Who am I? Why do I get along with some people and not others? Why do my spouse and I keep having the same arguments? How can I love my kids and get so frustrated at the same time? How do I draw closer to God? Pastor Peter and Julie have found the Enneagram to be a very helpful tool in answering these questions. They invite everyone to join them for a conversation on Wednesday evenings at 5:30pm beginning April 18th. The conversation will be based on the book The Sacred Enneagram: Finding Your Unique Path to Spiritual Growth by Christopher Heuretz.

Visit the link below more a glimpse of the book

https://gravitycenter.com/sacredenneagram/

Easter Sunrise service at 7:00am

Easter Breakfast at 8:00am

Resurrection Service at 9:30am with the blooming of the cross followed by an Easter egg hunt

John 19:38-42

38After these things, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, though a secret one because of his fear of the Jews, asked Pilate to let him take away the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him permission; so he came and removed his body. 39Nicodemus, who had at first come to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds. 40They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it with the spices in linen cloths, according to the burial custom of the Jews. 41Now there was a garden in the place where he was crucified, and in the garden there was a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid. 42And so, because it was the Jewish day of Preparation, and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

Something had changed. Things would never be the same.

Joseph and Nicodemus had been ashamed to follow Jesus before. Everything had to be done in secret, under the cover of night, without anyone knowing. How could they tell their peers, their followers, or their students that they were followers of Jesus? So much was at stake! They had money. They had status. They had power. How could they make it known publicly that they were followers of a wild-eyed peasant preaching insurrection? They would be thrown out of the synagogue. The years they worked to build up their images, to become leaders, and to be self-sufficient would all crumble.

But that was the past. Yesterday he died, and so they must die too. They must die to all those dreams of power. They had to bury those visions of the good life with honor and prestige. They had to die to those fears and anxieties. They lingered with this dead body and entered into the impurity of death.

Something had changed, and as they buried Jesus they buried their old selves too. No more sneaking around at night or secretly confessing faith, not after the crucifixion of the Messiah. Now they had to live like men committed publicly to this Jesus.

Should we not join them this Saturday? Can we, with Joseph and Nicodemus, boldly go down into that tomb and repent of our false visions of honor? Can we give up our secret, nighttime schemes to maintain our distance from the crucified one? Can we die to ourselves on this Saturday, in the hope of being born again?

Prayer: God, we confess that we often seek to evade our commitment to you for fear of what others think or of what it might cost us. Embolden us through your Holy Spirit to die to our sins and publicly take up our identity as disciples of the crucified one. Amen.

Andrew and Amy Fields serve with the Biblical Seminary of Colombia (FUSBC) in Medellin, Colombia. Through their ministry of teaching and library development, they seek to equip the next generation of Christian leaders in Colombia and Latin America.

Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9

14Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. 15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. 16Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. …

7In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. 8Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; 9and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him.

Distressed.
Troubled.
Betrayed.
Scorned.
Condemned.
Mocked.
Beaten.
Abused.
Humiliated.
Berated.
Suffered.

These are human struggles, sensations, traumas, and injustices. I can say that I’ve experienced some of them. I am sure that you identify with many as well.

Those who are oppressed and marginalized face these experiences at a rate far greater than I. The women and girls I work with endure these traumas to degrees that are unfathomable. But they are not unfathomable to Jesus, who endured all of this and bore our sins.

The Christ we serve, the Christ we worship, the Christ we remember today, is familiar with cries and tears because they streamed down his face as well. Through his sacrifice on the cross, he too endured human suffering.

Good Friday is a day of sorrow and mourning, remembering our Savior who experienced distress, betrayal, scorn, condemnation, mockery, beatings, abuse, humiliation, suffering, and ultimately death so that we could have salvation. Today serves as a reminder that we can approach God’s throne of grace with confidence in our time of need because we know that Christ is all too familiar with the human sensations, trials, struggles, and pain we face. We can approach God’s throne not only with confidence but also with tremendous comfort, knowing that he who bore our sins is intimately familiar with our struggles. Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. Who better to empathize with us than our Savior who not only shares in our struggles but bears them.

Prayer: Jesus, I come before you in repentance and submission for salvation. Christ, I come before you confidently to receive your mercy. Savior, I come before you confidently to receive your grace. Messiah, I come before you confidently in my time of need, asking you to share my burdens, my pain, and my suffering. Amen.

