Weekday Email to Members and Friends – 2021-03-26
A weekday e-mailer from
Matt Matthews
To Members and Friends of
First Presbyterian Church
Champaign, Illinois
Friends,
The Lenten Devotionals from the Presbyterian Outlook for this weekend are at the very bottom of this email. May they be a blessing to/for you and those you love.
* * *
Holy Week begins on Sunday.
Not all of you grew up observing Holy Week. It begins with Palm Sunday. Children often lead the way into worship with an impromptu parade of waving palm branches and slightly choreographed shouts of Hosanna, Alleluia, Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD! Palm Sunday is sometimes called Palm/Passion Sunday. The word “passion” means suffering in the context of Holy Week. And there’s a lot of it. Palm Sunday marks the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, his last week on the face of this earth before he’s crucified in just five days.
On Thursday, we’ll celebrate “Maundy Thursday” in which we remember Jesus’ last supper and the washing of the disciple’s feet (in John 13). Maundy means mandate or command, from the Latin mandatum. Jesus gave his disciples a new commandment, that they should love one another “just as I have loved you.” Our service begins in the sanctuary at 7:00 and will be live-streamed at FirstPres.Live .
On Friday, we’ll celebrate “Good Friday” in which we remember Jesus’s crucifixion. Our service will be on-line only, at 7:00, at FirstPres.Live . Our friends from across the street at First United Methodist Church will be joining us for this service.
Many churches celebrate a Saturday Easter Vigil. We will not, formally.
Our Easter worship will be at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday at FirstPres.Live and in-person at 10:15. Our seating capacity is only 50-souls, so please sign up by calling the church office, lest you show up without a reservation and we have to turn you away, a crushing thought.
Make every attempt to walk these steps with Jesus, from holy parade to resurrection and the important stops in between.
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THIS Sunday, join us on-line at 9:00 a.m. FirstPres.Live
or, if you feel safe, in person at 10:15 (preregistration before noon today is preferred as we are almost at-capacity for this Sunday). Wear your mask.
See you then.
Much, much love to you all.
Matt Matthews
Cell: 864.386.9138
Matt@FirstPres.Church
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Joe Ely, You’re Gonna Miss Me When I’m Gone…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Friday Night at the Movies. This is a lovely, 20-minute film. Turn on your subtitles, as part of it is in sign-language. That’s right, sign-language. Watch this. Enjoy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
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CYF will be hosting a Spirituality Center in the church chapel for the season of Lent. Open House hours will be Sundays 11am-2:30pm. Come for some quiet reflection time by walking the labyrinth, contemplating scripture, and creating at your own pace. One household will be admitted at a time. Check in and temperature recordings will be necessary as well as face masks while in the building and chapel. Sanitizing wipes will be at each station for further protection between visitors. We hope you will find it a blessing for this season of inward contemplation and examination.
Sunday school continues. Follow this link for a virtual version of the Lenten Spirituality Center Lenten Spirituality Center
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Lenten Daily Devotions
Friday, MARCH 26, 2021
JOHN 1:35-42
The first words out of Jesus’ mouth in the Gospel of John set bef ore us a critical existential question: “What are you looking for?” At the other end of the Gospel, on Easter morning, the risen Lord asks Mary Magdalene a similar question: “Whom are you looking for?” (John 20:15). Who or what are we looking for? These questions frame John’s Gospel and invite reflection on our deepest longings. They also reflect John’s conviction that our deepest longing is for relationship with God, made available in Christ — a conviction shared by St. Augustine in his “Confessions”: “Our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”
Practice: Pray and ponder deeply John 1:35-42 with special attention to Jesus’ question, “What are you looking for?” How would you answer this question?
Journal: Note in your journal what reflection on this question evoked for you.
Saturday, MARCH 27, 2021
JOHN 11:1-44
The church has traditionally pondered the Gospel of John’s vivid story of the raising of Lazarus in its journey toward Lent. In it, Jesus makes a statement that goes to the heart of John’s Gospel, followed by a very important question: “I am the resurrection and the life. … Do you believe this?” Do you believe that Jesus offers eternal life — that is, fullness of life, a rich quality of life in relationship with God now, not just life that extends beyond death? When Lazarus emerges from the tomb, Jesus also articulates an important command for the Christian community – “Unbind him and let him go” – charging us with the ministry of unbinding others, that they may experience fullness of life.
Practice: As you pray with this vivid story, imagine that you are present in this scene. What most captures your attention as the story unfolds? How would you respond to the question Jesus asks? How might you assist in the unbinding of others?
Journal: Make a note in your journal of reflection evoked by your prayer with this story.
Holy Week
MARCH 28-APRIL 7, 2021
You are the son of the Living God
HYMN OF THE WEEK: “O Sacred Head, Now Wounded”
PRAYER FOCUS: Sanctification — How can I ask God to make me more into God’s likeness — more generous, forgiving, trusting, caring, creative, just? How can I care more for the “least of these” and less about what people in power think?
ACTION: Each day reflect on a time your mourning turned to joy or growth.
Palm Sunday, MARCH 28, 2021
MARK 11:1-11
Jesus’ triumphal entrance into Jerusalem is ironic. The people want a king who comes with power to deliver them, but Jesus will suffer, be crucified and resurrected, which suggests a different kind of power. Jesus does not come to rule over people but rather to model mutual service with people. The story invites reflection on the reign of God and what it might look like.
Practice: Prayerfully read today’s Scripture with special attention to what it might mean for the reign or reality of God to be present in daily life. What does the commonwealth of God look like for you? How is it present in your community?
Journal: Write in your journal of your answers to these questions, as specifically as you can.
