Weekly Update from Pastor Adam - March 17, 2023

March 17, 2023

March 17, 2023

Dear Resurrection Family,

Today is St. Patrick’s Day, honoring the patron saint of Ireland. Legend has it that St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland. Like most legends, there’s a real story behind the legend. Patrick was born in Roman Britain, the son of a deacon and grandson of a priest in the Christian church. At the age of 16, he was kidnapped by Irish raiders and taken as a slave to Ireland where he worked as a shepherd. It was there, he said he found God. After escaping and making his way home, he went on to become a priest. He returned to Ireland to convert the pagan Irish to Christianity, which led to the allegory that he drove “snakes” out of Ireland. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

THIS WEEKEND IN WORSHIP: “THE PARABLES OF THE KINGDOM”

In some ways, St. Patrick tees us up for this weekend’s worship. I’ll be continuing our series on Words that Changed the World: The Message of Jesus, by turning to the parables of Jesus. In Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Jesus most often spoke to the masses in parables. We’ll find out what a parable is and why Jesus said he spoke in parables (Jesus told at least 31 of them). And then we’ll focus on two parables you likely know very well, the Parable of the Good Samaritan and the Parable of the Prodigal Son, but we’ll see if these familiar parables might speak to you in new ways this weekend!

In the GPS next week we’ll cover five additional parables so be sure to read the daily devotional next week. I’m hoping you’ve found that the Sermon on the Mount spoke to you, as it did me, as I re-read it in our daily GPS this week. Here’s the link if you haven’t signed up to receive this daily email yet.

If you are still out of town this weekend for Spring Break, join us online at our website – we just launched a new site called resurrection.church/worship that brings together all the ways you can worship, including on-demand, each weekend and throughout the week.

EASTER EGG-VENTURE JUST TWO WEEKS AWAY!

This annual family-friendly free event is Saturday, April 1, from 10 am to noon, and will feature egg hunts, snacks, crafts and of course – the Easter Bunny! You can be part of the fun at locations across the city. Our Leawood, Blue Springs, West, Overland Park and Brookside locations will have Egg-Ventures on their sites, and Downtown will be hosting a city-wide Egg-Venture on the grounds of the National World War I Museum and Memorial. If you’re looking for a reason to invite a friend to church – this is the perfect event. Here is the link for some additional details. We can also use some additional volunteers to join the fun and you can sign up to help at your location here.

EASTER VOLUNTEERS

Speaking of volunteers, your smiling face could make all the difference to someone attending an Easter service for the first time! I want to invite you to experience the joy of welcoming someone to Easter services this year. Here’s the link to find more information on all the places and ways you can serve, and to sign up.

LENTEN CONCERT SERIES

Resurrection Leawood, Wednesdays, 12:15 – 12:45 pm, Leawood Sanctuary and live streamed here. The March 22 concert features Quintessential Woodwind Quintet with Heather Bass, Lisa England, Paul Jolley, Jerilyn Main, and Amy Schwartz.
Resurrection Brookside, Tuesday, March 28, 7 pm, Brookside Sanctuary, organ concert.

SIGN UP TODAY FOR SERVE SATURDAY TOMORROW

Tomorrow is Serve Saturday, and we still have opportunities for you to sign up and serve in the community. Use this link to find your place to serve and sign up.

BIBLE STUDY FOR COLLEGE-AGE YOUNG ADULTS STARTS TUESDAY

We’ve got nearly 60 college students joining me on Tuesday nights for a three-week study of Luke: Jesus and the Outsiders, Outcast and Outlaws starting this next Tuesday night! About half are joining in person and half via Zoom. If you’re college-aged and looking to connect with others, I would love for you to join me beginning this Tuesday, from 7 – 8:30 pm at the Leawood location or on Zoom. We’ll eat and get to know one another from 7 to 7:30, then I’ll teach you a bit about Luke from 7:30 to 8. Then from 8 to 8:30 we’ll have table discussions about the material from Luke. If you join us in person at Leawood, pizza and my new book on Luke will be our gift to you. For those joining on Zoom, invite a friend, get your own pizza, and we’ll try to get your book mailed to you if we haven’t already sent it. Here’s thelink to sign up or learn more.

VESPERS TUESDAY, MARCH 21

Join me for Vespers this Tuesday, March 21, at 7:30 pm CST on my Pastor Adam Hamilton Facebook page. You’ll actually be joining me on Facebook Live while I’m teaching the young adults about Luke – so I’ll be teaching them and you, at the same time! If you can’t join us then, you can always watch the replay on my FB page or on our YouTubechannel after Tuesday.

ALLIES FOR RACIAL JUSTICE TEEN POET LAUREATE CONTEST

Allies for Racial Justice, a partnership between St. James UMC and Resurrection, is sponsoring a poetry contest for high school students who are part of either church (in person or online). The contest runs March 17 – April 21, and the winners will share their poems at our Juneteenth Celebration on June 24, 2023. You can learn more about the poetry competition and how to participate on the website.

I’m looking forward to worship this weekend. If you are away on Spring Break, join us from wherever you may be as we worship and study Jesus’ Parables.

In Christ’s love,

Adam

P.S. Make sure you check out all the exciting things that are happening at Resurrection during the season of Lent at resurrection.church/next.

Adam Hamilton

Resurrection Senior Pastor

Reverend Adam Hamilton is the senior pastor of Church of the Resurrection and the author of 22 books. He has been married to LaVon since 1982, and she has been a critical partner in every dimension of Adam’s work. They have two daughters and one granddaughter.

Adam’s writings are known for helping readers make sense of challenging theological questions, exploring the significance of the biblical stories, and equipping Christian leaders to be more effective in their work. He earned his MDiv from Perkins School of Theology and graduated with honors from Oral Roberts University with a degree in Pastoral Ministry.

Learn More About What's Happening Now at Your Location

Watch for the “Next” newsletter in your email on Tuesday. This newsletter includes a personal message from your location pastor (Wendy, Anne, Bill, Penny, Joshua and Ashley) and opportunities for you to engage and connect at your location. If you’re not receiving it right now, you can sign up here.

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