  We humans are so funny like that.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.