March Worship Services – 10am – Hybrid

March 5th – Shoes That Take Us Into the World – Helping God Save This World
Some of you who are football fans may remember seeing signs raised in the end zones of games as a team who had just scored a touchdown, kicked an extra point. These signs usually read, “John 3:16.” This is a reference to the Bible verse John 3:16 that states, “God so loved the world that God gave God’s only son, so that everyone who believes in him won’t perish but will have eternal life.” The next verse adds, “God didn’t send God’s son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through him.” The usual interpretations of these verses focus on life after death, but what if these verses, verse 17 specifically, refers to life in this world? We will consider the implications of these thoughts for saving the world in which we live today.

March 12th – On the Other Foot – A Different Starting Point
On this Communion Sunday, Eric will preach while Lee and Cindy take time to be with grandkids and their parents in Winter Park. Drawing on some surprising (and unlikely) pieces of historic Christian thought, plus modern-day theologies of liberation and ecology, Eric will suggest ways that the work of justice calls for a different starting point than our usual everyday perspective. This journey into the heart of the world begins not just with a single step, but with another way of seeing that world and our place within it.

March 19th – Blaming God or at Least the Shoes
When we walk in the world among those in need, we can’t control the narrative of the people we encounter. Jesus walked where the people lived and walked. His shoes, sandals, took him into a world in need, where people in need sought his help and support. And the religious leaders of his day saw people in need as opportunities to engage in theological discourse. “Who sinned that caused this man to be born blind, this man or his parents?” they asked. As we consider “Next Steps” for Wash Park, where will our shoes take us and what difference will we make in God’s beloved world and God’s beloved community.

March 19th, 5:30pm – Special Service: Tenebrae for Creation
This special service by Rev Allyson Sawtell is scheduled for 5:30 pm. She shares the following:

With each species going extinct, a light is extinguished. With each glacier disappearing, a light is extinguished. With each child stunted by lead poisoning, a light is extinguished. With each transgender and Native American woman murdered and missing, a light is extinguished. With each river run dry, a light is extinguished. The list goes on. And Christ is betrayed and crucified in the devastation of God’s Creation.

The story of Jesus’ Last Supper, betrayal, and crucifixion is an ancient story, played out today through our world’s multitudinous acts of violence, and environmental devastation. This Tenebrae service of candlelight and candle-extinguishing, this service of Communion and community explores entering into the shadows of Christ’s crucifixion in the devastation of Creation’s web of life.

March 26th – Shoes for the Journey: Meeting Today’s Needs While Shaping the Future
Jesus learns that his dear friend Lazarus (brother-in-law?) is ill in Bethany and his beloved Mary and her sister Martha, are worried for their brother. The disciples are worried that if Jesus returns to Bethany he is likely to die. He goes to where the need is, changes the outcome of Lazurus’ illness, changes his world and provides a path that we can follow in our world. That path leads us to those in need in our world. That path calls us to challenge the destructive systems of our day. Where will we invest our time, our energy, our resources?

NOTE:
We are back to hybrid worship, in person and by Zoom. No sign-up is required to come in person.