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Our Lenten series, “We Belong to God: A Series on Life and Death” concludes this Sunday. I’ve been pleased with how many people are engaging with the issues and asking questions, such as:
- Will you be cremated or buried? Organ donation?
- Are your personal and financial affairs in order?
- Have you talked with family and medical providers about advance medical directives?
- Have you processed the grief that you have experienced and continue to experience?
- Are you living with faith, hope, and love?
- Are you afraid of dying? How does Christian faith impact your thinking on death?
To help the conversations continue past Sunday, I encourage you to keep talking with loved ones about these issues. I have three books to recommend.
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This book identifies ten stages of grief, such as shock, loneliness, anger, depression, and more. He recognizes that grief is not linear or predictable. The stages help us find ourselves in our story. With multiple Scripture references, this small but powerful book helps us deal with grief. The book was first published in 1962 and it remains helpful today.
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Chelsea Cornelius is a pediatric chaplain at UW Children’s Hospital. Her sermon last Sunday was powerful. She recommends this book by Dr. Perri Klass, and describes it as a compelling, complex, and meditative review of pediatric public health in the United States. Read Chelsea's review here.
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Covenant member Tom Arbogast recommended this book to me about a year before he died. What a wonderful reflection on the blessings and limitations of modern medicine. As the book website says: “Riveting, honest, and humane, Being Mortal shows that the ultimate goal is not a good death but a good life – all the way to the very end.”
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We offered this series in Lent, the time that brings us to Holy Week, when we remember the death and resurrection of Jesus. During Holy Week we have three special worship services, and my hope is that all Covenant people could attend at least one of the services. We have one service on Maundy Thursday and two options on Good Friday (one at Westminster Presbyterian Church). | |
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Please mark your calendars. And for Easter Sunday, April 9, I encourage you to start thinking now about someone you could invite to church that day for a festive celebration of abundant and eternal life.
In life and in death... We Belong to God.
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On the journey together,
Charlie
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P.S. - A couple people have asked me about advance planning for health care in light of our "We Belong to God" sermon series. We encourage you to contact your own healthcare clinic to see what they might be able to offer to assist you in thinking about advance planning for health care. Here is an example from UW Health. | |
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In-Person and Livestream worship: 9:00am & 11:00am
- Fifth Sunday in Lent | "We Belong to God" Sermon Series concludes
- Music at 9:00: Ben Welch, New Day Ensemble
- Music at 11:00: Doug McNeel, Martha Stoner
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Preacher: Charlie Berthoud | Sermon: "Tears and Hope" | Text: John 11:17-25, 32-44
- Children's Time with Kathy Mohs
- Kaleidoscope Kids class (9:00am only)
- Nursery Care (8:45am-12:15pm)
- Sunday School 10:00-10:55am
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Visit our Worship HQ for everything you need to worship with us online!
| If you missed a service or would like to watch a service again, all livestreamed services are saved to our YouTube channel. Or you can give the sermons another listen on our sermon podcast! | |
Join us Sunday at 10:00am for the class “The Atonement,” led by Covenant member Doug Poland. The beginning of Lent offers the perfect time to study and reflect on the meaning of Jesus’ life and death. Why did God allow Jesus to die? Did Jesus have to die? What does Jesus’ death signify? Why is his death important, and what does it mean for us today? In this final installment of the class, we will examine specific examples of atonement theory that pervade our religious and popular music/literature, explore the main historical theological bases for atonement theories, consider contemporary Christian criticisms of classic atonement theories, and allow time for discussion. | All Adult Ed classes meet in Bradfield Hall and are available via Zoom at us02web.zoom.us/j/89540028471. Please visit covenantmadison.org/adult for more info. | |
Sunday afternoon's Spiritual Stroll will take us on an urban walk through the Wingra Park neighborhood of Madison. Meet at the Chocolate Shoppe at 2pm (2531 Monroe Street) to begin our stroll through this historic neighborhood. After a leisurely stroll, we'll wind our way back to the Chocolate Shoppe where the ice cream is plentiful! These strolls are part of a program at Covenant called CONNECT, an initiative of the deacons at Covenant to foster connection within the church and community. | |
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Loving God, in your mercy hear our prayers for. . .
New this week: Barbara McCall; John Rolland, brother of Mary-Beth Rolland; Ellen Wright; Jim Rand, friend of Martha and LeRoy Stoner; Ann Seybold.
We pray for healing, for courage, and for peace, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
(click on the image header for full prayer list on Worship HQ)
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Come to our final Taizé service of Lent this Wednesday at Covenant. We have been blessed to join Westminster this Lent in these short services of scripture, music, and prayer. Hope you can join us for the last one! | |
Join Melissa Hinz and others for our last conversation session about life and death issues on Thursday, March 30 from 7:00-8:00pm. Take some time to reflect on the challenging reality of death and share stories with each other. Join us on Zoom to share your story or just listen. Link is available at covenantmadison.org/events or click HERE. | |
Join Pastors Charlie and Clara to discuss this engaging novel about families, starting over, teenagers, and more. With over 12,000 five-star reviews on Amazon, Mad Honey is a page-turner with courtroom drama and contemporary relevance. Charlie suggests that you do NOT read reviews, as many of them give away a vital part of the story. Attorney Chris Turner (wife of Charlie) was a consultant for the book. We'll enjoy some honey and snacks as we spend an hour talking together about the book. Everyone is welcome! | |
Would you like to help feed hungry people in Madison? Join us on Monday, April 3 to provide dinner for the residents of the Triangle Community. There are multiple ways to become involved: grocery shopping, baking desserts, meal prepping the sides, and serving and eating with the residents. Sign-up on the bulletin board by the lounge or online HERE. Contact Frances Parker at frances@xlk9online.com or (608) 620-3378 for more information. | |
On Easter Sunday, the chancel is beautifully adorned with lilies in celebration of the Risen Lord! Those are always graciously donated by members and friends of Covenant. Each lily is a $15 donation. Contact the office to let us know if there is someone you would like to dedicate your lily to ("in honor of, in memory of, in celebration of...")! Then you get to take a lily home after Easter worship! | | | | |
