The Resurrection of Christ

“Almighty God,

who has brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus,

the glorious Prince of Salvation;

Grant us power, we beseech Thee, to rise with Him to newness of life.

That we may overcome the world with the victory of faith,

and have part at last in the resurrection of the just. Amen”

Book of Common Prayer, Altered

When Should A Son Stop Kissing His Dad?

 

The Board Meeting had come to an end. Bob started to stand up and jostled the table, spilling his coffee over his notes. “How embarrassing. I am getting so clumsy in my old age.”

 

Everyone had a good laugh, and soon we were all telling stories of our most embarrassing moments. It came around to Frank who sat quietly listening to the others. Someone said, “Come on, Frank. Tell us your most embarrassing moment.”

 

Frank laughed and began to tell us of his childhood. “I grew up in San Pedro. My Dad was a fisherman, and he loved the sea. He had his own boat, but it was hard making a living on the sea. He worked hard and would stay out until he caught enough to feed the family. Not just enough for our family, but also for his Mom and Dad and the other kids that were still at home.”

 

He looked at us and said, “I wish you could have met my Dad. He was a big man, and he was strong from pulling the nets and fighting the seas for his catch. When you got close to him, he smelled like the ocean.

 

He would wear his old canvas, foul-weather coat and his bibbed overalls.

 

His rain hat would be pulled down over his brow. No matter how much my Mother washed them, they would still smell of the sea and of fish.”

 

Frank’s voice dropped a bit. “When the weather was bad he would drive me to school. He had this old truck that he used in his fishing business. That truck was older than he was. It would wheeze and rattle down the road. You could hear it coming for blocks. As he would drive toward the school, I would shrink down into the seat hoping to disappear.

 

Half the time, he would slam to a stop and the old truck would belch a cloud of smoke. He would pull right up in front, and it seemed like everybody would be standing around and watching. Then he would lean over and give me a big kiss on the cheek and tell me to be a good boy.

 

It was so embarrassing for me. Here, I was twelve years old, and my Dad would lean over and kiss me goodbye!”

 

He paused and then went on, “I remember the day I decided I was too old for a goodbye kiss. When we got to the school and came to a stop, he had his usual big smile. He started to lean toward me, but I put my hand up and said, ‘No, Dad.’

 

It was the first time I had ever talked to him that way, and he had this surprised look on his face.

 

I said, “Dad, I’m too old for a goodbye kiss. I’m too old for any kind of kiss.”

 

My Dad looked at me for the longest time, and his eyes started to tear up. I had never seen him cry. He turned and looked out the windshield.

 

‘You’re right,’ he said. ‘You are a big boy….a man. I won’t kiss you anymore.’”

 

Frank got a funny look on his face, and the tears began to well up in his eyes, as he spoke. “It wasn’t long after that when my Dad went to sea and never came back. It was a day when most of the fleet stayed in, but not Dad. He had a big family to feed. They found his boat adrift with its nets half in and half out. He must have gotten into a gale and was trying to save the nets and the floats.”

 

I looked at Frank and saw that tears were running down his cheeks. Frank spoke again. “Guys, you don’t know what I would give to have my Dad give me just one more kiss on the cheek….to feel his rough old face….to smell the ocean on him….to feel his arm around my neck. I wish I had been a man then. If I had been a man, I would never have told my Dad I was too old for a goodbye kiss.”

 

I don’t know about the rest of the guys, but at that moment, I wanted more than anything to put my arms around my Dad and let him know just how special he was to me. It is so easy to forget to tell people how important they are to us, especially our parents. If you are lucky enough to still have your dad around, then go and see him. Tell him how much you love and appreciate him. And if you can, put your arms around him, give him kiss on the cheek, and let him know that he is the most important man in your life. Don’t ever miss an opportunity to tell someone you love that you love them.

 

 

 

From an email received… source unknown.

7 Signs of a Pro-Youth Church

Teenagers have significant responsibilities in the Church.

The Church supports its Youth Ministry with finances and staff positions. ( 2/3 of christians decide to follow Christ before they reach college age )

Kids are integrated into the life of the whole church, not just the Youth group.

The Church has a vision statement for youth ministry and communicates it often and well.

The Church’s young people enjoy long-term, home grown youth ministry leadership.

The Church has an outreach mentality and a youth welcoming reputation.

Church leaders plan the main worship service with all ages.

From Group Magazine, 2002

Lord Prepare Me…

A song that I sing as I prepare the Resurrection Message:

Lord prepare me to be a sanctuary

Pure and holy

Tried and true

With thanksgiving

I’ll be a living

Sanctuary for you….

Will You Care?

• Will you care?

Will you care enough to laugh with a child today?

Will you care enough to learn more?

Will you care enough to help a single mom with her kids in the grocery store?

Will you care enough to listen to someone’s stories today? Even if it is tenth time you have heard it?

Will you care enough to visit someone who is terminally ill and be their friend in these last days?

Will you care enough to call a fellow church member and encourage them?

Will you care enough to read to someone who is blind?

Will you care enough to sit and talk with someone in the nursing home?

Will you care enough to help a family in need?

Will you care enough to invite a friend to Sunday School?

Will you care enough to take a neighbor to the grocery store and the hairdresser, just because?

Will you care enough to give of your time and resources to help others who have neither?

Will you care enough to humble yourself before Jesus and believe in Him?

Will you care enough to help the widows, the orphans and the imprisoned?

Will you care enough to love without unconditionally?

Jesus loved you this much and so much more!

Do you care?

author unknown

Comfort From a Neurotic person

I was neurotic for  years.  I was anxious and depressed and selfish.  And everyone kept telling me how neurotic I was.

 

And I resented them, and I agreed with them, and I wanted to change, but I just couldn’t  bring myself to change, no matter how hard I tried.

 

What hurt the most was that my best friend also kept telling me how neurotic I was.  He too kept insisting that I change.

 

And I agreed with him too, although I couldn’t bring myself to resent him.  And I felt so powerless and so trapped.

 

Then one day, he said to me, ” Don’t change.  Stay as you are.  It really doesn’t matter whether you change or not.  I love you just as you are, I cannot help loving you.”

 

Those words sounded like music to my ears.  ‘Don’t change. Don’t change.  Don’t  change… I love you.”

 

And I relaxed.  And I came alive.  And, oh wonderous marvel, I changed.

 

Now I know that I couldn’t really change until I found someone who would love me whether I changed or not.

From Counseling Pathologies Class 2001 – author unknown

The meaning of life

The meaning and shape of our life together

as a community of persons

is grounded in the inner life of God, the Trinity,

and has been revealed to us

in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Invitation to Theology, Michael Jinkins . P19 

Prayer

Reflecting on the significance of the Lord’s Resurrection

Three theological dimensions

1. teleological

2. eschatological

3. communal -