Return to Grace UB Church

Today I visited the church where I grew up, Grace United Brethren Church in Sherkston, ON. 

Why return after 10+ years? First, I happened to be in the area; it just so happened that the conference I had been invited to as a speaker was in Port Colborne. So, I spent the weekend with my Mom in the home where I grew up. Second, the church were I grew up had burned down and been rebuilt. Neither of us had been back to the church since the fire and I was curious to see what the new building looked and felt like. The church building that my ancestors helped build burned down in 2020 (read more about that here) and only recently have the doors reopened for worship.

Stepping inside, I was struck by a few things: 

1. It felt brighter, more open, and more spacious than the previous building, even though it's smaller from a square footage perspective. The space feels comfortable and easily manageable for both small and large groups.

2. The two main spaces have been flipped. There used to be a sanctuary space on the west end and a Christian education space on the east end. Now, the Christian education space is on the west end and the sanctuary is on the east end.

3. The basement is gone. I have fond memories of my Jr High Sunday school classroom with a sump pump in the corner. There was also a large basement area with sliding wooden panel doors separating spaces and an upright piano. There was a kitchen and a maintenance room with a cistern. There was also a little room under the stairs with a phone in it. That's all gone. Now, the kitchen is in the middle of the facility, separating the foyer from the multipurpose space. There's no cistern. And who needs a room for a phone anymore.

Building aside, the best part was the people. I was overwhelmed to chat with a handful of saints who watched me grow up and are still faithfully praying and serving. So grateful for them.

For fire pictures, see the CBC article linked above. Here are before and after pics and one I snapped with my phone while the pastor was preaching 

 

Easter Hope - He is Risen

Ἠγέρθη.

 

The Greek term that translates into English as "He is risen!" It's the angelic Easter proclamation found in Matt. 28:6; Mk. 16:6; and Lk. 24:6. 

While the term can mean something as benign as "s/he got up," when it's used to describe what happened to Jesus post-death it signifies a cosmic change. His "getting up" or "rising" is the defeat of sin and death. It means hope after death. Love has conquered.

Then, after 40 days, ἀνελήμφθη "he was taken up" (Acts 1:2). His ascension marked his return to the heavens where he is now seated at the right hand of his Father (Eph. 1:20). Between his resurrection and his ascension we see glimpses of Jesus in his brief encounters with the disciples. Not as a ghost or some post-human spiritual being, but as a resurrected human. A God-man who still looked, talked, and walked like a pre-resurrected human; just with new attributes (i.e., being able to walk through locked doors and disappear/reappear). Then, he ascended to the heavens to take his rightful place, once again, over all things, holding all things together (Col. 1:15-18).

So, this Easter I am celebrating the risen Christ and the defeat of sin and death. I'm celebrating that I, like the apostle Paul, have been raised with Christ now (Col. 3:1). I'm celebrating that even in death there will come a day when I in my body will "rise" to live just as it happen with Jesus on that first Easter morning (1 Cor. 15:35-57). And I'm celebrating that the world is a perfectly good and safe place to be, because Christ is ruling over all things.

Happy Easter!