Weekly Update from Pastor Adam - January 26, 2024

January 26, 2024

Dear Resurrection Family,

Please note there is a change for in-person Sunday night worship at Leawood this weekend. With the Chiefs AFC Championship Game running from 2 to 5:30 pm, we surveyed those who attend Sunday evening worship in person, and we asked them what their plans were for worship this Sunday. Several hundred people took the survey and only 8 reported that they planned to be in worship at 5 pm. 93% of those who responded said they would be attending in person on Sunday morning so they could watch the game. I don’t want anyone to miss worship, but I also don’t want our volunteers and staff to prepare for worship and then lead for a near-empty sanctuary. So, this weekend only, we will not be holding in-person worship at Leawood on Sunday at 5 pm. Please join us in person Sunday morning, or online at 5 pm. I will also be preaching live on Saturday night at 5 pm at Resurrection Downtown if you’d like to join us there.

This is going to be an awesome weekend in worship, and I’d love for you to invite your friends to join us. They’ll be glad you did. See below for more information.

THIS WEEKEND: EROS AND AGAPE – MAKING LOVE LAST

This is going to be a fun and deeply meaningful weekend in worship as we continue our series on love in scripture, focusing on romantic love – the Greeks called this “eros” – the romantic, passionate, and intimate form of love. I’ll begin by sharing the latest Census Bureau data on relationships across America. Then we’ll turn to the topic of intimacy – what we sometimes call “making love” – and a key principle that helps us both in making moral decisions, but also in having a meaningful intimate life.

Finally, we’ll turn to the biblical purpose of romance – the mission of marriage and romance – and we’ll look at the results of the survey nearly 4,000 of you took this week – singles, never married, divorced, widowed, and married persons – the data was fascinating. I’ll be sharing this data with you – not something I read in a book – what you actually said. Divorced people shared the top five reasons for divorce. Singles shared what they are drawn to and what turns them off in a date. People married over 50 years shared with us the top six keys for making marriage last. And there will be five very simple keys that people who rated their marriages “very happy” practice.

Whether you’re single and have no interest in dating, or you’ve been married for 50+ years, you’ll find this message interesting and inspiring. And each of you knows people who could use a bit of encouragement in their dating relationships or marriage. Please invite them to join you.

Wear your Chiefs’ gear and invite your friends to join us for worship this weekend, in person, online or on TV!

SACK HUNGER FOOD DRIVE KICKS OFF THIS WEEKEND

It’s playoff season, and that means it’s time to “sack hunger.” Our Sack Hunger Food Drive begins today, and we invite you to join us by donating non-perishable items in the bins out in the Narthex and Commons through February 11, or you can make a monetary donation to purchase needed food in bulk. Here’s the link for more information on how you can help us to sack hunger.

ATTENTION CURRENT AND FORMER NFL PLAYERS

If you are a current or former NFL player, I’d love to connect with you. I’m putting together a panel discussion for our upcoming Men’s Retreat at Arrowhead Stadium on Saturday morning, February 24. The topic will be “Lessons from Pro Football for the Game of Life.” Please click here to connect with my assistant, Stephanie Hubers, and I’ll reach back out next week. 

THE POWER OF LOVE IN PARENTING

As we talk about the power of love this month, we have a special opportunity for parents to join Pastor Jason Gant for two transformative conversations on Wednesday, January 31 and February 7 from 6:30 – 8 pm where we’ll focus on The Power of Love in Parenting. You can register for in-person attendance (with childcare provided) or sign up to receive a digital recording the next day here.

COFFEE WITH THE PASTORS IS COMING UP FEBRUARY 4

If you are considering becoming a Resurrection member or if you want to learn more about what it means to be a member, join me and our pastors on Sunday, February 4, from 2 – 4 pm for Coffee with the Pastors. At these sessions, at each of our locations and online, you’ll learn about our church and membership, and then if you’re ready, there will be a short membership ceremony. Get all the details and register here.

MELISSA URBAN TO SPEAK AT RESURRECTION RECOVERY THURSDAY, FEB. 1

I shared with you last week that Melissa Urban will be speaking at our women’s conference. (You can still register to join us: Beloved Women’s Conference, Feb. 2-3). She has also graciously agreed to come a day early and speak to our Resurrection Recovery groups on Thursday, Feb. 1, at 6 pm. Melissa is the co-founder and CEO of Whole30, a seven-time New York Times bestselling author (including the instant bestseller The Book of Boundaries) and an authority on helping people create lifelong healthy habits. She has a powerful personal story to share about overcoming drug addiction. She will be speaking live in the Leawood Foundry (Building B), or you can join online. Here’s the link.

VESPERS THIS WEEK, BUT NOT ON TUESDAY

This Tuesday night, I’ll be speaking in Dallas on my book, Wrestling with Doubt, Finding Faith. I’ll post vespers another day this coming week. I’ve been asked to give an update on what changes are coming to the UMC at General Conference and I’ll be sharing about that, and some thoughts on how we read the Bible when it comes to making moral decisions – picking up on something I’ll be talking about in one part of this weekend’s sermon. You can find my Facebook account here. Click “follow” near the top right. You should be notified when I go live, or you can always watch my Vespers after the fact.