Spring Cleaning

I love spring!

I love how the days get longer, and how the sun warms the air.  With the windows now open, fresh air is blowing in and with it the sounds of spring. I hear people raking away the thatch off their lawns making way for fresh new green grass, kids outside playing, birds chirping and of course the sound of the Blue Jays game on the radio or TV (in direct completion with playoff hockey ;)) and of course there is spring cleaning.

Spring cleaning is a term that we all understand. It seems that as the sun streams through the windows it casts light on the dirt and clutter that’s gathered all winter long. And if you are anything like me you want to bring the newness of the season into your home by purging and cleaning in order to make it fresh and presentable.

But what about a spring cleaning for the soul? Sometimes we need to do the same thing with our spiritual houses. We all grow stale sometimes and need a spiritual freshening up. What if this spring as we are decluttering and cleaning our homes, we spent time cleaning up our spiritual house as well?

So here are a couple of ideas on how to get started:

Get rid of the clutter:  Take a look at what distracts you from making your relationship with God a priority. And if you can, get rid of it!  What is getting in the way of nurturing your relationship with God?  For instance, are you watching TV, or one more episode on Netflix when you could be outside walking and praying, or in God’s Word?

Romans 12:2
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (NIV)

Wash and cleanse - After you’ve gotten rid of the clutter it is time to cleanse. As you draw near to God - ask God as David did in Psalm 51:10:

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. (KJV)

Scrub out nasty attitudes, like bitterness, unforgiveness, anger, fear and selfishness by asking God to help you clean up each one.

In God’s economy every day is a great day for some spring cleaning!

Join us on Sunday as we begin a new sermon series called In God’s House.

You can also join us online!

Shouldn't everyday be Mother's Day?

This Sunday is a special day for the Mother’s in our midst. 

Now that both my children are married, I share Mother’s Day with two amazing woman (Sandy and Liz), who raised some exceptionally wonderful children. So, I will not have my babies all to myself as in earlier years and there is a part of me, if I am completely honest, that is a little sad. 

And then I started wondering: Why?  Why should I feel sad?  Had I too, bought into the whole Mother’s Day consumer madness? Did I feel bad because all the commercials on TV and store flyers at my door tell me that my children should be with me on this day? Not just with me, but showering me with adoration, cards and gifts? And if they are not with me, like the TV ads suggest, is something wrong with me?  Am I not a good mother?

Good Grief!

So how did it all start? 

I decided to do a Google search on the origins of this “special” day, and what I found was rather surprising.

You probably know that Mother’s Day is celebrated on the second Sunday of May. But did you know Mother’s Day was proclaimed a national holiday in the United States by President Woodrow Wilson in 1914?

It seems that the woman who began Mother’s Day, Anna Jarvis, did so in honour of her own mother who had passed away two years earlier. In 1908 Jarvis held a service in West Virginia which so moved her that she embarked on a national campaign to have the country honour the many contributions that mother’s make.  

By 1914 Mother’s Day had generated such momentum and President Wilson agreed to Jarvis’ request to set aside a day each year to honour our mothers. 

Here’s the interesting part. Anna Jarvis was horrified by what Mother’s Day had become. Jarvis felt that companies had exploited the idea of Mother's Day, which was to be about sentiment, not profit. I read that she was so enraged by the commercialism that in 1923 she filed a lawsuit to stop a Mother’s Day festival. She was later arrested for disturbing the peace when she learned that a war mother’s convention was selling white carnations—Jarvis’ symbol for mothers—to raise money. “This is not what I intended,” Jarvis said. “I wanted it to be a day of sentiment, not profit!”

I believe dear Anna Jarvis was right.

Jarvis had apparently started something that she could not stop. It was reported that she died at 84, never a mother herself, and that she spent most of the fortune her own mother left her to fight a holiday she created to honour her.

I hope I don’t sound cynical but Mother’s day is a fabricated day. Shouldn’t every day be Mother’s Day? I am not saying this because I am blessed to be a mother, or because I am the daughter of an amazing mother, or because I may not be with my kids on this day. 

Scripture tells us:  Honour your father and your mother (Exodus 20:12).  I don’t read, “Honour them once a year, or when it’s convenient.”  Honour them always! All the time!

I don’t need a card to tell my mother I love and appreciate her.  I just need to look her in the eyes and tell her. 

Likewise, I don’t need my kids to buy me stuff. I’m sure they will be relieved, and maybe even surprised to read this, but all I need is for them to just say they love me and appreciate me. Not just on the second Sunday in May, but often.  Dare I say, everyday   ;)

“May she who gave you birth be joyful!”, Proverbs 23:25.

Wave those palm fronds!

It was Palm Sunday and because of a sore throat, 5-year-old Johnny stayed home from church with a sitter. When the family returned home, they were carrying several palm fronds. Johnny asked them what they were for.    "People held them over Jesus' head as he walked by," his father told him.    "Wouldn't you know it," Johnny fumed, "the one Sunday I don't go and he shows up."

Palm Sunday commemorates the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover.  The gospels record the arrival of Jesus riding into the city on a donkey, while the crowds spread their cloaks and palm branches on the street shouting "Hosanna to the Son of David" and "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord”.  With excitement they honour him as their long-awaited Messiah and King. 

On Sunday you too, will have the opportunity to wave palm fronds. The children and youth have a wonderful presentation prepared. It will be an exciting morning! 

Did you know that Palm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week? Holy Week is that special week in the church year that leads up to Easter. 

During HOLY week:  

• All week long a Prayer Labyrinth will be set up in the Fellowship Hall (lower level). This is a wonderful time for you, alone, or with your family to walk on the mat. It is meant to be a reflective time for you to pray and hear from God. If you are new to this amazing prayer resource take a look at this video for information on what a Labyrinth is, its history and how to walk it.

• On Thursday we celebrate Maundy Thursday, the day that Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper. This year we will gather for a Prayer Walk. Join us as we do a short walk around the neighbourhood, praying for our community and our world. We are then invited back to the church building for a Hymn Sing. Check the website or our weekly Newsletter for times.

• We also remember Good Friday, the day Jesus died on the cross for our sins. We invite you to join us at 11 a.m. for a powerful, reflective service. Later that evening join us for Movie Night where we watch the story of Easter.

• And then, on Sunday we celebrate Resurrection Sunday or Easter Sunday. We will begin at 10:40 a.m with a fun Easter Egg Hunt for the children (young and old ;). Then at 11a.m. we will celebrate that He is Risen! (He is Risen indeed!). Join us for Refreshments immediately following the service in the Fellowship Hall.

The most important thing Jesus ever did to rescue our world happened this week - that’s what makes this week “Holy”.

Join us as we reflect and prepare our hearts for the agony of His Passion and the joy of His Resurrection.

It all begins this Sunday as we wave those palm fronds!