This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it! Let us rejoice in the joys of summer, and let us be glad that the extreme heat seems to be staying South of Presque Isle County! While we understand that it’s been an unusually cool late spring (so far), it’s been quite comfortable to be outdoors and enjoying our yards and gardens, riding our bicycles and taking walks. All of the seasons of the year have their delights, and their frustrations, so let’s get out and enjoy this season and all of the possibilities it brings!
All of the seasons of the church year have their delights, and their frustrations, as well. Now that Pentecost and Trinity Sunday are behind us, we will be settling into the season after Pentecost during which time there are no celebrations or feast days on the church calendar, until Christ the King Sunday in late November. We’re not terribly fond of the term “Ordinary Time” as it relates to the life of the church, because there’s nothing “ordinary” about living into the fullness of our calling as Christian brothers and sisters; these several months present us with the incredible gift of uninterrupted time to contemplate our lives, seek ways to grow in our faith, and invest in learning and study so that the messages of the high holy days aren’t lost in the rush of planning to celebrate the high holy days. Just as late spring, summer, and fall are days of blissful rest and joyful play, the post-Pentecost season can be days of enjoying the Triune God in every aspect of our lives in a less-hectic way. Cherish this time, and allow it to deepen your relationship with the Divine.
With our love in Christ,
Karen and Greg
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;1 Peter 2:9
Wishing you joy and peace in your day! Remember, God’s got this.
Wishing you joy and peace in your day! Remember, God’s got this.
This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it! Let us rejoice in cobalt-blue skies and comfortable temperatures, and let us be glad that the weather forecasters are promising many more days like today! And let us also rejoice with recent graduates from our local schools, and be glad that they have incredible opportunities before them to build their lives in ways that will bring them great joy, and make significant contributions to the world!
You know, graduation reminds us of the order of life; for students, there’s a well-defined process that starts with preschool and goes forward in an unbroken stream until high school graduation. Very orderly, very predictable. Of course, there are the occasional deviations from the path for those who skip grades, or sadly, for those who choose to leave school before graduation. But for a great majority of students, school represents an orderly path from childhood to adolescence to early adulthood. For those of us a few years (or LOTS of years) beyond our graduation days, there is another form of order available to us, to keep us on the path through our working years to our retirements to our eternal reward – and that is God’s Divine Order. God has a plan for each one of his beloved children, a perfect plan that unfolds day-by-day in perfect order. Embracing this Divine Order requires that we relinquish our desire to control everything, let go of our sometimes-narrow vision of the way things should be, and trust that we will be given precisely what we need precisely when we need it. Divine Order encompasses financial matters, relationship issues, health concerns, and absolutely everything else under Heaven. The key to living in harmony with Divine Order is trust; and since Divine Order is of Almighty God, trust shouldn’t be a problem, should it?
With our love in Christ,
Karen and Gre
Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.Proverbs 3:5
The Chapel Family welcomes Hazel and Hudson, children of Melissa and Spence Kendziorski into God’s Holy Family! They were baptized on Sunday, June 5th.
Wishing you joy and peace in your day! Remember, God’s got this.
This is the magnificent day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it! Let us rejoice in a bright blue sky with puffy white clouds, and let us be glad in the mild temperatures – much more comfortable than the intense heat of the weekend! Summer has taken firm hold of our weather, and of our activities as we have crossed the threshold of Memorial Day and are now in the “100 Days of Summer” until Labor Day. Finally!!
It seems fitting that we’re writing this on June 1st, the first day of a new month, which also marks the start of a new season in the life of the church, as well as a new season of the meteorological year. Today marks a new beginning, and so let us take a moment to consider the possibilities that this new beginning might present to us. Traditionally, the summer months present us with the promise of relaxation, fun, and adventure, without having to worry too much about road conditions putting our travels at risk or extreme temperatures forcing a change in our outdoor plans; so let’s get out into Creation and enjoy all that Almighty God has prepared for us! In the post-Pentecost season in the church, we are presented with the opportunity to live out the promises of Christmas and Easter by incorporating all that we have been reminded of during our celebrations into our daily lives; this is the season to practice peace, joy, compassion, forgiveness, and love each and every day without the distractions of planning for special worship services and scurrying about looking for the perfect gift or finding our new Easter finery. This is the season to live the Christian life; so let’s get out there and do it!