Jennifer Lucking serves as the executive director of Restorations Second Stage Homes, a charity in southern Ontario that addresses issues of commercial sexual exploitation and human trafficking. Jennifer works to provide residential care, support, and programming for women leaving the sex trade. She lives in the Hamilton, Ontario, area with her husband, Mark, and daughter, Amy.

John 13:1-17

1Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2The devil had already put it into the heart of Judas son of Simon Iscariot to betray him. And during supper 3Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, 4got up from the table, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. 5Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him. 6He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” 7Jesus answered, “You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” 8Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.” 9Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” 10Jesus said to him, “One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean. And you are clean, though not all of you.” 11For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he said, “Not all of you are clean.”

12After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had returned to the table, he said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are right, for that is what I am. 14So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16Very truly, I tell you, servants are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. 17If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.

As the crucifixion draws ever nearer, Jesus teaches us that faithfulness is rooted in humility and service, even to those who hurt and betray us. In this passage, the lesson is taught tangibly as Jesus washes the feet of his disciples, including Judas, and verbally, as Jesus tells the disciples to follow his example.

In the church today, foot washing has become a ritual, even a metaphor. It occasionally shows up in our liturgies, and millions watch the pope each year as he famously washes a carefully chosen selection of feet every Maundy Thursday.

However, as the event originally took place, there was nothing ritualistic or metaphorical about it. The disciples’ feet were dirty. These were not the kind of dirty feet that have been covered by shoes all day (in itself an unpleasant concept!); these were the dirty feet of days of walking around with minimally-protected feet on unpaved “streets,” in a place without running water, without sewage services, and with large numbers of animals (and their byproducts). One rarely finds that kind of dirty in today’s world outside of slums in developing countries.

Nonetheless, Jesus took on the role of the lowliest of servants—wrapping himself in a towel and performing one of the most menial and repugnant roles for the disciples whom he loved. And then he clarifies: “So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet” (v. 14).

You.

“You also ought to wash one another’s feet.”

It’s tempting to interpret this as a message directed to the disciples alone, but that’s not the case. Humility and service are essential to the lives of all Christians.

Prayer: Most merciful God, how tempting it is to imagine ourselves too important or too busy to participate in the activities that we consider too menial, especially when we imagine that the people around us are less important. Yet Jesus himself teaches us here that faithfulness demands humility and service—even toward those we might consider our enemies. This is not an easy message. Grant me the courage to follow Jesus’s example. Through your Holy Spirit, open my eyes to those in need of my service and enable me to serve them with grace and generosity as Jesus so clearly commanded. Amen.

Tim TenClay is an RCA pastor, serving the Waldensian churches of Palermo (La Noce), Marsala, and Trapani on the Island of Sicily (Italy). He is the husband of RCA Missionary JJ TenClay and the father of two daughters. Although pastoring three churches keeps him busy, he is an avid (albeit slow) bike rider and an enthusiastic knitter.

Hebrews 12:1-3

1Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, 2looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. 3Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart.

Many years ago, I joined the cross country team at my high school in upstate New York. It was no picnic! Training was grueling, and we competed on all kinds of terrain and in all forms of weather. Cross country was an unpretentious sport compared with football or soccer, and not many came to watch. Yet the faithful few would always stand at the sidelines and cheer us on. And most importantly, our coach would move around to various points along the course, offering lots of advice and encouragement.

Many races were held in frigid conditions, often in rain or snow. Yet we still had to dispense with the warm clothes we used for training so that they would not wear us down. (When it was especially cold, we used warming cream on our arms and legs.) When many teams ran simultaneously, we learned to constantly focus on the next bend in the course and strategize how we could move ahead of the pack so that it would not slow us down while turning. In addition, cross country races actually required teamwork: only the first five runners on a team would score points, according to their positions at the finish line, in an effort to achieve the lowest team score. But the sixth and seventh runners (often including me) could still help by getting ahead of runners from other teams, forcing their team scores higher.

Each of these features is an important illustration for today’s passage. We must not be complacent regarding Christian discipleship. It requires perseverance, repentance, teamwork, and encouragement from others. But most of all, we must never lose sight of the goal: our Lord Jesus Christ, who endured a far more difficult race, and who now stands at the finish line to welcome us home.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, as we near the end of our Lenten journey, may our vision of the crucified and risen Lord come into ever sharper focus. Give us new strength for the lifelong journey still ahead. We pray through him who has paved the way. Amen.

