Dear Peace members and friends,
I’m looking forward to Sunday! In worship we begin a new sermon series, “Hard Sayings of Jesus.” Jesus was a teacher and, often, he got a strong response. He told stories and one-liners that turned the common views of God and us upside down. As a result, Jesus offended some people…or just left them more than a little confused and puzzled! So, over these next weeks, we’re going to look at some of those hard sayings of Jesus and unpack them a bit to hear what they might say to us for our living and following Christ.
This Sunday, I’ll begin the series with Jesus’ graphic words in Mark’s Gospel, which contain shocking words such as these: “If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and go to hell, to the unquenchable fire (9:43).” No surprise to you, this nightmare material doesn’t show up on many people’s list of favorite Bible verses! But Jesus is making a life-giving point for us all. I’ll say more in Sunday’s message, “Hard Sayings of Jesus: Gospel Medicine.”
Also in worship, we’ll have a children’s message (with no reference to the words above!), Holy Communion, a word about our offering, and the Peace Choir. Either in person or online, join in!
This Sunday in Adult Education, we’ll finish our series on “Teen Mental Health” (10:45am) in the Fellowship Hall. Our guest speaker will be Marguerite Orhtman, from Next Adventure Counseling and Consulting, who will lead a conversation on social media and mental health. Again, whether you are a parent, grandparent, aunt, or uncle, or just concerned about our children, this session will be valuable for all.
A reminder to all adults: the Second Annual “Name That Tune Music Trivia Night” will be on Saturday, October 14th at 6:00pm. Test your musical knowledge from the 60’s through the 90’s with D.J. Bob Roeglin! Sign up on the narthex kiosk, online, or by writing or calling the church office ([email protected] or 952- 944-6510).
See you Sunday,
Mark