Baptism is Coming - You Can Help!

by Rachel Huff, Team Leader for PCC Care Ministries and today's guest Blogger

Has there been a time in your life when God reached out to you through another person?

Has there been a time in your life when you longed for an expression of God’s love but didn’t receive it?

These experiences should motivate you to do something! And you have that opportunity right now to one of the many people considering baptism this June.

I promise: if you step out on faith, you will make a difference, and you will be blessed. Send an e-mail to care@pccwired.net for more information.

Need Mothers Day Pictures!

We are doing a really cool element on Mothers Day where we'll put pictures of PCC Mom's on our screens behind a fantastic song. If you can please send a picture of the Mom in your life (or YOU if you are a Mom, surrogate mom, grandmom, etc.) The picture needs to be a jpeg at least 400x400, but the higher quality, the better.

We may not be able to use all pictures, depending on quality and quantity.

Please email them to communications@pccwired.net.

Thanks for your help. Mothers Day at PCC is going to be awesome!

Final Day: John 21 and some thoughts on Easter

What an awesome day we had yesterday! Easter Weekend Services at PCC saw almost 1,900 people physically come to one of our 5 services. It was really incredible. The band was really rockin', and I LOVED the B.B.King tune that they opened with. The choir was great. The 'Welcome to our Church' video was really cool. The dance was moving. And the twist at the end with the cross was a fitting end for the day, and for the series. And this doesn't even mention the dozens of other things that need to go right in order for us to experience what we experience - lights, cameras, sound, parking folks, greeters, PCC Kids folks, Online transmission, shuttle drivers, guest service food, coffee, Bibles, book store, Green Room, Student room, traffic control, grass cutting, building clean up and lock up, signage, information desk, ushers...the list goes on and on and on. I'm sure I've left some things off as I just try to think about all that it takes.

A large team of skilled, dedicated and very committed people put PCC together every week. A guy I know who's been coming to PCC for a while, recently started serving in the 'booth', learning to run sound. He said to me several times yesterday, "I just had no idea how much goes into making these services happen. You guys put in a LOT of time up here!" Yes, we do. Not just staff folks, but servers who volunteer hundreds of hours because they believe in what we do. If you believe in what we do and you call PCC your church, we need your help. Let me know - email me at brian@pccwired.net and I'll help get you plugged in.

But after a day like yesterday, I find myself exhilarated and exhausted at the same time. So, I think I'm going to take the day off today and go fishing.

Which is exactly how we find Peter as John winds up his book. Peter had been hearing the reports of Jesus appearing. In fact, Peter had actually seen Jesus twice already (see ch.20). But the events of the past few days also left him in need of some re-group time. After the unbelievable events Peter had witnessed, including his own personal failure of denying Jesus in the moment when Jesus needed him most, Peter was a blender - spinning on high speed - churning a recipe of guilt, wonder, excitement, regret, anticipation, guilt, questions, fatigue, and fear. Can you imagine just how he felt? He needed to clear his head.

"I'm going fishing" he said.

I guess his friends could relate. "We'll go with you" they said.

That was probably the quietest fishing trip in history. I bet nobody said anything. They were all thinking, processing, and not catching a thing - which didn't really matter much...or maybe it did.

I wonder if the fishing was really about a decision. Think about this now. Jesus was gone. They knew who they were with him, but who were they now that he was gone? The temptation, of course, was to return to the way things were, and they were fishermen. There was a pull there for them. It would have been easy to just go back to the old life - the old habits, the old ways of thinking, the old 'me'.

If they had caught a boatload of fish that night, I bet their minds would have started to resolve to 'go back.'

But they were reminded, for one of the final times, that Jesus' resurrection leads to His presence. He is alive, but He is not gone. He is here. And His presence should make every difference to us. In a tangible way, Jesus demonstrated that to Peter and the gang that day. He told them to cast the net, even though they had caught nothing. They complied and caught the mother load. Then they knew: I can't go back to the old life. Living life with Jesus is better that the old life. Far better.

For me, there is an occasional tug to live the way I used to. Sometimes, I fail. I lashed out at a friend last week. That was the old me. I still sometimes neglect my family. That's the old me. I'm not always as devoted to what God wants me to do as I should be. That's the old me. The tug is there.

