The First Sunday In Lent , February 17 2013

Monday February 18

The First Sunday in Lent has come and gone.....
Sunday began with 8:30 a.m. Holy Communion, followed by a Family service of Morning praise. It was wonderful to see  the small children freely exploring the Church during the service.

We were also able to return thanks to God for his blessings on little Maria Thoms,who is recovering well from her intensive surgery. So good to see her exploring the Church again!

St. Martin's was full of people and full of energy.

Thanks be to God.

 

Gander has been hit with another snowstorm. It began around 5:30 yesterday. We were able to hold our evening service however,and despite the weather, had a congregation of about 60 people.

The worship was blessed.

 

Afterward some of our men had to spend some time pushing people through the snow in the parking lot!

Our prayers and worship centered around our Love for Christ and Each other;we reflected upon the Temptations of Jesus in the Wilderness,and how this narrative from Luke's Gospel might relate to our lives today.

As today begins and Lent continues ,may God's Grace bless us at St. Martin's and keep us bound together by our Common Faith and Love.

Wherever you are,and..... however busy you are, your family of Faith is praying for you.

WORSHP NOTES
We were not able to capture the morning service on audio,but do have the evening message and prayers of the people for you .
The link is here and below.


Evening Message Notes:

• The Wilderness as we know it certainly is not the wilderness of the New Testament.
•  A visit to the wilderness in Jesus time was movement from a place of Life to a place of Death.
• Temptations sometimes cause us to obsess over things, and cause us to miss the bigger pictures in life.

A quote worth repeating (can't remember where I found this little anecdote. It came from notes I had written a long time ago!)

....The devil has a factory where he happily makes magnifying glasses and gives them out for free. If you take a strong glass it focuses very clearly on the middle of a page it enlarges some lines or words but distorts the rest.Likewise, when we focus in the immediacy or disappointments in life they stand out to the point that we miss the bigger picture of life; with it the picture of God's grace as well.

The  narrative of  the Temptations of Jesus illustrate at least one common theme :

Satan tries to make Jesus lose faith,and act accordingly:

"If you are the Son of God then ....do this...."

1. The Temptation to Instant Gratification

2. The Temptation to Compromise Our Faith

3.The Temptation to be all things to all people.....

Evening Praise message and prayers:  The First Sunday In Lent

See you around the Parish,and at worship on Wednesday!:

7:00 a.m Holy Communion and Breakfast

 

7:00 p.m Lenten Service