Maundy Thursday 

Online Worship

The worship service is now posted online for Maundy Thursday.  

Click Here

In preparation for this worship, you may wish to have bread (or crackers) and wine (or grape juice) prepared so you can take communion at the point in the worship where I announce that the bread is the body of Christ and the cup is the blood of Christ.

Tomorrow (at mid-morning) we will post our Good Friday worship service online.  I'll send the link out at that time.  On Saturday afternoon, we will post the Easter Vigil worship.  And later Saturday night, we will post the Easter Day service for everyone.

You can check all our services at our website:   mattoonumc.com

Daily Update

There will be no devotional podcast for the next several days as we are posting worship services instead for Holy Week.  Check the update each day to get the link for that day's worship service.  Daily podcasts inviting you to join me for a portion of my devotional time will resume next Monday.

From Phyllis Dickinson:  Barry Hastings is in the hospital.  He has been feeling ill for at least two weeks.  Because of circumstances, he is not able to have any visitors, even his wife Michelle. Please keep both of them in your prayers.

From the Wednesday morning prayer group:

• prayers for Richard Clapp, a nurse practitioner (son of a friend of Connie Lotts) who has gone to New York City to help out
• prayers for Jessie and Katie, friends of Ron and Phyllis, one living in New York and one in Chicago...not easy places to be these days

The Annual Conference, scheduled for June 4-6 in Peoria, Illinois, has been postponed.  Those going from our church (...or...not going at the moment) are Peggy Ropiequet, Susie Beaumont, and Pastor Mike Smith.  The conference will meet later, when it is safe, at a date to be announced.  This means that no pastor can be officially retired or ordained until some official action can be figured out.  But don't be alarmed:  you'll still get your new pastor, Todd Krost, on July 1, even though the annual conference isn't meeting before then.  

Birthday Celebrations

Life Goes On

Today, April 9, is Maundy Thursday.  Be sure to join us in our Maundy Thursday worship on video.

And when you have worshipped, there are still some other matters that need your attention today.  It is also Unicorn Day, ASMR Day, Name Yourself Day, Cherish an Antique Day, and Winston Churchill Day.  

Unicorns baffle me, so I'll let someone else handle the celebration on that one.  And I have no idea what ASMR is.  So, when I looked it up, it said, "ASMR Day is dedicated to helping people appreciate ASMR."  Of course, that didn't help.  So I had to keep reading.  The next paragraph said that ASMR helps people and that it has been a trend since 2007.  I'm still confused.  I had to keep reading, not sure it would be worth it.  In the last paragraph of the article, it said that ASMR helps people relax.  But still no definition.  Another website suggested that the initials stand for:  Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response.  Still no idea what it is.  Oh well...

"Name Yourself Day" is evidently for those who don't feel like themselves.  It is also a reminder that if kings and queens and popes can give themselves new names, ordinary people should be able to also...but for just one day...today only...since we are only ordinary.  So, if you want another name today, just don't say anything to me...I already have too much information I'm juggling...it will add to my stress...and I will need some of that ASMR...which I can't get since I don't even know what it is...much less where to find it.

I think I'll just go find an antique in the house somewhere and appreciate it... and then maybe give a quick nod to Winston Churchill...and call it a day.