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From Love to Love: God’s Passion for All People

From Love to Love: God’s Passion for All People

Posted on February 5, 2024 Posted By: Pastor Chris Duckworth Categories: Ministry Blog
From Love to Love: God's Passion for All People

From Love to Love:
God's Passion for all People

Lent, the church’s 40-day season of spiritual discipline and repentance, begins on Ash Wednesday. During this season we will read stories of Jesus’ journey to the cross, the cost of discipleship, and how our Lord was simultaneously embraced and betrayed by those he loved.

Ash Wednesday falls on February 14th this year – Valentines Day. It’s a day of romance and of love, of sweet candies and flowers, hearts and Cupids. Ash Wednesday is marked by the imposition of ashes on our foreheads – a traditional sign of repentance and a reminder of our mortality.

It’s a serendipitous co-celebration. Our season of Lent begins with the love of Valentines Day, and it ends with love of the Cross and the Empty Grave. From Love to Love: God’s Passion for All People will allow us to see and receive anew God’s love for the whole world.

The word "passion" is used in the Christian tradition to refer to the time of Jesus' suffering and death. In Latin the word passio means "suffering, submission” Thus, the Passion of Jesus is his suffering on the cross. Yet, in contemporary English, "passion" refers to a powerful feeling of love. This season we encounter two very different meanings for the same word.

A traditional Lenten Discipline is to “give up” something for Lent – such as sweets, coffee, or some other indulgence. The 40 days of Lent do NOT include the Sundays. They are breaks from the Lenten fast. So, if you give up chocolate for Lent, remember to give yourself permission to enjoy a few candies on Sundays after church.

A limited number of Lenten devotionals are available for pick-up in the church entranceway.

Christians have long understood Jesus' suffering on the cross as an act of non-violent love for all people. Jesus takes on the violence of the cross in order to overcome the power of sin and death, to show us "a better way" of living now (see 1 Corinthians 12:31, and 1 Corinthians 13) and hope for a renewed world to come.

Thus, from Ash Wednesday through to the cross of Good Friday, we are bound by love. From Love to Love: God’s Passion for All People is our theme this Lent. Please join us for worship on Sundays at 9:30am and Wednesdays at 7pm.

SCHEDULE

Ash Wednesday, February 14

  • Drop-In Imposition of Ashes & Prayer: 6:30 am-9:00 am
  • Prayer & Ashes (at the start of Midweek Bible Study), 1 pm
  • Ash Wednesday Service of Holy Communion, 7 pm

Sundays in Lent, 9:30 am

  • February 18, 25, March 3, 10, 17

Wednesdays in Lent, 7 pm

  • Sung Evening Prayer services with reflections on God’s love by members of New Joy
  • February 21, 28, March 6, 13, 20

Palm Sunday, March 24, 9:30 am

  • Festive Service marking Jesus’ Entry into Jerusalem
  • Solemn Reading of the Passion According to Saint Mark

Good Friday, March 29, 7 pm

  • Service of Word and Prayer at the Foot of the Cross

Vigil of Easter, Saturday, March 30, 8 pm

  • Service of Light around campfire (weather permitting!)
  • Reading the History of Salvation through select passages from the Hebrew Bible
  • Announce the Resurrection & Celebrate the first Easter Eucharist

Easter Sunday, March 31, 9:30 am

  • Festive service celebrating the Resurrection of our Lord

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