Tuesday, March 29, 2022

April 2022 newsletter

 House-to-House

Family of Hope House Church           April 2022


 A Muslim Scholar Writes About Easter

Two thousand years ago, an itinerant Jewish preacher and miracle worker walked across the Galilee, gathering followers to establish what he called the "Kingdom of God." The revolutionary movement he launched was so threatening to the established order that he was captured, tortured and executed as a state criminal…

     Obviously the notion of a man dying a gruesome death and returning to life three days later defies all logic, reason, and sense. One could simply stop the argument there, dismiss the resurrection as a lie, and declare belief in the risen Jesus to be the product of a deludable mind.

     However there is this nagging fact to consider: one after another of those who claimed to have witnessed the risen Jesus went to their own gruesome deaths refusing to recant their testimony. That is not, in itself, unusual. Many zealous Jews died horrible deaths for refusing to deny their beliefs. But these first followers of Jesus were not being asked to reject matters of faith based on events that took place centuries, if not millennia, before. They were being asked to deny something they themselves personally, directly encountered…

     They were repeatedly arrested and abused for their preaching; more than once their leaders had been brought before the Sanhedrin to answer charges of blasphemy. They were beaten, whipped, stoned and crucified, yet they would not cease proclaiming the risen Jesus."

    - Reza Aslan, author of Zealot--The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth


Notes Prayers and Praises

ACCORDING TO OUR RECENT FOH POLL almost all of our members want to resume regular in person meetings at some point but are not ready to do so right away. VMRC is not yet available to outside groups. 

APRIL BIRTHDAY BLESSINGS to Mary Ellen Overholt 4/5 and Cathy Atwell 4/19!

KAREN CAMPBELL will soon have her foot brace for therapy at Harrisonburg Health and Rehab Center to help her be able to walk again. She is in Room 55, and her cell number is 540-209-2675.

A SERVICE OF MEMORY for Harvey’s older brother Sanford will be held at the Pilgrim Fellowship School near Stuarts Draft at 10:30 Saturday, April 16. 

                                                   

April Lectionary Texts

3  John 19:1-16a Jesus is condemned, they have no king but Caesar. (Psalm 146)

10 John 19:16b-22  Sign above the cross proclaims the crucified king. John 12:12-27, Triumphal Entry 

Good Friday Reading: John 19:23-42 Woman, behold your son; I thirst; It is finished;, a royal burial. (Psalm 26:3, 31:9-18)

17 John 20:1-18 Empty tomb, Jesus calls Mary by name. 

(Psalm 118:21-29)

24 John 20:19-31 Jesus gives the Spirit, appears to Thomas. 

(Psalm 145:13-21)


April Services, 4-5:30 pm 

3 Worship and sharing: Lewis Overholt

Bible Study: Kent Palmer

10 Worship and Sharing: Lois Rivera-Wenger

Bible Study: Dick Dumas

17 Worship and Sharing: Kent Palmer

Bible Study: Harvey Yoder

24 Worship and Sharing: Lois Rivera-Wenger

Bible Study: Elly Nelson

Friday, March 4, 2022

March 2022 newsletter

 House-to-House

Family of Hope House Church           March 2022


 All God, All the Time?

Brother Lawrence,” born in France in 1611, experienced a spiritual awakening at age 18 when one day he took time to reflect on a tree in winter that was stripped of its leaves. Just meditating on the simple fact that these leaves would soon reappear, accompanied by an abundance of flowers and fruit, led to a deeper awareness of the providence and power of God.


In 1649, he joined the Order of “Barefooted” Carmelites in Paris. There he was assigned kitchen duty as a lay brother in his austere monastic community, an assignment he carried out cheerfully in spite of his aversion to this kind of work. His goal was to constantly "practice the presence of God" the spiritual discipline that has become associated with his name.


I've often wondered if it is really possible to live that way, to have every part of every day of our life, the "spiritual" and the "natural" alike, be lived in harmony with God's Spirit, with a far less sharp dividing line between the "sacred" and the “ordinary."


Lent is a good time to regularly remind ourselves of the need to listen deeply to the still, small voice of God--with the third ear of the heart--so that every moment becomes holy, every meal becomes a Eucharist. and every meeting with another an epiphany.    

                                                                                                                  - Harvey Yoder

Notes, Prayers and Praises

WE CELEBRATE THE LIFE of our beloved Neal Nelson who passed away at Envoy Nursing Home early Friday morning, February 18, We offer special love and prayers for Elly during this time of grief and remembering. At our 2/20 meeting we agreed to cover a recent medical bill and to offer other assistance as needed.

THE SEASON OF LENT begins with Ash Wednesday, March 2.

KAREN CAMPBELL continues to improve at Harrisonburg Health and Rehab Center (cell number is 540-209-2675).

OUR TREASURER SENT $3000 to support the Open Doors Homeless Shelter from our church budget surplus from last year.

BIRTHDAY BLESSINGS to Ruth Stauffer 3/28!

“SPECIAL THANKS for your prayers and support in the recent loss of my brother Sanford in Costa Rica.”   - Harvey and Alma Jean

March Lectionary Texts

6  John 11:1-44 Raising Lazarus, Jesus as the resurrection and life. (Psalm 104:27-30)

13 John 13:1-17 Footwashing as a sign of Jesus’ love and example. (Psalm 51:7-12)

20 John 18:12-27 Jesus’ trial before Annas, Peter’s denial. (Ps.17:1-7)

27 John 18:28-40 My kingdom is not from this world. (Psalm 145:10-13)

March Services, 4-5:30 pm 

6 Location: on line 

Worship and sharing: Lewis Overholt

Bible Study: Kent Palmer

13 Location: on line Elly Nelson

Worship and Sharing: Lois Rivera-Wenger

Bible Study: Dick Dumas

20 Location: on line

Worship and Sharing: Harvey Yoder

Bible Study: Elly Nelson

27 Location: on line 

Worship and Sharing: Lois Rivera-Wenger

Bible Study: Harvey Yoder