THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 2, 1995 TAG: 9503010197
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 18 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TRUDY CUTHRELL, CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
Oakland Christian Church members have added a personal touch to their Lenten observance, publishing their own devotional booklet, ``My Redeemer Lives!''
Inspiration for the project came from the pastor, the Rev. Mark L. Burns, and the Board of Christian Education endorsed it. Church members were invited to submit entries.
The finished product is a 50-page devotional booklet, reflecting the hearts and spirit of the Oakland congregation. Lynn Pope, director of Christian activities for the church, said it includes Scriptural texts, personal experiences, words of strength and comfort and life-changing encounters. Some of the selections touch the heart strings and bring tears, and others give cause for praise and thanksgiving.
``We hope that everyone who reads this will get a special blessing,'' Pope said. ``I have certainly gained great insight from reading it myself.''
Contributions to ``My Redeemer Lives!'' came from 45 people, including two former pastors of Oakland, the Rev. David L. Wilson and the Rev. Bill Everhart. Pope's submission includes a personal testimony about listening. ``I'm always so ready to talk and often don't listen,'' she explained. She hopes that others can benefit from what she is learning about the art of listening.
Tammy Howell contributed a moving account of her mother's stroke, which left her alone, in a car, for two hours. Feeling both grief and guilt over this situation, Howell relates how God comforted her when she got behind the wheel of her mother's car and discovered that a Scripture tape had been playing at the time of her mother's stroke. ``The Scripture that was being read when I got in the car was that God will help us through our trials in this life,'' Howell wrote.
Another contributor gave testimony of God's sustaining strength through the loss of a loved one. Her closing prayer for this trial reads: ``Dear Lord, help us to accept Thy Will, and forgive us when we question the reason. Give us strength to live each day with what seems to be an unbearable loss, and remember Your words `I will never, never leave you or forsake you'. Amen.''
Burns quoted from Robert Frost's poem, ``The Road Not Taken,'' in his devotional thoughts on making decisions. Burns concludes with this challenge: ``Let us choose wisely the roads we follow, for we can make all the difference in the world.''
The monthlong process of collecting, typing, editing and printing this booklet was coordinated by Oakland's secretary, Julie Greene.
``I received a special blessing each day as I typed the booklet,'' Greene said. ``And often it had a message for a specific situation that day.''
A small assembly-line crew of Oakland members put the booklet in final form for distribution to the congregation on Feb. 26. This introduction to the church's Lenten Observance was part of the church-wide celebration of Mardi Gras on Sunday.
``This service was a time of giving thanks to God for all his blessings,'' Burns explained. ``It was an opportunity to `Make a joyful noise unto the Lord,' based on the text of Psalm 50.''
Guest musicians presented some lively music in the New Orleans style, including ``When the Saints Go Marching In'' and ``Just a Closer Walk With Thee.''
``Hopefully, after this time of celebration, we'll take the time of Lent very seriously,'' Burns explained. ``Lent is a time when we prepare ourselves spiritually for the coming celebration of Easter.''
Lent, the 40 weekdays from Ash Wednesday to Easter, is traditionally marked by penitence and fasting. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MICHAEL KESTNER
The Rev. Mark Burns, pastor at Oakland Christian Church, looks over
the Lenten devotional handbook with Julie Greene, who compiled it.
by CNB