The Slash Report ~ April 2014

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"HE IS RISEN!"

On Feb. 27, 2015 it will be 24 years since Ruth Dillow received a very sad message from the Pentagon. It stated that her son, Clayton Carpenter, Private 1st Class, had stepped on a mine in Kuwait and was dead. A casualty of Operation Desert Storm.

Ruth Dillow later wrote, "I can't begin to describe my grief and shock. It was almost more than I could bear. For 3 days I wept. For 3 days I expressed anger and loss. For 3 days people tried to comfort me, to no avail because the loss was too great."

But 3 days after she received that message, the telephone rang. "Mom, it's me. I'm alive." Ruth Dillow said, "I couldn't believe it at first. But then I recognized his voice, and he really was alive." The message she had received was all a mistake!

She said, "I laughed, I cried, I felt like turning cartwheels, because my son whom I had thought was dead, was really alive. I'm sure none of you can even begin to understand how I felt."

Perhaps not, but this month as we celebrate Easter we hear the story of Jesus' first disciples and followers who experienced the same emotions themselves. One day they watched their best friend and teacher being nailed to a cross. They witnessed His pain as He cried out, "I thirst!" and "My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?"

They listened as finally He bowed His head and said, "It is finished!" and "Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit." They watched as His body was taken from the cross and placed in a tomb. All their hopes and dreams were lying behind that stone.

For 3 days they mourned and then on "the first day of the week, early in the morning," the scripture says, some women made their way along the path that led to His tomb. They were looking for someone to roll away the stone so they could tend to Jesus' body.

But they found that the stone had already been rolled away. And an angel said to them, "You're looking in the wrong place. You're looking for Jesus among the dead. He is not dead. He is alive. He is risen, even as He said!"

"He is risen!" That is what we celebrate on Easter. When we read the accounts of the eyewitnesses and we hear the testimony of those who encountered the risen Christ, we're convinced that Jesus is alive. He is risen from the dead, and what a difference His resurrection has made in all our lives!

Come and join us at Slash Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) as we celebrate Jesus' gift of everlasting life. You are invited to come and take part in our Lenten observance and all the events leading up to Easter. "Christ is Risen, indeed!"

En Agape',

Rev. Michael

Slash Lent and Easter Calender

Sunday Worship Schedule: Genesis 8:45 am and 11 o'clock worship

Sun., April 6: "Comfortable in the Wilderness?" 2 Corinthians 12:7-10. What sustains you during challenging times?

Palm Sunday April 13: "A New Beginning" 2 Corinthians 5:14-19. Tests and trials lead to spiritual growth!

Thurs. April 17, Maundy Thursday Worship 7 pm: "We Have a Secret to Share" Exodus 12:1-14 & Matthew 26:20-30.

Join us for this observance of the Last Supper

Sat., April 20, Ruritan Easter Egg Hunt 10 am:
Be our guests at this community event on the grounds of Slash Christian Church.

Easter Sunday April 20

Sunrise Service 6:15 am at Lebanon United Methodist Church, 8492 Peaks Road (just around the corner from Slash).

"Emptiness that is Full of Promise" 1 Corinthians 15:19-26.

The world gives us promises that are full of emptiness, but on Easter, God gave us emptiness that is full of promise.

We will join together with the folks at Lebanon to worship and watch the sunrise.

Easter Breakfast following worship at Lebanon.

Easter Sunday Worship at Slash: "The Greatest Story Ever Told" 1 Corinthians 15:1-11. Have you seen Christ?