4/12/2009

It’s been a busy week at the Power House in Baltimore, Maryland.



It started out Sunday with Morning Worship. During the service we celebrated Palm Sunday and shared in the Lord’s Supper. Someone also brought a large part of a cake that was leftover from Saturday’s wedding so some people ate cake afterward and others took some home.



After the service Earl gave an Evangelists Blessing. Meanwhile, Bryce played his trumpet in a band festival for Catholic schools.



Over 20 kids participated in Kids’ Church. We talked about the events of Palm Sunday then made large palms out of foam with the word Hosanna on them.



Because of the simulcast from church headquarters, we cancelled our 6:00 p.m. service. Instead, people gathered at the church for the 8:00 p.m. simulcast. Unfortunately, technical difficulties prevented us from being able to be a part of this event.



On Monday Vonceil and I spent the day trying to find a new place for Bryce and Onalee to go to school this fall. This was in response to the letter we received last Saturday saying that their current school would close at the end of the school year. It took most of the day but in the end we were able to secure them seats at another Catholic school in the area.



That evening was our fundraising event at Chick-fil-a. It was a really fun event. People who came included members of the church, friends from the neighborhood, friends from Bryce’s school, coworkers of members, and church members from another congregation.



The place that the Friends of Carroll Park normally meets was unavailable on Tuesday for its scheduled meeting. Our building was available so we were able to accommodate them that night.



I got a call this week from a woman who had her baby shower at the church last fall. She wanted to see about scheduling her baby’s blessing in the upcoming weeks. We decided on April 26 as the date for this event.



With the public schools on Spring Break we didn’t have SonRisers on Wednesday morning. Later that day we started our Easter service postcard distribution in the neighborhood. I got back from that in time for a global staff meeting we were having on line from church headquarters. That night after the NA meeting the Adult Disciples group continued its review of the Gospel of John.



Thursday brought more postcards distributed in the neighborhood. That evening we had our Last Supper service. We started out by reading scriptures and sharing communion around the table in the front room then moved to a “garden” we had set up in the back room for the final scriptures.



Throughout the week Vonceil, Sarah, and I were in dialogue with one of our kids who had a friend who was threatening suicide. After a long series of text messages and emails, we had enough information to contact the authorities to get him some help so Sarah made the call.



We opened the church from noon – 3:00 p.m. for prayer, scripture reading, and meditation on Friday. That evening we had small groups throughout Pizza Church. All three Pizza Church sessions met around the Good Friday worship center, talked about the symbols in it, then read the crucifixion account in Matthew.



We had quite a bit of rain on Saturday through mid-afternoon. This stalled out the final day of postcard distribution. We were able to get out in the late afternoon, though, just as people were emerging from their houses. We didn’t get as many postcards distributed as we’d planned but got to visit with many more people in the process than we had expected. Most of the visits were very positive, but one man and his mother felt quite sure that, based on the postcard and my wearing a collar, that I wasn’t sufficiently Christian and provided me with a DVD to help me convert.



Saturday night brought our monthly Solid Rock Café. We just had a handful of kids who all seemed to have a really good time. The very messy floor testifies to it.



Looking ahead to next week we have our regular schedule of activities. In addition, we have some special things planned at each of the services on Sunday in celebration of Easter. Tuesday evening the church will be used by the Citizens of Pigtown for their monthly meeting. Thursday is our final Family Wii Bowling night for the season.



Along with the individuals and activities mentioned, please keep the following families in the forefront of your prayers:



The Toomey Family

The Mueller Family

The Smith Family

The Buckner Family

The Carroll Family

The Gray Family

The Latham Family

The Ruby Family



Thank you for your continued prayer support.



Jeff and everyone at

The Power House

“Building the Kingdom of God Here and Now”

PowerHouseMD@Juno.com

www.pigtownchurch.org