But I think, in hindsight, I'm becoming more like the person Jesus wants me to be over time, even it the progress is slow...even if I take 3 steps forward and a step or two back. That's still moving in the right direction.

So, I'm going fishing today. But not to wonder about the old life. Rather, I'm going because my family needs some time. Because I need to reflect and think and ponder and pray. And in it all, I know this: Jesus' presence makes all the difference. The question is: Am I responding or ignoring? Am I casting my net when He tells me to, or am I looking the other way?

Are you?

Easter Soul Prep Day 20

It's pretty difficult to read the Easter story with fresh eyes, isn't it? Even for folks who don't have a long background in church, it's still fairly familiar. And for those who have been in church for a while, you've likely heard it so many times that you can recite much of it from memory. It's not that you've tried to memorize it, but it's like watching a movie over and over again. After some time, it just kind of sinks in to a permanent part of your memory.

For me, that's what John 20 is like. I find myself skipping words or even full sentences. I've read it so many times. On the one hand, it's a blessing. On the other, it's kind of a hindrance.

So, lets see if we can somehow find John 20 with fresh eyes.

Some questions come to mind that I've not considered:

• Why did Mary Magdalene run back as soon as she saw the stone was rolled away? (I think the possibility that Jesus had risen never entered her mind, which is remarkable given her devotion to him.)
• What were Peter and 'the other disciple' thinking as they ran to the tomb? (The other disciple is John, by the way. He is the 'one that Jesus loved'.)
• Why wouldn't John go into the tomb when he got there?
• A very odd thing happens at the end of v.8. "they saw and believed". Believed what, exactly? Because in v.9, John tells us that they still didn't understand.
• Mary seems to be completely overwhelmed, and John and Peter aren't very pastoral because they just sort of leave her there and run back!
• Mary finally sticks her head in and there are 2 angels sitting there. There is some significance to their placement, too. John wants us to know that they were seated at either end of the table where the body was - one at the head, the other at the foot.
• Jesus' appearance had somehow changed, because Mary didn't recognize him. However, she DID recognize his voice and the way he called her name (there is a LOT wrapped up in this!)
• Jesus insists that no one can touch him. Why did it matter that Jesus hadn't returned to the Father? Was he afraid they'd dirty his clothes? I think here we get a glimpse of John's major concern that he wants everyone to know: Jesus was REAL. Not a hologram. He could physically be touched. (See one of the early posts in this series about that)
• v.22 is kind of unusual. It suggests that there is someone who stands in between me and God. If I petition God for forgiveness of a sin, but the disciples refused to forgive me, would God say to me, "well, Brian, I'd love to do it, but you HAVE to convince John. He's being a little obstinate right now..."
• Three times Jesus says the phrase "Peace be with you!"

I guess you can see a familiar story with fresh eyes, because most of what I put here in these bullets are new and fresh observations to me. And any one of them is worth digging into. What is God saying to you on Day 20?

Easter Soul Prep Day 19

'You can't have it both ways' is a phrase we use as a way of saying, "you might try to play both sides, but you ultimately have to decide where you stand, who's side you're on, which side of the fence, etc.

There are 2 people in John 19 who stand in startling contrast. Both tried to have it both ways, play both sides, have their cake and eat it, too. When the chapter is over, one has made a firm choice. The other is still playing, but he doesn't know it.

First, Pilate. Pilate is the Roman governor. He is not a Jew and he didn't particularly like the Jews, but he oversaw the legal affairs of the area. Jews were not legally permitted to execute someone - and the Jewish leaders very much wanted Jesus to be executed - so they had to persuade Pilate to do their bidding.

Pilate wants to have it both ways.

On the one hand, there is a delicate political balance. If the Jews pitch a fit, Pilate's superiors may think he cannot control the territory and remove him. So he wants to appease them. On the other hand, he really doesn't think Jesus has done anything worthy of execution.

So, he cheats.

After repeated attempts to persuade the Jewish leaders to set Jesus free, Pilate turns Jesus over to soldiers with an order of Crucifixion. But he accepts no responsibility in the matter, essentially abdicating the responsibility for the decision to the Jews. (19:6).

