Dear Friends,

This is another special weekend, a time of national remembrance, specifically Monday, which is Memorial Day. On Monday we are all encouraged, wherever we are at 3:00PM local time, to take a minute of silence to remember and honor those who have died in service to our nation. This is a time to be grateful for all we have as citizens of this great nation. But you may not know that this week also, leading up to Sunday is one of the most significant celebrations in the life of both Jews and Christians.

For those of the Jewish faith this is the Feast of Weeks (Shavout), which takes place seven weeks after Passover. The Jews have been observing this feast since the beginning of the wilderness wanderings spoken of in Exodus 34:22, following the instructions given in Leviticus 23:15-16. Not only do they celebrate the First Fruits Harvest, but also the giving of the Torah to Moses on Mount Sinai. It is their practice to study the Torah all night long and read the book of Ruth. This feast begins for them at sundown this Thursday and ends at nightfall this Saturday.

For all Christians, May 28 is Pentecost Sunday, 50 days after Resurrection Sunday, the day the Holy Spirit came upon the 120 in the upper room and which led to the first sermon preached by Peter with 3,000 responding to the invitation to follow Jesus. We celebrate this as the birthday of the church and the release of the Holy Spirit to dwell within all those who call upon the Lord. (A shout-out of special thanks to Todd Hirte who provided a great devotion on the above topics this past Wednesday morning.)

I look forward to seeing you Sunday as we will gather together for Worship and the Word in our combined service at 9:00AM.