In talking with a church member recently, I heard something interesting. He said that when people find out that he goes to Manchester UMC, they talk about what a beautiful, striking presence we have. He appreciated that, then went on to tell me, “I look forward to when people will know us as well for the work we’re doing in the community!”

I thought of his words as I looked at pictures from Faith In Action. So many blue-shirted people, of all ages, serving in so many places (60+), doing so many things (80+). That’s a huge step in building on our reputation of serving beyond church walls. Another step is the word of mouth that came from the excitement generated by the special weekend. During the evening celebration that Sunday, and during the days following, there were so many stories shared—with joy, and with awe of the power of worship done for a weekend in different “sanctuaries.” I’ve discovered an even more popular question than, “Which high school did you go to?” It’s, “Where did you serve for Faith In Action?”

Thanks to all 1427 who served, and for the many, many people who worked behind the scenes to make it happen.           

                 With gratitude,           

                  Pastor Greg

When you read this, we will have celebrated Faith In Action, with close to 1400 people going out into the community, making both a difference and an impression. Talk about a special weekend! You’ll hear stories and see pictures very soon.

I now want to look ahead to some other special Sundays—the next three.

YOUTH SUNDAY (May 6)
I’ve talked with our Director of Youth Ministries, Ryan Langeland, and his description of this service sounds fantastic. Over 50 youth, in the 9:30 and 10:50 services, will talk about their faith, lead music, and celebrate/serve communion. I’m deeply impressed by the dedication of our youth, and their work in presenting worship of the highest quality.

MOTHER’S DAY (May 13)
I believe the ideal of motherhood can be a good metaphor in helping us understand the heart of God. On Mother’s Day morning, I’ll preach on God’s Lullaby (based on Psalm 42). And at 2 p.m., in the Chapel, Pastor Stephanie will lead a special “Mother’s Day Service of Healing and Hope.”

“TALES OF THE SUPERNATURAL” SERMON SERIES BEGINS (May 20)
This series kicks off with Heaven (based on 2 Corinthians 5:1-9). In subsequent weeks I’ll explore what happens when we die, concepts of hell, and thoughts about angels and Satan/demons. Each Sunday I’ll touch on these areas from biblical, cultural, and personal perspectives. (I welcome any reflections/experiences you might have regarding angels—please email, or respond to my post on Manchester’s Facebook page.)

            Looking forward to our upcoming celebrations,

            Pastor Greg

There are always certain Sunday experiences that will remain vivid in your memory. Easter 2012 will fit into that category for me.

The worship. The blend of instruments and voices. The flowers and banners. The smiles and laughter. The hymns, Easter story, and prayers. Everything seemed to embody the power of new life contained in the Easter proclamation, “He IS risen!”

The hospitality. From the parking lot through the entrance and into the sanctuary—members as well as the red-shirted hospitality team made a special point to greet folks and make them feel right at home. I enjoyed watching our church in action this way, on the busiest Sunday morning of the year.

The message. It was exciting to share the message,  “…And Peter,” with you. I do believe the emphasis of Easter is that Jesus invites each of us, by name, to live in the Resurrection light. I enjoyed weaving Peter’s story in with that of my friend Jill Roberts, and hope you did, too. If you missed the message, the video is on our website: http://manchesterumc.org/worship/sermons/

Now, let’s live in that Easter light. There’s no better way to express our belief than to put our Faith In[to] Action, April 28-29. My hope is that that weekend will be as joyous for us outside our walls as Easter was inside them!

Easter blessings,
Pastor Greg

I’m writing this in the midst of the “holy chaos” of Holy Week. Actually, it’s been a bit chaotic ever since Lent began, but it’s accelerating non-stop right now. As you might remember from last week’s E-Blast, we did have a service or two lined up!

When you’re reading this, we will have changed the church colors to white, watered the lilies, and celebrated with “Christ is risen!” But…now what? We were used to the Lenten tasks and disciplines.

Maybe, if the tradition of Lent is sacrifice, the tradition of Easter is to celebrate…
…That God is faithful, and will not let anything—least of all sin and death—get
      between us.
…That the risen Christ calls us by name, like he did Peter, and says we have a
      second chance.
…That the Holy Spirit empowers us to live beyond our self-imposed limitations.
…That we have been entrusted with embodying the Gospel of life to a
      death-affirming world.

Instead of “giving up” something, as is a Lenten tradition for some, why not “add on” something this Easter season? Why not try and answer this question: What’s something I can do that shows I believe in the Good News Easter? What could it be? An attitude? A selfless act? A visit? A phone call?  

Giving up chocolate or sodas isn’t easy for most of us. But starting an Easter tradition of “adding on” isn’t an act of denial, but an act of affirmation.  We need more affirmations in our lives—and the world certainly does as well.

            Best after-Easter wishes,
            Pastor Greg

Last week we had a marathon Worship Planning Team meeting.  It was marathonish because we covered the many services we’ll be offering during Holy Week.

After it was over, I took a step back and looked at everything. It strikes me that an amazing journey awaits each of us.

• It started yesterday on Palm Sunday with a tremendous celebration, reflecting the joy of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem. The service concluded with a challenge: can we turn our joy into rock-hard commitment, that will follow Christ even to the cross?
• This Thursday and Friday, we’ll see Jesus’ model of such commitment. Thursday night will be the reenactment of the Last Supper. On Friday there’ll be a noontime service of the cross, and in the evening there will be the choral, Seven Last Words of Christ.
• The Saturday service will be a reflective one—how do you live in the silence between Good Friday and Easter?
• Then…Easter morning dawns, with a sunrise service and four sanctuary services celebrating God’s power, faithfulness, and love.
• Finally…Easter evening, there will be a new, multi-sensory “walking” service that will tie everything together and prepare us to journey with the risen Christ in the reality of Easter.

