Southpoint News – Week of April 21st, 2019

Apr 18, 2019

Bittersweet

We have entered into the bittersweetness of Holy Week.

Can we have compassion, for just a moment, on the disciples of Jesus?  How deeply confused they will soon be.  How quickly their joy and optimism will turn to sorrow.   How different the movement of Jesus will look from anything they have dreamed or imagined.

Can you enter this story through the lens of your own disappointment, bitterness, and incongruence?   How many of you have been in such confusion? You think you have found it, that one thing you’ve been waiting for – the new job, the new home, the new relationship, the new community.  Finally it appears that the dryness in your heart will be filled, and you will know what it is like to belong, to be loved, to be thriving, to be participating in purposeful labor.  And then, it all went bitter in your mouth.  If you have known such a moment, then you know the pain that is around the bend for the disciples.

What the disciples didn’t know yet, but they will in due time, is that the kingdom won’t come by Jesus obtaining power over the throne, and it won’t be found by us obtaining that long-sought desire either.   The kingdom comes through the release of power into what is dead and without hope.  That release will be as unpredictable in its expression as Jesus’ entire life, passing over the throne  and choosing instead the grave as a preferred seat of power.

This is Holy Week, a week in which we are reminded over and over again that things are not as they seem:

That Cinderella moment of Palm Sunday, when Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, and all the crowds go wild,? Well, things are not always as they seem.

The unjust moment when Jesus is strung up as a  criminal on the cross? Well, things are not always as they seem.

The hopeless moment when Jesus’ cold body is laid in a tomb? Well things are not always as they seem.

Holy Week matters. It teaches us something about how to interpret reality, how to see our lives.  It teaches us about false optimism. It also teaches us about false despair. It teaches us a lot about power – both the abuse of power, and the true use of power.  It teaches us to hope. No matter how good or bad things look in the wilderness of our world, the kingdom is coming. Resurrection is drawing near. Can you see it? Probably not.

But we will.

Southpoint Intergenerational  Spring Activity: Bike Ride

Sunday, May 5 @ 2:00 – bike around Barnston island in North Surrey. Meet at the ferry at 2:00 and enjoy a flat quiet 10 kilometre kid friendly ride around the island. Bring along some snacks/goodies to share at Robert Point rest area. If it’s raining we’ll cancel and try for another day. Contact Art Stuivenberg with any questions.

Actors wanted!

We are doing a play on Sunday May 26 called “The Miraculous Catch” written by Jason Goode.  We are looking for 7 actors (age 13 and up) to work on this during the month of May.  Please talk to Angela if you are at all interested angneufeld@gmail.com

Next ALL OUT – Good Seed Sunday

On April 28 we will meet at ARocha for our annual onion planting extravaganza!

9:30-11:30

Bring snacks to share!

April Calendar

Lent 2019 – “VISION”

/?viZH?n/
noun

*the faculty or state of being able to see.
*the ability to think about or plan the future with imagination or wisdom.

“Behold, I am doing a new thing, now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?”
Is. 43: 9

April 15th – April 20: HOLY WEEK

If our vision had cleared a bit in lent, it is about to be scattered, distorted, and lost in Holy Week.  But this takes us way back to the beginning of what we learned in the wilderness:  “Things aren’t always what they seem”.   

April 19, Good Friday: “Darkness re-presents us with the reality that we cannot see everything. Let alone control most events, people, and situations…Learning to trust in the dark, we trust that God is moving in all the places that we cannot see or manage.” 

You are invited to drop by and walk through the Stations of the Cross @ Kingfisher Farm on Good Friday between 10-2. The stations are scattered through the woods and property of Kingfisher Farm. It is a meaningful and accessible way, particularly for children, to experience with our bodies and hearts the story of Jesus’ death. Walking this journey with Jesus opens us up to a greater awareness his love for us, and opens us up to a greater compassion for our God who suffers with us, and for the suffering of our world.  Walking the stations of the cross is a chance to practice faith-filled seeing.

April 21, Easter Sunday:   “Beyond Our Wildest Imagination” – Anne preaching

“May the resurrection be experienced here today, as enemies are moved toward reconciliation, exclusion becomes embrace, and as voices of criticism and hate are transformed into encouragement.” – from the Liturgy of Sacred Sight

Bring a handful of flowers with you and a celebratory treat to share. We’ll decorate the cross with our flowers and feast on food and sunlight. He is Risen! He is Risen indeed!

April 28, Good Seed Sunday Celebration:

We will be gathering at Brooksdale to plant onions together. Bring snacks to share!

Have an Announcement?

If you have an addition you would like included in this newsletter, please send a prepared announcement as you would like it to appear to: office@southpoint.ca by Tuesday and we will get back to you.

Prayer

If you have a need for prayer that you would like to pass on to the prayer chain, please contact John Hardy.

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