Peter Ford has been an RCA missionary for 35 years, focusing on helping Christians better understand Islam and develop positive, Christ-honoring relationships with Muslims. He is currently serving in Beirut, Lebanon, with his wife, Patty, teaching at the Near East School of Theology.

Psalm 71:1-14

1In you, O Lord, I take refuge;
let me never be put to shame.
2In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me;
incline your ear to me and save me.
3Be to me a rock of refuge,
a strong fortress, to save me,
for you are my rock and my fortress.

4Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked,
from the grasp of the unjust and cruel.
5For you, O Lord, are my hope,
my trust, O Lord, from my youth.
6Upon you I have leaned from my birth;
it was you who took me from my mother’s womb.
My praise is continually of you.

7I have been like a portent to many,
but you are my strong refuge.
8My mouth is filled with your praise,
and with your glory all day long.
9Do not cast me off in the time of old age;
do not forsake me when my strength is spent.
10For my enemies speak concerning me,
and those who watch for my life consult together.
11They say, “Pursue and seize that person
whom God has forsaken,
for there is no one to deliver.”

12O God, do not be far from me;
O my God, make haste to help me!
13Let my accusers be put to shame and consumed;
let those who seek to hurt me
be covered with scorn and disgrace.
14But I will hope continually,
and will praise you yet more and more.

I once shared a room for a week with a 74-year-old woman from Wisconsin whom I had just met. She came to Nicaragua with a service group, and she and I were pleased to be assigned as bunkmates. She was more enthusiastic than and nearly as spry as any college student who had ever come our way.

Like my friend, the speaker in this psalm is in his golden years. He has faced difficulties in life, but he can recount God’s faithfulness. His pleading for God to be his salvation in his current trial is full of truth, hope, and praise: he remembers walking with God as a youth (vv. 5-6) and knows God to be his “rock of refuge,” the only one who can deliver him (vv. 3-4).

He goes on to implore God to rescue him and punish his attackers and then declares, “I will hope continually, and will praise you yet more and more” (v. 14). This declaration follows the psalmist’s story of God’s faithfulness, the reason for his hope.

The tune of “Blessed Assurance” rings in my mind, a hymn fitting for Holy Week. Like the psalmist, Fanny Crosby declares: “This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long.”

The psalmist knew his story and it became his song. Do I know my story? Do you know yours?

Maybe your story is longer than mine, or maybe it is shorter. But I know that on the cross the Lord Jesus cried out in our place, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34) so that we might have a refuge and not be forsaken. That is a story to lead us to praise.

Prayer: Almighty God, we flee to you for refuge. Encourage us to hold fast to the hope that is ours in your Son, Jesus. Show us our place in your story of love and redemption. Holy Spirit, fill our hearts with praise today. Amen.

Olivia Holt lives in Managua, Nicaragua, where she works as a bridge-builder between North American and Nicaraguan Christians who are serving in areas of extreme poverty across the country. Her local ministry partners, Tabitha’s House Bluefields and CEPAD (Council of Protestant Churches of Nicaragua), are engaged in a variety of ministries with vulnerable children, pastors, midwives, farmers, refugees, and community leaders.

Maunday Thursday service will be held at St Croix Reformed Church at 5:30pm

Good Friday service will be held at Trinity Lutheran Church at 1:00pm

Easter Sunrise service at 7:00am

Easter Breakfast at 8:00am

Resurrection Service at 9:30am with the blooming of the cross followed by an Easter egg hunt

Isaiah 42:1-9

1Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
I have put my spirit upon him;
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
2He will not cry or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street;
3a bruised reed he will not break,
and a dimly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice.
4He will not grow faint or be crushed
until he has established justice in the earth;
and the coastlands wait for his teaching.

5Thus says God, the Lord,
who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people upon it
and spirit to those who walk in it:
6I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness,
I have taken you by the hand and kept you;
I have given you as a covenant to the people,
a light to the nations,
7to open the eyes that are blind,
to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
from the prison those who sit in darkness.
8I am the Lord, that is my name;
my glory I give to no other,
nor my praise to idols.
9See, the former things have come to pass,
and new things I now declare;
before they spring forth,
I tell you of them.

