E-News Friends,
If I told you that many people are prisoners to one or two or three experiences in their past, would you agree? My guess is there would be a pretty strong consensus on that one. But let me ask you this: What are those one or two or three experiences for you? What areas of your life would you love to have a “do-over”, a second chance, a mulligan? Personally I would love to take a mulligan on my early 20’s. I have carried a significant amount of disappointment and shame from that period in my life.
We’re going to talk about second chances or “do-overs” this weekend in our “Lost Episodes” series because the scriptures are filled with one second chance story after another. One of my favorites is found in John 21 and includes one of my favorite characters of the Bible; Peter. For those of you who are living with the shame and bitter disappointment of past failures, I hope this story will provide you with a new appreciation of God’s radical grace and a hope for the future.
Our God is the God of second chances. He sent His one and only son Jesus to this earth so that each and every one of us could experience a moral “do-over”. The Bible uses another word for this…redemption. John Ortberg in his book Love Beyond Reason writes:
Redeeming is what God is into. He is the finder of directionally challenged sheep, the searcher of missing coins, the embracer of foolish prodigal sons. His favorite department is Lost and Found. He is the God of the do-over. He is the Lord of the second chance.
And on a logistical note, weather permitting, all weekend services at the ‘boro will be held under the “Big Top” for the remainder of the summer. Was that fun last week or what?
You’re probably wondering about this week’s picture by now. Just a reminder to strap yourself in for the next couple of months because we have some really exciting stuff planned. Check it out and get it on your calendar.
• This Sunday at 10:30 AM – McLane Church in Union City will gather with folks from other local churches for the ecumenical worship service at the gazebo on the school district grounds
• Saturday, July 24 – Family movie night under the “Big Top” after the evening service in Edinboro featuring the movie “Up”.
• Sunday, July 25 - alternate baptism services at McCoy’s pond for the Edinboro congregation and at Bill and Denise Olczak’s for the Union City site. Time for both is 6:00 PM
• Saturday, July 31 – “McLane’s Car Cruise-In” from 3:00-6:00PM in the church parking lot with the worship service to follow. More info. will be coming, but this will include live music from a local blues band featuring our own Paul Macosko and food from the grill.
• Thursday and Friday, August 5-6 – We have 65 people registered to attend the Willow Creek Association’s Leadership Summit, an outstanding two-day conference dedicated to helping leaders become better leaders.
• During the month of August, in conjunction with our weekend services, we are going to set up our own “Farmer’s Market” by encouraging folks who grow gardens to bring in additional fresh produce to share with other church families.
Who said church couldn’t be fun? Stay tuned.
Bill
P.S. – 79 folks from the McLane family attended the Sea Wolves game this past Tuesday…pretty cool. I expect to see some hats this weekend.