With our love in Christ,
Karen and Greg
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11
Wishing you joy and peace in your day! Remember, God’s got this.
Pastors are away so I am filling in with some scriptures to ponder over this week from Kenneth Copeland Ministries through the You Version Bible App. I hope they are as valuable to you as they are to me.
Reaching Out from
Grand Lake Community Chapel
“Galatians 5:22-23 lists nine separate fruit of the spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. According to the authors of this particular study, most are easy to define. But the fruit of kindness and the fruit of goodness are so similar, it can be difficult to differentiate between the two. The Bible lists them separately throughout the Scriptures and uses the two terms differently, so it’s important to take the time to discover their true meaning.
Most Bible scholars agree that the two are interdependent. Through study, it seems clear that goodness is God’s foundation imparted to us in the form of kindness. Kindness then becomes our responsibility to share with the world. The Bible describes goodness as a state of being. It says that God is Good. Goodness isn’t just something He has, it’s who He is. Since we’re re-created in His image, goodness is who we are, too. (We just have to develop the fruit and act on it!)”
This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it! Let us rejoice that Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed! And let us be glad that we are still celebrating the Season of Easter! On this fine day, let us also rejoice and be glad that it appears as if spring has finally taken a firm hold on our weather! Trees are budding out, and flowers are brightening our gardens. How can we not rejoice at the marvels of God’s Creation?
And how can we not rejoice at the marvels of a life in Christ? Through Jesus’ selfless act, we have been made clean for all time; our sins are forgiven, and we have been shown a way of living that can (and in many ways, already has) changed the world for the better. At the same time, we have been shown a way of living that can be very hard to sustain, because it runs counter to so much of what our current culture thinks is important. Temptations are everywhere, and the advertisers and marketers are very, very good at making us believe that we’re missing out on something very, very good if we resist their messages. And so what is a Christian to do in an increasingly secular world? Pray. Study. Attend worship services when you can. Shut off the TV (or at least hit the “Mute” button when commercials come on). Delete all those emails offering miracle cures and instant riches that flood your inbox without opening them, just like we used to dump the “junk mail” into the recycle bin without a second thought. Did we mention praying? The rewards of being faithful to what we believe are limitless; the price of giving in to temptation can be devastating. Rejoice and be glad, children of God! For God is good, all the time; and all the time, God is good!
There won’t be a weekly email next week, as we’ll be away on vacation; if a pastoral emergency arises, please contact one of the churches directly for guidance.
With our love in Christ,
Karen and Greg
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God. Ephesians 2:8
Spring has sprung around the Chapel!
Wishing you joy and peace in your day! Remember, God’s got this.
Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed! On this sunny Wednesday that the Lord has blessed us with, let us continue to celebrate the joys of the Easter season, trusting that our sins are forgiven through the selflessness of Jesus Christ! Let us be thankful that the calendar gives us 50 days to ponder this incredible gift; and to cement the lessons of Christ’s life into our daily lives.
We all know the lessons, don’t we? Love, compassion, forgiveness, trust, friendship, humility, look to God for all things, listen to God in all things, and be thankful (to God). Each and every one of these lessons, taken individually, are good things. Taken as a package, they’re world-changing; taken as a package, they define the life of a Christian. Each of these lessons, or characteristics if you prefer, require that we be intentional in practicing them, because they don’t always come first to mind when we’re dealing with our fellow humans, especially those whom we find a bit annoying. Those are the times when we have to dig deep into our spiritual reserves and pull up the strength to be kind and gentle and Christ-like. You see, being a Christian is a privilege that requires more than a little bit of effort on our part, but a privilege that offers us rewards beyond our imagining. Take advantage of the remaining days of Easter to grow stronger in your faith walk with Christ Jesus.
With our love in Christ,
Karen and Greg
For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace. Romans 6:14
Wishing you joy and peace in your day! Remember, God’s got this.
Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed!! On this first Wednesday of May that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in bright sunshine, warming temperatures, and the ongoing celebration of the victory of life over death! The hope and promise of the Resurrection of our Lord should be front and center in our hearts and minds, even though Easter Sunday is more than two weeks behind us. The Season of Easter continues until the Day of Pentecost, so let us be about the business of incorporating the message of Easter into every aspect of our lives, so that we might live every day as Easter People; filled with joy, hope, love, and compassion!
