December 9, 2005
Dear Resurrection Family,
What a beautiful day - bitterly cold but a beautiful snow and blue skies. God's glory is revealed in nature and invites us to offer God praise.
Here's a bit of the inside scoop at Resurrection...
1. This weekend: Finding Joy
2. Tickets for Christmas at Resurrection this Weekend
3. Book Signing at 6:30 pm this Saturday and Sunday
4. Make Your Own Chrismons
5. Attention Guys: A Valentine's Gift She'll Love!
6. Coffee - 107 adults 32 children joined
7. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - what to look for
1. This Weekend: How Joy is Found
The third weekend of the Season of Advent is known as Gaudete Sunday - Gaudete is the Latin word for "rejoice." The first two weeks of Advent are more somber and focused on repentance but beginning this weekend joy begins to take over. Mary's Magnificat - her psalm of praise to God for being chosen to bear the Christ-child ("My soul doth magnify the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!") is among the Scripture texts focused on in worship. We'll be talking about how we find joy in life, and how we bring joy to others. We'll look at the Magnificat and Paul's First Letter to the Thessalonians where Paul tells us to "be joyful always." We'll look at his answers for how this is possible.
2. Christmas at Resurrection - Christmas Cantata
We still have a small number of tickets for the three evening performances of Christmas at Resurrection - the performances are tonight, Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 pm. Bring a friend and join us for one of the performances. Plan to grab a quick bite to eat then join us following worship on either Saturday or Sunday night. On a side note, as you may know we offered free tickets to a number of mission and ministry organizations around Kansas City. We have persons coming from City Union Mission, the Gillis Center, Metropolitan Avenue Outreach, Habitat, Ozanam Home, several other shelters, and both Grace Gardens and Kingswood retirement centers. We're excited to be welcoming our special guests to tonight's show. As I mentioned a few weeks ago, if this is a difficult year for you financially, and yet you would like to see the show, we would like you to be our guest - please contact my assistant, Sue Thompson, at sue.thompson@cor.org or by phone at 913-745-2200, and we'll have tickets ready for you at the performance of your choice.
[to top]
I've had a number of you ask me to sign copies of my books that you wish to give as Christmas presents;I'm always delighted to do this. I will be available outside our bookstore this Saturday and Sunday night following worship and before the musical to sign books - about 6:30 pm to7:00 pm. I wrote Confronting the Controversies, Making Love Last a Lifetime, and Christianity and World Religions not only to bless Christians, but also as a way of helping non-religious and nominally religious people consider the claims of the Christian faith.
What is a "Chrismon"? A Chrismon is a Christ-monogram - an ornament to hang on the tree, which reflects the identity of Jesus. Last weekend 1,000 people attended our Family Advent Night and had the opportunity to make Chrismons to adorn their trees. If you would like to make a Chrismon - an ornament to adorn your tree and bear witness to your faith, you can go online to our website for both a history of Chrismons and patterns and instructions for making your own, click on this link. If you were unable to attend Family Advent Night, hold your own Family Advent Night at home and help your children make ornaments with meaning they will treasure forever.
5. Guys: Here's a Valentine's Gift She will Thank You For!
Guys, this coming February 10-11 (the week of Valentines) LaVon and I will lead a Marriage Retreat at the Overland Park Doubletree Hotel. This will be an awesome weekend focusing on God's purpose in marriage and how you can make love last a lifetime. There will be teaching time and couple's time. Registration is $199 and includes lodging at the Doubletree, a breakfast buffet on Saturday morning, a boxed lunch and all conference materials. Or you can commute and stay at home with a cost of $110. We have a limited number of hotel rooms and this is available on a first come first serve basis. If you would like to register, e-mail us at debi.nixon@cor.org. This conference is for married couples who hope to make their love last a lifetime! It will be both inspiring and fun.
[to top]
6. 107 Adults and 32 Children Join Resurrection at Coffee
We had a wonderful gathering of folks here this past Tuesday evening for our last Coffee with the Pastors of the year. For many this is their first time to join a church family, and their first time to make a commitment to follow Jesus Christ. Welcome to our newest members!
7. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Last night was our latest Resurrection Night at the Movies - we filled two of the large theatres at AMC Town Center Plaza and enjoyed watching Disney's "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe." As you may know, this movie is based upon the wonderful children's stories by C.S. Lewis called, The Chronicles of Narnia. The film is the story of four children who discover the land of Narnia, filled with trolls, fauns, giants, and dwarves as well as talking animals;however the story is also an allegory for the Christian gospel. Aslan, the lion, is Jesus, who gives his life in order to free those who are prisoners to sin. Young Edmund struggles with his love of "turkish delight" - Lewis' picture of our addiction to sin. As you see the film, watch for those places where you see the allegory most clearly pointing toward the Christian faith. Among my favorite lines in the entire book, a line we only hear once in the film, is this one, concerning Aslan (Jesus), "He is not a tame lion." Lewis chose a lion to represent Jesus because in the scriptures we find a reference to Jesus as the "lion of the tribe of Judah" - he is portrayed both as a lion and a lamb in Revelation;I love the way Lewis captures this - "He is not a tame lion." I would encourage you to see the film. If you go with friends or family, plan to go out for coffee or desert afterwards to talk about the Christian themes throughout.
That's it for now. I am grateful the Savior we serve is not a tame lion. I look forward to seeing you in worship this weekend as we reflect on the joy we find as we serve him.
In Christ's Love,
Adam Hamilton