Our Lady of Peace

Today we worshiped at Our Lady of Peace, 1000 3^rd Avenue, Conway, PA 15027, 724.869.3024, www.ourladyofpeaceconway.myownparish.com, Fr. Jack Fitzgerald, Pastor.

Scripture – 

Reading 1 – Jeremiah 31:7-9
This is what the Lord says: “Sing with joy for Jacob; shout for the foremost of the nations. Make your praises heard, and say, ‘O Lord, save your people, the remnant of Israel.’

See, I will bring them from the land of the north and gather them from the ends of the earth. Among them will be the blind and the lame, expectant mothers and women in labor; a great throng will return.

They will come with weeping; they will pray as I bring them back. I will lead them beside streams of water on a level path where they will not stumble, because I am Israel’s father, and Ephraim is my firstborn son.

Reading 2 – Hebrews 5:1-6

Every high priest is selected from among men and is appointed to represent them in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness.

This is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people. No one takes this honor upon himself; he must be called by God, just as Aaron was.

So Christ also did not take upon himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father.”

And he says in another place, “You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.”

Reading 3 – Mark 10:46-52

Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (that is, the Son of Timaeus), was sitting by the roadside begging.

When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.”

Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.

“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him. The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”

“Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

Bob’s thoughts:

I see God’s sense of humor in sending us to a Catholic church on Reformation Sunday. I have been to this church a few times for ecumenical services and funerals, but this was our first Mass.

The sanctuary is pleasant and tasteful. I like the chancel wall with panels in blue shades and the great stained glass in the back wall. In a Catholic church I was assured of a cross. I was impressed with the choir, small in number but great sound. Sitting all the way in the back, I couldn’t see or hear much of the children’s message.

There was a song after the first Scripture reading that had a distinctive Jewish sound to it.

The homily was a little hard for me to hear but some points: a physical healing from a renewal of baptismal vows, spiritual blindness and blindness of culture being overcome by the light of the Holy Spirit.

So often of late we have had the elements of Communion offered silently; it was refreshing to hear the Bread of Life spoken.

Being first-time visitors to a denomination with which we are not familiar certainly limits us. The congregation seemed engaged with a good mix of young and old, so it seems to be a healthy church.

Jan’s thoughts:

Somehow I did not expect our first visit to a Roman Catholic Church to fall on Reformation Sunday, but it goes to prove God has a sense of humor.

Not surprisingly, this visit was very different than most of our others, but I noticed many things that were the same: in a church with more than one service, almost no one ever recognizes a visitor; a good choir sounds good no matter their number; and again I was reminded that God can be present even where I don’t fully understand/agree with the theology.

We recalled attending a community ecumenical service here a few years ago; the décor is memorably bright and colorful and the signage is good.

The Order of Worship is a tri-folded 11x17 sheet which was very helpful for a visitor, especially one who is unfamiliar with Mass. I expected the service to be difficult to follow, but it was actually fairly easy.

The (seemingly) untitled homily wound around the universality of spiritual blindness and the importance of adhering to Scriptural instruction. He stated that if we are unfaithful stewards, God will not provide, so if we want God to provide, we must strive to be faithful stewards. And when we are lost we should cry out to Jesus as did Bartimaeus.

Had we realized earlier that Communion would be offered we could have asked if it was acceptable for non-Catholics to participate, but as it was we did not partake. We were surprised during the sacrament to be able to hear the words “The Body and Blood of Christ for you” spoken to each congregant.

Our prayer for this church:
We pray, Lord, that Your light will break through any “blindness” in this church. Let the light of Your Spirit shine brightly to guide the church forward in faith. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Conway Alliance Church

Today we worshiped at Conway Alliance Church, 1100 Highland Avenue, Conway, PA 15027, 724.869.4500, www.conwayalliance.org, Rev. Rich Grassel, Pastor.

Scripture –

John 15:1-8, 16:

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.

Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given to you.

This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit – fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.

Galatians 5:16-25:

So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.

But if you are led by the Sprit, you are not under law. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

Bob’s thoughts:

It is always interesting to me how our morning evolves and we learn to which church we are headed. Today my daughter was without a car, so we put the car seats in my truck and took her to church. I think it was one of the first times we have had grandchildren ride in my truck. I had the joy of my granddaughter falling asleep in my arms during worship.

I was impressed with the prayer time, how many joys and concerns are lifted by these believers.