We have a tendency to confine major celebrations to a single day, or just a handful of days, instead of allowing seasons of the church year, or seasons of life, to unfold over time into their fullest expression. We focus on wedding days, and not on marriages; we focus on Easter Sunday, and not on the 50 days that follow. We pay special attention to our mothers on Mothers’ Day, yet we don’t always honor them throughout the year; why is that? Without mothers, none of us would be here! Mothers, and those who fill that role, are among the most precious of God’s gifts; there is nothing quite so like the love of God as the love of a mother. A mother’s love is limitless, eternal, forgiving, and sometimes tough. On Mothers’ Day, let us make a point to honor Mom’s everywhere; and by so doing, we will also bring honor and glory to God who made them.
With our love in Christ,
Karen and Greg
She opens her mouth with wisdom, and loving instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness. Proverbs 31:26-27
Wishing you joy and peace in your day! Remember, God’s got this.
Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed!! Even though it’s downright cold outside, and there was a dusting of snow on the ground this morning in many of our yards, the fact of the matter is that Christ defeated death and rose to change the world. No odd weather can change that; Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed!!
Ten days after Easter Sunday, and we’re still in the Season of Easter; the message remains the same – Jesus Christ went to the cross to save us all from our sins. The world changed on that great day, changed for the better; and all who believe are changed for the better because of that great day. The question before us now is what are we going to do with our changed selves? We can go on about our business, holding warm feelings about the wonderful celebration we enjoyed on Easter Sunday, or we can get serious about living into the hope and promise of the Resurrection. What is that hope and promise, you ask? Well, first of all, it’s genuine hope for the future. Not a false hope that someday things might be a little bit better for us, but the genuine hope of eternal life in union with Christ. Beyond that, the promise is that nothing can strip us of that hope; no government entity, no financial struggles, no illness or injury can take the promise of the Resurrection away from us. Living into the hope and promise of the Resurrection means that we have to live differently than we might have been; it means that the compassion and kindness that guided Christ’s life on earth must guide our lives as well. It’s sometimes far easier said than done, but it’s what we must do if we want to truly embrace Easter.
With our love in Christ,
Karen and Greg
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8
Wishing you joy and peace in your day! Remember, God’s got this.
Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed!! Three days ago we joyfully celebrated the Resurrection of our Lord on a cold, snowy, blustery morning, and today we’re enjoying bright sunshine, gentle breezes, and much warmer temperatures. And ya’ know what? Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed!! And that’s all that really matters on this day, and on every day in the lives of those who believe. It doesn’t matter what the weather is doing, it doesn’t matter where on Earth we might be; Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed!!
Have you given any thought as to what you’re going to do with the awesome news of the Resurrection? That’s not a trivial question to ponder; we’ve been given an inestimably grand gift, and it seems reasonable to try to figure out how to make best use of it. This gift isn’t one to enjoy for a day or two and then stuff into the dark recesses of a closet, or stick on a shelf in the basement. Each of us has been gifted with forgiveness and the promise of eternal life in Paradise with our Lord when the time comes. In the meantime, what are we going to do to honor these gifts? How about extending forgiveness to those who have wronged us in the past, no matter how slight the offense? How about setting aside some time each week to do something kind for another? How about trying to live with joy no matter how the day is going? How about being intentionally upbeat even if you don’t feel like it? There are as many ways to honor the priceless gifts we’ve received as there are recipients of the gifts. But please don’t put them away until next year – these gifts are meant to be enjoyed each and every day of our lives!
With our love in Christ,
Karen and Greg
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17
From our Bible study God Does His Best Work With Empty this morning; The comforting thought that God is always with us… Psalm 139:7-12. 17-18
I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night– but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day, Darkness and light are the same to you.
How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me!
Wishing you joy and peace in your day! Remember, God’s got this.
This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it! Let us rejoice in the spring warmth that’s in the air, and let us be glad that the forecasters may be wrong about the possibility of snow on Easter weekend! Even though those of us who have been living “Up North” for more than a couple of years know full well that winter can hang on into May (or beyond, forbid the thought!), we long for sunshine and mild temperatures for Easter. Let us hope and pray that we will be so blessed when we gather to worship on Easter Sunday!!
