Pastoral Ponderings March 2009
Celebrate the Resurrection
Easter is coming and we will celebrate the resurrection of Christ.
You’ve heard the expression, “Nobody’s perfect.” Well it’s not true. Nearly 2,000 years ago a perfect man walked on this earth. He never had a sinful thought, never committed a sinful act; every minute of every day, He said and did exactly the right things.
You would think that people would appreciate a man like that, but instead He was often resented and feared. It was not just that He was perfect; it was that He claimed to be the King and Judge. Something told the populace that it just might be so.
The religious leaders finally decided that He would have to be killed. One of His very own followers, not just a fringe follower, but one of the insiders, came to them offering a deal. “I know you have concerns about my Master, Jesus. Frankly, I’m not so sure about Him myself. For a price, I will take you to Him in a private place. No crowds, no reporters or witnesses. You can grab Him there and examine Him and put Him on trial.” And so, the deal was struck, the price agreed upon, and the plan was set. Soon Jesus was arrested and sentenced to death. He died at approximately 3:00 P.M. on that horrible day.
But wait, it doesn’t end there! In spite of the fact that He was laid in a sealed and guarded tomb, three days later the grave was suddenly found to be empty. HE HAD RISEN FROM THE DEAD. For 40 glorious days He appeared here and there. What a great turn of events and it’s completely true. There is no occurrence that has been more documented than this one. The evidence of His death and resurrection are overwhelming and few people in America doubt it. Yet, simply believing the Resurrection as a historical fact is not enough. What made the difference in your lives is that you made it personal. You said, "He died for me." "He gave His life for my sins." "He rose from the dead so that I would be declared righteous." At that moment you called on the Name of the Lord and were forever changed.
It doesn't get any better than that!
Pastor Jon Bekemeyer
GCC Praise Team
Narrated by Pastor Sam
“The Heart of Christmas is Jesus, Gods greatest gift, … to celebrate His birth for we have made our choice… to worship, honor and serve this savior who is Christ the Lord!”
“He is the gift of eternal life. The heart of Christmas is God, Himself… God reaching down from Heaven to Love… to give us hope...to redeem mankind”.
“For God so Loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life”.
John 3:16
Micah 5:2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times."
Internet Links:
http://www.mikespeckministries.com/biography.asp
The GCC Body Life hosted a Valentine’s Spaghetti dinner on February 14th. The meal started with salad, warm rolls and bowlfuls of spaghetti served with meat sauce. Dessert was a custard cake and hot coffee.
After dinner several games followed, led by Paul Lavenau. Some of the games included Trivia questions and several couples answering questions related to their wedding day plans. For example “How many miles did you travel from your wedding ceremony to your honeymoon”?
The special night finished up with teamwork in the Sanctuary, dismantling the tables and resetting the pews. Another group worked in the kitchen, everyone pitching in to clean up.
A special thank you to the Body Life team for their hard work on this special occasion.
Hosted by Ron Newman, 12 men from GCC came out to the Sanctuary Ridge for a day of fun & fellowship on Saturday March 7th. Roy Entwistle, Chuck Kinzer, Paul Lavenau and Ross Laudner were on team #1. Team #2 was made up of Nello Woodhouse, Jim Clayton, Wayne Baker and Ed Prosienski. The third team included Chet Hirschy, Ron Newman, Vollie Roddy and Joe Miret.
“First Place went to Team #1 with a combined score of 68 which I 3 under par (72) for the 18 holes”, said Ron Newman. “The Prize was one sleeve of Pinnacle Exception golf balls for each team member. Team #2 was second with a combined score of 69. Team #1 won by 1 stroke”.
The teams were playing Scramble rules, which “can vary a little from just playing the best shot of the four players. All players hit a ball each time from the location of the prior best shot. Our particular rules were that their best ball was played out of each four except, that each team had to use at least a minimum of three shots from each player, not counting puts”.
On Saturday, March 21st, the GCC Trustee's joined with volunteers to beautify the Church, the Barn & the Church grounds.
If you have ideas for articles, event photos:
Please email Joe McDonald at :informer@communitychurchclermont.org
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