Dear Resurrection Family,
Last night I spent 80 minutes interviewing Jacqueline Murakatete. Born in a rural village in Rwanda into a family of farmers, she was 9 when the Rwandan genocide broke out, 21 years ago this last week. Her father, mother, six siblings, grandparents and most of the rest of her extended family were killed by their neighbors, and even fellow church members, during the 100 days of genocide. More than 1 million people died in the violence, mostly ethnic Tutsi like Jacqueline. Her life was saved by a courageous Hutu family and two Italian priests.
I will share a part of Jacqueline’s story in worship this weekend as we kick off our new sermon series, “Why?” Her story focuses on the question of God and suffering. Why do such terrible things happen in the world? Are these things the will of God, and if not, why doesn’t God stop them from happening? And, how can we reconcile the idea of a good and loving God with a world where tragedies and hate crimes happen? I’d like you to think of friends or family members who are not actively involved in church and invite them to join you in worship this weekend. Here is the video promo for the series. You might post it on Facebook and Twitter with an invitation for your friends to join you in worship.
I planned this sermon series to coincide with the one-year anniversary of the shootings at the Jewish Community Center and Village Shalom, which is April 13. The Corporon family and a host of other supporters brought Jacqueline to Kansas City as a part of the SevenDays: Make a Ripple, Change the World project. On Monday, 3,000 people will walk from the Jewish Community Center to Village Shalom to Church of the Resurrection and share an interfaith celebration of overcoming darkness with light.
Last weekend was a record setting Easter at Resurrection. I want to thank all of you who gave your time to serve others and make this an inspiring Easter at all of our campuses. We had over 1,000 volunteers in addition to extra efforts from all of our staff who welcomed 28,189 people, 24,460 in person at our various campuses and 3,729 who joined us online. The largest increase was at our Blue Springs Campus whose attendance was up 40% over last year. Congratulations Blue Springs!
On the building front, this week the contractor began pouring our piers, in fact, if you check out the live site cam you may see them drilling and pouring piers right now. Click here to take a peak. When you look at the site, that part of the basement that has the upper u-shaped area is where the seating under the balcony will go, and above it of course the balcony. That u-shape defines the size and shape of the interior of the sanctuary. Beyond that area, to the northwest, is where the choir rehearsal room, robe rooms, and other “back of house” spaces will be.
Changing topics, did you know that 3,000 teenagers die each year when texting while driving? We are hosting a Teen Distracted Driving Clinic at Resurrection Leawood on Saturday, April 19, from 10 am-2 pm. We are partnering with Miles Ahead and Baron Mini Cooper. It is a free event for teens with a permit or license. We have room for about 100 students and have about 80 signed up right now. Students must bring at least one parent with them to the event. All the details are at cor.org/drivingclinic.
Finally, a word to all Resurrection golfers at all campuses: Our Resurrection Golf Classic is coming up on Monday, May 4, in just a few weeks, at Brookridge Golf Club. It is going to be a great day of food, fun and fellowship as we raise money for the Joyce Eacock Tuition Grant Memorial Fund. This fund provides seminary scholarships for Resurrection young adults who are answering God’s call to be future pastors.You can get more information and sign up here.
I would like to end by mentioning that in my conversations with people who have turned away from God, the most frequently given reason is that they cannot reconcile the idea of a loving God with a world where bad things happen to good people. This is the focus of this weekend’s sermon. Invite a friend, as we consider the question of God and Suffering.
In Christ’s Love,
Adam Hamilton
The Church of the Resurrection
The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224 United States
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