The sermon, from what I could catch, wove around the vine and the branches, the oneness and need of completeness in being grafted in. I did notice how attentive the congregation was during the sermon.

We were welcomed by a number of people including some who welcomed us back, important to a guest.

I was asked to stand as a veteran and we were thanked for our service. I am always grateful for this humbling experience.

Jan’s thoughts:

Although we had worshiped here recently, today we went along to help with our grandtwins.

The moment we walked in I was extremely grateful for the air conditioning. Lots of people spoke with us and with the little cuties with us (and who can blame them? J).

I enjoyed hearing the praise band again as they have a great sound, although I was familiar with only one of the songs.

The pastor took a moment during the service to acknowledge and thank the veterans present for their service, a moment I deeply appreciated.

The message introduced an upcoming series on the Fruit of the Spirit, which I found appropriate for Pentecost Sunday.

He began with an excellent question: “Why doesn’t the Good News sound like good news anymore?” (The answer came later: Because believers fail to take God’s warnings seriously, so we look too much like the world. Ouch.)

The part of the message that really caught my attention was when he pointed out that it is our most difficult challenges that inevitably produce the most fruit if we will embrace these painful experiences redemptively. However, remaining in the vine is vital to the production of fruit, and the production of fruit is evidence of having remained in the vine.

We need to ask ourselves: “How do I want to finish my life?” (Refer to the Galatians passage above.) The question at this point was, “Which list (in Galatians) would describe us?” Our answer would be an indicator of how we might anticipate finishing our lives…no fruit = no presence of the Spirit. A chilling thought.

I appreciated the message for its perspective and focus on remaining in the vine in order to see fruit produced in our lives. There is a particular area of my life wherein I am hoping to see fruit, and I suspect God brought us here so I could receive His guidance and reminders.

Our prayer for this church:

Father, We pray that this congregation continues to grow in service to You. We ask Your blessing on the leaders as they discern Your direction for this church. May they experience the joy of serving as You direct. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Conway Alliance Church

Today we worshiped at Conway Alliance Church, 1100 Highland Avenue, Conway, PA 15027, 724.869.4500, www.conwayalliance.org, Rev. Rich Grassel, Pastor.

Bob’s thoughts:

When I was praying about where to worship it was clear that we would know when it was time, so I was very comfortable waiting till our daughter called. We went to worship with our daughter today with the excuse to help with her children…or to help ourselves to her children. Either way I got to hold my grandson through the service, so it worked out well.

What we saw of the building was modern construction. At one end of the sanctuary was a stained glass panel, perhaps saved from an earlier building. The service was set up crosswise and worked well. I meant crosswise as in directional, but it is an apt description as there was more than one cross in addition to a large wooden one. There are two large monitors and two screens, so everyone can see what is projected.

I didn’t notice any directional signage, but my daughter had worshiped here before and knew where the nursery was and I found the rest room without difficulty. We got to church just in time for the service, so there was little time for greetings, although the pastor stopped to introduce himself. I was impressed with those who came by after the service since when you are greeted afterward it is on their time and they are saying hello when they would perhaps like to hurry home instead.

The sermon wove around the parallels between Moses and Jesus, how they both interceded as mediators for the people. The message was well-developed with plenty of Scriptural references throughout.

I sensed the presence of the Holy Spirit in worship and appreciated that the pastor let himself be used by Christ.

I was grateful to take Communion, though the elements were presented silently.

I was encouraged that the church is moving to be more missional. Mission giving is dear to my heart, so I am pleased that Christ is leading the church in this direction.

Jan’s thoughts:

We had a time this morning trying to hear God’s direction as far as where to worship, and when we finally became quiet, He let us know. Unfortunately our son-in-law stayed home due to illness, so we had the joy of helping our daughter with the grandtwins.

This church is tucked back off of a side road near us, and in the four years we’ve lived here I was unaware of it before today. It has a terrific parking lot, and is pleasantly decorated inside. We did not have an opportunity to look around much, but I did not notice signage.

The sanctuary is longer than it is deep with comfortably-spaced chairs and pretty stained glass. It has a modern feel to it, probably because of screens at either side and flat screen TVs facing front and back. At the same time, all the wood trim and the beautiful wooden cross give it a homier feel. The chancel is inviting, and everything definitely works.

We arrived just prior to the start of worship and were greeted by the pastor, and then afterward by more than a few parishioners, so it was a friendly experience.

I was pleasantly surprised to worship with contemporary music, effectively presented with a guitar and drums. And I was glad for the opportunity to participate in Communion.

