Friday, March 20, 2026

Good Friday morning, Friends!
 
Here are some words for us from Luke's Gospel account...    
 
            "You have always stayed by me, and everything I have is yours. We had to celebrate this happy day. For your brother was dead and has come back to life! He was lost, but now he is found!   (Luke 15: 31-32   NLT)
 
Luke 15 features this trio of parables about lost things --- a sheep, a coin, a son --- and their recovery. The religious leaders saw the behavior in each as ridiculous --- leaving the ninety-nine to find one, turning over a house for a single coin, glorifying the return of a child whose entitlement decimated a household.
   
But each story features a call to celebrate the recovery of what was lost. The Pharisees would've scorned the poverty of those searching for their lost pittances, but God's heart is to leave no one behind --- regardless of status or what they deserve.
   
For example, the prodigal's tale is actually about two lost sons. One embraces the world and ends up in the gutter, while the other takes care of business at home and ends up in a snit. But both were driven by what their father could give them... rather than relationship with him for its own sake. God clearly wants the latter, and every story of restoration is worth applauding.
 
         Father, you never lost sight of me, never gave up on me, and You never will. Let me carry that in my heart. I always rejoice when another child comes home to you. Amen.
 
+++ Join us when we gather for worship this coming Sunday at either 8:30am or 10:00am. This week is the 5th Sunday of Lent, and we will meet a woman brought to the temple for punishment. We'll hear Jesus instruct the Pharisees and us about how we are called to offer grace to all. My message is entitled, "Dying to Judgement, Living in Grace" and I hope you can join us on Sunday! If you can't be here in the Sanctuary, check us out on the church's Facebook page for our 10:00am "live stream" or later on the church's YouTube channel for the recorded worship service.  

+++ After worship on Sunday you have one final opportunity to order flowers for our Easter Altar. Check in at the ushers table for an order form this week!

+++ Our first session of our 2026 Confirmation Class will take place on Sunday at 12:00noon. Five young people will be taking this step in June, and their sessions start on Sunday!

+++ A reminder about our 2 Lenten mission projects...

• Our kids are collecting new ADULT white socks for distribution at In My Father's Kitchen. Place your gifts in the box in the Narthex to support our kids' efforts!
• Our Lenten mission to help our friends at First UMC in Camillus with their summer brown bag lunch program continues. See the table in the Narthex for needed items or for a Lenten coin box, which will also go to support this wonderful example of feeding others right here in our community!  

+++ On Tuesday, 3/24 we will be "lending" some of our parking spaces to staff at West Genesee High School to help parking for the district wide referendum at the High School. We should have plenty of parking for all who need it, but the lot might be a little busier than normal on Tuesday!  

• +++ Here is our Holy Week schedule for your planning purposes...
• Palm Sunday, March 29th ............ worship at 8:30am and 10:00am.
• Maundy Thursday, April 2............. worship at 7:00pm
• Good Friday, April 3 .....................  the Sanctuary is open from 12:00noon - 3:00pm for private meditation
• Easter Sunday, April 5 .................  worship at 8:30am and 10:00am in the Sanctuary.  

Make this day a great day and rejoice in Jesus' desire to leave no one behind!   
Pastor Jack