According to the Gospel of John, today is the day when Judas Iscariot is identified as the one who will betray Jesus to the Pharisees. Today marks the beginning of the end of the passion of Christ; tomorrow is Maundy Thursday, when we will join in celebrating the Lord’s Supper in remembrance of the final Passover that Jesus would share with his disciples, and then the world will go dark for a time. Good Friday will find us at the foot of the cross, watching and waiting from noon until 3:00 for Jesus to breathe his last. Those three hours can be the most powerful three hours of the year, and perhaps the most powerful three hours of your life if you’ve never sat in silence before the cross. As you reflect on the events that led to this time, as you ponder what it all means, you can be transformed in ways that you never thought possible. You may be able to hear the still, small voice of God calling out to you; your thoughts may be molded by the presence of the Holy Spirit, and you may sense a new understanding of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on your behalf. Those three hours might leave you exhausted, they may leave you exhilarated, and they may leave you in tears; but make no mistake – those three hours will change you. If you’ll let them.
Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed!!
With our love in Christ,
Karen and Greg
For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18
Hello dear friends, this is TOBY the Church Dog,!
I hope your tails are wagging and your feet are prancing today! My tail is wagging too, but I have to admit to being a confused pup. I’ve been wrestling with the idea of what can be considered a loving act, and what cannot.
When I was a little shaver my mom took care of my brothers and sisters and me. I know this will shock you, but sometimes we did things she didn’t approve of and she would let us know it! Even back then I liked to explore; but if I wandered too far away, my mother would sigh and then walk over to me, pick me up by the scruff of my neck, and place me back in our bed. She never hurt me with her teeth, but I knew that she could. If my siblings or I got to roughhousing in a way Mom didn’t like, she would be begin by fixing us with “the look,” and if that didn’t work, progress through her series of enforcement tactics: drop her ears, lower her tail, raise her lip, lean forward, and finally, emit a sharp, growling sound that only a mother can achieve. We knew her growl was the last straw and we’d better shape up! I’m told we all had sharp little puppy teeth as young’uns, and I remember sometimes my mother’s foot would come up and push me away from her body right in the middle of my meal! I did not like that! But, as I consider my mom’s actions: growling, pushing, baring her teeth, etc.; I KNOW these things were rooted in love. They were acts of caring and nurture, even though they might sound cold and aggressive if one doesn’t know the full story.
I guess I’ve taken after my mom, because I realize I take actions similar to hers in my adult life. If the mail carrier touches our house or someone walks closer than I think is safe, I bark loudly letting them know that my family lives here and I will protect them. It is my goal to chase them away, not to harm them. If someone comes too close to one of you or my other loved ones and I feel concern about your safety, I will do all of those things my mother taught me in order to let them know that you are under my protection. I will fix them with a stare, change my posture, lower my ears and tail, show my teeth, and finally growl. I don’t want to harm them; just make them think twice about their actions, but I know I could and would do harm if one of you were threatened by danger. And so I ask myself, is this a loving act? Is it even proper action? I guess this depends on whether the one considering the question is the protected or the threatened.
And so I do what I always do when I’m confused about my questions; I turn to the Bible for wisdom. In the Old Testament I’m met with all kinds of accounts of God sending His people out to destroy that which was harmful and evil. In that same part of the Bible we receive the Ten Commandments, instructing us in how to live together lovingly as God’s children. In the New Testament we learn about God’s grace through Jesus Christ, hear about “turning the other cheek” when someone harms us, and are instructed to give and seek forgiveness when wrongs occur. We also hear there the account of Jesus’ anger at the misuse of God’s House as he makes a whip and chases the money changers out of the temple. And so, as I mentioned earlier, I’m a confused pup.
I love you, dear friends,
I so want to be a good Christian and choose actions that make God proud of me. I want to live out God’s love in all that I do. But, can God’s love look forceful sometimes? My mother was loving in the way she behaved. Am I loving when I take actions to defend my loved ones? Can my bark be loving? What about my bite? I’m guessing I will find part of the answer in examining my motivation; is my choice of action coming from a place of love, fear, or hate? I don’t yet have a clear answer to these questions; but I do know that it is good and right for me to keep praying, reading the Bible, and thinking about what God it telling me on the topic of being a loving part of his creation. It would be very wrong if I chose not to wrestle with this at all.
TOBY
Let all that you do be done in love. 1 Corinthians 16:14
Wishing you joy and peace in your day! Remember, God’s got this.
Grand Lake Community Chapel 