The message was powerful and thought-provoking, with lessons I needed and mental images that spoke to me. With few written materials, I am unsure of the exact title of the Lenten sermon series or of this message, but it was a search for Jesus in the Book of Exodus and a parallel between the Red Sea and the red blood of Christ.

He pointed out that the Red Sea and the red blood both represented freedom from bondage, that the Red Sea separated the Egyptians and the Israelites and Christ’s blood separates us from sin, Satan, and death.

He spoke of the ways in which Moses and Jesus were both mediators, that Moses was a type of Jesus as a mediator, especially when he prayed that if God would not forgive His people for the golden calf episode that He would block Moses out of His Book. Moses was willing to give up his everlasting destiny for the people.

The part of this message that got my attention had to do with Jesus as mediator between man and Satan. When Jesus told Peter that Satan had “demanded him to sift him as wheat,” the pastor explained that the word translated as “demanded” means that Satan was begging for Peter for the purpose of torture or punishment, and the term “sift” means “by inward agitation.” Boy, do I know that feeling.

And Satan has the same desire for us.

I now have this mental image of Satan, in all his horrendous ugliness, drooling and wringing his hands while begging Christ to let him torture and punish Peter…and me.

But Jesus, in His role as mediator, has plucked me from the fire and protected me and every other believer. I am accused and I am guilty, the punishment would be entirely deserved, but Jesus will not let Satan inflict the punishment on me because He has already paid the price and given His life to protect me.

I don’t mind saying that today’s reminder of this truth has increased my faith in the midst of a difficult situation, so all I can say is, “Praise God!”

Conway Presbyterian Church

Today we worshiped at Conway Presbyterian Church, 305 Eleventh Street, Conway, PA 15027, 724.869.7332, Rev. Deane Lavender, Pastor.


Bob’s thoughts:

When we parked at the church I noticed another vehicle with Marine markings, and after waking up early this morning remembering my son, I was looking forward to a Memorial Day church service, but I guess I was the only one. [Note from Jan: No, he wasn’t the only one, and for the same reason.]

I didn’t get to look around much, but noticed no signage. This is a small church, but the organ had enough reverb for two churches. Maybe the organ just had to warm up as it wasn’t as bad later in the service. There was no air movement or open window or door: I couldn’t breathe and Jan wasn’t much better.

The sermon started with a story about people crossing a desert, some intent on the destination and some on the journey. I believe too often we are so caught up in the destination that we forget to enjoy the trip and other times so intent on enjoying ourselves we forget that Christ is the destination. If we can truly live for Him, our life will be our witness.

We had to leave early as I was about to pass out when we got to the porch. I missed my time to pray for this church and pastor. I felt a bit like we were intruding at the club.

There were two women who came in at the end of the service and left after the prayer…wonder if they were seeking?

Jan’s thoughts:

Collectively our family has now visited this church three separate times, but since a few years have passed since our most recent visit we thought today might be a good day to give it one more try.

This is a small church in the heart of a very small community about five minutes from our house.

One person greeted us from her pew when we first arrived and another as she made her way across in front of us. We had hoped for an opportunity to speak with some of the folks following worship, but today, on this nearly 90-degree day, all the windows were closed and once worship began the back door was closed also. The only air circulation was provided by two ceiling fans and they simply could not make a dent in what became stifling heat. Finally I had to choose between leaving early or passing out, so we left at the beginning of the final hymn.

The bulletin contained numerous inserts, but it was user friendly so I was able to hold on to everything and still follow the Order of Worship.

There were only a few very general acknowledgements of Memorial Day: the bulletin cover (a cemetery with the words “God is not far from each one of us”) could be construed as connected to the meaning of this day; a patriotic medley was presented during the Prelude; and (again, loosely interpreted) “Let There be Peace on Earth” for the Offertory.

I have no idea why God’s provision of our freedom was not acknowledged today, but I surely felt something was missing from this service of worship.

The Sermon was entitled “Keep On Keeping On” and was based on Acts 17:22-31, 1 Peter 3:13-22, John 14:15-21. The subject was evangelism, how “sharing faith was easy for Paul but it’s hard for us.”

In a recent anonymous comment left on this blog we were accused of showing favor to Presbyterian churches while being overly critical of non-denominational ones. Well, I suppose some people find God here just as some others find Him at the church of which we were supposedly over-critical, but I found Him at neither place, so I do not plan to come back here, either.