(Google Image)
WEDNESDAY CHURCH
on the Internet
(This is your mid-week Christian power
surge with Rev. Mike Fonfara, D.Min.)
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Easter Season, Week One
Welcome, springtime saints! The Easter holy days are over. This year, Holy Week and Easter Sunday were special days with wonderful church music, happy children, lively worship services (though it was a little cold), and great resurrection spirit abounding. God has blessed us in full measure!
The Easter Season of the Church Year exists from Easter Sunday until the Ascension Day, which is Thursday, May 9th this year. This Season gives all Christians time to reflect on the meaning of Christ's resurrection in their lives and time to share the saving graces of Jesus with non-Christians.
What's next? It is time to get ready for the Creator's springtime delights. Yes, wonderful springtime weather - Sunny days, April showers, May flowers, et al. - will be here soon. This Wednesday Church on the Internet thanks God for Mother Earth's emerging beauty.
Thank you for joining this week's Wednesday Church!
Rev. Mike Fonfara, D.Min.
WORSHIP
Opening Prayer ...
Be praised, my God, by butterfly and dragonfly wings exercising for their first flight.
Be praised by lightning and thunder causing spring showers.
Be praised by the silent voice of grass growing and trees budding.
Be praised by all the colorful flower trumpets of spring.
Be praised by the downy fewathers dried on newly hatched ducklings and chicks.
Be paised by the songs of birds, crickets and frogs.
Be praised, my God, by all your creation which tells of new life.
- Mary Goergen, O.S.F.
The Gathering ...
Heavenly bells ring and trumpets sound.
It is time for Wednesday Church to start.
Let us begin.
We Confess Our Sins ...
Almighty God: Look deep within our souls and see our faith. We have good intentions to live good lives. Yet, we fall short of rightousness. Forgive our sins, O God, in the name of Jesus Christ. Help us to live with the Holy Spirit's help in such ways that give You honor in all things and furthers the ministries of the
Church. Amen.
Today's Scripture ... 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV)
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come. The old has gone,
the new is here!"
Message ... "New Life Shows-Up in Strange Places"
Back in 1970, I served as a chaplain at a summer-long Boy Scout camp. Since the boys and their leaders were there for two weeks, many troops chose to do a service project to improve their sites.
One troop decided to make a little cross from tree limbs close to the fire pit. With the approval and help from the camp ranger, the boys trimmed a tree of a few limbs big enough for a reasonable cross. They cleaned the chosen limbs of small twigs and leaves. Once the horizontal limb was lashed to the verticle trunk, the boys burried the cross' stump about eighteen inches deep. Their idea worked. The cross looked really good when reflecting the fire's flames.
In 1971, I returned to the summer Boy Scout camp again as a chaplain. While visiting the campsite with the now year-old cross, I noticed that the lashed together limbs were sprouting leaves! Evidently, the boys had not done anything to seal the places of removed twigs. The cross was still alive and growing. What a fitting image for Christians following a risen Savior.
New life with Jesus Christ shows-up in strange places! We had better keep our eyes open.
(Rev. Mike)
Prayer of Dedication ...
Good God:
Strengthen me to live with a single purpose, which is to do your will.
Train me to live with a single sight, which is to see humankind's needs for Christian service.
Encourage me to live with the resolve to strive for an authentic faith, which is to love You with my whole heart and my neighbor as myself.
To such things as those above, I dedicate my life.
Amen.
Benediction ...
1. Jesus never stopped ministering following the resurrection. He continued to teach and encourage the Disciples and other believers until the Ascension happened a little less than fifty days after the empty tomb. He prepared them for the spiritual work ahead.
One early appearance that Christ made was to the Apostle Thomas (John 20:26-29) in order to prove His victory . Here are some interesting facts about the Apostle following the "touching" encounter.
A. He was one of Jesus' Twelve Apostles.Back in 1970, I served as a chaplain at a summer-long Boy Scout camp. Since the boys and their leaders were there for two weeks, many troops chose to do a service project to improve their sites.
One troop decided to make a little cross from tree limbs close to the fire pit. With the approval and help from the camp ranger, the boys trimmed a tree of a few limbs big enough for a reasonable cross. They cleaned the chosen limbs of small twigs and leaves. Once the horizontal limb was lashed to the verticle trunk, the boys burried the cross' stump about eighteen inches deep. Their idea worked. The cross looked really good when reflecting the fire's flames.
In 1971, I returned to the summer Boy Scout camp again as a chaplain. While visiting the campsite with the now year-old cross, I noticed that the lashed together limbs were sprouting leaves! Evidently, the boys had not done anything to seal the places of removed twigs. The cross was still alive and growing. What a fitting image for Christians following a risen Savior.
New life with Jesus Christ shows-up in strange places! We had better keep our eyes open.
(Rev. Mike)
Prayer of Dedication ...
Good God:
Strengthen me to live with a single purpose, which is to do your will.
Train me to live with a single sight, which is to see humankind's needs for Christian service.
Encourage me to live with the resolve to strive for an authentic faith, which is to love You with my whole heart and my neighbor as myself.
To such things as those above, I dedicate my life.
Amen.
Benediction ...
Grow in God's grace as fast as the
grass grows after April's showers!
("A Foggy Springtime Florida Morning "- Pastor Mike's Photo)
SACRED MISCELLANY
1. Jesus never stopped ministering following the resurrection. He continued to teach and encourage the Disciples and other believers until the Ascension happened a little less than fifty days after the empty tomb. He prepared them for the spiritual work ahead.
One early appearance that Christ made was to the Apostle Thomas (John 20:26-29) in order to prove His victory . Here are some interesting facts about the Apostle following the "touching" encounter.
B. Thomas' nickname was the Twin (Didymus).
C. He stars in the biblical story of "Doubting Thomas."
D. He went to India as an architect in order to build a great palace for King Gondoforus.
E. While in the East, Thomas preached in Persia and India.
F. He died around A.D.72 of multiple stab wounds by those who opposed his Christian teachings.
G. Apostle Thomas is represented in Christian art with a builder's square.
H. In Catholicism, he is the Patron Saint of architects, builders, and the nation of India.
Thanks again for worshipping today at the Wednesday Church on the Internet. Your participation is greatly appreciated. Come by again next week when new material will be posted by Wednesday, April 10th at 5 a.m. Remember, this is your new mid-week Christian power surge. If you have benefitted from Wednesday Church, please tell your friends about the blog. Please help this blog grow. If you have constructive suggestions, please share them with me. Thank you!
Rev. Mike Fonfara, D.Min.
("Ducks Love the Spring" - Pastor Mike's Photo"
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