Missionary Renegade: The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection Downtown Iin Kansas City, Missouri, United States Weekly eNote from Pastor Scott Chrostek

Saturday, February 21, 2015

The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection Downtown Iin Kansas City, Missouri, United States Weekly eNote from Pastor Scott Chrostek - Friday, 20 February 2015

The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection Downtown Iin Kansas City, Missouri, United States Weekly eNote from Pastor Scott Chrostek - Friday, 20 February 2015
Friday, February 20, 2015,
Greetings RezDowntowners,
I hope this message finds you doing well and keeping warm. It’s hard to believe that just yesterday, on one of the coldest days of the year, our beloved Pitchers and Catchers reported for Spring Training. This of course means that baseball season is underway…there is light at the end of this cold and dark tunnel.
In that way, I’ve always found that Baseball’s Spring Training mirrors the season of Lent. Lent is often times a cold and dark season of heightened training and spiritual discipline that leads us toward the new life of Christ. It is a time that mirrors Christ’s temptation in the wilderness. It’s also a time where we seek daily to fall more deeply in love with God by practicing spiritual disciplines like prayer, confession, increased study of Scripture or increased intentionality behind how we care for ourselves and others with the love of God. We do these things to prepare for and enhance our Easter experience of resurrection life. This year, I am excited to be increasing my time in prayer and study as a way for preparing for Easter. In conjunction with that, I’ll be leading a six-week study on The Journey through the Holy Land on Wednesday nights! It will be a great opportunity to live into the season of Lent by uncovering the Easter story as we visit the places where these events actually took place.
Finally, all week long, people have been asking me, “What I am giving up for Lent?” I never quite know how to answer that question, as I generally don’t like to give things up for Lent, but rather fill my life with activities that will enhance my ability to live into the calling that God has placed on my life as a disciple. To this end, I am seeking to invite people (at least one new person) each day to join me in worship at RezDT, but especially for Easter Worship at the Kauffman. This year’s Easter celebration will be extraordinary as we celebrate in RezDowntown fashion at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, and I would love to see it filled to overflowing at both 9 and 11am. It will surely be a day to share with family and friends. My hope is that you might consider a similar discipline, that you could become an ambassador of Christ’s light and life this Lenten season by inviting others to join you on this journey that leads to Resurrection hope.
In the meantime, here are some ways to get connected and plugged into the life of this church during this Lenten season;
FaithWork Saturday: This Saturday from 9am to Noon.
Glory Revival Music – Tuesday, Feb. 24th (Worship Night on March 7th)
Lenten Journey Through the Holy Land with Pastor Scott on Wednesday
Discover your Spiritual Gifts – Saturday, February 28th from 9-11am.
The Boomers are Back! (Saturday, February 28th, from 9-11am)
Do you want “The Scoop” on RezDT? Join us March 1st.
Matthew’s Ministry – Family Day Out from 1-4pm on March 1st.
Men’s Spiritual Retreat – Friday and Saturday, May 6th and 7th.
Glory Revival, including several members from our Resurrection Downtown worship team, is excited to announce the release of their first CD of original songs Tuesday, Feb. 24th. This team is responsible for writing much of the music we sing in worship at RezDT. Pre-order and preview the CD, digital download and limited edition t-shirt at www.gloryrevivalmusic.com. We will be hosting an album release/Night of Worship Saturday, March 7. For more information, contactJustin.Huey@cor.org. Invite friends and fill your ears with worship music this Lenten season
Lenten Journey Through the Holy Land with Pastor Scott – Wednesdays starting Feb. 25, 7 pm, 1508 Grand Sanctuary. Lent is a time when we are invited to simplify our lives to focus on our relationship with God in Christ. We’ll prepare our hearts and minds for the true meaning of Easter as Pastor Scott leads this 6-week study retracing the life, death and resurrection of Christ. For more information and to register for childcare, go to rezdowntown.org/lentenjourney.
Discover Your Spiritual Gifts – Saturday, February 28, 9-11 am, 1522 McGee – Join Pastor Anne to explore how we can serve God with our unique personality, talents and life experiences. Learn what the Bible says about spiritual gifts, take an inventory that will tell you more about your own gifts and discover ways you can use them in our church and the Kansas City community. Register at rezdowntown.org/spiritualgiftsclass or contact Anne.Williams@cor.org with questions.
The Boomers are Back! We’ll take a private tour of The Kauffman Center for Performing Arts onSaturday, Feb. 28, at 10:30 am, to learn about the history, details and design of the Kauffman. Meet our Tour Guide in the Plaza Lobby across from the Box Office at the south entrance. After the tour, enjoy an optional lunch at Teocali – a Mexican restaurant at 2512 Holmes. Contact F Genease Gornowicz at ggornowicz@kc.rr.com by Feb. 26, to RSVP for the tour, lunch or both or for any questions.
Do You Want “The Scoop”? Are you new to Resurrection Downtown? Or perhaps you have been attending for a while and would like to get more connected. Maybe you’d like to learn more about the life of the church and meet others who are discovering Resurrection. On Sunday, March 1, come to “The Scoop.” Following the 10:45 am worship service, we will meet for about 30 minutes in the Loft at 1522 McGee to chat, learn and dream!
Matthew’s Ministry Family Day Out – Sunday, March 1, 1-4 pm, 1522 McGee, RSVP –Tuesday, Feb. 24. Individuals of all ages with special needs and their siblings are invited as we “get ready for spring” with new craft activities while parents and caregivers take an afternoon for themselves. Lunch will be provided. Parents/caregivers are welcome to stay the first half hour or the full time to help loved ones get comfortable. Participants must register by Tuesday, February 24, so that we may plan accordingly for food and volunteers. For more information and to register, contact Hannah Murray at hjhamilton87@yahoo.com.
Men’s Spiritual Retreat – Be “All In!” with Resurrection pastors Jeff Kirby and Jason Gant and Director of Adult Discipleship Chris Folmsbee as we explore how to grow toward becoming a deeply committed Christian. This year’s retreat is Friday, March 6, 6:30-9 pm (dinner included), and Saturday, March 7, 8:30 am – noon (breakfast included), Student Center. For more information see today’s insert. Register at cor.org/men.
I am so blessed to be a part of this community and I am so proud to serve Christ with you in this city. I am excited to start up another season of Lent with you as together we hope for the Resurrection and the Life found at Easter. I hope you'll invite friends and join us this weekend and this entire season as we continue building Christian community in the center of this city this weekend, until then, I hope you have a God-filled Friday and I'll look forward to seeing you soon!
Grace and Peace,
Scott