Then there is Nicodemus. We first met him in John 3. He's one of those Jewish leaders. Nicodemus visits Jesus under the cover of darkness in order to also have it both ways. He wants to meet Jesus, hear from him, know him...but he also wants his affiliation to be kept secret, private, and in the dark. Nicodemus argues on Jesus' behalf in John 7, but is still careful about what's happening in his heart.

But now, Nicodemus comes out of the dark and goes public with his allegiance: He has chosen a side and is a full-fledged, card-carrying bonafide follower of Jesus Christ, and he doesn't care who knows about it. I can only imagine the looks on the faces of his former colleagues on the ruling council, glaring at Nicodemus has he helps transport the body. He has now drawn a clear line and is standing on the other side of it.

Have you?

Like Pilate and like Nicodemus, you can't have it both ways, either. You may say that you are a Christian, but are you really following Jesus? Do you live your life in such a way that you are completely living a sold-out, public, unashamed commitment to Jesus Christ?

Or are you trying to have it both ways?

Ask God today, "Is there any place in my life, Lord, where I need to be more fully devoted...where I'm trying to have it both ways?" He'll tell you if you want to know. Then, do what He says.

Easter Soul Prep Day 18

Have you ever had a really special place - a place where you could go and clear your mind, think with precision, gain perspective? For me, that place is on the water. I grew up about 25 minutes from the ocean and about the same distance from the Chesapeake Bay. For someone who lives life at 100 miles an hour, having life slow down to a stop from time to time is very important. On the water, especially on my boat, is where that happens for me.

For Jesus, it was this olive grove called the Mount of Olives.

Now, personally, this doesn't look all that awesome to me. Then again, it probably was somewhat different then. In any event, John tells us that Jesus and his friends frequented that place, which made him easy to find for Judas and the Roman soldiers.

There is a good bit of speculation around v.6. No one really knows what happened there. It might be a good place for you to spend some time meditating and praying.

I also find the story of Malchus very interesting (v.10). Only John tells us his name. And only Luke tells us that Jesus heals the guy's ear. We can read between the lines by what is there (in the text) and by what is not in the text. John wants us to know the injured soldier's name, but doesn't find it important that Jesus puts his ear back on. Why would these two things be significant? And rest assured - they ARE significant. They go to John's message. See if you can discover some answers. Ask God to help you.

Note also that Jesus - who has avoided capture to this point - now embraces it, knowing that he has to 'drink of the cup'.

Chapter 18 is consumed with capture and trial. It is the at the heart of the Easter story as we know it. You should read chapter 18 and know the characters and the 'plot line' of the story.

Easter Soul Prep Day 17

Anticipation is one of the things that makes life exciting. The weeks that lead up to a very special vacation or your wedding day (or your child's) are filled with anticipation. Or perhaps it's the anticipation of having a baby or asking 'the' question or graduation day. The anticipation a soldier and his/her family must feel as they near home after a long deployment. The anticipation of a second date after the first one was magical.

We also anticipate difficult moments, and that anticipation comes with some level of anxiety. Exam day. The last day of a job (or the first). The move from home to the college campus. A meeting with the boss that he asked for 2 weeks ago and made you wait for and you've been anticipating it every day. The final weeks and days of a good friend's life as they slowly succumb to cancer.

When we get to these moments, when they finally come, and we say, "It's time."

John has been concerned - even obsessed with - time throughout his book - from the opening verses. Along the way, Jesus kept insisting, "my time hasn't come" or "it isn't time". But as we begin the prayer He prays in ch17, he acknowledges the moment with the fateful statement, "the time has come."

It is time.

Jesus' prayer here is powerful. How he prays for his friends, for God to bring the fullness of His Glory, and how He prays for you and me. Did you see it? v.20-21 (and perhaps beyond).

Read between the lines, now. What are the things Jesus prays for? What is absent from his prayer? Is this prayer a model for us? What does it teach you about your own prayer - something you should do differently, perhaps?

Can you feel the anticipation in Jesus - the anxiety and urgency of his prayer. He didn't just say his time had come...he knew it.