Good morning Church Requel!
Do you realize just how special Sunday morning will be? Yes the music will be awesome (more in a moment on that score) and yes the delight in the children's eyes will be wonderful (more about that too!) Sunday's Resurrection Celebration will be special because it will be in a "requel" church with "requel" people.
Requel is that special place between sequel (been there done that) and prequel (empty tomb? what are you talking about?) Requel is a retelling of THE story in a new and fresh way. When we talk about a "requel" church, we're not talking about any of the many reiterations of the church that have been in existence for the last 2,000 years. We're talking about church as those first Christians experienced it.
Recently I've been re-reading my church history, especially the early history of the first two centuries. I always appreciate the "requel" label more after I've had a chance to think about the many "sequels" of church. Here's a truth I've come to recognize. We couldn't be Church Requel without the struggles of the church sequels to figure out what Christianity is really all about. We have the opportunity for a "do over" knowing the mistakes we don't want to make again.
What particularly excites me about this is not just the concept of the church in requel mode, but its people in requel mode. You. Me. Everyone else who attends Church Requel. Not only are we Church Requel but we're people requel too. We each have a new chance to tell a new story in a new way with Jesus at the center of our story.
For most of us, this is not our first attempt at church. We are in need of a do-over. We are in need of people who understand that we've blown it. And love us anyway. And accept us anyway. We are in need of people who will encourage us to walk the path of Jesus in obedience and joy this time.
Sunday morning when we're singing about the empty tomb, when we hear the words, "He is risen," and when we repeat with everyone else, "He is risen indeed," we will be celebrating as fallen people. As forgiven people. As restored people. As requel people. And I can't wait! How about you?
Large Praise Team In Celebration Mode. I had the privilege to practice with Jeff, Brandi, Trish, Dinah and Missie this past Wednesday evening. I wrote to my Facebook friends later that night, "It's the most fun I've had in church in a long time." We experienced a lifting of our spirits and a bonding of togetherness, when we sang those songs. Truly, I'm so hopeful that you will experience those same feelings this coming Sunday morning.
Brandi has planned out our Easter worship experience in a unique way. She will start the service singing a song to invite the Holy Spirit into our midst. It's a simple vocal song with Dan playing his guitar alongside. After this Brandi will invite us to take communion together and then we'll pray together, thanking God our Father for sending His Son. We begin with communion and prayer and then move to celebration singing. I think we'll celebrate that much more as a result!
Before our sermon we will watch a special monologue performed by Trish Trubachik. She'll say the words that some of us will be feeling that morning. Brandi will sing another special song, "What If" by Nichole Nordeman. The song and the monologue were designed to fit together and to support the theme of our talk - our belief in the resurrection. This will be the final talk in the Signs and Wonders sermon series, and I hope it will be one of the best. I'm really looking forward to sharing it with you.
At the end of the worship service, our special Easter praise team will come up one more time to sing "We Believe" by the Newsboys. Jeff Barnes really knows how to raise the roof with this song - which is saying something given the height of our ceilings at Church Requel!
Easter Egg Hunt After Church. Our children will be dismissed after our worship singing to a very special KidsMin downstairs. Our elementary aged children will participate in a scavenger hunt, a fun-filled learning experience about the real meaning behind Easter. Each clue will point them closer to their goal (and closer to Jesus' resurrection!)
After church we will enjoy one last celebration together - our first ever Church Requel Easter Egg Hunt! I took this picture on the upper right this morning. It's just one of our crates of Easter egg treats. (Thanks SO MUCH to the team who assembled all these last weekend!) We have hundreds of eggs for our kiddos to find!
You could help us in two ways. First, we need some hiders! If you are available an hour early (10am) this Sunday, show up at church and help us hide the eggs. We'll hide them all outside on the sides and front of our property on the point of Marion Avenue and Park Avenue West.
Second, we'd like all the adults in our church to step outside at the conclusion of our church service and line our two busy streets. You will be the guards to make sure our children stay "in bounds." Parents of our little ones will accompany their children. Our elementary children will want to find their eggs on their own (and thus we'll need our adults to stand guard.) We anticipate that this entire event will be go by quickly.
Parents, make sure your children bring bags or baskets to store their easter egg candies. However, Tamira is bringing extra bags for those children who forget to bring one.
Invite! Invite! Invite! This Sunday morning will be a super special event for Church Requel. We know this could be one of our most attended worship services ever. Please invite your family and friends to come with you. They will thank you... maybe for eternity!
The reason I am so certain of this is that several of you, who are now regular weekly worshipers at Church Requel, started coming during an Easter celebration! Let's not keep Church Requel our own little secret. Let's share the good news of Jesus' resurrection and what He is still accomplishing in our midst.
He is risen! He is risen indeed! - Pastor Mark
