God is good!

Red Run News -- May 15, 2011

Our Sunday School lesson was from Revelation 7, the account of that great multitude of every tribe and tongue praising God. Bob Sauder led in two hymns based on that passage: "Are You Washed in the Blood?" and "Hallelujah! Sing to Jesus."

Pastor Kevin demonstrated to the children some of the figures of speech in the twenty-third psalm: preparing a table, anointing with oil, and a cup that runs over. His message compared Psalm 22 (a psalm of suffering) to Psalm 23 (a psalm of God's presence and goodness in our lives.) We are assured that God is with us. We come close to God as we experience time with Him, become good at listening to Him, and hold onto the belief that God is good. The choir followed the message by singing "The Lord Is My Shepherd."

Bob Sauder, Letitia Weaver, Randy Hostetter, and Glenda Lafferty led us in singing. Today we included one of Miguel's favorites, "These Are the Days of Elijah."

What a joy to see even the youngest children join the others in bringing their offerings to the Lord.

On May 8, the men celebrated Mother's Day by preparing breakfast for everybody. Pastor Carl led the children in thinking about that our parents do for us, that which can be measured in dollars and that which cannot be so measured. The message was about the miracle of being born anew into God's Kingdom.

Reaching across divides

Red Run News -- May 1, 2011

As the children arrived this morning, they were intrigued by a winding road that had been outlined in the fellowship hall. The older children could travel this road from beginning to end in about ten seconds. They dutifully repaired (with scotch tape and yarn) those sections of the road damaged by their haste. It turned out that this road was for the class of the youngest children. The road was the road to Emmaus as traveled by the disciples when they met the risen Christ.

Ellen Martin played music for us on the keyboard, including "Spirit of the Living God." The choir sang "Springs of Living Water." Randy Hostetter, Glenda Lafferty, Colleen Lafferty, and Bob Sauder led us in a time of singing, including "Our Life Is in You, Lord."

In the message, Ken Sensenig compared Luke 9 (a Samaritan village refused to receive Jesus and his disciples) to Luke 10 (a Samaritan is a hero of radical hospitality). We are also called to reach across the cultural divides. In the children's time, Ken recounted how a stranger from another culture helped him when he was in an airport.

Kevin Weaver was dressed as a chef including a hat to remind us that the men are preparing a breakfast for us all this coming Sunday, May 8, which is Christian Family Sunday (Mother's Day). Breakfast will be served from 8:30 a.m. to 9:20 a.m. Then there will be a Sunday School classes (9:25 to 9:55 a.m.), followed by the church service at 10 a.m.

Kevin also displayed a long chart of the history of the world, a souvenir from his trip to the Creation Museum with his school students.

We acknowledged the passing of Irvin B. Horst (uncle of Esther Martin), Mennonite historian, scholar, teacher, and author.

Other prayer items:
Eugene H. is scheduled for shoulder surgery on May 18. Kerry has an outing scheduled with his students on Saturday. Randy and Tim were blessed with safety as they put a new roof on a pavilion at the park in Adamstown. We are thankful that Luke Horst has recovered from a recent illness.