Exciting Things To Come

By now you should have the schedule for Easter and Holy Week indelibly etched in your brains. If you don’t, here it is one more time:

Prayer Labyrinth
Walk the prayer labyrinth April 6-9, Celebration Hall
Maundy Thursday Service
April 9, 7:30 p.m., Robertson Activity Center
Stations of the Cross
Friday, April 10, 3:30-7:30 p.m., Quad Room
Good Friday Service
7:30 p.m., Celebration Hall
Easter Sunday Services
Celebration Service: 8:15, 9:30 and 10:45 a.m., Celebration Hall
The Bridge: 9:30 and 10:45 a.m., Robertson Activity Center

What I’d really like you to be aware of is the services the three weeks following Easter. Even though I think all of our worship services here at Stonebridge United Methodist Church are special, the services on April 19, 26 and May 3 will be some of the most unique and moving we have ever offered. About a hundred years ago, archeologists discovered the oldest Christian hymn texts ever found. They were a part of the earliest Christian worship services; just after the time of Jesus’ ministry, during and just following the time of Paul’s missionary work. Like the Psalms in the Old Testament, we have the words to these hymns, but there was no musical notation yet invented to write down the notes to which they were sung. Recently, these early hymns’ texts were put to a very intriguing and beautiful contemporary style of music. They have come to be known as the Odes of Solomon.

On the three Sundays following Easter, we will be one of the first congregations in the area to highlight these hymns in our worship services. We will be worshipping ‘in the round’ with the music of the Odes surrounding us. The services will also include acting, dance, video presentations, choirs, soloists, ensembles and some interactive elements. You will not want to miss these wonderful opportunities to worship along side the earliest converts to the message of Christ in a most contemporary style. That is why we are calling these services “An Ancient Modern Celebration”.

Due to the style and production requirements of these services, for these three Sundays only, we will not be having the 8:15 service. We will be back to our regularly scheduled service times Sunday, May 10.

On those same Sundays in The Bridge, Pastor David will be taking on the subject of God’s message and human sexually. Some have asked why this is an appropriate topic for Sunday morning worship. The truth is we live in a sex education class. In our society, we are constantly being taught who we are and how we should act as sexual beings. We do not have the choice of whether or not we learn about sex, only what we are going to include in that learning process. I believe our faith must be a part of that discussion. Sex is God’s good gift to us as we seek to share intimately the love God has placed in our hearts. We must do that mutually, responsibly and appropriately to live a life that glorifies God. It is time for the church to help us in that process. We have subtitled the sermons as “PG – Parental Guidance Suggested”. We ask you to use your best judgment in your children’s attendance.