@scottchrostek
Also, if you're interested in baseball...I hope you'll enjoy this poem!
Pitchers and Catchers Report
The day has dawned to hear again the happiest words in sport
Not "Touchdown!" "Home Run!" "Goal!" or "Score!" but "Pitchers and catchers report."
"Pitchers and catchers report..." Such news: Concise, flat, stark, and grand.
It means the game is afoot again, alive once more in the land.
Oh, it'll snow, and cars will stall, and sleet will rattle our nights,
And roundball and hockey will drag us through the play-offs and the fights:
But somewhere than just the mind's eye now the motions of baseball start;
Maybe it's only playing catch, but catch is good for the heart,
And good for the soul, and the arms and the legs, and the head full of off-season talk
About bar fights and contracts, recalcitrant umpires, and players too eager to squawk
About vicious injustices, real or imagined, and teams that don't love them enough
Enough! Time to relish, instead of this filler, returning to all the good stuff.
In Tucson and Phoenix, in Tampa and Lakeland they're picking up baseballs for real,
And tossing them, happily, into their gloves, and secretly thinking, "Some deal,"
To be gathered again here to stretch in the sun, and scratch, and get loose in the grass,
To try not to smile in spite of yourself at the best of times coming to pass.
It won't stop the wars, and it won't fill the bellies of children who've lost their relief;
It won't house the homeless or patch up the bridges or soften the heart of a thief.
Still, we can, in this moment and lifetime of trouble, clutch words that might offer a sort
Of surcease from the madness that hammers us daily; hence, "Pitchers and catchers report."
Congregational Care and Support
If you need pastoral care, call 816-979-1330 or for after hours emergencies, 816-875-0267.
To submit a prayer request, contact Todd.Maberry@rezdowntown.org
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