Now you know why it was a marathon planning session! 

I look forward to sharing the emotion and power of this week with you, and encourage you to invite a friend or neighbor to be part of the journey as well (maybe forward this email to them?).

Over the next few days, may Christ encounter you in new ways as you walk with him to the cross and beyond.
 

--Pastor Greg
 

As I hope you’re aware, throughout Lent we’ve used the image of an “app” that you could download onto an iPod, iPad, or Android device. Each Sunday we used an actual app to get into the message for the day. If you’re interested in a re-cap, here are some of the ones that I used:

• PRAYER: The Nike Training Club
• WORSHIP: Tiny Wings
• SHARING: Trip Advisor
• GIVING: Mint; Daily Finance

Currently we’re in a church-wide study of Mike Slaughter’s Change the World book. This is a unique, powerful way to prepare for one of the most important mission opportunities we’ll engage in as a congregation: Faith in Action (“FIA”), April 28-29. As I’ve reflected on Rev. Slaughter’s material, it strikes me that for us to have an impact in changing the world, we need to be intentional in stretching ourselves in three key ways:

• Stretch our friendships.We’re most comfortable doing things with people we know. However, we practice radical hospitality only by meeting and greeting new people. That’s why when you sign up for FIA, you’ll be with people you’ll have a chance to get to know. As one person said last year, “I was afraid I’d be with a group where everybody knew each other. I was so relieved when we were all in the same boat!”
• Stretch our understanding of service.We’re most comfortable doing things that fit into our schedule. However, as Rev. Slaughter writes, we change the world when we move from volunteering when it’s convenient to serving when it’s not. A “servant leader” is one who, through the conviction of faith, goes out to meet a need regardless of the sacrifice that may be needed.
• Stretch our understanding of church.We’re most comfortable thinking of the church as a place; how often do we ask, “Are you going to church?” Rev. Slaughter encourages us to see “church” as a verb, not a noun, as he says in his book: The church is “an active body working to change the world in Jesus’ name.” 

I encourage you to drop in on one of the small group studies for a more complete stretching experience. You can follow our link at: http://manchesterumc.org/adults/faith-formation/church-wide-study

For me, taking a vision test has always been a challenge. “Which looks sharper…’A’ or ‘B’? ‘1’ or ‘2’?” At least the fix is fairly quick and simple. If things are fuzzy, adjust the prescription. It’d be nice if developing a “vision plan” for our church were that simple!

As perhaps you know, we’re working to develop a comprehensive plan that will direct our energy and resources for the years ahead. Since there’s no machine that can focus our eyes 5 years out, we have to do other things. Talk. Dream. Pray. Here’s where we are to date:

• CONVERSATIONS with a variety of people. Community folks. 20’s-30’s. Church members and leaders. Staff. District/Conference leaders.
• MEETINGS of groups and task forces. Ministry Council. Church Council. Church Transformation Task Force. Mission and Outreach groups. Master Plan Advisory Team.

Our goal is that our plan will be developed and approved over the summer, with implementation beginning in the fall. Even though we may not see clearly where we’ll be by 2016, we do see clearly about who we’re called to be…  We are an inclusive community of people who love Christ deeply, worship him passionately, and serve him boldly. …And what we’re called to do… Make a difference for Christ by transforming church and community.

Please continue to be in prayer for the leaders and staff of Manchester UMC, as we sharpen our vision together.

Peace,

Pastor Greg

My mailbox in the office is often a repository for different things.

One of the most interesting—and important—things that lands in my box is the “So, what did you think?” postcards. These are cards we send to our first-time visitors, asking what they thought about their experience here, and how we can improve. Our guests send these back anonymously, so they can share whatever’s on their minds.

Three of these cards recently appeared in my box on the same day. What they said was both interesting and inspiring. Here are some excerpts:

• “Bigger than I’m used to, but very welcoming and beautiful.”
• “A few different people seemed to notice that I was a new face, and went out of their way to welcome me and wish me a good week when the service was over.”
• “Greeters were friendly.”
• “The friendliest ‘door holding’ people! So nice!”

Reading these reminded me of the couple of times I visited our church as a worshipper years ago. The overwhelming first impression I had was, “This is a big place.” But what makes a big place feel more intimate? Just what our guests shared in their responses: someone noting them, greeting them, connecting with them.

I can’t tell you how good I feel when hearing from our visitors that people reached out to them this way. We have “official” people who do this, of course, and we’re indebted to them: our parking lot attendants, the door-holders, the red-shirted greeters and ushers. What a great job they do.

But the most important of all in connecting with someone who may be overwhelmed by our “bigness” is, of course, YOU!

During Lent we’ll have a large number of first-time guests worshipping with us. Please be attentive to those sitting around you, maybe note the names on the attendance registry as it goes by, and make a point making them feel welcomed.

One of the greatest gifts we can give a visitor is a feeling that they are important, and that we’re very glad they chose today to worship with us. When we do this, we elicit another response that I read on one of those cards:

• “Enjoyed it very much—plan to be back!”

Peace,
Pastor Greg