What are you hoping for this Holy Week? As you read through the prophecies of Isaiah, you need a little hope by the time you get to chapter 40. The first 39 chapters are filled with prophecies against Israel and her neighbors, denunciations of idolatry and injustice, and portents of destruction. Mercifully, Isaiah begins the second half of his book with words of hope and restoration. It is in that context that we are introduced to the Servant, a character who will be the subject of a number of songs in these chapters. God promises to empower this Servant with his own Spirit to be the agent of restoration, bringing justice to God’s people and truth to the nations. Isaiah sees this restoration in terms of a new creation, a new work of the Creator God brought to life by the ministry of the Servant. In God’s faithfulness to his covenant people, he will bring new life, new creation, freedom, and sight where there was previously idolatry, injustice, darkness, and death.

As we enter into Holy Week, Isaiah invites us to lay our hearts bare before our Creator. Isaiah calls to those of us who feel like the light of our soul is about to be snuffed out from the incessant temptations, the seasons of spiritual hunger, and our vain efforts to put on a good face for God. The tender voice of the Servant comes to reeds bruised by injustice, petty squabbles, or failed relationships. That voice comes to us this Holy Week and says, “I took all that to the cross, so that you might spring forth as a new creation. I am forming a community marked by justice and truth, a covenant people to declare the new things I am doing.”

Prayer: Creator God, we pray that through your Servant, Jesus Christ, you would bring about new things in the midst of our bruises and dimness during this Holy Week. Send the Spirit of your Servant upon us, that we might join in your mission of bringing wholeness and truth to the ends of the earth. Amen.

Andrew and Amy Fields serve with the Biblical Seminary of Colombia (FUSBC) in Medellin, Colombia. Through their ministry of teaching and library development, they seek to equip the next generation of Christian leaders in Colombia and Latin America.

Psalm 31:9-16

9Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am in distress;
my eye wastes away from grief,
my soul and body also.
10For my life is spent with sorrow,
and my years with sighing;
my strength fails because of my misery,
and my bones waste away.

11I am the scorn of all my adversaries,
a horror to my neighbors,
an object of dread to my acquaintances;
those who see me in the street flee from me.
12I have passed out of mind like one who is dead;
I have become like a broken vessel.
13For I hear the whispering of many—
terror all around!—
as they scheme together against me,
as they plot to take my life.

14But I trust in you, O Lord;
I say, “You are my God.”
15My times are in your hand;
deliver me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors.
16Let your face shine upon your servant;
save me in your steadfast love.

There have many times when I have been told, “Oh, how lucky you are that as a missionary you could go back home to Japan.” Although I do feel a strong sense of calling to be doing evangelism in Japan and feel blessed in my work, I’m not sure I feel particularly “lucky.” Growing up in rural Japan with a Christian mother in a town of 12,000 people without a single church and being the only child in the entire elementary school that believed in Jesus was not an easy thing for me. I watched my mother being shunned by her neighbors much like David describes in the psalm we read today. When I came to Holland, Michigan, in 1987 to study at Western Theological Seminary, for the first time in my life I no longer had to worry about what my neighbors were saying about my Christian faith. Even later when I lived in Chicago and then in New York City, where there are large numbers of people of other faiths and of no faith, I never had to feel I was being shunned by the entire neighborhood because of my faith.

When the RCA advertised in the Church Herald in the fall of 1993 that they were looking for a new couple to send as missionaries to Japan, my initial response was that I had no desire to return to Japan and go back to the difficulties that confronted me growing up. It was only after much prayer that I reached a point at which I could join David in declaring, “But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, ‘You are my God.’ My times are in your hand” (vv. 14-15).

Although there certainly have been many hardships in the past two decades, God has continued to show steadfast love in watching over us.

Prayer: Dear God in heaven, whenever we travel through seasons of hardship and difficulty, we pray that David’s words might come alive in our hearts so that we too can trust in the Lord and declare, “My times are in your hand.” We pray this in Christ’s precious name. Amen.

Sayuri Kist-Okazaki and her husband, Abraham, work in evangelistic training for congregations of the United Church of Christ in Japan, where less than 1 percent of the population is Christian. They also serve as associate pastors at Kugahara Church in Tokyo, in the area of local mission.