Ready, Set, GO!

This Sunday (April 7) is our second annual Go! Sunday.  We will have a short worship time where everyone will be commissioned for service - and then we will “go” to work in our community - as a congregation.  Faith Des Peres is involved in multiple areas of service all year.  This is the one day where we serve together as a congregation - and that is meaningful.  That says something about us as a congregation.

It will be a great day and a great way for the church to be the church and not just come to church.

It is not too late to participate at the recycling fair, Food Outreach, or in the community garden.  If you can't participate in those projects, you are still encouraged to worship with us and to pray for everyone who is serving and will be served.  

We will have childcare available.

And - we still have t-shirts available.  If you need one you can get one Sunday morning.  First come, first served.

Ready, set, GO!

Palm Sunday Worship, 10:30 am

“Palm Sunday,” Fleming Rutledge says, “has always been a crowd pleaser: the festivity of the procession, the stirring music, the repeated ‘Hosannas.’”  It’s a great day to come to church.  I know a lot of people think if you’re going to only come to church once or twice a year it should be on Christmas and Easter, but honestly, I think you should come on Palm Sunday.  In my opinion it is the most important Sunday of the year.

But why?  What makes it so important?  Well, in my opinion, Palm Sunday expresses the entire breadth and depth of Jesus’ mission and ministry.  Indeed, everything Jesus lived for and stood for and died for-and tells us to live for and stand for and die for- comes to a head on Palm Sunday.  On this Sunday, we get to the real heart of what it means to be a follower of Christ.

As we enter the most important week of the year for Christians, named “Holy Week”, I hope that you set aside time for this story. Pick up the Bible and read Luke 19:28-23:56. Set your busy schedules aside and plan to worship with us this Sunday and on Maundy Thursday (6:30 for dinner and 7:15 for worship). I’ve said it before but it’s worth saying again, your Easter experience will be much more meaningful if you spend time in worship and prayer learning about and reflecting on Jesus’ last week.

And if that isn’t enough to get you here on Sunday despite the weather forecast (don’t let the hype scare you away!), we’ll celebrate the baptism of Harrison Cook Benben and welcome St. Louis trombonist Bob Settle.  It will be a great service (we’re staying inside!) and a wonderful way to begin this holiest of weeks.

See you in church,

Pastor Annie

PS: Here is a prayer for you to pray as you begin Holy Week: 

God, as I enter into this new day, I ask that you keep me mindful of the profound nature of this Holy Week.  Help me to go beyond the joyful parade of the palms and to follow Jesus into the suffering of this world, mindful that he was obedient to you, even to the cross.  Amen.

Holy Week is Almost Here!

Plan on joining us for these special services:

Palm Sunday, March 24  Our festive Palm Sunday worship will include the procession of palms and guest trombonist Robert Settle, and we will celebrate the baptism of Harrison Benben, son of Brian and Leslie Benben.  We hope you will be here to welcome the newest member of the FDP family and to begin your Holy Week in worship!

Maundy Thursday, March 28  Join us for a simple supper at 6:30 and stay for worship at 7:15.  Section leader Kevin Hester will provide special music.  Sign up in the Gathering Space if you plan to attend and if you can . . .lend a hand!  You can also RSVP by e-mailing Sharon. 

Easter, March 31  Trumpeter Lucas Alberts will join us for a triumphant and glorious morning in worship. Invite your friends to this joy-filled worship!

Don't forget the Easter Egg Hunt on March 30 at 11am at the Old Meeting House.  We still need candy, and lots of it!  We fill over 1000 eggs and have about 100 guests at the hunt.  We depend on candy donations to make this event happen!  Thank you for your support.

Sunday Worship, St. Patrick's Day Edition

“What Wondrous Love is This”

A service of music, wholeness and healing

As we continue our Lenten journey, we will gather for a service of music, wholeness and healing this Sunday.  We will hear the good news of God’s love in Jesus Christ not only through music, but through opportunities for enacted prayer.

Did you know that healing was an integral part of the ministry of Jesus?  Did you know the church has been called to continue this ministry as one dimension of its concern for the wholeness of people?  

The ministry of healing concerns our interior and exterior lies.  It is very appropriate during Lent, when we have been focused on our inward lives and “spring cleaning our souls”, that we are invited to pray for the divisions and splits in our lives.  We are invited to make changes in our lives that lead to wholeness for ourselves, our relationships, and our world.

A service of healing and wholeness is a service of prayer: prayers of thanksgiving, intercession, and supplication; prayers that are silent, prayers that are written, prayers that are spoken, prayers that are enacted through the laying on of hands, and prayers that are sung; prayers that are given for individuals, for communities, and for nations.

If you so desire, you are invited to participate during worship in any of the following ways:

Prayer Wall: write your prayer on the slips and take it to the prayer banner, slipping it between the ribbons.

Candle Lighting: while you are praying silently, proceed to one of the stations and light one of the candles from the central Christ candle.

Laying on of Hands and Anointing: do you have a special prayer request?  You may come forward for a prayer and anointing with the sign of the cross.

You may also remain in your seat and pray, listen to the music, or join in singing as instructed.

I hope you will be here this Sunday for a very special and unique worship experience.

Sunday Morning Worship, the Crazy Family Edition

Dear Faith Des Peres Community,

This Sunday we continue our Lenten journey by hearing the very familiar and much loved parable of the prodigal son.  You know the one.  It's about the good-for-nothing younger brother who ran off and squandered his father's inheritance, went broke, returned home and when he did his father welcomed him with open arms and threw him a huge party!  

Yeah, that one.

The parable all of us older siblings (in the symbolic sense of the word) hate.

Whatever happened to a little filial contrition?  Or a little finger-wagging and head shaking on the part of dear old Dad? Where's the fatherly scolding?  The stern look?  The "I told you so"? 

Are we really supposed to welcome some good-for-nothing person back into our lives with open arms and a party?  Well, yes we are. At least according to Jesus we are.  

During the Sundays in Lent I've give you a spiritual exercise to work on during the week.  This week's exercise is a difficult one: It is about giving up the idea that we can love God and despise each other. We simply cannot, no matter how wrong any of us has been. The only way to work out our relationship with God is to work out our relationship with each other.

If that sounds like a tall order that you need some help with, I encourage you to come on Sunday to worship.  Because you aren't the only one who finds this spiritual exercise difficult.  

I hope to see you at church.  Don't forget to set your clocks forward one hour!

And . . .mark your calendars . . .

• March 17 the choir will present a Lent "lessons and carols" type service;
• March 24 is Palm Sunday-my favorite Sunday of the year and the most important Sunday-don't miss it! We'll celebrate the baptism of Harrison Benben and enjoy special music by a guest trombonist.
• And of course, Easter Sunday on March 31 with trumpet, flowers, and the joy of the resurrection promise.  

See you in church,

Pastor Annie