A WORD FROM THE PASTOR:
Dear “Easter” People of God,
“He is not here; He has risen, just as He said!”
It seems that we have waited a long time to hear those words. As you can’t help but notice this year, the celebration of Easter is early, but Easter is coming this week! On Sunday, March 27th, we will finally celebrate Easter with three worship services: the SONRise Service at 6:30 AM, and two Easter Festival Services, at 8:00 and 11:00 AM. Easter is, without a doubt, the most important day of the Church Year. It is the festival of all festivals. Not only do we celebrate the resurrection of Christ, we also celebrate our resurrection from a life of sin and death. We are resurrected people in Christ. In fact, we are a “Resurrection” church!
On Easter Sunday, we will have many guests (church visitors) worshiping with us. I want to encourage you to make a special effort to welcome people to Resurrection Lutheran that Sunday! After a worship service a while back, I had a visitor tell me how much she enjoyed worshiping with us here at Resurrection. She told me that the previous Sunday she and her family had worshiped at another church in our community (yes, it was Lutheran!) and not one person had greeted her family. When it came time for the “Sharing of the Peace,” a man passed right by her to greet a person he evidently knew. This visitor told me that did not happen here. A number of people came up to her and made her feel welcome. She said, “I felt like I was one of the congregation!” I told her that she was and everyone who worships with us is one of us. You are not really a visitor but a brother or sister in Christ!
Please make an extra effort this Easter Sunday to welcome people! Don’t just greet those around you or people that you know. Seek out the folks that you have never met and make them feel like they are part of the body of Christ! Remember how it was when you first joined the church. God continues to open many doors for us to do ministry! What a wonderful opportunity we have here in this place to serve Christ!
May God grant you His Holy Spirit as we move towards the joy of Easter. I hope and pray that this Lenten Season is a time for us to grow closer to our Savior so that we may greet Him on Easter morning with shouts of Alleluia!
Please take a moment to review the Holy Week and Easter Schedule. And be sure to invite a relative, friend, neighbor, or co-worker as we …
Lift High the Name of Jesus!
this Holy Week and Easter,
because we …
LOVE – EQUIP – & SHARE
at Resurrection Lutheran!
Pastor Hank Hollar
