DEVOTION: John 20:11-17--- 11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. 12 And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. 13 They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him." 14 Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." 16 Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned and said to him in Aramaic,[a] "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, "Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"
It's all about that, isn't it? It's all about the resurrection. You can take it all away, everything in life, and give it away. The resurrection trumps everything. You can give me all the money in the world and say that I will be comfortable for the rest of my life, and I will give it all away for the resurrection. None of that other stuff matters.
As Paul says, "If Christ has not been raised then your faith is in vain, you are still in your sins. But, in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead, the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep!" 1 Corinthians 15:17-20
I am so looking forward to the resurrection. I say looking forward because God has promised that there will be a day when he will return and raise those who have died in faith. "The dead in Christ will rise first and then we who are left till the coming of the Lord will meet them in the air." I am so looking forward to seeing all of my loved ones, my grandparents, my best friend, my aunts and uncles, and so many others on that day and joining with them and all the saints and angels in eternal praise to our Savior.
Until then we can still revel in the resurrection. We can live in peace knowing that we will not die but live and proclaim what the Lord has done, that in the end we will stand upon the earth and even after our skin has been destroyed, yet in our flesh we will see God with our own eyes!!
Live in true peace, comfort, and joy as you await the resurrection!
Prayer: Lord God, help us to continually look forward as we await the resurrection in joy and peace! Amen.
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TUESDAY"S QUIZ: Of all the commandments which one is the most important according to Jesus?
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CALENDAR
Tues- Quilters 9-2; BIble Study 11:30-12:15
Wed- Pastor's meeting in New Melle all day, Choir 7pm
Fri- Assemble newsletter 9am
Sat- worship 5pm
Sun- worship 8:30 and 11; Sunday school and adult Bible class 9:45
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THE STORY: AN EXCITING NEW EXPERIENCE FOR OUR WHOLE CONGREGATION!!
What is it? THE STORY is a book compiled and written by Max Lucado and Randy Frazee, which takes sections of the Bible and divides it up into 31 chapters and adds commentary and study notes to it. The best way to describe it is to call it a Reader's Digest condensed version of the Bible. It is not split up into chapters and verses but reads more like a novel, and it doesn't include every bit of the Bible, but most of the main sections and stories.
How will it work? As a family and as individual members of the congregation you will each get a copy of the book. There are different versions for adults, teens, older elementary age and younger children. You will get these and read chapter 1 before January 5. Each week we will go through a chapter of the book in every part of the church's life: in Worship, Bible Studies, Confirmation and in the Home for personal devotions.
Why are we doing this? This is a great opportunity for all of us to read through the Bible TOGETHER in 31 weeks and for us to all literally be on the same page. The materials are excellent. It is a fantastic way for us to grow together as a church and or us to reach out to the community with the Gospel!
What about special weeks like Holy Week and Easter? We will take several weeks off throughout these eight months, one for Life Sunday in January, one for Easter and another two or three when I am going to be gone for Spring Break and other vacations. A specific schedule will be coming out in the next week or so.
How do we get the books? Each adult will be asked to buy a book for $6. A table will be set up in the narthex to buy them before and after services for the next several weeks or you can call Marilyn in the office at 456-2888 to purchase your during the week.
What about the kids? All children will receive a copy that is age appropriate courtesy of the Janet Wagner fund. There will be a table set up for the next several weeks for adults to buy books. Kids will get theirs in Sunday school .
What kind of help is needed to make this a success? We have several volunteers already to sell books, but could use a few more to sell before and after services until everyone who wants a copy of the book has one. I would also like someone, a man or a woman, who would be willing to lead a study of it during the week.
Can I order books for family members who are not members? There will also be an order form for those of you who want to buy books for your children, grandchildren, relatives, and friends. PLEASE NOTE THAT PRICES WILL FLUCTUATE ON FUTURE ORDERS DUE TO PRICE CHANGES WITH BOOK DISTRIBUTORS AND PUBLISHING HOUSES.
Where can I go to get more info? Please go to www.thestory.com for more info.
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THANKSGIVING EVE WORSHIP AT 7PM WEDNESDAY
There will be no Thanksgiving Day worship.
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ST. JOHN'S WILL HELP OPERATION BACKPACK WITH PEANUT BUTTER
You may have read in the Warrenton Record that Operation Backpack is in desperate need of food items.
Operation Backpack is a program that provides food for needy children on weekends. Most of these kids are able to get reduced or free breakfast and lunch at school daily, but since there is no school on weekends they often don't have enough food to make it through the weekend. The food gets brought to a central location and then disbursed to the most needy of children in our area schools. It is done discreetly without any other kids knowing about it.
A few Warrenton area churches have teamed up to provide the food. Each church is taking a different food item (kind of like we used to do for the Ditty bags for soldiers).
St. John's is in charge of peanut butter.
Please bring jars of peanut butter to church within the next two weeks so we can get them to the kids who need them asap. Any jars of peanut butter will do as long as they can comfortably fit in a backpack
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